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Durban

Museum sights in Durban

  1. A

    KwaMuhle Museum

    The excellent KwaMuhle Museum is a must-see for those interested in understanding South Africa. This was formerly Bantu Administration headquarters, where Durban’s colonial authorities formulated the structures of urban racial segregation (the ‘Durban System’), the blueprints of South Africa’s apartheid policy. There are powerful displays on urban Durban as it was, plus another on Cato Manor, Durban’s contemporary informal settlement and the site of the new South Africa’s ambitious urban-renewal program.

    reviewed

  2. B

    Old Courthouse Museum

    The Old Courthouse Museum is in the beautiful 1866 courthouse behind the City Hall. It offers a worthwhile insight into the highs and lows of colonial living and houses an interesting sugar-mill exhibit. Among the wonderful displays of colonial items – from pipes to necklaces – there’s a display of corresponding Zulu items; identifying them is especially fun for kids (and some adults, too).

    reviewed

  3. C

    Sugar Terminal

    Maydon Wharf, which runs along the southwestern side of the harbour and south of Margaret Mncadi Ave, contains the Sugar Terminal, which offers an insight into the former importance of the sugar trade.

    reviewed

  4. D

    Natural Science Museum

    The Natural Science Museum boasts an impressive display of stuffed birds and insects, plus African animals. Check out the cockroach and dung beetle displays, the reconstructed dodo and the life-sized dinosaur model.

    reviewed

  5. E

    Port Natal Maritime Museum

    The Port Natal Maritime Museum is on a service road running parallel to Margaret Mncadi Ave. You can explore two former steam tugs and see the huge wicker basket once used for hoisting passengers onto ocean liners.

    reviewed

  6. Time-Warp Surf Museum

    Upstairs from Surf Zone, you'll find the Time-Warp Surf Museum, which is packed with surfie memorabilia.

    reviewed

  7. F

    Municipal Library

    The municipal library is in the City Hall complex.

    reviewed