Discover Capricorn
Accommodation in Capricorn
The Tropic of Capricorn runs directly through the Capricorn District Municipality. The area is also home to museums with photographic and cultural collections, rock paintings on Makgabeng Mountain, and nature reserves of very different sizes. Travellers who shape their trip around their own interests can explore both cultural history and nature in Capricorn.
The Tropic of Capricorn and regional roads
In the Molemole area, visitors can stop at the Tropic of Capricorn monument and touch it. The Tropic is therefore more than a name on a map: it is a tangible point of reference for a visit. For families who enjoy discovering geographical features together, it offers a vivid opportunity to talk about the location of the Tropic of Capricorn.
The road connections also help with orientation: the N1 national highway runs through Molemole Municipality and connects it with Zimbabwe to the north. The P94/1 provincial road, also known as the R521, also runs through Molemole and connects the municipality with Botswana to the west. If you take regional road connections into account when planning your trip, these two routes can help you get your bearings. They lead in different directions: north on the N1 and west on the P94/1, also known as the R521.
Photography and cultural history
The Hugh Exton Photographic Museum is housed in a 19th-century Dutch Reformed church. Its collection comprises 23,000 photographs of Polokwane and its people, bringing photography together with cultural and historical themes. The extensive collection offers a distinct focus for travellers interested in the history of a place and the people who live there. The Polokwane Cultural History Museum is also known as the Irish House Museum.
The Bakone Malapa Northern Sotho Museum offers another way to explore cultural history. This open-air museum can be visited on foot, and visitors can explore a traditional Sotho village as it is believed to have existed 250 years ago. Rather than photographs, the focus here is on a village and its portrayal. If you are travelling with children and want to discover different ways of presenting history together, you can consider these two types of museums as options that cater to different cultural interests.
There are about 400 rocky sites with rock paintings on Makgabeng Mountain. The approximate number and the spread across different sites make the area another destination for people interested in traces of the past. The 1903 Prison Camp at Beauley is also listed as a tourist attraction in Blouberg Municipality.
Nature destinations and special outings
The Blouberg Nature Reserve covers 9,348 hectares. One of its special features is a breeding colony with more than 1,000 breeding pairs. Visitors can book a guided Vulture Trail in the reserve. It leads to a plateau above the breeding colony and offers the chance to see vultures in flight. The guided nature of this experience sets it apart from a visit where you explore an area on your own.
The Polokwane Game Reserve covers 3,250 hectares. These figures put the two reserves’ sizes into perspective: the Blouberg Nature Reserve is considerably larger than the Polokwane Game Reserve. Your particular interests may therefore guide your choice: the breeding colony and guided Vulture Trail are highlights of the Blouberg Nature Reserve, while the Polokwane Game Reserve is another option for visiting a nature reserve.
Other places to visit include the Polokwane Golf Course, established in 1863, and Meropa Casino, which is home to a bird and snake sanctuary called Wild Thingz. Polokwane is also a stopover on the way to Kruger National Park. This means you can include Capricorn in a trip that features Polokwane as a stop on the way to the national park.
Which holiday rental suits your travel plans?
When looking for a holiday rental in Capricorn, it helps to decide what you want to focus on first: would you like to visit museums and explore cultural history, discover rock paintings, plan wildlife viewing, or include Polokwane as a stopover? The attractions described here have different themes, so you can choose your accommodation based on the outings that matter most to you. Places to consider as you plan include Tolwe, Amatava, Groothoek and Polokwane Local Municipality.
For the broader travel overview: Limpopo.
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