Full Day Pretoria City & Cullinan Mine Tour

Itinerary

The day trip starts with a visit to Pretoria, the Jacaranda City, for the thousands of trees that line its streets and transform the city into a purple wonderland during spring. The agenda for the tour of the city's highlights will include a visit to the Union Buildings that, due to their setting against the slopes of Meintjieskop, afford a commanding view of the city. The buildings currently house the office of the South African president. The famous British Architect Sir Herbert Baker designed the buildings, regarded as one of the country's architectural masterpieces.

Other places visited include the Voortrekker Monument, a testament to a nation's pioneering spirit, and the period museum called Melrose House. Melrose House is significant because it is where the Anglo-Boer War officially ended with the signing of the Treaty of Vereeniging in 1902.

The afternoon leads east of Pretoria to Cullinan, where the world's largest diamond was discovered in 1905. This fabulous diamond weighed an incredible 3 106 carats in the rough. The Asscher Brothers in Amsterdam transformed it into magnificent stones that grace the British Crown Jewels today. A mine tour will give visitors insight into how these precious stones form under tremendous pressure and heat.