Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha) Townships Tour | New Brighton | Kwazakhele | Zwide | Veeplaas

Townships and Township Tours

Nelson Mandela Bay’s “Townships” are steeped in history, tradition and culture. From their modest beginnings they have flourished into hubs of activity and social life.

The feeling of “Ubuntu” (humanist philosophy focusing on people’s allegiances and relations with each other) surrounds their very existence.

New Brighton Township grew around the railway station built in 1877. It includes Red Location, White Location, McNamee, Boastville, Elundini and KwaFord. Red Location is a settlement of mostly tin shanties. The name originated from the oxide colourant used to protect the corrugated iron structures and roofs from rust, which have become a trademark in the area. After the war the “Blacks” from Bubba’s location were housed here. White Location was the first economic housing scheme that was built there after the Urban Areas Act of 1923. Africans from Stranger’s Location, Russell Road and Coopers Kloof located here by 1904.

Kwa-Zakhele – meaning “place to build yourself” in Xhosa, was established in 1956. Its families moved in from Korsten, a nearby mixed-race township.

Zwide – was named after Fair Hansen Manchinger Zwide, the principal of the Bethelsdorp Coloured Primary School. Mr Zwide was a community leader and was elected onto many committees and forums.

Informal Street Vendors

As the informal sector grows, roadside vendors are constantly increasing their list of products and becoming an experience unto themselves!



The items for sale range from fresh fruit, vegetables or poultry to clothing garments, wooden African crafts, African art, woven baskets, curios and wire crafts. The most popular vending areas extend along Govan Mbeki Avenue, which has been upgraded to cater for vendors and pedestrians, as well as the Rink Street Mall and the area in front of Builders Express on the corner of Main Road and Eighth Avenue, Walmer.

Social, Political and Historical Tours

Visitors who wish to explore South Africa’s politics and history, may opt for a number of organised social, historic and traditional township tours. These tours take you back in time and unveil how history, including the apartheid era, has made its impact on the area.  In the townships one will see what limitations applied in the past and how people resisted and adapted.

Township life first-hand is not only a thought-provoking experience, but an experience filled with the joy of optimism and hope.

For marketers and planners, this is where the future of South Africa will be shaped. Various accredited tour operators offer social history / township tours and shebeen tours.

Some of these tours will include visits to places of historical and political importance, as well as the ever-popular “Shebeens” (informal traditional bars). In addition you will be treated to African music, dances and traditional food by the hospitable Xhosa people.


Guided tours of the townships offer an alternative to the glossy pre-packaged “bus window” view of South Africa. Tour operators and guides strive to give tourists the opportunity to meet “the people” and understand the many issues of our diverse country and region

Shebeen Tours

Shebeens (informal traditional bars) were once ‘illegal’ because they were not licensed for the sale of liquor, but have now (legally) become a lively cross between social clubs, a bar and a general meeting place. A shebeen tour offers an entertaining 3 – 4 hours of insight into the life and soul of the townships. Shebeens come alive over weekends when hard work is replaced by beer and laughter. These venues are found on every street corner and add to the atmosphere of township life. Amid hooting taxis and eager pedestrians, the shebeen offers a great venue where patrons can relax and unwind.

The Red Location Museum

The Red Location Museum of Struggle, which can be found on the corner of Olof Palme and Singaphi Streets, New Brighton, is a must-see on any visitor’s itinerary. The museum, which was opened in November 2006, commemorates South Africa’s turbulent apartheid history and long struggle for freedom. Several prestigious awards have been bestowed on the museum for its magnificent architecture and it is one of four of its kind in South Africa. The museum is situated in the historical Red Location, the city’s first black township, where the first urban Black families settled in the 1900s.

The many tour operators, tour guides and travel agents offer a variety of tours to select from, so you are guaranteed to find what you are looking for.