40 minute drive from O.R.Tambo International Airport.
The Kromdraai Gold Mine situated in the Cradle of Humankind area was one of the first gold mines on the Witwatersrand (the Johannesburg area today). Gold was discovered at the Kromdraai Gold Mine in 1881 (5 years before the gold reef was discovered in Johannesburg) by Johannes Stephanus Minnaar. The first government mining concession on the Witwatersrand was granted to The Kromdraai Goldmine by the first President of South Africa, Paul Kruger.
A visit to the Kromdraai Gold Mine at the centre of the “Cradle of Humankind” will give you an unparalleled view of old mining methods. You’ll enter the old workings through a large opening in the side of the hill and a short walk down the coco pan tracks through roughly worked tunnels and into the heart of the mountain where you will marvel at the conditions that people had to endure while extracting the gold ore.
The first gold was produced in March 1887. It weighed 10lbs 11oz and 8dwts, obtained from 271 tons of quartz a satisfactory result at a ratio of 25grams per ton. The ore was crushed by a stamp battery erected at the confluence of the Bloubank Spruit, the Sterkfontein Spring or ‘race’ and the head-waters of the Crocodile River. As the second gold mine of the Witwatersrand, Kromdraai can claim a prominent place in the history of the development of the gold fields of the Witwatersrand. Mining ceased as far as can be established in about 1910, the Kromdraai Gold Mine reopened for one more year in 1913, closing for good in 1914.
The trip includes an exciting and informative tour of 1 hour (lecture on history and geology of the mine) by the friendly owner of the farm and comprises of an underground trip – a level and easy walk for all ages, inside the mine tunnel.
Tours & Prices 2017
(NB – No scheduled times & days for all tours. Tours done on requests & bookings)
Kromdraai Gold Mine closed on Mondays:
Kromdraai Gold Mine (3 hours) – KGM01
R 1,380-00 per person sharing.
R 1,980-00 single.
Kromdraai Gold Mine / Sterkfontein Caves (5 Hours) (KGMSC01)
R 1,540-00 per person sharing.
R 2,300-00 single person.
Kromdraai Gold Mine / Sterkfontein Caves / Lion & Safari Park (6 hours) – KGMSCL01
R 1,880-00 per person sharing.
R 2,650-00 single.
(Prices are subject to change without prior notice).