Nelson Mandela Gateway to Robben Island

From the 17th to the 20th centuries, Robben Island served as a place of banishment, isolation and imprisonment. Today it is a World Heritage Site and museum, a poignant reminder of the road that had to be walked to the newly democratic South Africa, and the price so many people paid for freedom. The triple-story Nelson Mandela Gateway to Robben Island glass museum links the V&A Waterfront with the Robben Island Museum on the island itself. It also incorporates the passenger ferry terminal, aorund which are situated several eateries. There are various exhibition areas, an auditorium, and a museum shop. Daily tours depart by ferry from the Nelson Mandela Gateway at the Waterfront. The ferry trip takes 30 minutes to the tiny harbour. From there a bus ride takes one to historic places such as the kramat, the leper graveyard, a church designed by Sir Herbert Baker, and the lime quarry where political prisoners endured lengthy hours of tough, physical labour. Driving along the shipwreck-strewn coast you can spot some antelope, plenty of seabirds and the lighthouse. The last stop is the former maximum security prison.