Galleries and Museums
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New Brighton A symbol of our freedom and unconventional in terms of museum design, the Red Location Museum is definitely worth a visit.
Red Location is one of the oldest townships of Nelson Mandela Bay, named for the corrugated iron barrack buildings which have rusted to a deep red. Many famous political and cultural leaders lived in Red Location and a number of significant ‘struggle’ events occurred during Apartheid.
Museum visitors are treated as active participants rather than consumers. The past is represented as a set of memories, disconnected yet bound together by themes using the concept of the Memory Box. This was inspired by the boxes that migrant labourers used for storing their precious possessions when separated from their families.
Red Location also draws together the strands of struggle that commemorate the efforts by different groups to free themselves.
The museum complex includes an art gallery, market, a creative arts centre, library, adult literacy centre and a conference venue.
Corner Olof Palme and Singaphi Streets, New Brighton
+27 (0)41 408 8400
Opening Hours:
Tuesday to Friday 10:00 - 16:00
Saturday at Sunday 09:00 - 15:00.
Things to do near
New Brighton
*Distances are shown as the crow flies and not necessarily the actual travelling
distance.
Hiking Trail
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Schoenmakerskop (4.1 km from New Brighton) Cape Recife Lighthouse is the third oldest lighthouse on the South African coast and was built in 1851. Stay on the beach past the lighthouse and go towards the car park at Chelsea Bay. From here you follow the gravel road. Then it will be a short climb to ruins of historical lookout buildings. Continue on the gravel road to the gate. Take drinking water. Difficulty is moderate.
The trail is 9 km long and takes approximately three hours. Vehicles need a permit that can be obtained at the entrance to the reserve. No permit is required for hikers who leave their vehicles by the gate. Please enquire.
Beaches
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Swartkops (4.8 km from New Brighton) Swartkops Beach is a tiny stretch of shoreline that extends the Swartkops river mouth. Swartkops is a great spot for all kinds of fishing, lazing around and swimming and is ideal for travelling families.
Sports Stadiums Clubs
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North End (5.6 km from New Brighton) Situated on the North End Lake which is an idyllic setting for match days, the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium is the Eastern Cape's first dedicated football stadium.
Features include a three-tier design with two rings of skyboxes. Five first-round, one second-round, one quarter-final, and the third-place play-off 2010 FIFA World Cup matches kicked off here.
The football crazy Port Elizabeth / Nelson Mandela Bay and Eastern Cape residents are the beneficiaries of this brand new futuristic multi-purpose stadium with seating for 50 000 spectators. It is conveniently located near the N2 highway, just a few kilometres from the coast and the port of Coega.
In close proximity to Port Elizabeth / Nelson Mandela Bay is the Addo Elephant National Park and two of South Africa's award winning private game reserves and lodges - Shamwari Game Reserve and Bushman Sands Hotel (featuring a world-class Gary Player designed golf course) along with many other accommodation options. Called the "Friendly City" for good reason, Port Elizabeth offers a number of stunning beach options.
Hiking Trail
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Port Elizabeth (5.9 km from New Brighton) The Guinea Fowl trail is located in the Baakens River Valley at the centre of Port Elizabeth. The walking trail is divided into an upper and a lower section.
The Upper Guinea Fowl trail is six kilometres long and takes approximately two hours to walk. The trail starts at 3rd Avenue in Walmer and ends at Sunridge Park at Kragga Kamma.
The Lower Guinea Fowl trail is seven and a half kilometres long and takes you downstream to Settler's Park. The trail meanders along the Braakens River and passes through a steep-sided valley below the city suburbs. Visitors can see wildflowers, trees and blue water lilies along the walk, as well as dassies, tortoises and lizards. The trail is not circular so walkers will have to organise transport for the way back.
There are ablution facilities and water available along the trails.
Shopping Malls
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Greenacres (6 km from New Brighton) Greenacres Shopping Centre is situated in the heart of Port Elizabeth, the economic hub of the Eastern Cape. This trendy shopping mecca forms part of a one-kilometre complex that entices visitors from afar to indulge in retail therapy.
Two choices in parking facilities are on offer. There is an outdoor parking space and a three-level parking facility with over 1000 parking bays situated on the Northern side of the building. Two levels of this facility are undercover, while the rooftop is open.
Opening hours:
Monday to Friday 09:00 – 18:00
Friday 09:00 – 19:00
Saturday 08:30 – 17:00
Sunday and Public Holidays 09:00 – 14:00
Selected tenants and food outlets trade longer hours for your convenience.
Banking Hours:
Nedbank Monday to Friday 08:30 – 16:00
Saturday 08:30 – 12:00
First National Bank Monday to Friday 09:00 – 15:30
Saturday 08:30 – 11:00
Rennies Foreign Exchange Monday to Friday 08:30 – 16:30
Saturday 08:30 – 12:00.
Galleries and Museums
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Newton Park (6 km from New Brighton) The St. Croix Motor Museum has a fine private collection of vintage and classic vehicles dating back to 1901.
If you have an interest in classic vehicles, then this is the place to visit. About 80 cars are on show, dating from the early century to the 1960's. Many other items related to the motor industry are also on display.
The museum is open on Saturday afternoons.
Weekday visits are by appointment only.
Galleries and Museums
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Port Elizabeth (6.5 km from New Brighton) The St. Croix Motor Museum is located in St Georges Park. On display is a private collection of vintage and classic motor vehicles, dating as far back as 1901. Many of the vehicles are for sale. The museum was created by Eben de Vos and is housed in an airplane hangar beside Mill Park.
There are about 80 vehicles on display, ranging from the early 20's to the early 60's. Many artifacts related to the motor vehicle industry are also on display.
Big Event Venues
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West End (PE) (6.6 km from New Brighton) Varsvlei Commonage is the venue for the annual Northern Arts Festival. This unique event celebrates the heritage and culture of Nelson Mandela Bay and the broader Eastern Cape. Growing bigger and better every year, organizers focus on keeping it fun as well as bridging the divide between community development and the arts.
Golf Courses
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Mill Park (7 km from New Brighton) Founded in 1890, the Port Elizabeth Golf Club is one of the oldest in South Africa. Over 100 years later many of the holes still have the same routing!
Today the 6121 metre layout features significant changes including bent grass greens, 25 strategically placed bunkers, and two nines of par 36 for a total par of 72.
Well established trees, palm trees, strelitzias and lush plantings line the fairways. The two signature holes, the 8th and 17th holes, feature distinctive water features.
The vibrant club house offers multi-functional lounges, bars and modern change room facilities with a sauna.
+27 (0) 41 374 3140
bookings@pegolf.co.za
Westview Drive, Mill Park, Port Elizabeth
Hiking Trail
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Bluewater Bay (7.1 km from New Brighton) The Aloe Trail starts at the top of Tippers Creek Road between Amsterdamhoek and Bluewater Bay. The circular route is marked with red arrows and overlooks Amsterdamhoek and the Zwartkops estuary.
Vast numbers of aloes line the beginning of the trail, offering a blaze of colourful blooms during June and July and attracting numerous sunbirds. Keep following the red trail inland before returning to the ridge at a trig beacon. From here there are extensive views over the Zwartkops estuary, the saltpan and Zwartkops Nature Reserve.
Duration: 3 hours
Difficulty: Easy to moderate
Distance: 7 km
Popular Attractions
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Port Elizabeth (7.4 km from New Brighton) The Erica School for Girls in Port Elizabeth was begun in 1884 by Miss Mary Anne van Wyk, who initially gave lessons in the old Erica Hall. After the South African War, it was decided to erect a new school building, which was designed by architect W White-Cooper, and was built by HJ Beckett. It was opened on 4 November 1903 by Dr Thomas Muir, then Superintendent-General of Education. It was declared a National Monument under old NMC legislation on 17 March 1989.
Nature Reserves
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Port Elizabeth (8.7 km from New Brighton) Known as the oldest park in Port Elizabeth, this is also the home of the second oldest cricket club in South Africa, which has hosted countless test matches to this day.
St George's Park also features the Port Elizabeth Bowls Club, founded on August 14, 1882, and known as "The Mother Club of Bowls in South Africa" as it was the first bowling club in the country. Other facilities include a swimming baths complex, the Mannville Open-Air Theatre, the Port Elizabeth Lawn Tennis Club, Prince Alfred's Guard Memorial, and the Pearson Conservatory.
Galleries and Museums
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St Georges Park (8.9 km from New Brighton) The Ron Belling Art Gallery is situated in a beautiful Art Deco house built in 1936. Designed by Gertruida Brinkman, the first woman architect to graduate in South Africa, it is recognized as a significant example of the Early Modern Style. The house has been modified tastefully as a modern art gallery and both the building and the privately owned collection are available for the benefit of the larger community.
Ron Belling was South Africa’s foremost aviation artist who produced 1650 paintings during his lifetime. Many of these are exhibited at the gallery, dedicated to his memory in Port Elizabeth. The gallery also exhibits examples of the Marine and Junkers series, the latter almost completed at the time of his death and are on loan from the Ron Belling Memorial Art Trust.
Open Monday to Friday 10:00 – 16:00.
Weekends on the first Saturday and Sunday of the Month 10:00 – 13:00; third and fourth Saturday of the Month 10:00 – 13:00.
Closed every second weekend of the month (Saturday, Sunday, Monday) and religious holidays.
A nominal admission fee is payable.
Sports Stadiums Clubs
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St Georges Park (8.9 km from New Brighton) Sahara Oval, St George’s Park Cricket Ground, St George’s Oval, The Crusaders Ground – the grand old cricket oval of many names was the first ground in South Africa to host a Test match in 1889.
St George's Cricket Ground lies in Nelson Mandela Bay's upmarket suburb of St George’s Park and is one of the venues for Test matches and One Day Internationals in South Africa.
The oval is home to the Port Elizabeth Cricket Club, one of the oldest cricket clubs in South Africa, and the Eastern Province Amateur Cricket Board.
Nature Reserves
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Port Elizabeth (9 km from New Brighton) The Settlers Park Nature Reserve is located in the heart of Port Elizabeth along the banks of the Baakens River Valley.
The reserve is great for exploring and bird watching. The park is rich in bird life with a variety of birds to be seen, including woodpeckers, flycatchers, and various species of sunbirds. There are also weavers, warblers, waxbills, and kingfishers nestled within the reeds of the valley.
There is a stunning flower display house, a Marquette of the 1820 Settlers' Statue, indigenous flora, rock pools with stepping-stones and grassed areas ideal for picnicking.