Maboneng

The story starts in 2008 with developer Jonathan Liebmann buying an old industrial building on Fox Street and converting it into Arts on Main — gallery spaces and live-work studios that quickly attracted artists including William Kentridge, whose studio is still in the building. A decade of building-by-building expansion followed, with old warehouses and factories converted into apartments, hotels, restaurants and a 350-seat theatre.

Sunday morning is the easiest entry point. The Market on Main runs every Sunday from 10:00 to 15:00 on the ground floor of Arts on Main, with food traders, designers, vinyl crates and a busy bar courtyard. Upstairs, galleries open for the day and the rooftop terraces fill up with brunch crowds.

On any day of the week you can wander Fox, Kruger and Albrecht streets to find permanent murals by leading South African and international street artists, including a six-storey portrait of Madiba and rotating pieces curated by the City of Gold festival. The Hallmark House hotel — a Sir David Adjaye redesign of a former diamond-cutting factory — anchors the western end of the precinct.

Maboneng has had its ups and downs. The property holding company collapsed in 2019 and parts of the precinct went quiet for a couple of years, but a new wave of operators has steadily reopened venues since 2022. Today it is once again one of the most rewarding parts of inner-city Johannesburg for visitors with a local guide.

Safety note: Maboneng sits inside the working CBD and we always recommend visiting with a guide or as part of a structured city tour rather than wandering surrounding blocks unprepared. The precinct itself has private security and feels relaxed on weekends. We include Maboneng as a regular stop on our Johannesburg City Tour, usually paired with Braamfontein and the Apartheid Museum.