The Ladysmith Siege Museum is considered by many to be one of the best Anglo-Boer War museums in the world. Exhibits depict life and the surroundings during the siege, and there are a number of artefacts on display including uniforms, photographs, maps and firearms.
The building in which the museum is now housed was built in 1884 and initially served as a ration post for civilians before being turned into a marketplace and then finally into a museum in 1985.
For more information call +27 36 637 2992.
Distance - 3.2km's away.
Built during the late 1800s, it shows the stone construction method used by the first settlers in Ladysmith. Before 1882, wagons, carriages, and carts wishing to enter Ladysmith had to pay a toll fee. Mr William Adams was the first toll collector. He was also a blacksmith and wagon maker and was able to shoe horses and repair any animal drawn vehicle. Sadly damaged by flooding and rising damp, the need for the Toll House came to an end in 1882. When the wagon bridge over the Klip River, near the Wimpy was completed and brought into use.
Today it is the headquarters of the Ladysmith Historical Society and houses a small museum that is opened on request.
For more information call +27 36 637 2992
Distance - 3.2km's away.
The building housing the museum is the Toll House which was erected in 1879 in the town of Colenso. The first man to occupy this quaint little building was W.R. Steward, the toll keeper. It was later converted into a Battle Museum and named after Dr. R.E. Stevenson, the military historian and former Director of Natal Hospital Services. The Museum is well worth visiting as there are many historical exhibits to be seen, including a model of the Battle of Colenso. The key is available at the Police station.
For more information call +27 36 637 2992
Distance - 32km's away.
The spectacular Nambiti Private Game Reserve offers a malaria-free wilderness retreat near the southern Drakensberg in KwaZulu-Natal. Guests can experience the romance, adventure and excitement of Africa in this private reserve that is home to the Big Five.
Along with exciting sightings of lion, elephant, leopard and buffalo, you have the opportunity of seeing cheetah, numerous hippos, zebra and numerous species of antelope. Nambiti also features amazing biodiversity, supporting savannah, grasslands, thornveld and acacia veld. A number of rare bird species will keep ardent birders scanning the sky and bushveld for many hours.
Distance – 31.9km away
For more information call +27 36 631 2992
The legendary Mahatma Gandhi, among many other things, served with General Buller's relief forces after the Siege of Ladysmith. He also trained 1100 Indians who participated in the battle.
In 1993 the Hindu community paid tribute to the work of Gandhi by building a statue of him at the Lord Vishnu Temple. Visitors will have to arrange with the caretaker beforehand to view the statue.
Distance – 8.9km away
Telephone: +27 36 637 7777
As you travel on the N3 linking Durban and Johannesburg, only 8 km off the motorway near Ladysmith, you'll arrives at the famous Battlefield of Spion Kop. Over a century ago on the 24th January 1900, Spion Kop was the scene of a bloody and futile battle fought between South Africans and British forces during the South African War, 1899 to 1902.
Raymond Heron, a renowned historian, has a fascinating presentation on the war and the far-reaching effects it had on Britain and South Africa.
Website: www.spionkop.co.za
Distance – 35.4km away
Birds seen in the garden and flying overhead