We went with my sons Home Schooling group, we loved it, great displays & presentations. Friendly helpful staff & the kids (& adults) loved it!! Genesis 2:19 So the Lord God formed out of the ground every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name.

This museum is one of the oldest in Cape Town and it continues to make itself relevant through the many years of its operation. It's great for young and old, the casual visitor, history or science buff. You can choose where to start your exploration though time and science - and it really is an exploration with wide open spaces and a meandering flow throughout the venue. It covers such a wide variety of topics and there must be some verybright people who work there to ensure the displays stay current. Of course, I imagine in the near future the dinosaur exhibit will be revamped to current understanding of dinosaurs, but for the moment it's a great place to learn. There's a little gift store on site, you can make a booking for the planetarium, and they sometimes offer free entry.

Quite confusing to find your way around. Might miss some exhibitions without knowing it. Beautiful and interesting place. Can learn so much. New exhibitions are on their way aswell, as they where busy working on it. Stunning gardens right outside the Museum.

I have a soft spot for this museum in Cape Town. I visit it every now and again. There is always something new to see. I miss the globe exhibit they had but I always enjoy the ocean life and dinosaur exhibits. The planetarium is always a good one to see. Great place for an outing and a good place for the kids.

I’m such a history nerd! This has become my place to go and just be… take your time and look at everything… it truly is a wonderful experience

I have a soft spot for this museum. I visit it every now and then, it is also good to visit with kids in this museum then learn more.

My son absolutely loves coming here. So much to learn and explore.

The staff at the entrance were not the most cheerful bunch which is a pity but they did their job. The museum is always good for a visit and I always se something that I have never noticed before. It continues to be a place of wonder for the very young and it was lovely to hear little voices traveling through the space bringing it to life. Support this museum, it is worth it.

We love to go there especially on rainy days as you can easily spend a couple of hours in there. The museum is home to fossils of all sorts including tiny insects to the biggest animals in the world - including dinosaurs. A fascinating way to teach your kids about history and evolution and the entrance fee of R30 for adults is more than fair!

Warning: You will experience strange feelings of detachment from the reality of the world as you know it. Soon as you step through the turnstiles you will be overtaken by a powerful aura of calmness and peacefulness. The world out there might as well keep on bungling it self up, right here at this place and at this time, you will not care about any of that at all. You will slow your step, and you will take interest in something, actually many somethings. Most definitely a place worthy of a stop. And as for the charge at the door. Sjjjjjt.... Don't tell them, but man, it's cheap for what they got to show, and for helping you to escape from the World.

Always been a great place to visit. I remember coming here as a child and now my own children are visiting. The museum and exhibits have indeed changed over the years and it still remains a place of education. Most recently, my family and I visited the Planetarium : a Sunday afternoon at 15h00. Quiet, peaceful and what an experience! Digital viewing at its best. A 360 degree view of the solar system and our quest to find out whether we are alone in this universe or whether there are other beings out there trying to establish the same thing from their side. R60 per adult well spent. Go ahead and "exhibit" your best behaviour. See what I did there?

I was a bit disappointed at first as I wanted to see the planetarium but it was closed due to technical issues. That being said I didn't want to waste the trip so we decided to go in and view the museum anyway. The entrance areas while interesting were not really eye catching or flashy, it felt very traditional and I loved the focus on Africa. I wish we showed more of the vibrant nature in africa in the different areas. I was pleasantly surprised at the size of the venue. Even though there are still blocked of areas the amount of content was huge, we spent a few hours walking around. Next time I will call ahead but I still want to see the planetarium and its shows. Value for money is amazing, the parking cost me more then the entrance ticket

Very interesting and entertaining museum. My son loved this visit snd we really enjoyed the exhibitions. The whale bones and dinosaurs were our favorites.

Probably one of the best day out for families, the museum is informative, interactive and huge! The planetarium is a star studded affair that you cannot miss! Very good bang for your buck!

Such an adventure! 4 levels of fun, not forgetting the many shows at the Planetarium. Check on the website for show times. This museum is maintained well & is a definite stop either before or after Company's Garden.

An amazing place to see natural history as well as a great selection of unique South African expos. They have a large range of geological specimens as well. Parking is terrible, as the museum is located in the centre of a busy part of town. So maybe park somewhere else, and Uber to the location, as there are a few more thing to do and see around the area.

Spectacular. I have to go and finish. There is no way you can throughly go through this museum in 3 hours. The front office staff was very welcoming upon my first two visits. "The power of the rock" exhibt sets the pace to an exciting journey I'm looking forward to complete this week!

Awful. Horrible. We visited on a week day thinking it would be less busy but there were hundreds of school kids who had been bussed in. These kids were running around screaming and shouting, crowding exhibits and overall being completely disrespectful. The museum staff had absolutely no interest in controlling the chaos. When I asked the person working at the front desk if this was a regular occurrence, she said yes it's like this every day. A lot of the exhibits are also not functioning and others closed due to COVID restrictions. This is interesting considering all COVID restrictions were lifted months ago. Don't waste your time here.

Worth a visit 😊 They have a big variety of exhibitions so there's something interesting for everyone. I particularly enjoyed the animals and dinosaurs

Iziko SA museum is always a winner for younger kids and with the correct approach could be made really interesting to everyone. It is a cheap way of keeping the kids busy for at least 2 hours. My daughter and some friends went recently and these are the pictures that she took with her cellphone.

Great day out with the family, everyone from the 4yo to thr tween enjoyed it. Super interesting exhibits and great value for money.

Excellent displays and well labelled. Because of too much rain during the recent days before our visit,It actually bursted in one of the corners were supposed to go in. We managed to see many displays before we were asked to move out because of the flooding. Revamping under way as well most places were red taped .

First time visiting the museum, was really happy to finally get to see dinosaur bones and really enjoyed the whole dinosaur exhibition. What was disappointing was that there seemed to be so much unused space, the whole reptile section was replaced with a Mandela exhibit. Even though there was a whole empty room right next to it where it could have been put up instead. We had a glance through a window into a room full of stuffed animals that was not on display for some reason. The interactive "whale sounds" booth was out of order (which i'm pretty sure its been like that for a while". The computer by the bushman paintings was not working and it seems the whole museum could use a nice dusting. Other than that we had a pretty good time walking around inside the museum, lots of interesting things to see and read.

Brilliant (and cheap) outing for the kids. The shows at the planetarium are really good too.

I love going here. It's one of my favorite places to unwind as a student. Definitely go on Heritage day because there are so many freebies and lots of entertainment for all ages around the museum. Staff are friendly and the museum is pretty big so you'll be walking around for hours. Lots of events to keep kids entertained during the holiday. It's very affordable.

Wonderful and informative. Everything is clearly labeled with a little bit of history as well

The museum should relocate to outskirts of Cape Town, the animals are clustered. That museum should have field feel too.

Had a great time! Planetarium show is great for kids - perhaps not quite the thing for adults.

One of the greatest museums in Cape Town!

The home of South African prehistory. It has the distinction of being the first museum in the country. They highlight his contributions to the knowledge of the natural history of man and of the regional fauna. Its multiple exhibition halls are very educational due to the historical context, the setting and the information sheets. The images and artistic representations are very illustrative. After the tour of the famous building, you can visit the garden to enjoy its fountains, green areas and the animals that roam the place like the restless squirrels and ducks with their litters of young.

Fabulous museum! 30ZAR entry. The last planetarium show is at 3pm I think. Closes at 5pm. Lots of levels with the rock paintings, skulls, dinosaur bones, birds and animals of South Africa, honey bee information and lots of different minerals. Very educational. Choose this over the national art gallery or do both.i

Wonderful and interesting museum. It was worth a visit.

Wow what a great Museum. It was totaly great value for money with entrance only 60 rand per person this has been the best museum I have been to. Altough some parts were under construction the artifacts were a great lesson for the entire family. My two year old enjoyed the dino's and mammals tremendously. Take a day and enjoy the entire museum in and out.

So much to learn and experience here! Well worth paying a visit. Do make sure to stop by and visit the planetarium on your visit also. Hopefully the museum and all its exhibits and the planetarium has managed to remain open to the public now in a post covid 19 world. I was here in 2011 hopefully the visitor experience remains as truly great as it was back then.

The Iziko South African Museum is a South African national museum located in Cape Town. The museum was founded in 1825, the first in the country. It has been on its present site in the Company's Garden since 1897. The museum houses important African zoology, palaeontology and archaeology collections. Iziko is a Xhosa word meaning "hearth". The South African Museum was founded by Lord Charles Somerset in 1825 as a general museum comprising natural history and material culture from local and other groups further afield. In time, it developed greater systematic organisation and classification similar to the evolutionary models that were prominent in European and American museums in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The focus on natural history encouraged the notion that very little divided the animal world from the human subjects who were documented. This continued until the 1990s with the reservation of cultural history museums for the display of settler histories and the relegation of material culture from other cultures to natural history and anthropology museums. "Bushmen", referring collectively to San and Khoi indigenous groups, were considered lowest on the evolutionary timescale and as living remnants of "civilised" man's prehistory, akin to the highest form of ape. As such, they became the subject of intensive research, particularly from 1906 onwards under the directorship of Louis Péringuey. Subsequent research on Bushmen was informed by the rise of physical anthropology, a discipline in the European scientific community that drew direct correlation between physical type and evolutionary status and therefore intellectual, cultural and social status, as discussed in a 1988 article by Annie Coombes. Between 1907 and 1924 Péringuey initiated a casting project, carried out by museum modeller James Drury, in which sixty-eight body casts of "pure Bushmen specimens" were taken in a process that was both humiliating and painful for the participants. The title of Drury's book, Bushman, whale and dinosaur, detailing his 40-year affiliation with the South African Museum, gives some indication of the status these specimens were given.

Do yourself a favour and go watch "cell cell cell", submersive roller coaster ride experience, at the planetarium on 6 x 8k laser projectors, projection onto a dome. Experiences are submersive, and loose sense of reality may even get sensations of being in a roller cost. Also, feel like 3D due to the dome and effects. No glasses needed, no discomforting. Relaxing watch in tilt back seat on the dom roof. Then after getting a tour of the night sky and see great footage from the telescopes around the world.

(Translated by Google) Very cool! It has a skeleton of a human australopithecus, dinosaur fossils, several stuffed African savanna animals and other exhibits that are worth the ride. (Original) Super legal! Tem um esqueleto de um humano australopithecus, fósseis de dinossauros, vários animais da savana africana empalhados e outras exposições que valem o passeio.

What a great experience! This natural history museum was packed with exhibits of zoology, oceanography, archeology, paleontology, anthropology, and african history. This is definitely a MUST SEE for any person that loves to learn. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE MUSEUM IS CLOSED BETWEEN 11 AM AND 12:30 PM. And it completely boggels my mind that it has NOT been updated on the website.

Natural history & science museum, founded in 1825, with fossils, animals, human tools & clothing.

(Translated by Google) Incredible museum with fossils of dinosaurs and current animals, it is very interesting (Original) Increíble museo con fósiles de dinosaurios y animales actuales, es muy interesante

A whirlwind visit with a 6 & 4 year-old. Café & Shop closed, presumably due to Covid.

Brilliant museum and wonderful planetarium. I've spent a day there and learned so much. I'm in love with the exhibition. Especially animals

Beautiful place, a lot of fossils, minerals, rock, mammals and dinosaurs, good security and a real bargain to get in! Normal price is R30 per adult and R10 for pensioners/Kids but school holidays gets extra discounts! There is parking behind the building and the entire area is safe and secure! Well looked after and good security.

Great educational place. The museum is very well kept and kids loved to roam around asking questions. Planetarium is awesome as well, a very small exhibition (don't forget to drop the coin to see the black hole) interesting experience to watch documentaries on the ceiling. Must visit.

As I was admiring cave wall art at the South African Museum, I was approached by one of the minders and informed that I must leave because of unexpected "load shedding" (power cut). He then escorted me to the main door where I was issued a full refund and many embarrassed apologies. Load shedding is the most annoying aspect of a trip to South Africa. Museums and other businesses rarely have backup solutions, so they simply close down. Visitors, especially those here for a short stay, leave annoyed and frustrated. The Iziko South African Museum has a lot to offer, including a planetarium experience, but it needs to invest in a backup power solution that would allow it to run for a couple of hours when power is off.

Me and my family went to cape town for a tour and part of the tour was to visit a museum . As we did and the museum of choice was amazing . The service we got was very good and we got to be informed about alot . The experience to the museum was very educational and we had fun as well .

Very interesting place, great collection, nice presentation, but in refection and not fully opened for the moment. Entry fee is expensive (too much) for non SA visitors. Being a site for acknowledgment, nothing can justify such a discrimination between local and international for entry fees.

I visited this museum 30 years ago on a school visit and it's still the same .No new displays Still plastic moulds of fossils . No investment from government . Don't bother !!!.

(Translated by Google) Admission price is 30 Rand. Great alternative to visit if the weather is bad in Cape Town. Not really spectacular. (Original) Toegangsprijs is 30 Rand. Prima alternatief om te bezoeken als het slecht weer is in Kaapstadt. Niet echt spectaculair.

(Translated by Google) Beautiful and very large, take time to visit the museum (Original) Lindo e muito grande, reserve um tempo considerável para visitar o museo

It was awesome!

(Translated by Google) Iziko museum is an excellent initiative. To visit with family, children will appreciate (Original) Iziko muséum est une excellente initiative. À visiter en famille, les enfants apprécieront

Great exhibits for all ages. Lovely for children.

Was very disappointed, we were kicked out after only an hour. The reasoning was fine, they sanitised between groups of people, but it would have been great if someone had bothered to tell us.

One of the best planetarium I have ever seen. Very friendly staff and wonderful shows. They even allow people to take pictures and videos during show. Variety of shows throughout the day.

A fairly typical mainly natural history museum. Some good cave & rock art, The whale & shark exhibition was extremely good, being able to imagine the size of the creatures from the skeletons, impressive. Many of the SA land animals, dinosaurs, Other creatures. The minerals mined in Africa was nice to see some lovely shapes, textures & colours.

Great place to see dinosaurs and replicas of various African animals and sea life. Amazing planetarium when it is operating

Its an awesome place to come with family,such a learning place where you can learn so much....i feel so much happy.....

What a great experience. Lovely exhibitions. Worth while to go.

Awesome experience for the whole family.

The Dino exhibit is great, a hidden gem worthy of several visits.

Great place to bring the kids. There are new features to see.

Wonderful experience, the museum seems a little neglected and stuffy but still very interesting.

Planetarium had an amazing show that was an experience. One sequence wouldn't play, but they replaced it with another. A few people complained, but staff did the best they could The museum itself was a fun adventure and I'm so happy we went

(Translated by Google) Affected by the epidemic, in the morning, at 1330 in the morning, 200 people will be admitted to the museum. (Original) 疫情影響，早上1000下午 1330,各開放200名入館。

Called to find out if they're open? They are but They forgot to tell me that only 50 people per day so I was stuck outside!

Great displays. Slightly primitive.

It was closed

It was really amazing Had a great time with the kids We all enjoyed it

The last time I was here is 20+ years ago, it is still good and worth a visit, especially if you're interested in the natural world.

(Translated by Google) Good experience walking through the museum. Just in time, they have been skipping the evolution portion over the last few years after a few changes. You're not sitting in front of Charles Darwin's evolution tree, man. Come visit the museum at least one choice (Original) Goeie ervaring on deur die museum te loop. Net ingelukkig hul skeep die evolusie gedeelte af die laaste paar jaar na paar veranderinge. Jy sit nie n kas voor Charls Darwin se evolusie boom nie, sies man. Kom besoek die museum teminste een keur

(Translated by Google) Nice museum, even better planetarium! Entry to both together costs 60R and is very worth it! The planetarium is very modern and offers wonderful insights into the (rendered in real time!) Universe and the night sky over the southern hemisphere. (Original) Schönes Museum, noch besseres Planetarium! Eintritt in beides zusammen kostet 60R und lohnt sich sehr! Das Planetarium ist sehr modern und bietet wunderschöne Einblicke is das (in Echtzeit gerendert!) Universum und den Nachthimmel über der Südhalbkugel.

Great way to spend some time in Cape Town! Fun for the kids! Good place to cool off on a hot day. Free entry with Cape Town Pass and one of the HoHo lines goes right by. There were fun displays and a lot of information to peruse. I would recommend it to anyone with kids in Cape Town and/or anyone who has an hour or two with nothing to do.

👌

I found the rock art very interesting! If you are the type who likes to read everything that goes with the artifacts and exhibits, be sure to give yourself a few hours to go through the entire museum!

👍🏼

(Translated by Google) An interesting museum if you like natural history and want to learn more about African animals. (Original) Un musée intéressant si vous aimez l'histoire naturelle et voulez en apprendre davantage sur les animaux d'Afrique.

Great place to bring kids, but wear takies

Outside dirty, bad service at café, disappointed experience. Lack of airconditioning. Mammals squash into display. No clear route markers, getting easy lost.

During peak holiday season, the planetarium is shut-down because of an air-conditioner problem. For days. During peak tourist season. Well done, guys. Well done.

Very, very enjoyable and educational. Well worth a visit and even a second visit because there is so much to see!

Big museum with loads of sections Loved the mineral section and the dinosaurs section. You need to have much time to spare as there are too many words to read on each

(Translated by Google) A diverse museum for all creatures .. A place to start and next to the park is also the opening (Original) متحف متنوع لجميع المخلوقات .. مكان يستهل الزيارة وبجواره متنزه هو الآخر يستهل الفرجة

It was my first time visiting this museum. I was there with my friends. I had great time and will be back there with my museum lover friends.

this museum is FANTASTIC, I real must if you in or visiting Cape Town, the kids really loved it *sagirlovestotravel

What a fun outing for a weekend! Treat yourself to both the museum and planetarium for an amazing experience of the world around us. Everything "nature" that you can think of is on display, from giant whales to ancient Dino bones and galaxies galore!

cannot complain, they have their register in place, adequate sanitizing stations, wasnt full at all, pricing was not bad at all. downside is because of covid there wasnt any interaction sessions or live animals like they had in the past but a nice outing for the kids and a walk in the park outside to see some squirrels and birds etc.

Worth the day, friendly staff, well maintained.

Lovely for family outings & make sure you experience a planetarium show!

Very interesting if you are interested in history. I unfortunately did not have enoigh time to go through the whole museum

Clean safe and awesome art

Took my Son and he loved it especially seeing the dinasaurs

The staff assisted me with posters for my classroom. I am a teacher in a township. Nice to have people still going out of their way for others.

Very nice

Always a Great experience

Loved it, especially the planetarium

a must experience museum to spend almost the whole day just reading and exploring.so much to see

Amazing. Recommended for everyone

Brilliantly curated exhibits and friendly service

I love it, the historical records it holds is fascinating!!!!

Love it!!!

Good parking. The museum under construction.

Brought back some great childhood memories and it was awesome to have had the privilege to bring my kids to experience history at its best.

Well kept museum with many intresting things to see. You will not be disappointed.

Very popular but times slots during Covid makes for long que and limited number of people allowed. Cannot give complete as I never made it inside.

Blown away by this museum, so many things to see and read, such a wide variety of exhibitions. Requires a few hours to see everything. Great alternative/ substitution to a zoo or aquarium.

The entire family enjoyed the outing. So much to see and learn. Stunning exhibits. We had to wait about 30 minutes for the place to be sanitized. Well worth the wait.

Natural science and history museum situated in Gardens, Cape Town. Educational. Well maintained displays. Planetarium on site for educational shows. Ideal for children.

Such an interesting museum to learn about the different animals, plants, fossils, and geology of South Africa. Unfortunately, I didn't get to spend much time here but one can easily spend several hours. If you visit, which I highly recommend you do, make sure to dedicate at least 1 1/2 hours to get the full experience.

It was very interesting, can't wait to see the new mammals exibit they are busy with. We were unfortunately there on the wrong day for the planetarium as they are not open on Mondays.

Great place for an outing with the kids!. It is quite affordable, a family of 5 can access museum with just R100. We went during Level 1 and they were still using sessions for entrance purposes. Call ahead to get sessions time.

Mixed emotions. Some displays are really old and need upgrading. Some are being upgraded, but this has apparently been going on a while and leads to a large space of the museum being empty. More interactive stations need to be put up for kids.

Enough exhibitions to view during operating hours, lovely family showcat planetarium, fee is within budget, entertaining and educational for all ages, keeps you focussed on variety, open to learn, kids ask questions and find answers on information on display, open space, easy access and toilets clean

Very informative and a lot to see. Could spend a few hours there if you read everything. There is a fair amount of upgrades and things in progress - I think it’ll be great when it’s done. But awesome value for money for an outing with kids. Sad that there was no planetarium show due to load shedding though.

A little more clarity on what's where would be great as some spots are easy to miss. Also, some of the displays especially in the Whale Area are super dusty. :) But....still a great place to visit.

Went to the planetarium and had so much fun. Nice to walk around and see the animals.

A lovely experience and well set out. Lots to see and totally worth a visit.

Interesting. Some lights were out and some areas closed off. Extremely hot inside. Might have been loadshedding?

An amazing outing with my mini family. My son really enjoyed the Marine exhibit and couldn't get enough of the many dinosaur fossils. The staff and exhibits were very informative. I'm looking forward to bringing my son with his school mates. Love it here.

I loved learning new things and seeing new things. Amazing experience

A beautiful museum with varied history knowledge on people, animals and sea creatures. We had a corporate team building excercise here, with presentations and a Scavenger Hunt in the museum and dinner under a huge dinosaur skeleton. A truly magical experience.

Nestled in Cape Town, the Iziko South African Museum offers a captivating journey through South Africa's heritage. With impressive fossil exhibits and cultural artifacts, it's a testament to the nation's rich history. Meticulously curated and accessible, it's a beacon of enlightenment for all visitors. Whether you're a scholar or an explorer, a visit here promises an enriching experience that resonates long after you leave.