Robben Island

Robben Island is an offshore island and museum in Table Bay near Cape Town that served variously as a place of banishment, a leper colony and, most prominently, a political prison during South Africa’s apartheid era. It is a UNESCO World Heritage cultural landscape recognised for its role in the struggle against apartheid.

The island’s best known association is the long imprisonment of Nelson Mandela and other political detainees; many tours focus on the prison buildings, individual cells and the lime quarry where prisoners were put to forced labour. A museum and interpreted sites on the island present the layered social and political history of the place.

Access is by ferry from the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town and visits are typically led by guides who explain the island’s history and point out surviving structures and burial sites. Weather and sea conditions affect ferry operations and timetables.

• Access and bookings: Public tours depart from the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town on scheduled ferries and are weather dependent; tours are often fully booked so advance reservations are recommended.
• Guided tours: Many guided tours are led by former inmates or include testimonies and historical interpretation linking the prison to South Africa's 20th‑century political history.

What to See #

• Prison complex: The former maximum security prison complex where many anti‑apartheid activists were held; guided tours include the cellblocks and the grounds.
• Quarry, cemetery and museum displays: Outdoor places tied to the island's social history, including the lime quarry where prisoners worked, the leper cemetery and the island's museum displays.