As bio-pic Mandela: the Long Walk to Freedom goes on general release around the UK today (January 3), southern and east Africa specialist 2by2 Holidays has a dedicated tour that offers travellers the opportunity to follow in Nelson Mandela’s footsteps.
 

The 10-night Nelson Mandela Long Walk to Freedom itinerary begins in Johannesburg with a visit to his last home in Houghton before driving down to Old Fort Prison where he was held after his capture.

The tour then drives across Nelson Mandela Bridge into bustling downtown Johannesburg to see the building where he and Oliver Tambo had their law practice, before continuing to the sprawling township of Soweto to visit his original home and significant memorials to the freedom struggle, including Freedom Square and the Hector Pietersen Memorial. 

Visitors can also see the home of Winnie Mandela, before tasting the local cuisine and experiencing the vibrant culture at a local shebeen (beer hall).

The tour also visits the Apartheid Museum and Liliesleaf Farm, the farm secretly used by the African National Congress and the location where many of its prominent leaders were arrested prior to the infamous Rivonia Trial.

It continues on to Umtata to visit the small museum near where he was born and finishes in Cape Town with a visit to the District Six Museum, which tells the story of human suffering caused by the forced removals of the apartheid era. The tour finishes with a trip over to Robben Island, where Mandela was imprisoned for 27 years.

The tour is priced at £1,995 per person including flights and accommodation.

2by2 Holidays introduced the tour two years ago following an increase in demand from visitors to South Africa to visit the key places in Mandela’s life.

Talking about Mandela's key role in attracting more visitors to the country, South African-born Claire Farley, and co-founder of 2by2 Holidays, who also met Mandela, says: "My most prized possession is a personally signed first edition of Nelson Mandela’s “Long Walk to Freedom” autobiography – as I am one of those fortunate enough to have met the charismatic Madiba in person.

"To say his impact on tourism to South Africa has been enormous is an understatement. In the 23 years since his release from prison, the number of tourists travelling to South Africa each year has increased threefold to more than nine million.

"His personal intervention in South Africa’s successful bid to host the 2010 Soccer World Cup was crucial, and TV screens around the world flashing images of magnificent stadiums dramatically improved public perception of safety."