Exceptional storytelling and tour experiences,
providing insight into the history,
politics and contemporary culture of South Africa,
especially so of its major cities, Cape Town & Johannesburg.
LocalPlaces – We change perceptions.
LocalPlaces is known for exceptional storytelling, providing in-depth understanding of South Africa and its cities – both in terms of history and contemporary culture.
Originally launched by Gerald Garner in 2011 through the publication of very personalized guide books to Johannesburg (Spaces & Places – Johannesburg + Spaces & Places 2.0 – JoburgPlaces), the brand has evolved and grown over time. Today the essence of the business involves storytelling experiences offered by Gerald Garner in Cape Town and Charlie Moyo in Johannesburg.
Whether you are a traveler, a local or a temporary resident, at LocalPlaces our mission is to change your perception. To empower you to view South Africa, its cities, people and places with new insight. We do this though captivating storytelling. Whether you participate in a single tour, a multi-day exploration, a storytelling dinner, or an event, we will enlighten and entertain you, while broadening your understanding of this extraordinary country.
We constantly delve into history, searching for untold stories and significant links between events that have shaped our world. We provide context by analyzing not only local history, but also international developments that have impacted South Africa. We do not glorify the past, instead we learn from the past and use this knowledge to understand contemporary culture.
If you are looking for a lighthearted, Instagram-moments tour or experience, then LocalPlaces is NOT for you. If you want to learn, understand and expand your knowledge in an enjoyable and inspiring way, then LocalPlaces, with its unique brand of storytelling, is certainly for you!
We are ready to host you and to help you make sense of this extraordinary place.
We operate in the Western Cape (Cape Town, Cape Peninsula, Winelands and surrounding regions), as well as Gauteng (Johannesburg, including Soweto, and Pretoria).
Best is to book a series of tours, so that you can hear the full story of each city. We tell stories along any of the routes or places we offer on our itineraries. You choose where to go and we add the stories.
Gerald and Charlie would each need a minimum of eight 30-minute sessions to tell the story of Cape Town or Johannesburg in the context of South Africa. That would make four hours of non-stop talking! Add time for discussions, explorations, walking/driving and eating/drinking between the story sessions, and it would take a full day.
If you wanted the comprehensive, detailed story of either city, it would take eight hours of stories. Add discussions, explorations, walking/driving and eating/drinking and you need two full days as a minimum for each city.
In fact, we recommend three days for the ultimate experience!
Do Cape Town with Gerald like this:
DAY 1: Two walking tours in the city bowl with a leisurely lunch in between.
(Otherwise, a food or bar tour – driving – where the same stories are told).
DAY 2: Driving tour around the Cape Peninsula.
DAY 3: Driving tour around the Cape Winelands.
Do Johannesburg with Charlie like this:
DAY 1: Two walking tours in the inner-city with a leisurely lunch in between
(Otherwise, a food, bar or overview tour – driving – where the same stories are told).
DAY 2: Driving tour around Soweto
DAY 3: Driving tour around Pretoria
If you spend six days with us, three in Cape Town and surrounds, and three in Johannesburg and surrounds, you would hear it all and simply have the best possible experience. If you do not have that many days available, we would help you choose the places to go and make sure you get to hear the most stories possible within that time.
Cape Town Storytelling Periods
Gerald’s Cape Town Storytelling Sessions are divided into four different periods. You can expect to hear a maximum of two periods on a 4-hour half-day walking tour or a full-day driving tour:
Background story: Ancient to Dutch Times (1200-1795).
Middle Story: The Times of British Rule & the Scramble for Africa (1795-1910).
Recent Story: Union to Republic Times – including the struggle against Apartheid (1910-1990).
Contemporary Story: Transition and Democratic Times (1990-2025).
Johannesburg Storytelling Periods
Charlie’s Johannesburg Storytelling Sessions are also divided into four different periods, telling how this city was reinvented seven times in its short history. You can expect to hear a maximum of two periods on a 4-hour half day walking tour or a full-day driving tour:
Background story: Ancient Times to the Gold Rush Victorian City (1200-1899).
Middle story: The War of Gold and the Empire City (1899-1930).
Recent story: Union to Republic Times – including the struggle against Apartheid (1930-1990).
Contemporary story: Transition & Democratic Times (1990-2025).
Make a booking
All our tours and experiences are listed on this website. Simply navigate with the menu tabs. You can also download the following pdf document to keep handy on your own device for easy reference later:
LocalPlaces_Tours_Summary_2025_05_20
Most of our tours and experiences are available 7-days a week for exclusive, private bookings. Click on the menu tabs to see the options. Only the Understanding Cape Town and Understanding Johannesburg walking tours can be booked on a per person open/public tour basis, subject to availability of the date.
To check availability for any specific tour, contact us on WhatsApp +27 82 894 5216 (especially if it is short notice) or email us on gerald@localplaces.co.za
Our experiences are available in the following categories:
Walking Tours (Johannesburg, Soweto & Cape Town)
Driving Tours (Johannesburg, Soweto, Pretoria & Cape Town)
Food Tours (Johannesburg & Cape Town)
Bar Tours (Johannesburg & Cape Town)
Storytelling Dinners (Johannesburg & Cape Town)
Customized Events (wherever and whenever!)
Contact us:
Please do not phone but send us a WhatsApp or Email instead. We may not respond immediately if we are busy hosting guests, but we will respond as soon as is possible.
WhatsApp: +27 82 894 5216
Email: gerald@localplaces.co.za
Our back story:
LocalPlaces has evolved over time, becoming a thought leader in urban futurism and storytelling. It started off with Gerald writing and publishing a book about Johannesburg in December of 2010, Spaces & Places – Johannesburg. He later republished this as JoburgPlaces. With a background in landscape architecture and journalism (including publishing for the architecture, construction and engineering trades), Gerald had the perfect skills for writing a guidebook to the city that included history, architecture and city landmarks.
Soon after publishing the guidebook, a foreign corporate phoned Gerald and asked him to guide 40 overseas guests on an inner-city walking tour (they had read the book and wanted to see the astonishing place themselves). So was a tourist guiding business born. It grew organically and 14 years later, JoburgPlaces has taken tens of thousands of people on tours and city experiences.
It did not take long before the mesmerizing inner-city captured Gerald’s imagination, making him also venture into property activations. Helping several landlords to renovate historic buildings and open food markets, restaurants and events venues. These included the Sheds@1Fox, Joziburg Lane and Hangout Jozi at 1Eloff, Thunder Walker with Zwipi Underground and later Charlie & Gerald’s Town Treasure on Gandhi Square, and JoburgPlaces Hub at JSE Newtown.
It was at Joziburg Lane where Charlie and Gerald met in 2016. Charlie helped run the event bars and operations. A stellar friendship and business partnership evolved. Charlie’s velvety voice and incredible knack at storytelling simply had to become part of the brand.
Between Johannesburg and Cape Town one can experience so much of South Africa and it just makes sense that Charlie and Gerald host their guests in both cities. They are known for exceptional storytelling, in-depth knowledge and insight into contemporary urban culture.
REVIEWS
We have met astonishing people on tour tours, events, storytelling dinners and city immersions. Many of them have become friends and often-returning guests. Below is some feedback from our clients, as well as formal media reviews and references:
Times Live video, 2019
This video link by Time’s Live was shot at our previous restaurant and venue in the heart of Joburg – a historic underground bank vault. Unfortunately, we had to close the venue after the Covid pandemic, but Charlie’s brilliant voice and storytelling can still be enjoyed when you tour with us.
https://www.timeslive.co.za/sunday-times/lifestyle/food/2019-08-20-inside-jozis-hidden-gem-dinner-inside-a-115-year-old-underground-bank-vault/
New York Times recommendation, 2023
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/03/23/travel/things-to-do-johannesburg.html
Telegraph recommendation, 2023
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/explore-south-africa/local-tours/
Highly recommended
“Gerald is not only a very knowledgeable guide, he is also a great storyteller. We really enjoyed our walk with him, learned so much about the history of the city, South Africa and European colonialism. It’s an easy walk with some nice stops for coffee or local snacks along the way. Would definitely do it again!”
- Viator/ Tripadvisor review (May 2025)
Wonderful historical tour
“Gerald was very warm and kind. He was so knowledgeable and gave us so much interesting information on the history of South Africa.
He walked us through some lovely as well as historical places. He also was great about recommending restaurants and sights that we might be interested in visiting. I’m glad that we did the tour because it was a nice overview of the city shortly after our arrival”
- Viator/ Tripadvisor review (Feb 2025)
Incredible tour with Charlie!
“Charlie Moyo is a gift. We were so lucky to start our first two days in Johannesburg (and South Africa) with him as our guide. We learned about two years of a college level history class in a few hours (I took so many notes!). He is gifted to be able to distill complex layers of history from multiple perspectives in a way that is accessible for adults and youth alike. Our kids kept ruminating on things he said for days afterward. He was kind and accommodating and answered our many questions. We also did the Understanding Soweto Tour with him, which was so special. Highly recommend both tours!”
A must for history lovers
“This is a must for history lovers. Gerald, our guide, was so generous with his time that we had way longer than our 4 hours. We learnt so much about the complex history of South Africa as we strolled around Cape Town. The focus is much more on the storytelling than the walk, which isn’t onerous at all. We enjoyed some refreshments along the way & really appreciated Gerald’s amazing breadth of knowledge and his lively storytelling. This tour set us up for our few days in Cape Town, and Gerald gave us some useful tips to maximize our time in this gorgeous city. Highly recommended!
- Viator/ Tripadvisor review (Feb 2025)
Excellent tour
“Excellent tour to get deep and/or more insights into Cape Town and South Africa; very sophisticated and thus not comparable to regular sightseeing tours.”
- Viator/ Tripadvisor review (Feb 2025)
Best guided tour
“Thanks so much for today, Gerald. Just talking with John now and we both said probably the best guided tour we have done on any of our extensive travels. We will definitely be highly recommending you.”
- WhatsApp message from a guest (May 2024)
Vast historical knowledge
“Charlie is a great tour guide. Very eloquent and has an extremely vast historical knowledge of Joburg and the entire region.”
- TripAdvisor review (May 2024)
Our best tour in South Africa
“We are very glad that we did the tour with Gerald at the beginning of our stay in South Africa. The walking tour was well thought out and provided a lot of useful information. We were able to ask a lot of questions and learned a lot. In terms of content, this was our best tour in South Africa. Thank you very much!”
- Rahael, TripAdvisor (January 2024)
Interactive and immersive
“We did both a half day walking tour and a full day peninsula tour with Gerald – they were the highlights of our Cape Town visit. Gerald’s command of South African history is simply unbelievable but the way he weaves it into stories and discussion makes it interactive and immersive for all. Cannot recommend enough for anyone visiting Cape Town – you will develop a very strong perspective on the complex history and current situation of the country overall.”
- Ben, TripAdvisor (December 2023)
Once in a lifetime experience
“After a long flight to Cape Town from Atlanta, I figured the best way to learn about Cape Town was to book a half-day walking tour. I had read about IkapaPlaces in a NYT article, 36 hours in Johannesburg (even though the article was about Joburg, one of the tour companies referenced was IkapaPlaces – note, I booked the Joburg walking tour as well).
I met Gerald Garner on a sundrenched Saturday, starting along the waterfront, walking our way through the city. Gerald is an excellent storyteller; I learned so much in just a 4-hour time. My wife and I only had 2 days in Cape Town and this was the best way to spend one of those days (the other day was spent going to the Cape of Good Hope/Table Mountain).
The bottom line, if you are looking for a nice leisurely way to learn about Cape Town from someone who can bring the history of South Africa to life, you owe it to yourself to book at tour with Gerald. It was a once in a lifetime experience for me.
Thank you. Gerald.”
- Joseph, TripAdvisor (December 2024)
We will be back for more
“Hi Gerald, thanks again for a wonderful tour on Dec 31. We are leaving SA now, but we’ll definitely be back and ask for more of your tours also recommend you to everyone coming here:)”
- Taira, WhatsApp (January 2024)
You owe it to yourself
“I had read about JoburgPlaces (Charlie Moyo) in a NYT article (36 hours in Johannesburg). After doing some additional research, I booked two walking tours while in Johannesburg, Atonishing Marshalltown Tour (Understanding Joburg) and Soweto by bus. It was a great call. I learned so much from Charlie as we walked around Joburg. My favorite was walking inside the prior Johannesburg Stock Market and then seeing where Mandela/Tambo law offices were located (across street from the shadow boxing statue of Mandela). We then met our driver for the tour to Soweto. Originally, I was going to just do the walking tour, but Charlie convinced me a visit to Joburg without visiting Soweto would miss out on the story of Apartheid South Africa; Charlie was 100% correct.
The bottom line, if you are looking for a full day of meaningful, informative and entertaining insights about South Africa and Johannesburg in particular, you owe it to yourself to reach out to Charlie and confirm a booking. I am so glad I did, a once in a lifetime experience. Thank you Charlie.
- Joseph, TripAdvisor (December 2023)
Mind-blowing day
“Charlie took us on a fantastic tour of Johannesburg. As we had booked a private tour, he had the opportunity to tailor the tour to our interests (as urbanists and housing professionals) and it was a mind- blowing day full of stories and deep history.
Highly recommend! This is the perfect tour for a local, South African or tourist!”
- Claudia, TripAdvisor (December 2023)
Tripadvisor review, 2023
This tour was a fascinating look into the history of Joburg and South Africa. Our family of 10 did this tour in the morning and the Soweto bus tour in the afternoon. Charlie is a wealth of information and everyone could not get enough of his valuable knowledge and insight. Gerald arranged a delicious lunch of local foods in between tours. If possible I highly recommend reading Nelson Mandela’s autobiography “The Long Walk to Freedom” before traveling to South Africa.
Tripadvisor review, 2023
This tour was a highlight of my entire trip to South Africa. I learned SO MUCH from Charlie about the history of Johannesburg and how it shaped the city of today. Charlie is an excellent storyteller and kept my mom and I engaged throughout the half-day tour. We felt comfortable asking questions and referenced things we learned from Charlie throughout the rest of our trip to South Africa. I’ll recommend this tour to anyone I planning a trip to Johannesburg.
Tripadvisor review, 2023
This is an awesome tour where you gain a great understanding of Joburg’s history. It was totally made by Charlie Moyo our guide who is so much fun to spend 4 hours with. He is knowledgeable and is a great storyteller. We found him through an article in the New York Times entitled 36 hrs in Johannesburg. Don’t miss this tour. A true appreciation of Joburg.
Tripadvisor review, 2023
This is a fantastic walking tour. Gerald is an encyclopedia of South African & Cape Town history and he is very passionate about sharing it all with you! This tour is the perfect introduction to Cape Town and a great way to visit so many different neighborhoods on foot. Plus after a long day of travel to get to SA, walking around the city for a few hours was just what we needed.
Gerald was patient with all of our questions and super helpful with others suggestions for meals & districts in Cape Town. He was flexible with our speed and offering to stop shops of interest. Our family really enjoyed meeting our first “local” and I cannot recommend this tour enough. Just do it.
