Robben Island, Prison island in Table Bay, South Africa
Robben Island is a rocky outcrop in Table Bay off Cape Town, South Africa. The landmass lies around seven kilometers from the coast and rises no higher than 17 meters above sea level.
Nelson Mandela spent 18 years imprisoned here during the apartheid era and later became South Africa's first black president. The detention facility served for centuries as a place of banishment and isolation for political opponents and lepers.
Former political prisoners guide visitors through the maximum security prison and share their own experiences of detention under the apartheid regime. These personal accounts make the history of oppression directly tangible for guests and connect abstract events with real human stories.
Ferries run daily from the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town, with the full tour taking around three and a half hours. Weather-related cancellations happen occasionally, as the crossing depends on sea conditions.
The island hosts a colony of African penguins that wander among the historical buildings. Numerous shipwrecks from the 17th century rest on the seabed in the surrounding waters.
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