Nobuhle Modise

Everyone is looking for The Fugitive. We’re looking for somewhere to put our phones away, drink a coffee while it’s still hot, and forget what time we said we’d be home. Durban has plenty of places for that. Some are quiet enough to hear the birds; others let you wander, browse and eat your way through a morning. None of the places below is a clue to The Fugitive’s whereabouts. They’re simply worth knowing when you want a few hours to yourself. TIME OUT DURBAN RECOMMENDS: 📍 The best things to do in Durban🍽  The best restaurants in Durban🏨 The best hotels in Durban🛏️ Where to stay in Durban📢 Latest news from Durban Follow Time Out Durban on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok! To get the coolest news, features, and things to do straight to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter.

The school holidays are here, bringing all the usual negotiations over screen time, snacks and what everyone is going to do for the day. Durban has plenty of well-known family attractions, but this list looks beyond the first places that usually come to mind. There is something for the child who wants to jump, the one who would rather dig for gemstones, and the teenager who is unlikely to be impressed by another play area. Public schools break from 24 September to 5 October 2026, although dates may differ at independent schools. Here are some of the most interesting ways to fill those days. TIME OUT DURBAN RECOMMENDS: 📍 The best things to do in Durban🍽  The best restaurants in Durban🏨 The best hotels in Durban🛏️ Where to stay in Durban📢 Latest news from Durban Follow Time Out Durban on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok! To get the coolest news, features, and things to do straight to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter.

Planning a getaway? We’ve found some of the latest accommodation deals and specials across KwaZulu-Natal, from September escapes in the Drakensberg to glamping in the Midlands and stays on the South Coast. If your next getaway has been sitting on the wish list because of the price, it may be worth taking another look. There are currently several accommodation specials and reduced rates available across KwaZulu-Natal, covering everything from mountain retreats and countryside glamping to safari stays and coastal escapes. We’ve rounded up some of the deals currently available, with several ending later this month or in the coming months. Rates and availability can change, so check the booking terms before making your reservation. Follow Time Out Durban on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok! To get the coolest news, features, and things to do straight to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter. TIME OUT DURBAN RECOMMENDS: 📍 The best things to do in Durban🍽 The best restaurants in Durban🏨 The best hotels in Durban🛏️ Where to stay in Durban📢 Latest news from Durban

A family holiday sounds idyllic until you hear the words: “What are we doing now?” The trick to getting the school holidays right is finding somewhere that gives children plenty to do without parents having to plan an itinerary from breakfast to bedtime. KwaZulu-Natal has several resorts where the activities are part of the stay, so there’s no need to spend every morning searching for the next outing. We've rounded up five options across the province where families can settle in, unpack and let the kids get on with having a holiday. Follow Time Out Durban on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok! To get the coolest news, features, and things to do straight to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter. TIME OUT DURBAN RECOMMENDS: 📍 The best things to do in Durban🍽 The best restaurants in Durban🏨 The best hotels in Durban🛏️ Where to stay in Durban📢 Latest news from Durban

Think you need a big budget to have a good day out in Durban? Think again. The city is packed with experiences that won’t leave your wallet feeling considerably lighter, whether you’re a visitor looking to explore the city or a local in need of a fun day out without spending a fortune. From its famous beachfront and buzzing promenade to its marine attractions and long-standing family favourites, Durban has plenty to offer at pocket-friendly prices. You can get out on the water, meet some of the ocean’s most fascinating residents, explore a miniature version of a South African coastal city or take in some of Durban’s best-known sights from the top deck of a double-decker bus. And with each of these experiences costing R200 or less per person, you can spend the day exploring without having to constantly check your bank balance. So, whether you’re planning a weekend outing, looking for something to do with the kids during the holidays, or simply want to rediscover your own city, here are five things to do in Durban for under R200. Follow Time Out Durban on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok! TIME OUT DURBAN RECOMMENDS: 📍 The best things to do in Durban🍽 The best restaurants in Durban🏨 The best hotels in Durban🛏️ Where to stay in Durban📢 Latest news from Durban

Durban’s Golden Mile offers a selection of world-class hotels. Behind the polished lobbies and welcoming smiles are teams working around the clock to keep some of the city’s best-known hotels running smoothly. At the helm of four Southern Sun properties along the Durban beachfront are four women who share a passion for people and the city they call home. Lettisha Singh, Nomfundo Nzama, Nicole Munro, and Portia Msomi share their stories with us. TIME OUT DURBAN RECOMMENDS: 📍 The best things to do in Durban🍽  The best restaurants in Durban🏨 The best hotels in Durban🛏️ Where to stay in Durban📢 Latest news from Durban Follow Time Out Durban on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok! To get the coolest news, features, and things to do straight to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter.

Tourism in KwaZulu-Natal is often reduced to its beaches, game reserves and big-name hotels. But behind those experiences is a diverse industry shaped by people working across conservation, hospitality, cultural tourism and travel, and increasingly, women are taking up space in all of it. For Women’s Month, we meet five women whose careers could hardly look more different. One works on the front lines of wildlife conservation, another leads one of KZN’s best-known luxury hotels. In contrast, others build hospitality teams, create cultural experiences, and grow their own travel businesses. Their stories also offer a glimpse into the many ways visitors experience the province. From the wilderness of iMfolozi and the shores of Umhlanga to KZN’s battlefields, heritage sites and local communities, their work helps connect travellers with the people, places and experiences that make the province distinctive. Together, they show that there is no single route into tourism and no single way to shape it. These are their stories. Follow Time Out Durban on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok! To get the coolest news, features, and things to do straight to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter. TIME OUT DURBAN RECOMMENDS: The best things to do in Durban The best restaurants in Durban The best hotels in Durban Where to stay in Durban Latest news from Durban  

There’s plenty to catch your eye at Doppio Zero on Florida Road before the food arrives. Art is thoughtfully incorporated into the walls around the entrance, while soft finishes bring warmth to the space. The attention to detail gives you reason to look around rather than head straight for the menu. The Spicy Corn Riblets bring some of that personality to the table. Charred, buttered corn gets a dusting of paprika and chilli spice, with a lively marinade that makes this starter the standout of the meal. It’s the kind of plate you keep reaching across the table for. Alongside it, the Beef Bao combines fillet steak, sesame cabbage slaw, jalapeños, Japanese aioli and roasted garlic jus in a steamed bun. For mains, the butter steak with mash takes a decidedly rich approach. The generous amount of butter might give you pause, but the steak itself was well prepared. It’s an indulgent order, especially with mash alongside it. The burger with mushroom sauce keeps things familiar. Presentation is its strongest feature, with the shoestring fries giving the plate a particularly striking finish. Dessert continues in a sweet direction. The Cereal Milk Cookie was the favourite, pairing a choc chip cookie with cereal milk ice cream and sweet flake crunchies. The Velvet Nest is a playful little dessert, combining chocolate mousse, burnt butter ice cream and spun toffee. The beautiful space is a strong part of the draw at this Florida Road address. Start with the corn riblets, and if you’re s

Surf Riders has closed its South Beach café, ending one of Durban’s most familiar beachfront spots. For years, the café at 17 Erskine Terrace was part of the Golden Mile's everyday life. It was where surfers stopped after being in the water, families settled in for breakfast, dogs were welcomed and tourists found themselves right in the middle of Durban’s beachfront buzz. That is why the closure has hit a nerve. Surf Riders was never only about the food. Its appeal was also where it sat and what happened around it. The beach was right there. So were the promenade, surf lessons, runners, cyclists, families and holidaymakers moving through South Beach. It gave people a reason to stay a little longer. The restaurant has now left the site after its municipal lease arrangement came to an end. eThekwini Municipality says the property has already been through a new leasing process and another tenant has been appointed. The identity of that tenant has not yet been made public. There are also financial issues between the City and the former tenant, which the municipality says are being dealt with separately. For regulars, though, the loss is much simpler. A familiar beachfront meeting place is gone. Surf Riders became known for its breakfasts, burgers, seafood and easy-going atmosphere, but much of its charm came from the setting itself. You could arrive sandy, barefoot or straight from a walk on the promenade and it never felt out of place. The brand is not disappearing completely. S

The Premier League trophy is coming to Gateway, and Lucas Leiva is coming with it. For Durban’s Liverpool supporters, Saturday’s shopping trip suddenly looks a lot more interesting. KwaZulu-Natal’s first official Liverpool FC store will open at Gateway Theatre of Shopping on Saturday, 3 October 2026. Former Reds midfielder Leiva will meet supporters and sign player cards, while fans will have a chance to see the Premier League trophy up close. A DJ, raffles and opening discounts are also on the programme. Old School, the South African brand operating the store, says more than 2,500 supporters have already registered for tickets to the celebration. The Gateway branch becomes Liverpool’s third official store in South Africa, following the Canal Walk store in Cape Town and the Mall of Africa branch in Johannesburg, which opened in May. PSL Facebook.Liverpool FC’s Mall of Africa store opened in May, ahead of the club’s expansion to Gateway in Durban. For KZN supporters, the lasting attraction is having a dedicated local shop for official club merchandise. The range includes football shirts, clothing, accessories, gifts and signed collectables, with an in-store printing service for fans who want to personalise their kit. That should also make shopping for the Liverpool obsessive in your life a little easier. Shirts aside, there are mugs, books, stationery and children’s keepsakes to browse. Leiva’s appearance gives Saturday’s celebration an extra pull. The Brazilian midfielder s

The Pick n Pay Wine & Food Festival is changing scenery this year. On Saturday, 3 October, it moves to Sugar Rush Park in Ballito, where the lawns look like a good place to settle in for an afternoon of tasting, eating and listening to live music. Around 50 South African wine estates are expected, pouring reds, whites, rosés and bubbles. Your ticket includes a tasting glass and 20 tokens, which you can use at the wine stands. Tastings cost between one and four tokens depending on the wine, so take a look around before spending them all at the first stand. The stands close at 4.30 pm, even though the festival runs until 6 pm. Pick n PayA toast to an afternoon of wine, food and live entertainment at the Pick n Pay Wine & Food Festival.   Come hungry, too. The food market will have dishes including lamb, sushi and salads, alongside cheese and charcuterie. There’ll also be burger and pizza trucks. If sitting on the grass with a picnic sounds more appealing, you can pre-order a bag for two when booking your ticket.  For anyone keen to learn while they sip, the Tasting Room offers small-group wine and canapé pairings. New to the Durban event is the Mixology Theatre, where guests can make two cocktails with an expert mixologist during a 45-minute session. Both experiences need a separate booking and cost R150 per person, per session.  General admission is R350 and starts at 1 pm. Pick n Pay Wine Club members can enter from noon with the correct early access ticket, also R350. Ther

A pair of sandals can look lovely on a screen. In person, you can pick it up, try it on, and ask who made it. That small shift was the pleasure of The Social, which brought brands usually encountered through a phone into the Durban Exhibition Centre for three days of browsing, eating and meeting the people behind the stalls. Season 4 ran from 25 to 27 September with more than 120 brands and food vendors. The country club theme gave the hall its sense of occasion: fabric draped overhead, lights hanging above the aisles and displays dressed with as much care as the products on them.  Nobuhle ModiseFabric draping and woven pendant lights gave the busy exhibition hall its country club look. There was plenty to look at once the setting had caught your attention. Rails of modest fashion stood alongside accessories and rows of sandals, while food stalls offered a break from browsing. One display declared “She’s Off the Market”, giving the shopping weekend a bit of cheek. The mix felt broad enough to reward curiosity. You could arrive with a purchase in mind and still find yourself drawn towards something entirely different. Nobuhle ModiseBibi Aayesha’s stall was stocked with spicy pur and chevra among the weekend’s food finds. The Social also understood that a good day out needs room for more than shoppers. Children were accommodated, so families could take their time rather than make a swift circuit of the hall. That mattered to the feel of the event. Its premium styling invite

There are certain places we tend to reach for when someone says holiday in South Africa. Cape Town. The Kruger. Maybe the Garden Route. They deserve their place on the list, but World Tourism Day feels like a good day to look a little wider. Celebrated every year on 27 September, World Tourism Day turns the attention to an industry that is about far more than hotel rooms and airport arrivals. It is also about the people cooking the food, telling the stories, running tours, managing attractions and finding new ways to convince the rest of us to leave the house and see what is right in front of us. Magda EhlersSouth Africa offers plenty of reasons to explore beyond the usual travel favourites. READ: Durban ICC wins big in Africa as KZN tourism businesses take home World Travel Awards This year’s global theme is “Digital Agenda and Artificial Intelligence to Redesign Tourism”, while South Africa is marking the day under “Growing South Africa’s Tourism Sector in the Digital Era.” It sounds suitably futuristic, but the idea becomes much more interesting when you bring it closer to home. A traveller no longer needs a glossy brochure to stumble across a restaurant in a township, a hiking trail outside a small town or a cultural experience they had never heard of. A photograph, video or search result can put an independent tourism business in front of someone sitting hundreds or even thousands of kilometres away. That matters in a country where so much of what is worth seeing sits

Ask ten people in KwaZulu-Natal what heritage means to them and you are unlikely to get the same answer twice. For one person, it is the meal they can make without measuring a thing. For another, it is a surname, a song, a prayer, a place or a story repeated so often that nobody quite remembers who told it first. It can be the isiZulu expression that does not land properly in English. The family recipe nobody has written down. The outfit brought out for one important day. It can also be the uncomfortable parts of our history, the things we would rather not carry but cannot afford to forget. Over the past few weeks, Time Out Durban has spent a lot of time asking people about heritage for our series. Not always in those exact words, but the question has found its way into conversations about music, food, family, townships and the city itself. What became clear through these conversations is that heritage rarely sits still. The history of Heritage Day proves it. Before 24 September belonged to the whole country, it carried a particular meaning here in KwaZulu-Natal. The date was observed as Shaka Day in honour of King Shaka kaSenzangakhona, one of the most consequential figures in the history of this province. Shaka ruled from 1816 until his assassination in September 1828. During those 12 years, he transformed what had been a relatively small Zulu chiefdom into a powerful kingdom. He reorganised the amabutho regimental system, changed military strategy and brought numerous

The final leg of our Durban township tour took us to Princess Magogo Stadium for a Currie Cup clash between the Sharks and the Boland Kavaliers. After several hours on the road, there was no quiet arrival. The stands were filling up and the crowd was ready for rugby. The Sharks had made 4,000 tickets available free of charge, drawing more than 2,000 people to the stadium. There were families, groups of friends and plenty of children taking in the action. It was a change from the Sharks’ usual home at Kings Park and a rare rugby fixture for a stadium more commonly associated with football. READ: Durban Beyond the Beach|Part 1 of 4   Nobuhle ModiseThe crowd settles in for an afternoon of Currie Cup rugby in KwaMashu.   Who was Princess Magogo? Princess Magogo Stadium was upgraded ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup and used as an official training ground for teams based in Durban. It has since staged several football competitions, including COSAFA Cup fixtures. It is named after Princess Constance Magogo kaDinuzulu, the daughter of King Dinuzulu kaCetshwayo and the mother of the late Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi. She was also a musician, composer and poet who played traditional instruments including the ugubhu and isithontolo. Her work helped preserve traditional Zulu music, and she was widely respected for her knowledge of Zulu customs and folklore. The background to the name is easy to miss when you are there to watch sport, but it gave our final destination an unexpected link

By the time we reached KwaMashu, we had already travelled through some of Durban’s heaviest history. Our township experience had begun at KwaMuhle Museum, before taking us through Inanda, where the stories of Mahatma Gandhi, John Dube and Nelson Mandela sit within kilometres of each other. It had been a morning of listening, learning and looking at familiar parts of Durban differently. Then came lunch. And Mkhize Rooftop was not playing around. From history lessons to a very serious meat platter From the street, a large yellow-and-black sign is your clue that you have arrived. Head upstairs and the space opens into a laid-back rooftop overlooking KwaMashu, with covered seating, music and plenty of room to settle in for the afternoon. Then the food arrived. Nobuhle ModiseLunch arrived on a wooden board piled high with braaied meat and salad. The enormous wooden board placed in front of us was piled high with braaied meat and served with salad. This was not one of those meals that leaves you wondering whether you should order something else afterwards. It was generous, smoky and delicious – the kind of platter that turns a table full of people into a temporary family as everyone reaches in for another piece. There was garlic bread, more meat than I could confidently identify before everybody started eating, and absolutely no chance of leaving hungry. READ: Durban Beyond the Beach: The Inanda I wasn’t expecting More than a lunch stop Nobuhle ModiseThe rooftop is made for rela

The much-loved Delfi Greek Taverna, a fixture of Durban’s Windermere dining scene for decades, has been badly damaged in a fire. The blaze broke out at the corner of Lilian Ngoyi and Livingstone roads, with firefighters bringing it under control in around 20 minutes. Three people were assessed for minor smoke inhalation at the scene and did not require further treatment. Two dogs were also rescued from the building. The cause of the fire is still unknown. Delphi Greek Taverna FacebookDelphi Greek Taverna before the fire, at its long-standing Windermere premises. A piece of old-school Durban For generations of Durban diners, Delfi was the kind of restaurant that felt woven into the neighbourhood. Sisters Maria and Doddy Teranes established the small Greek taverna in 2002, but the family's connection to the building goes much further back. Their parents previously ran a supermarket and café from the same premises for around 35 years. Delfi carried that family connection forward, becoming known for its traditional Greek cooking, intimate setting and unmistakably personal hospitality. It was never the sort of restaurant built around trends. Its appeal was in the food, the family behind it and the familiarity that came with returning to the same small corner over many years. The restaurant's menu became particularly associated with Greek staples, mezze, seafood and its much-loved prawns. That longevity made Delfi part of the city's restaurant memory: a place that had outlast

Durban, warm up those laughing muscles. Trevor Noah and his hand-picked comedy squad are heading our way this weekend. Bafunny Bafunny, billed as South Africa’s national team of comedy, takes over the playTSOGO Globe at Suncoast on Saturday, September 19. Noah captains the team alongside vice-captain Eugene Khoza, with internationally acclaimed Zimbabwean comedian Learnmore Jonasi also called up for the Durban fixture. View this post on Instagram A post shared by bafunnybafunny (@bafunnybafunny) And because you cannot play a home game without local talent, Durban comedians Rory Petzer and Nonto R have been added to the line-up. The show forms part of the inaugural South African Festival of Comedy, a five-show tour stopping in Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town. It brings established names and emerging stand-up talent together on one very big stage, without forcing anyone to pretend they understand the offside rule. READ: Get out the popcorn, Durban, the European Film Festival is back! A familiar comedy squad returns The Bafunny Bafunny name may ring a bell. The comedy “national team” was first assembled in 2010, when South Africa had football fever, and Noah was still several years away from taking over The Daily Show. Sixteen years later, he returns as the team captain and lead curator, using the tour to place some of the region’s strongest comic voices in front of arena-sized audiences. Durban gets one show only, so there will be no replay if you miss it.

When flames tore through Delfi Greek Taverna earlier this month, Durban lost one of its familiar old-school restaurants. For the Teranes family, however, the loss was far more personal. The building on the corner of Lilian Ngoyi and Livingstone roads was not only home to the restaurant. Doddy, Maria and Manuel Teranes had lived there for 59 years. Their home, possessions and decades of family memories were destroyed along with the taverna. Now, a fundraising campaign is helping the family begin the daunting task of rebuilding their lives. SuppliedDelfi became a familiar part of Durban's dining scene over the decades. READ: Fire tears through much-loved Delphi Greek Taverna in Durban More than a restaurant The fire broke out on Thursday, September 3, engulfing the building before firefighters brought it under control. While our first report focused on the damage to the restaurant, the full scale of the family’s loss has since become clearer. The property had been their home since 1967. Family records, certificates and possessions collected over several generations were among the items lost in the blaze. Long before Delfi began serving its Greek favourites, the same building housed EFI Supermarket, which was run by the family’s parents for around 35 years. Sisters Maria and Doddy Teranes later opened Delfi Greek Taverna in 2002, giving the familiar corner a new life. For many regulars, it became the kind of place where the people serving you remembered who you were. For the f

For years, many South Africans have known Rachel Kolisi through the life they saw from the outside. Falling Forward introduces us to the little girl behind the woman we thought we knew. The documentary was screened at Grace Family Church in Durban as part of a national roadshow, followed by an intimate conversation with Kolisi. A women-led market also showcased products made by small, women-owned South African businesses. The film takes her back to a childhood marked by her parents’ separation, her mother leaving, and the enormous responsibility of helping to raise her younger siblings while she was still a child herself. I did not know this part of her story. Watching it, so much of what she shares about the woman she became suddenly makes sense. The feeling of being unwanted keeps returning. So does the fear that the people she loves will eventually leave. It followed her into adulthood, even as she built a family of her own and a life that, from the outside, appeared secure. Read: What Yudhika Sujanani taught me about curry, confidence and breaking the rules The child behind the woman Her marriage and its ending form part of the story, but they are not the whole story and certainly not the centre of who she is. Anyone arriving in the hope of hearing the details behind the headlines will not find them here. Rachel tells her own story: the child she was, the mother she became, the parts of herself she lost along the way and the woman she is getting to know again. What she do