Being the second largest city in South Africa following Johannesburg, Durban is located in the KwaZulu-Natal province on the east coast of the country. The city is also the second most key hub for manufacturing, and the busiest sea port in all of South Africa and Africa. There are almost 600,000 residents in the city itself, which consumes nearly 226 square kilometres of land. The greater metropolitan area however paints a very different picture. It consumes a massive 2,292 square kilometres, with a population of over 3.4 million.
Tourism is also another key industry for the city, due to its beautiful beaches and warm subtropical climate. Interestingly, when first founded by the British, Durban was actually called Port Natal. With the plethora of sugarcane plantations in the region at the time, Indians were brought in to work them. Making Durban one of the largest clusters in the world for Indians, outside of India.
The most common languages spoken in the city are English and Zulu. There are a number of festivals held in Durban which include Poetry Africa, Time of the Writer, Durban International Film Festival, Jomba! Contemporary Dance Festival, Awesome Africa, MTN Durban Fashion Week and Durban July.
Some of the key shopping locations in Durban include The Gateway Theater of Shopping, Victoria Street Market, Essenwood Craft Market, The Pavilion, the African Arts Center and the BAT Center.
The must see popular tourist attractions include the Durban Botanical Gardens, Berea, City Hall, The Golden Mile, Crocodile Creek, the Mahatma Gandhi Settlement, the Durban North Japanese Gardens, the KwaZulu Natal National Parks, Suncoast Casino, Sibaya Casino, uShaka Marine World, the Greyville Race Course, Shark Institute, the Historical Compensation Sugar Mill and the Zimbali Golf Estate.
