Frequently asked questions

Yes — the guided cave tour departs on the hour with a strict 30-person capacity per group, so your ticket is for a specific tour time. The museum-only ticket (no cave) does not require a timed slot.

Your tour slot is reserved and confirmed before you arrive, so you go straight to your guided group rather than queuing at the ticket desk. Just arrive a little before your tour time.

The full experience: a guided walk through the Sterkfontein cave system, full access to the museum and Timeline Walk, and the working fossil preparation laboratory. Helmets for the cave are provided.

We send your ticket to your email as a mobile ticket with a QR code once your booking is confirmed. There's nothing to print — show it on your phone at the entrance.

It's about 40 km northwest of the city centre, roughly a 45–60 minute drive via the R563 through Muldersdrift. There's no direct public transport, so most visitors come by rental car, private transfer or organised tour.

Plan for two to three hours in total — the guided cave tour itself runs 60–90 minutes, plus time in the museum, Timeline Walk and fossil preparation laboratory.

Yes, children aged 6 and over generally enjoy the cave tour and the fossil displays. Under-6s enter free with a paying adult but the cave's stairs, low passages and darkness make it better suited to slightly older children.

Visitors aged 60 and over, with valid ID shown at the gate.

Yes — children under 6 enter free when accompanied by a paying adult. Our child ticket covers ages 6 to 18.

It covers the museum, Timeline Walk and fossil preparation laboratory without the guided cave tour — a wheelchair-accessible option and a good fit if the caves' stairs and tight spaces aren't suitable for you.

No — the cave system involves stairs, uneven surfaces and tight passages and is not step-free. The museum, Timeline Walk and fossil lab are wheelchair-accessible, and our museum-only ticket covers just those areas.

Yes, personal photography is welcome throughout the caves, museum and laboratory. Visitors are asked not to touch the stalactites, stalagmites or other formations, and helmets are required in the cave system.

The site is closed every Monday year-round, and closed on 25 and 31 December. We'll flag it if a closure affects the date you've chosen.

The Cradle of Humankind is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (inscribed 1999) covering a cluster of fossil-bearing caves in Gauteng, South Africa, of which Sterkfontein is the most extensively excavated and the richest in early-hominin fossils.

Mrs Ples is a 2.1-million-year-old Australopithecus africanus skull found at Sterkfontein in 1947. Little Foot is a near-complete Australopithecus prometheus skeleton, around 3.67 million years old, pieced together from the same cave system between 1994 and 1997 — the most complete early-hominin skeleton ever found.

The cave system holds a constant, cool temperature of about 20°C (68°F) year-round, so a light layer is worth bringing even on a hot Gauteng day outside.

Because admission is tied to a specific tour time and group capacity, please choose your date and time with care when you book. All sales are final once confirmed; the only exception is a full refund if the operator cancels your visit. See our terms for the full policy.

No. We're an independent concierge service for international visitors. We obtain a genuine admission ticket on your behalf and handle the booking in your own language. Our service fee is included in the price shown, and you can always buy directly from the site if you prefer.