Connecting the V&A Waterfront to the rest of Robben Island and marking the entrance to the island, the Nelson Mandela Gateway to Robben Island is your first stop at this notorious prison. The complex serves several purposes: it’s a ferry terminal, a formal entrance and an informative museum all in one. The museum outlines the day-to-day lives of prisoners on Robben Island during Apartheid, detailing their draconian living conditions and harsh labour, it shows just how much the prisoners suffered during their time here, and makes the ultimate triumph of the human spirit even more impressive.

Here, you can also hop on one of the daily tours of the island, which takes you past all the most important historical places like the kramat, the leper graveyard and the limestone quarry. To make the tour even more authentic, the guides are former inmates who can each share their different stories.