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| Maropeng, the official visitor centre for the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site, has launched its new website. |
The new site emphasises all that visitors can expect at Maropeng: two world-class exhibitions (the Maropeng Visitor Centre and Sterkfontein Caves), a four-star boutique hotel,
restaurants and the conference venue.
Maropeng marketing manager, Erica Saunders comments, “We are very excited about the new site. We wanted something that was fun, informative and easy to navigate. Our news and events also needed to be clearly presented on the home page. Flow Communications has managed to achieve this and we look forward to receiving feedback from our on-line visitors.”
Latest news and events are highlighted on the home page, and visitors can watch a short video or subscribe to the newsletter. A highly informative resource tool, the Exhibition Guide, provides users with a multitude of facts about the Cradle of Humankind, the Earth’s history
and the path that humanity has followed. Visitors to the site can also download a screensaver of Maropeng’s picturesque setting overlooking the Witwatersberg and Magaliesberg mountains.
Whilst Maropeng takes visitors on a journey through time, it also looks forward to the future by addressing issues of sustainability and conservation. The site reflects this, by presenting knowledge about our past and using multimedia tools to engage with a modern audience. In addition, the site is web standards compliant and is accessible to users with disabilities, such as those making use of a screen reader.
We’d love to hear what you think of the site, or any suggestions. Please email marketing manager Erica Saunders at ericas@maropeng.co.za.
Explore our website by visiting www.maropeng.co.za. |
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Running out of ideas to keep the kids busy in the school holidays? A trip to Maropeng, the official visitor centre for the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site, will keep young minds occupied long after the visit is over. The Maropeng Visitor Centre, winner of the 2008 Welcome Awards in the Tourist Attraction category, is open daily from 09h00 to 17h00. The last boat ride departs at 16h00 and guided tours are offered at no extra charge on weekends. The entrance fee for the visitor centre is R85 for adults and R50 for children between the ages of four and 14. Children under four are free. Children accompanied by at least one adult qualify for an entry and lunch voucher for a burger and chips at the Marketplace Restaurant for R60 per child. A combination entrance ticket is available for Maropeng and Sterkfontein Caves for R130 for adults and R80 for children.
Contact info@maropeng.co.za or 014 577 9000. |
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Animal Encounters will once again be presenting educational animal shows at Maropeng, giving children an opportunity to learn about exotic animals and birds of prey, and the importance of protecting endangered species. The show will be held on the grounds below the Tumulus Restaurant, so mom and dad can enjoy a Sunday lunch on the restaurant deck whilst keeping an eye on the kids below. The 45-60 minute show will begin at 13h00 and children can also have their faces painted and get their pictures taken with the animals. The cost of the buffet lunch at the Tumulus Restaurant is R185 per adult and R95 for children between four and 12 years old. The Animal Encounters presentation is free of charge.
Contact info@maropeng.co.za or 014 577 9000. |
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Maropeng is offering private walking tours to the famous hominid fossil site of Swartkrans, which was previously closed to the public. Scientist Morris Sutton, currently excavating at the site, will lead the tours and present the public with a rare opportunity to observe an active archaeological dig.
The celebrated and controversial palaeontologist Dr Robert Broom identified a new hominid species at Swartkrans, now known as Homo ergaster, in addition to many fossil remnants of Paranthropus robustus (also known as Australopithecus robustus), a large-jawed species which went extinct about 1-million years ago. These finds were the first evidence ever discovered of the co-existence of two different types of hominids, proving that human evolution did not follow a linear sequence, but rather branched off, with some species becoming extinct. Swartkrans has yielded the largest sample of the Paranthropus robustus
, and it is also internationally significant for the discovery of earliest evidence of the use of controlled fire, dating back to about 1-million years ago. Bones that had been burnt at very high temperatures indicated that they were used to sustain naturally occurring fires, long before humans learnt how to create fire (evidence of which only dates back to about 10,000 to 15,000 years ago).
Weather permitting, the walking tours will depart from Sterkfontein at 09h00. Morris Sutton will give a brief introduction, before leading the group on foot to Swartkrans. At the site, he will take guests through the site, presenting an overview of the history of Swartkrans and explaining the current excavations. The tour will conclude at a grass amphitheatre where an elegant picnic will be set up, before guests return to Sterkfontein. As Swartkrans is an open excavation site, no persons under the age of 18 will be permitted. The cost is R550 per person, and booking is essential as the tours will be limited to 12 people.
Contact info@maropeng.co.za or 014 577 9000. |
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On July 19, Maropeng will celebrate the anniversary of the first man to land on the moon. Retrace Neil Armstrong’s historic lunar landing on July 20 1969 with Maropeng’s resident astronomer, Vincent Nettmann. The full moon will appear in the Southern Hemisphere on July 18, allowing stargazers to get a clear view of the moon’s surface. Thirty-nine years ago, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin (now both retired at the age of 78) descended on the moon from the Apollo 11 spacecraft, and explored the moon’s surface for 2.5 hours.
For those who prefer to keep their feet firmly on the ground, Maropeng’s stargazing evening will include a three-course dinner at the Maropeng Hotel, an after-dinner talk presented by Nettmann and an opportunity to gaze at the moon through a range of large-aperture telescopes. The evening will cost R285 per person including dinner. The Maropeng Hotel will offer a promotional rate of R620 per person sharing (R400 single supplement) for guests wishing to stay over after the presentation.
Contact info@maropeng.co.za or 014 577 9000. |
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This is an ideal Women’s Day (August 9) ladies-only pamper weekend which includes accommodation for two nights at the four-star Maropeng Hotel, breakfast, lunch, dinner, pamper treatments, a variety of workshops and presentations, surprise gifts and bubbly with meals. The cost is R2,950 per person. Booking is essential as space is limited. |
Dates:
August 8-10 2008
September 12-14 2008
October 17-19 2008 |
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Rate includes: all meals | two nights’ four-star accommodation at Maropeng Hotel | champagne on tap | surprise gifts | oodles of self-empowerment.
Contact info@maropeng.co.za or 014 577 9000.
Click here to see our Events Calendar.
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| Download our screensaver and enjoy the stunning visuals of Maropeng from your desk
Return to your desk after a few minutes away, and see a stunning image of Maropeng’s picturesque setting, overlooking the Witwatersberg and Magaliesberg mountains.
Our new site offers visitors the opportunity to download a free Maropeng screensaver, available in formats suitable for both Mac and PC users.
The screensaver offers a range of images of Maropeng and Sterkfontein Caves, showing the Tumulus building, the magnificent vistas of the area, and the boutique hotel, as well as images of the exhibitions themselves. |
Browse through our gallery
The new Maropeng website now has a comprehensive gallery section, covering many of the stimulating visuals in the Maropeng Visitor Centre and at Sterkfontein Caves.
Grab a glimpse of what the exhibitions offer before you experience them first hand, peek into the bedrooms of the luxurious boutique hotel, see what a memorable event a wedding at Maropeng can be …
There is so much to see at Maropeng and the online gallery delivers the highlights in an accessible way to previous, future or online visitors.
Want to know when the last Sterkfontein Caves tour starts? Or whether an area is wheelchair accessible? Not sure whether you should bring your credit card or cash? Or whether halaal food is available? |
| Our new website has an extensive FAQs section that answers many of the questions our visitors and site visitors ask us. We have taken care to cover as much as possible, but if we haven’t answered your question, you can submit it to us. |
| Our Exhibition Guide is packed with information about the Maropeng Exhibition and its contents, ranging from an introduction to DNA, to descriptions of hominids such as Homo and Australopithecus
and some of the characteristics of modern humanity such as bipedalism and our ability to use tools. |
At Maropeng, we pride ourselves on our educational focus. We cater for school groups to Maropeng itself, as well as to Sterkfontein Caves, our sister site. Read about why the Cradle of Humankind is an important part of anyone’s education, no matter their age, in our Education section.
Contact Sylvia on info@maropeng.co.za or
014 577 9000 for bookings, menus and further information. Booking is essential for presentations and special events as space is limited. Directions are available on www.maropeng.co.za. |
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