Malkerns lies in Eswatini’s Middleveld, halfway between Ezulwini and Manzini. Local highlights include the plantings at Malandela’s Botanical Gardens and crafts in the destination’s surrounding area.

Gardens and Crafts in Malkerns

Malandela’s Botanical Gardens feature aloe and succulent plantings, giving them a distinct botanical focus. If gardens and plants are important to you when choosing where to stay, this offers a specific reason to consider Malkerns; it is clearly different from an interest focused on crafts.

In the area surrounding the destination, the Swazi Candles Centre has a shop selling colourful, sculpted candles, as well as other boutique craft shops. This adds another area of interest to the botanical focus: decorative candles and crafts. For planning purposes, this makes a clear distinction between an interest in plants and an interest in crafts.

A Closer Look at Production and Craftsmanship

A tour at Baobab Batik in the wider region focuses on production: visitors learn how the products are made. Unlike the craft offerings in the area around Malkerns, the focus here is on the production process. This offers a different way to explore crafts and helps you choose between seeing decorative items and taking a tour about how they are made.

What’s on in Manzini

Manzini’s city market has a crafts section featuring finely made products, many of which are hand-carved locally. The Thursday market in Manzini brings together vendors of handmade crafts each week; visitors can watch some of the products being woven on site. Carving and weaving are therefore specific craft experiences associated with Manzini’s markets.

In Manzini, the Manzini Eco-City Tour visits historic sites. It is offered as either a walking tour or a shuttle tour and is led by local guides. The tour should be booked in advance. Alongside the markets and their crafts, this provides a separate option focused on the city’s history.

Another annual event in Manzini is the Eswatini International Trade Fair. It provides businesses and organisations with a platform to showcase their products and services. The fair has a different focus from the craft-oriented markets and the city history tour. If you want to plan your trip around the fair, check the specific event dates when planning. The two events clearly differ in timing: the Thursday market takes place every week, while the Eswatini International Trade Fair is held annually. You can therefore compare the weekly market schedule with the annual fair when planning your trip.

Discover more destinations: Manzini.

Return to the main travel overview: Manzini.