Harburg, Natal Midlands

Take the Midlands Amble (not to be confused with the Midland Meander) and you'll find yourself on the lesser-explored perimeters to the south-west and north-east of Pietermaritzburg, with the Albert Falls Dam as the fulcrum.

The Amble incorporates the towns and villages of Pietermaritzburg, Hilton, Ashburton, Umlaas Road, Tala Valley, Richmond, Albert Falls, Bishopstowe, Wartburg, Harburg, New Hanover, Noodsburg, Greytown, Muden, Weenen and Hermannsburg.

Harburg lies off R614 just beyond Wartburg, one of several German communities that mushroomed after 1840. German settlers arrived to grow cotton for the Natal Cotton Company, but their attempts failed and many of the Bergtheil colonists who had settled in New Germany, Westville moved inland to the area around Pietermaritzburg and New Hanover.

In 2011 Harburg's beautiful Neuenkirche celebrated 125 years. The church is a hangover of the mission station established here by missionaries who originally set sail for Ethiopia, but could not land and continued on to Durban. After getting permission from Zulu chiefs they set up a few mission stations – Hermannsburg first and then New Hanover.

Harburg only came later when several of the families broke away from these original mission stations, because of the distance they had to travel every Sunday, to build their own chapel, which they called Neuenkirchen (new church). Their town was originally known as Honey Grove. Only in 1893, once a trading store and a few houses had joined the church, was it named Harburg.

Today descendants of these same German settlers still live in Harburg – a pretty rural village that is still only a few homes and a converted post office (now a self-catering cottage). The original police station and community hall no longer stand. The school has been converted into a retreat. But the Neuenkirche still stands and continues to celebrate regular Sunday services in German and English.

There is a caravan park just outside the village.

In the vicinity

Hotels & other accommodation options

Things to do in the area

Noteworthy attractions

Find accommodation in Harburg

FIND / South Africa Accommodation / KwaZulu Natal Accommodation / Natal Midlands Accommodation / Harburg Accommodation

Harburg as a destination

Want to stay overnight?

Dates

When would you like to stay?
Choose dates

Number of Guests

Why book with SA-Venues.com
  • Your card is safe with us; strictest card verification in the industry and we don't store card numbers.
  • No airy fairy service fees; you save!
  • We care. Service with integrity.
  • Multiple payment methods:
    credit card, SID instant EFT, bank transfer.
  • All Harburg property owners / managers are verified (our experience protects you from online fraud).
  • Secure your booking
Our Payment Protection Guarantee only applies if your deposit payment is made via SA-Venues.com
Destinations
South Africa. Explore. Experience. Stay

SA-Venues.com® has been assisting travellers with their South Africa travel plans since 1999, and is the largest, independent online travel guide for South Africa available in both English and German.