Complete guide

Rooftop Bars Johannesburg

2023 update

Country South Africa

Currency South African rand

Best time to visit September - April

Rooftop grade 6/10

Rooftop Johannesburg

8 best rooftop bars in Johannesburg

By:The world's leading experts on rooftops

Updated:March 18, 2023

The financial and political center of South Africa is also growing into an urban city with a great nightlife. To get the best of the vibes, mixed with a pleasant breeze and lovely views, you should head up to one of the Johannesburg rooftop bar. This complete guide will take you right to the best venues, packed with all info you need about every Jo'burg rooftop: opening hours, dress codes, pics, maps and much more.

Spread out over the city, quite a few of the Johannesburg rooftop bars work as both event venues and public spaces, so it is always worth checking availability before visiting. But which is the best rooftop bar Johannesburg? Just scroll down and find the Johannesburg rooftop bar best suited for you.

The list

Quick LinksJohannesburg rooftop bars

1.Alto234
2.Living Room
3.Flames at Four Seasons Hotel The Westcliff
4.San Deck, Bar & Restaurant
5.Elevate
6.Sir James van der Merwe
7.Copper Bar
8.The Roof Fourways

Rooftop bar Johannesburg Alto234 in Johannesburg — 1

Alto234

$$$$ | 57th floor | City and Sandown

Highlights

Modern

Amazing 360° views

Africa’s highest

Opened during 2021, Alto234 is Africa’s highest urban bar, offering a truly elevated Johannesburg experience. Perched 234 meters up, on the 57th floor The Leonardo in Sandton, the modern and minimalist rooftop comes with both interior and outdoor seating, surrounded with absolutely **breathtaking 360-degree views** over Johannesburg and its surroundings. Up here you can enjoy a luxury tapas menu, along with fun, trendy and edgy signature cocktails, premium spirits and a great selection of wines. Open daily, from the 'Afternoon Experience' to the 'Night Light Experience'.

Everything you need to know

Rooftop bar Johannesburg Living Room Rooftop Café in Johannesburg — 2

Living Room

$$$ | 5th floor | Maboneng

Highlights

Urban oasis

Weekend live music

An urban and lush rooftop café and event venue, located on the 5th floor of the Main Change Building in the heart of Maboneng. From this **inner city rooftop oasis** you get lovely views over the Johannesburg skyline, especially around sunset which is really something extra up here. Closed for private events a few days of the week, the Living room rooftop bar otherwise offers chill weekday vibes and very vibrant weekend gatherings with live music and lots of people. Natural and fresh in setting, which also shine through in the quite large food & drinks menu.

Everything you need to know

Rooftop bar Johannesburg Flames at Four Seasons Hotel The Westcliff in Johannesburg — 3

Flames at Four Seasons Hotel The Westcliff

$$$$ | 4th floor | Westcliff

Highlights

Beautiful terrace

Grill

Luxurious

At the Four Seasons Hotel The Westcliff, located close to the Johannesburg Zoo, you find a **beautiful and luxurious** rooftop bar and restaurant called Flames. Offering both stylish indoor seating and a spacious outdoor terrace, the rooftop is not sky-high, but the elevated position of the hotel means you still get some amazing views across Johannesburg and the surrounding greenery. Up here you can indulge in fine cocktails and a great selection of champagne, along with grilled regional favorites.

Everything you need to know

Rooftop bar Johannesburg San Deck, Bar & Restaurant in Johannesburg — 4

San Deck, Bar & Restaurant

$$$ | 6th floor | Sandton

Highlights

Large terrace

Sunset views

All-day venue

San Deck is an all-day dining and drinking rooftop terrace, situated on the 6th floor of the fabulous Sandton Sun Hotel. Located north of the city center, this large venue offers **several unique outdoor spaces** and a lovely view over Johannesburg’s economic and lifestyle hub skyline. Open from morning to late night, here you can enjoy cusine being a fresh take on South African flavours along with a drink menu that also takes inspiration from the local, from wint to signature SAN cocktails. Relaxed and sophisticated vibes, with live DJs Thur-Sun.

Everything you need to know

Rooftop bar Johannesburg Elevate in Johannesburg — 5

Elevate

$$$ | 16th floor | Marshalltown

Highlights

360-views

Stylish lounge

Popular event venue

Elevate is a hot and trendy rooftop bar and lounge, perched on top of the Reef Hotel in the heart of Johannesburg. Equipped with a stylish indoor lounge and a terrace with white lounge furniture, the 16th floor location means some **fantastic 360-degree views** over the city skyline. The rooftop bar offers a wide range of both drinks and bites, and it is a great spot for a cool after work while overlooking the city, or late nights with more of a club lounge atmosphere.

Everything you need to know

Rooftop bar Johannesburg Sir James van der Merwe in Johannesburg — 6

Sir James van der Merwe

$$$ | 3rd floor | Kramerville

Highlights

Event venue

Public Wednesday nights

Beautiful setting

Located in Kramerville, Sir James van der Merwe is one of the most stunning venues in all of Johannesburg. Situated in a converted warehouse space, it is part of Katy's Palace Bar, and the venues are mostly used as event spaces, but **every Wednesday night** Sir James opens up to the public and becomes the perfect spot for after work drinks. With impressive views over the Sandton skyline, you can enjoy a trendy, hip and lively atmosphere, complemented with a fully stacked bar, bottles of champagne and tasty buffet-style snack boards.

Everything you need to know

Rooftop bar Johannesburg Copper Bar in Johannesburg — 7

Copper Bar

$$$ | 3rd floor | Bryanston

Highlights

Event venue

Thu + Sun public

Live DJs

Exclusive and trendy rooftop bar, nestled away on a rooftop in Bryanston. With a garden-like setup, the terrace is both charming and stylish, and comes with **lovely panoramic views** over the surrounding landscape. Extra fantastic when the sun sets behind the majestic Magaliesberg mountain range. Working as a private event venue most of the time, the rooftop is only open to the public on Thursdays and Sundays. Then you can enjoy fine drinks and bites in a fun and vibrant atmosphere, usually with live DJs creating the soundtrack.

Everything you need to know

Rooftop bar Johannesburg The Roof Fourways in Johannesburg — 8

The Roof Fourways

$$$ | 2nd floor | Fourways

Highlights

Event venue

Breakfast + Lunch

Contemporary

A stylish, contemporary and exclusive Johannesburg rooftop, situated on the second floor of the Infinity Serviced Office Park in Fourways. From the rooftop terrace you can enjoy a 180-degree view of Fourways, along with **magical sunsets over Broadacres**. First and foremost an event venue, The Roof is suited to hold corporate functions, product launches and premium events and celebrations. But it is also open to the public for breakfast and lunch Monday to Friday from 8am to 4pm, and evenings the first Thursday of every month from 5pm.

Everything you need to know

About the author

This guide was made by The Rooftop Guide, the world's leading experts on rooftop bars. With over 800 rooftops visited over the last five years, we keep you up to date in the ever growing universe of rooftop venues.

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City info

Rooftop bar Johannesburg

Rooftop-grade: 6/10

Prime season: Sept-April

Residents: 4,4 millions

Climate: temperate

Johannesburg has a warm climate all year round with an average temperature of 27 degrees celsius in summer and 20 degrees celsius in winter. As a result the rooftop bars in Johannesburg are open all year round.

Which are the best rooftops in Johannesburg? The roof terraces here offer breathtaking views of the skyline and the Johannesburg neighborhoods. At most of these great view spots, there's a pleasent atmosphere and nice feeling.

About Johannesburg

Johannesburg is South Africa's largest metropolitan area with about 4.4 million inhabitants. Here you also find Africa's largest and busiest airport, and it is also a gateway in terms of both train and road traffic. The city is situated on a plateau in eastern Africa, 1 753 meters above sea level. The city is fairly divided in terms of classes. Johannesburg is South Africa's main trade - and finance center.

Rooftop Bars Johannesburg