Rovos Rail – Cape Town – Dar Es Salaam
This Rovos Rail epic train journey travels through South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Tanzania and is one of the most famous in the world. The sojourn begins in Cape Town and ends Dar es Salaam.
This Rovos Rail epic train journey travels through South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Tanzania and is one of the most famous in the world. The sojourn begins in Cape Town and ends Dar es Salaam.
1100 AM // Depart from Cape TownStation. Guests may freshen up in their suites before joining fellow travellers in the lounge car and observation car.
100 PM // Lunch is served in the dining cars. The train reaches Worcester in the Hex River Valley before climbing ±750m up the face of the escarpment. The train arrives at the first of four tunnels on the pass. The last tunnel is 13.5km long so guests are to be careful when walking through the train and may wish to turn on necessary lights.
430 PM // Tea is served in the lounge and observation cars. Disembark at Matjiesfontein for an opportunity to stroll through the historic village. Of special interest is the museum on the platform and a collection of historic cars and railway carriages to the right of the Lord Milner Hotel.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars.
700 AM // Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00 . Travel through the Karoo, a vast semi-desert region that was once an enormous inland sea. Over millions of years, volcanic matter was ground down and deposited as silt upon the seabed to form what geologists call the Karoo system.
1230 PM // Lunch is served in the dining cars . Enjoy a tour of Kimberley’s Diamond Mine Museum and the Big Hole. Capital of the Northern Cape, Kimberley is well known for the discovery of diamonds that led to its establishment in 1871.
430 PM // Tea is served in the lounge and observation cars.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars en route to Klerksdorp.
700 AM // Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 09:45. The train travels through the goldfields.
1000 AM // Arrive at Rovos Rail Station in Pretoria. Enjoy a walking tour of the station and locomotive workshops (weather permitting) followed by lunch on the platform and a city tour of Pretoria.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars en route to Zeerust.
700 AM // Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00.
1100 AM // Transfer to a lodge in Madikwe for a two-night stay. Lunch is served on arrival. Afternoon tea and game drive (approximately 3 hours). Madikwe is a prime malaria-free Big 5 wildlife reserve bordering Botswana. It lies within a transition zone between the North West Province bushveld and Kalahari thornveld with enormous volcanic intrusions, wide open plains and the riverine environment along the Marico River. As a result, the region is host to an incredible diversity of species from both ecosystems with a rich assortment of vegetation and more than 300 resident and migrant bird species.
700 PM // Dinner at the lodge.
530 AM // Early morning game drive (approximately 3 hours) followed by a brunch.
1230 PM // Lunch at the lodge.
300 PM // Afternoon tea and game drive (approximately 3 hours).
700 PM // Dinner at the lodge.
530 AM // Early morning game drive (approximately 2 hours) followed by breakfast.
1030 AM // Depart the lodge. Transfer to the train at Gaborone in Botswana. Border formalities will take place en route and guests are required to present themselves to the border officials (luggage may be searched).
1200 PM // Lunch is served in the dining cars. The train crosses the Tropic of Capricorn and the eastern edge of the Kalahari Basin. Known as ‘Kgalagadi’ in Botswana, the Kalahari (which extends to 900 000km2 and covers much of Botswana, parts of Namibia and South Africa) is not a true desert as it does experience small amounts of rain, with some areas enjoying up to 250mm. The surrounding basin covers over 2 500 000km2 extending farther into Botswana, Namibia and South Africa and encroaching into parts of Angola, Zambia and Zimbabwe. It is part desert, part plateau. The only constant river, the Okavango, flows into a delta in the northwest forming marshes that are rich in wildlife.
430 PM // Tea is served in the lounge and observation cars.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars.
700 AM // Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00. Border formalities take place.
1200 PM // Lunch is served in the dining cars.
430 PM // Tea is served in the lounge and observation cars. Pass Gwaai and Dete along one of Africa’s longest stretches of straight railway line – 114 kilometres – and along the eastern edge of the Hwange National Park.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars.
Lectures will take place throughout the journey during the morning and/or afternoon in the lounge car. Victoria Falls: If you have decided to book activities through the on-board historian, please ensure you have done so before lunch.
700 AM // Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00.
1200 PM // Arrive at the incomparable Victoria Falls. Disembark with an overnight bag and walk across to the hotel. Welcome address on the lawn followed by lunch at Jungle Junction. Luggage will be delivered to the rooms. Meet late in the afternoon in the hotel foyer before departure for the sunset cruise on the Zambezi.
430 PM // Tea is served in the lounge and observation cars. Pass Gwaai and Dete along one of Africa’s longest stretches of straight railway line – 114 kilometres – and along the eastern edge of the Hwange National Park.
730 PM // Dinner at the Livingstone Room, Victoria Falls Hotel.
630 AM // Breakfast is served at the Jungle Junction Restaurant until 10:00. Day at leisure in the Victoria Falls. Plunging over the lip of the Victoria Falls is the largest body of falling water on earth. The mighty Zambezi, fourth longest river in Africa, is about 2kms wide above the falls and cascades dramatically over a precipice 1.6km in length and 108m at its deepest, compressing the vast volume of water into a chasm 50m wide. The sound can be deafening, the aspect magnificent and the memory indelible. In autumn, the spray is so great it inhibits photography while in spring the seasonal flow considerably reduces leaving large slabs of brown basalt exposed on the lip.
100 PM // Lunch at Jungle Junction.
300 PM // Meet on station platform for departure to Zambia.
400 PM // Cross the Victoria Falls Bridge. Tea is served in the lounge and observation cars. Border formalities take place.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars.
700 AM // Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00. After breakfast, the train travels across the Kafue Railway Bridge – a 477-metre long steel girder truss bridge of 13 spans each at 33 metres supported on concrete piers.
100 PM // Lunch is served in the dining cars. The train passes through Zambia’s capital, Lusaka.
430 PM // Tea is served in the lounge and observation cars.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars en route to Kapiri Mposhi.
700 AM // Breakfast is served until 10:00. The train travels the TAZARA railway line, an engineering tour de force and one of Africa’s best-kept secrets as it passes through remote territory.
100 PM // Lunch is served in the dining cars.
430 PM // Tea is served in the lounge and observation cars.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars en route to Kasama.
600 AM // Breakfast is served in the dining cars until departure.
800 AM // Enjoy a visit to Chisimba Falls where guests can take a pleasant walk down to the rock pools at the base of the falls or admire them from various viewpoints. Chisimba Falls is a series of three waterfalls named Mutumuna, Kaela and Chishimba (Chisimba), which are separated over 300m along the Luombe River. According to Bemba tradition, the nature spirit “Chishimba” lives in a cave behind the falls therefore no bad behaviour (including fights, insults and arrogance) is allowed in this area. Though the Bemba people arrived here in the 17th century, they weren’t the first as the land surrounding the falls is dotted with evidence of Iron Age activities including kilns, smelting pipes and iron ore deposits.
1130 AM // The train climbs to the border, almost exactly the midpoint between Africa’s two Great Rift Valley lakes.
100 PM // Lunch is served in the dining cars.
430 PM // Tea is served in the lounge and observation cars. Border formalities take place.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars. The train passes Baobab forests and descends the Rift Valley towards Mbeya.
700 AM // Breakfast is served in the dining cars until departure.
900 AM // Arrive at Makambako and enjoy a stroll through the town (time permitting).
1100 AM // The train travels towards the jungled Udzungwa Mountains and negotiates the dramatic switchbacks, viaducts and tunnels of the escarpment.
100 PM // Lunch is served in the dining cars.
430 PM // Tea is served in the lounge and observation cars.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars.
700 AM // Continental breakfast is served in the dining cars until 08:00. The train descends into the highlands and traverses the fertile lands of Tanzania towards the Selous.
1030 AM // Brunch is served in the dining cars until 11:45.
1200 PM // Enjoy a game visit in the Selous Game Reserve, the largest in Africa at 55 000km2 (time permitting).
600 PM // Return to the train.
730 PM // Dinner is served in the dining cars en route to Gwata.
700 AM // Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00. Travel in an easterly direction towards the coast.
1000 AM // Arrive at journey’s end at Tazara Station in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Since its establishment in 1989, Rovos Rail has earned an international reputation for its truly world-class travel experiences.
Step aboard the classic wood-panelled coachesand sit back as some of the most varied scenery imaginable unfolds beyond the windows. With discreet and friendly service, excellent cuisine and a selection of South Africa’s finest wines, Rovos Rail harks back to a simpler, more elegant era encompassing the timeless grace and high romance of African exploration.
In a series of journeys lasting from 48 hours to 15 nights,Rovos Rail links some of the subcontinent’s greatest destinations.
Start Date | End Date | Pullman Sharing | Deluxe Sharing | Royal Sharing | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
16 Sep 2023 | 30 Sep 2023 | 13,600 | 17,995 | 23,600 | |
13 Jan 2024 | 27 Jan 2024 | 13,600 | 17,995 | 23,600 | |
29 Jun 2024 | 13 Jul 2024 | 13,600 | 17,995 | 23,600 | |
14 Sep 2024 | 28 Sep 2024 | 13,600 | 17,995 | 23,600 |
Single Supplement Rates on Request.
Accommodation.
All Meals and local brand drinks.
Guided excursions.
Limited laundry.
International airfare.
Visas if required.
Travel insurance.
Airport transfers.
Gratuities.
Items of a personal nature.
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