African Rail Trips

Rovos Rail has acquired and upgraded the Shongololo Express, providing a special touring experience for visitors to Southern Africa. Accommodating up to 72 guests(our trip only had 38 guests) in comfortable cabins, the classic wood-panelled carriages takes you back to a simpler, more elegant era encompassing the romance of African exploration. This impressive panoramic journey through South Africa, Eswatini (Swaziland), Mozambique and Zimbabwe is facilitated by 11 nights on the train and offers a balance of cultural visits, spectacular scenery and game viewing in four contrasting countries of Southern Africa.

Our cabin was a modest size, but sufficient for what we needed. And it did have its own bathroom

Fri Nov 3		08.00 Check in to do Rovos tour 10.00 Train departs Pretotia Station The train travels on the eastern line towards the harsh eMalahleni coal-mining area and Middelburg, known as the “stainless steel capital of Africa”. The Dutch railway building company, NZASM built the eastern line between Pretoria and Lourenço Marques (Maputo) from 1893 to 1895. Lunch is served in the dining cars. Tea in the lounge and observation cars. Dinner is served in the dining cars.
Sat Nov 4		Breakfast is served in the dining cars. Full-day tour of historical areas Pilgrim’s Rest, Bourke’s Luck Potholes and Graskopwith lunch. The Graskop viewing lift takes visitors 51m down the face of the gorge into the forest below where wooden walkways and suspension bridges meander along a 600m trail through the indigenous forest with an interactive exhibit Return to the train in Mbombela (140km). Depart for Malelane. Dinner is served in the dining cars. Dress: Smart Casual Pilgrim’s Rest is a living museum and declared a National Monument. Gold was discovered in this area in 1873 attracting 1500 prospectors. Today many of the restored miner’s houses serve as shops and restaurants. Bourke’s Luck Potholes are strange deep cylindrical cavities formed by river erosion and floodwater. Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve has the most spectacular viewpoints overlooking the Lowveld,
Sun Nov 5		Breakfast is served in the dining cars. Full-day game viewing in the Kruger Park with lunch. Tea in the lounge and observation cars. Depart for Maputo, Mozambique. Border formalities take place. Dinner is served in the dining cars. Dress: Smart Casual
Mon Nov 6		Breakfast is served in the dining cars. City tour of Maputo, Mozambique, with lunch. Return to the train. Tea in the lounge and observation cars. Travel to Mpaka, eSwatini. Border formalities take place. Dinner is served in the dining cars. Dress: Smart Casual Capital of Mozambique, Maputo is a city of contrasts offering an exciting mix of cultures. Its architecture is a blend of African, Portuguese and early Colonial traditions with old Catholic churches side-by-side with mosques, fortresses, Victorian mansions and buildings from a bygone era.
Tues Nov 7		Breakfast is served in the dining cars. Disembark at Mpaka. Transfer (±90 min) to Swazi Candles and Mantenga Cultural Village with lunch at Mantenga Lodge, nestled in the mountains overlooking ‘Execution Rock’. Return to the train (±75 min). Depart for Hoedspruit. Border formalities take place. Tea in the lounge and observation cars. Dinner is served in the dining cars. The tiny Kingdom of eSwatini (Swaziland) covers only 17 000km2 , most of which is mountainous. For such a small country, it is surprising that it sustains two capital cities: Mbabane is the administrative capital and Lobamba is the royal and legislative capital. In April 2018, Swaziland changed its name to the Kingdom of eSwatini (meaning “place of the Swazi”) and is an absolute monarchy. It is landlocked and borders South Africa and Mozambique.
Wed Nov 8		Continental breakfast is served in the dining cars until 05:30. Game drive in Kapama Game Reserve and the Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre. Return to the train for lunch. Depart for Tzaneen and Louis Trichardt. Tea in the lounge and observation cars. Dinner is served in the dining cars. Dress: “Africa” Theme or Smart Casual Situated in South Africa’s northernmost province of Limpopo, renowned for its prolific and diverse wildlife, Kapama Private Game Reserve is home to over 40 different mammal species including the Big Five. The Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre is a unique African wildlife facility focusing on conservation and the sustainability of rare, vulnerable and threatened species. Founded on passion, the centre has adopted a holistic approach to its conservation activities such as the educating of communities, tourism, breeding, rehabilitation and anti-poaching
Thurs Nov 9		Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00. Day on board the train travelling to Zimbabwe. Border formalities take place. Lunch is served in the dining cars. Tea in the lounge and observation cars. Dinner is served in the dining cars The Limpopo landscape varies from one area to the other from tropical forests, bush and shrubs to semi-desert areas with small trees and bushes and mountains to flat land.
Fri Nov 10		Breakfast is served in the dining cars. Transfer to the Great Zimbabwe Monument for a tour with lunch. Rejoin to the train at Oreti Siding. Depart for Gweru. Dinner is served in the dining cars. Dress: Smart Casual Travel through granite hill country to the Great Zimbabwe Monument, a impressive monument situated on the southeast edge of the central plateau and the largest monument south of the Egyptian pyramids. A celebrated achievement of the African people and a place where fables such as the story of King Solomon’s Mines find their origins amongst the ruins of an ancient city built by the Rozwi people. Discover how these ancient people lived and mined gold and silver, which were ultimately taken out of Africa by Arabic and Portuguese traders.
Sat Nov 11		Breakfast is served in the dining cars. Depart for a full day at Antelope Park with lunch. Optional extras include canoeing, game drives, horseback game viewing, elephant interaction, bird-watching cruises and so on (see price list). Return to the train. Depart for Bulawayo. Tea in the lounge and observation cars. Dinner is served in the dining cars. Dress: Smart Casual Set in over 3000 acres of open savannah grassland, Antelope Park is a unique game reserve and a haven of tranquillity welcoming guests and volunteer eco-tourists alike. It is home to the famous African Lion and Environmental Research Trust (ALERT) lion rehabilitation programme. It is Africa’s first genuine programme working to ethically re-introduce the offspring of captive-bred African lions back into the wild.
Sun Nov 12		Breakfast is served in the dining cars. Full-day tour of Matobo National Park with lunch. Visit the grave of Cecil John Rhodes as well as bushmen caves with rock art. Tea in the lounge and observation cars. Depart for Kennedy. Dinner is served in the dining cars. Dress: Smart Casual Matobo (or Matopos), meaning ‘bald heads’, was the name chosen for the area by the Ndebele King, Mzilikazi. He is buried in the Matobo hills just a short distance from the park. It is an apt description of the dramatic hills and granite rocks of this area. The park is also the site of Cecil John Rhodes’ grave at the summit of Malindidzimu – ‘hill of benevolent spirits’. He referred to this hill as having a view of the world. His grave is carved out of solid granite and surrounded by a natural amphitheatre of boulders. A visit can be made to one of the more accessible bushman caves, of which there are many hidden amongst the hills. Matobo is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Mon Nov 13		Breakfast is served in the dining cars. Full-day game viewing in Hwange National Park with a packed lunch. Return to the train. Tea in the lounge and observation cars. Depart for Thompson’s Junction. Dinner is served in the dining cars. Dress: “1920s” Theme or Smart Casual Situated in the northwest corner of Zimbabwe, Hwange National Park covers 1 462 000 hectares making it the nation’s largest wildlife area. It contains a variety of animals and bird species but is well-known for its prolific lion population.
Tues Nov 14		Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 09:30. Arrive Victoria Falls. Check out of train and walk across to Victoria Falls Hotel (luggage can be stored on the train). Meet for a walking tour of the village and the falls with lunch. . The little station of Victoria Falls was first reached by railway in June 1904. Old colonial buildings, bougainvillea and palm trees against the backdrop of the Victoria Falls Hotel form a charming oasis of soft sweetness after the rugged dryness of the landscape. The present falls is wearing from Devil’s Cataract northwards, eroding the softer material behind the present basalt base of the falls. Although just over a mile long , the falls are broken up by various small islands, including Livingstone Island. At their deepest, the falls are 108m deep at Rainbow Falls

African Rail Trip - Rovos Rail from Pretoria to Vic Falls - 3 Nov 2023