SLOW TRAIN TO CAPE TOWN
Slow Train to Cape Town - Luxury Travel Magazine
 | |||||
Slow Train to Cape Town | |||||
| By: Lucy Jones, Issue 46 – Autumn 11 | |||||
| (Cape Town, South Africa) | |||||
| TURN OFF YOUR TECHNOLOGY AND EMBRACE THE PRE-WAR ELEGANCE OF SOUTH AFRICAN TRAIN TRAVEL, WRITES LUCY JONES. ALL ABOARD THE PRIDE OF AFRICA. | |||||
| Pretoria has the unique, and possibly unprecedented, distinction of being a national capital without a commercial airport. Visitors can fly into Johannesburg’s Oliver Tambo Airport a short distance away, but the capital city remains quietly aloof. Pretoria is smaller and less commercialised than Johannesburg, and it moves at a slower pace. It is a pretty, laid-back city of leafy parks and stately universities and there is no more fitting place in South Africa to board an antique train at a restored colonial-era train station for a sedate journey across the country. The train is Rovos Rail’s Pride of Africa, a collection of carriages dating from as far back as the 1920s, hand-sourced and painstakingly restored by owner and operator Rohan Vos. Four of these trains traverse the continent on trips ranging from two or three day jaunts in South Africa to 14-day trans-continental safaris. The trains have been a labour of love for Vos and he still endeavours to greet all departures and arrivals personally. Most weeks of the year The Pride of Africa departs from the private Capital Park Station in Pretoria to begin a leisurely, 48-hour trip across 1,600 kilometres of South Africa to Cape Town. The train comprises a number of sleeping cars, two dining cars, a lounge car and an observation car with large windows and open-air balconies. It travels at a maximum speed of 60km/h so you can take in the views and, hopefully, see a few animals. There are no televisions, radios, newspapers or Internet access, and mobile phones and laptops can only be used in your suite, so a pleasantly old-fashioned atmosphere prevails onboard. This must be how Cecil Rhodes (English-born colonialist and founder of diamond company De Beers) travelled the country. As with most great train journeys, days are scheduled around meal times. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served in single sittings in the Victorian dining cars with fine china, crisp linen and polished silver. Passengers are required to dress for dinner, with jacket and tie a minimum requirement. The focus is on fresh produce and local specialties accompanied by a selection of South African wines. Game is a popular inclusion, so the kudu or gemsbok that you can see out the window may also make an appearance on your plate. Passengers can choose between three styles of suite onboard – Royal, Deluxe and Pullman. All suites are wood panelled with period Edwardian features, and are equipped with the modern conveniences of air-conditioning, ensuite and complimentary mini-bar. The Royal Suites take up half a carriage, measuring 16 square metres in total. They feature twin or double beds, a separate lounge and a full bathroom complete with chequerboard tiles and freestanding Victorian bathtub. The 11 square metre Deluxe Suites offer similar features, including a private lounge, though with only a shower in the ensuite. The Pullman Suites convert from a lounge with sofa-seat to a double or twin sleeper for the evening. For the two day Pretoria to Cape Town journey the train departs Pretoria in the afternoon, making its way south-west towards Kimberly. The route it takes travels across the Highveld, a dry grassland plateau the size of Belgium. Years of intensive farming and gold mining have made wildlife relatively scarce in this part of the country, until the morning of the second day. Around ten minutes before the train arrives in Kimberley it passes Kamfers Dam, a large, shallow lake on the outskirts of the city. It supports the largest population of Lesser Flamingos in southern Africa. At most times of the year huge flocks of around 23,000, and even up to 60,000, birds can be seen from the train, covering the surface of the water in a mass of pale pink feathers. Passengers disembark at Kimberley and can spend the morning exploring the “diamond city”, home of the De Beers diamond mines. Kimberley’s other claim to fame is the aptly named Big Hole, the world’s largest hand dug excavation. 22.5 million tonnes of earth was taken out of the hole between 1871 and 1914, which is a lot of dirt when you’re only using picks and shovels. Back on the train, passengers travel the 700-or-so kilometres to Matjiesfontein over the course of the afternoon and night. This portion of the journey traverses the semidesert of the Great Karoo National Park. This is some of the most barren and unforgiving landscape in the country, but it is also home to fascinating wildlife including springbok, black rhinoceros and the Cape Mountain zebra. Passengers are invited to alight the train at the Whitehall siding and walk or run the five kilometres into Matjiesfontein. Those not inclined to walking may stay on the train and make their way from the comfort of the dining car as breakfast is served. The entire village was declared a National Historic Monument in 1970 and there are many historic buildings and a museum on the platform. The final leg of the journey travels through the Hex River Valley, passing through the Breede River wine region and the town of Worcester, to arrive in Cape Town in the early evening. The scenic wine lands, mountain ranges and ocean that surround Cape Town make for a fittingly grand end to the journey. | |||||
| Departures | |||||
| The Pride of Africa departs Pretoria for Cape Town weekly most of the year. The trip also operates in reverse. Prices for the three day/two night Pretoria to Cape Town journey start from R12,000 (about A$1,735) in a Pullman Suite to R24,000 (about A$3,464) in a Royal Suite per person twin share including all meals, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages and off-train excursions. | |||||
| rovos.com | |||||
| When To Go | |||||
| South Africa’s temperate climate means that the weather is generally pleasant and mild all year | |||||
|
