Rovos Rail
Namibia Safari (From Pretoria to Walvis Bay)
This journey takes the train from the savannahs of the Highveld to the Atlantic in the west. Departing from Pretoria, the first stop is Kimberley, centre of one of the world’s famous diamond rushes where there is an opportunity to savour the 1870s atmosphere of the mining village.
The train traverses the stark vistas of the Northern Cape to the Fish River Canyon – second in size to the Grand Canyon – and Garas Park with its quiver-tree forest.
Guests continue across the untamed beauty of the Kalahari Desert to a cheetah conservation project and a stop in Namibia’s capital for a tour; Windhoek is a lively, cosmopolitan city with a strong German flavour.
Then it’s a short flight to Sossusvlei, a stunning pan in the Namib Desert, for an overnight stay followed by a night in the game-rich Etosha National Park.
On the last morning, the train travels the Namib to the perfectly preserved 19th-century German Hansa town of Swakopmund and Walvis Bay – an unforgettable end to a remarkable journey.
11:00 Depart from Rovos Rail Station, Pretoria. Travel south across the goldfields of the Witwatersrand. Guests may freshen up in their suites before joining fellow travellers in the lounge car or observation car at the rear of the train.
13:00 Lunch is served in the dining cars.
16:30 Tea in the lounge and observation cars.
19:30 Dinner is served in the dining cars en route to Kimberley.
07:00 Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00.
10:00 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.
13:00 Lunch is served in the dining cars. The observation car will be leading the train until after tea – a different aspect that our rail enthusiasts enjoy. 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.
16:30 Tea in the lounge and observation cars.
19:30 Dinner is served in the dining cars en route to De Aar, an important railway junction.
07:00 Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00.
13:00 Lunch is served in the dining cars.
16:00 Enjoy a walking tour of Upington with a sundowner cruise on the Orange River.
19:30 Dinner is served in the dining cars en route to Ariumsvlei for border formalities with Namibia.
07:00 Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00.
12:30 Lunch is served in the dining cars. The train travels along the southern reaches of the Kalahari Basin.
14:00 Transfer (±60 min) to the Fish River Canyon.
19:30 Dinner is served in the dining cars en route to Aus.
06:00 Breakfast is served in the dining cars until departure.
08:00 Transfer (±60 min) to the ghost town of Kolmanskop followed by lunch in Lüderitz. Lüderitz is known for its museum, colonial architecture and wildlife including seals, penguins, flamingos and ostriches. Look out for the illusive legendary horses rumoured to roam the Namib.
18:00 Return to the train. Depart for Keetmanshoop. The observation car will be leading the train until after dinner.
19:30 Dinner is served in the dining cars.
07:00 Breakfast is served in the dining cars until departure.
09:00 Visit Keetmanshoop and Garas Park (Quiver Trees), home to roughly 300 specimens of the Aloe dichotomy. The prehistoric trees have forked branches that reach up to 5m making for great photographic opportunities.
13:00 Return to the train for lunch. Depart for Mariental.
16:30 Tea in the lounge and observation cars.
19:30 Dinner is served in the dining cars en route to Rehoboth.
07:00 Breakfast is served in the dining cars en route to Windhoek.
09:00 Transfer to the airstrip. Depart in a light aircraft for a one-hour flight to a Sossusvlei lodge for overnight. After check-in, enjoy lunch and an afternoon at leisure.
16:30 Afternoon desert drive and a bush dinner after sunset. Overnight at the lodge.
An early wake-up call with tea and coffee. Enjoy a desert drive with breakfast in the vlei. Return to the lodge to use the facilities, check-out and transfer to the airstrip.
11:00 Depart in a light aircraft for the one-hour flight to Windhoek.
13:00 Lunch at Windhoek Country Club followed by a city tour. Visit the Trans-Namib Transport Museum, the Independence Memorial Museum, the Evangelical Lutheran Church (a striking landmark) and the Namibia Craft Centre in the old Breweries Building.
18:00 Depart for Kranzberg.
19:30 Dinner is served in the dining cars.
07:00 Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00.
12:30 Lunch is served in the dining cars.
14:30 Transfer (±60 min) to a cheetah conservation project in Otjiwarongo. Founded in Namibia in 1990, the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) is dedicated to saving the cheetah in the wild.
18:00 Depart for Otavi.
19:30 Dinner is served in the dining cars.
07:00 Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00. Transfer (±60 min) to an Etosha lodge for overnight. Check-in and enjoy lunch.
15:00 Afternoon game drive (approximately 3 hours).
19:30 Dinner at the lodge and overnight.
An early wake-up call with tea and coffee followed by a game drive in the Etosha National Park. Return to the lodge for a late breakfast and check-out. Transfer (±60 min) to the train at Tsumeb Station.
13:00 Lunch is served in the dining cars. The observation car will be leading the train until tomorrow.
16:30 Tea in the lounge and observation cars.
19:30 Dinner is served in the dining cars. The train travels southwest towards the Atlantic Ocean.
07:00 Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10:00. Traverse the Namib Desert towards Walvis Bay.
12:00 Arrive at journey’s end in Walvis Bay, Namibia.
