Cape Town to Dar es Salaam (16 nights) on Rovos Rail
Day 1: Departure from Cape Town
To get you warmed up for the golden-era vibe of your holiday, start with complimentary accommodation at the historic St James Manor (owned by Rovos Rail) before your trip, followed by a complimentary chauffeur transfer to the Rovos Rail Lounge at 1 Adderley Street in Cape Town for check-in at 09h00. Scheduled to depart from Cape Town Station at 11h00 (delays are common), lunch is served in the dining cars. Enjoy a glass of Cape wine as you click-a-clack through the winelands towards Worcester, climbing 750m up the face of the escarpment. Afternoon tea is served in the lounge and observation cars before a formal dinner. Onboard lectures take place throughout the journey in the lounge car.
Day 2: Matjiesfontein & The Great Karoo
Breakfast is served in the dining cars until 10h00. Disembark at Matjiesfontein for an opportunity to stroll through the preserved Victorian railway village. Of special interest is the museum on the platform and a collection of vintage cars and railway carriages to the right of the Lord Milner Hotel. Reboard for lunch as the train traverses the Karoo, a vast semi-desert region that was once an enormous inland sea, followed by afternoon tea and a formal dinner en route to Kimberley.
Day 3: Kimberley Diamond Mine
After breakfast, disembark for a guided tour of Kimberley's Diamond Mine Museum and the Big Hole. Capital of the Northern Cape, Kimberley owes its existence to the frantic diamond rush of 1871. Return to the train for lunch, afternoon tea in the observation car, and a formal dinner as the train climbs onto the Highveld towards Union.
Day 4: Pretoria & Capital Park Station
Following breakfast, transfer (approximately 90 minutes) to Pretoria for a city tour, followed by lunch on the platform at Rovos Rail's private Capital Park Station. Enjoy a walking tour of the locomotive restoration workshops and a visit to the railway museum before returning to the train. Dinner is formal as the train heads west towards Zeerust.
Day 5: Madikwe Game Reserve
Please pack a small overnight bag for your two-night stay in Madikwe (canvas tog bags are provided in your suite). Breakfast is served until 10h00 before a 90-minute road transfer to a luxury lodge in Madikwe, a prime malaria-free Big Five wildlife reserve bordering Botswana. Enjoy lunch on arrival, afternoon tea, and a three-hour late afternoon game drive, followed by a relaxed casual dinner at the lodge.
Day 6: Safari in Madikwe
Set out on an early morning game drive (approximately three hours) when predators are most active, returning to the lodge for breakfast until 09h30. Spend the middle of the day relaxing at the lodge over lunch before heading out for afternoon tea and a second three-hour game drive. Dine at the lodge tonight.
Day 7: Into Botswana & The Kalahari
Ensure your overnight luggage is ready for collection before a final two-hour morning game drive and breakfast at the lodge. At 10h00, check out and transfer (approximately 60 minutes) across the border to rejoin the train in Gaborone, Botswana (guests must present themselves to border officials en route). Lunch is served back on board as the train crosses the Tropic of Capricorn and skirts the eastern edge of the Kalahari Basin. Enjoy afternoon tea and a formal dinner.
Day 8: Through Zimbabwe & Hwange's Edge
Enjoy a leisurely breakfast until 10h00 as border formalities take place into Zimbabwe. After lunch and afternoon tea, the train travels along one of the world's longest stretches of straight railway line - 114 kilometres between Gwaai and Dete - skimming the eastern boundary of Hwange National Park. Dinner is formal.
Day 9: Victoria Falls & Zambezi Cruise
Pack a small overnight bag for your stay at The Victoria Falls Hotel. After breakfast, the train arrives at Victoria Falls, where you can disembark and stroll straight across to the historic hotel. Enjoy a welcome address on the lawn and lunch at Jungle Junction while your luggage is delivered to your room. In the late afternoon, meet in the foyer to depart for a sunset cruise on the Zambezi River, followed by dinner in the Livingstone Room at The Victoria Falls Hotel (smart casual dress code - strictly no safari-wear, shorts, sandals, or trainers).
Day 10: Victoria Falls Bridge & Into Zambia
Breakfast is served at Jungle Junction Restaurant until 10h00, followed by a free day to explore the rainforest trails and viewpoints of Victoria Falls at your leisure, with lunch back at Jungle Junction. In the afternoon, meet on the station platform to reboard the train. Roll slowly across the iconic Victoria Falls Bridge over the Batoka Gorge, enjoying afternoon tea and Zambian border formalities before a formal dinner.
Day 11: Kafue Railway Bridge & Lusaka
Spend a relaxing day on board as the train winds north through Zambia. After lunch, the train crosses the impressive Kafue Railway Bridge - a 477-metre-long steel girder truss bridge supported on 13 concrete spans - before passing through Zambia's capital, Lusaka. Afternoon tea and a formal dinner are served on board.
Day 12: Joining the TAZARA Line
Breakfast is served until 10h00 as the train joins the historic TAZARA (Tanzania-Zambia) railway line at Kapiri Mposhi - a Cold War-era engineering tour de force built in the 1970s with Chinese assistance to give landlocked Zambia a route to the Indian Ocean. Watch remote woodland villages drift past over lunch and afternoon tea before enjoying an "Africa" Theme or Smart Casual dinner en route to Kasama.
Day 13: Chisimba Falls & The Tanzanian Border
After breakfast, disembark for an excursion to Chisimba Falls, where you can walk down to the rock pools at the base of the cascades or admire them from shaded viewpoints. Return to the train for lunch as it climbs towards the Tanzanian border at Nakonde/Tunduma - almost the exact midpoint between Lakes Tanganyika and Malawi in the Great Rift Valley. Border formalities and a formal dinner follow.
Day 14: The Great Rift Valley & Southern Highlands
Enjoy breakfast until 10h00 as the train descends into the Rift Valley and traverses baobab forests towards Mbeya. Throughout the afternoon, the train climbs into Tanzania's Southern Highlands - a lush tapestry of grasslands, savannahs, and mountain forests - en route to Makambako. Lunch, afternoon tea, and a formal dinner are served on board.
Day 15: Makambako & The Udzungwa Mountains
Early risers can enjoy an optional morning stroll through the bustling market town of Makambako (time permitting) before the train departs at 09h00. After lunch, gather in the observation car for one of the most dramatic stretches of railway in Africa: the train negotiates a dizzying series of switchbacks, viaducts, and 23 tunnels carved into the jungled cliffs of the Udzungwa Mountains escarpment. Dinner is formal as the train descends to Fuga Halt.
Day 16: Nyerere National Park (Selous)
Continental breakfast is served until 08h00, followed by an early brunch before disembarking for a game drive (weather permitting) in Nyerere National Park (formerly the Selous Game Reserve) - one of the largest protected wildlife areas in Africa at 30,000km², ensuring the animals have plenty of space to hide from your camera. Reboard the train as it crosses the fertile coastal plains of Tanzania and celebrate your final evening with a "1920s" Theme or Smart Casual dinner en route to Gwata.
Day 17: Arrival in Dar es Salaam
Please ensure your luggage is ready for collection 15 minutes before arrival and keep your passport to hand. Breakfast is served until 10h00 before the train pulls into Tazara Station on Julius K. Nyerere Road in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. A complimentary chauffeur will transfer you to your hotel, where you can enjoy a complimentary night's accommodation in Dar es Salaam, courtesy of luxurytrainholiday.com.