Namibia Safari aboard Rovos Rail’s Pride of Africa
Overview
The Highlights
NEW for 2024: Itinerary is now 12 days. Running times have been tweaked, and visits to Kolmanskop and Lüdertiz, known for its museum, architecture and coastal wildlife, have been added.
Other key highlights include:
- Nine nights aboard the Pride of Africa, one of the world’s finest luxury trains;
- The Big Hole in Kimberley, site of one of the world’s most famous diamond rushes;
- Visit the Fish River Canyon, second largest canyon in the world;
- Tour of Windhoek, a cosmopolitan city with a strong German influence;
- Game drives and overnight at Mokuti Lodge, located in the game-rich Etosha National Park;
- Overnight stay at the world-famous Sossusvlei, a stunning pan in the Namib Desert surrounded by massive red sand dunes;
- Visit to a cheetah conservation center;
- All accommodations, meals, alcohol (on board) and off-train excursions included.
The Tour
The 12-day Namibia Safari is an unforgettable 1,500 mile (3,400 km) trek through one of the earth’s most interesting and alien landscapes, all aboard Rovos Rail’s Pride of Africa luxury train.
Departing from Pretoria, the first stop is Kimberley, center of one of the world’s famous diamond rushes, where there is an opportunity to savor the 1870s atmosphere of the mine 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.
Continue across the untamed beauty of the Kalahari Desert to Namibia’s capital for a tour; Windhoek is a lively, cosmopolitan city with a strong German flavor. Next, take 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.
Imagine a country so vast and sparsely populated that it’s possible to find places devoid of everything: plants, animals, people, rocks: just endless miles of wind-swept sand.
Namibia is much more. Namib-Naukluft, Africa’s largest game park, is home to Sossusvlei’s brilliant red dunes. Etosha National Park is one of Africa’s largest, both in terms of its size and in its plethora of different kinds of animals.
And there’s no finer way to explore this desert land then by luxury train.
As the former German Southwest Africa, Namibia retains much of its colonial heritage—it’s also well-known for its great lager beers.
IRT Report: IRT’s Angela Walker and Rachel Hardy loved their time on Rovos Rail’s Pride of Africa. Click here for part one of their report on the train, here for part two.
Countries Visited
- South Africa
- Namibia
Itinerary
Day 1: Depart Pretoria
Gather at Rovos Rail’s private Capital Park station in Pretoria. Board the Pride of Africa for a late morning departure. Settle into your private cabin, and enjoy lunch and dinner on board as the train travels south toward the goldfields of the Witwatersrand.
Day 2: Kimberley
Arrive in Kimberley this morning. Capital of the Northern Cape, Kimberley is well known for the discovery of diamonds that led to its establishment in 1871. Enjoy a tour of the Big Hole and Diamond Mine Museum.
Back on the train, lunch is served as you 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. Afternoon tea and dinner are served on board.
Day 3: Upington & the Orange River
After breakfast, disembark for a walking tour of Upington, oasis town on the Orange River, surrounded by the Kalahari Desert and famous for its wine. Next, enjoy a sunset cruise on the Orange River.
Back on board, lunch is served and Namibian border formalities will take place. Dinner is served en route to Holoog.
Day 4: Fish River Canyon
Enjoy a leisurely breakfast and lunch on the train this morning. This afternoon, explore the gigantic Fish River Canyon, largest canyon in Africa. The vast rocky landscape breaks up into a series of spectacular cliffs. Its size is impressive: 100 miles (161 km) long, up to 17 miles (27 km) wide and 1,800 feet (550 m) at its deepest.
Return to the train for dinner on board.
Day 5: Kolmanskop & Luderitz
After breakfast, transfer 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 rumored to roam the Namib.
Return to the train for dinner.
Day 6: Keetmanshoop & Garas Park
After breakfast, visit Keetmanshoop and Garas Park, home to the famous Quiver Trees, and roughly 300 specimens of the Aloe dichotomy. The prehistoric trees have forked branches that reach up to 16 feet (5 meters) making for great photographic opportunities.
Return to the train for a relaxing day on board. Enjoy lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner as the train rolls onward.
Day 7: Sossusvlei
After breakfast, transfer to the airstrip for your short flight to Sossusvlei.
After check-in and lunch at the lodge, embark on an afternoon desert drive followed by a bush dinner after sunset.
Day 8: Sossusvlei & Windhoek
Enjoy an early morning desert drive with breakfast in the vlei (dry marsh). The dunes of the Namib were created by sand carried by the wind from the coast. The sand here is over 5-million years old and is red due to its iron-oxide content. As the light changes during the day, so does the appearance of the dunes’ characteristic color, allowing for interesting photographs at any time. The wind in the Sossusvlei area blows from all directions causing the sand to form a star shape with multiple arms, hence the name “star dunes.”
Depart Sossusvlei on the one-hour flight back to Windhoek. Have 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 in the city — and the Namibia Craft Centre.
Rejoin the train early evening for dinner.
Day 9: Cheetah Conservation Project
After a leisurely morning onboard the train, visit a cheetah conservation project in Otjiwarongo this afternoon.
Founded in Namibia in 1990, the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) is dedicated to saving the cheetah in the wild.
After, return to the train for dinner.
Day 10: Etosha National Park
After breakfast, transfer to Mokuti Lodge in Etosha National Park, home to 114 mammal species, including the rare and endangered black rhino and black-faced impala. Lunch, afternoon game drive, dinner and overnight at the lodge.
Day 11: Etosha National Park
Early morning game drive in the Etosha National Park, where blue wildebeest, mountain and plains zebra, giraffe, hyena, lion, cheetah, leopard as well as 340 species of birds may be spotted. Return to the lodge for breakfast and check-out.
Transfer to Tsumeb station where the Pride of Africa awaits. Lunch and afternoon tea are served as the train travels southwest towards the Atlantic Ocean. Enjoy a 1920s-themed dinner on board this evening.
Day 12: Walvis Bay
Enjoy breakfast as the train traverses the Namib Desert. Midday arrival at journey’s end, Walvis Bay.
Day 1: Depart Walvis Bay
Depart Walvis Bay aboard Rovos Rail’s Pride of Africa late afternoon and settle into your private cabin. Enjoy lunch on board as the train travels east across the Namib Desert. Afternoon tea and dinner on board while traveling across the Namib Desert towards Otjiwarongo.
Day 2: Cheetah Conservation Project
After breakfast, visit a cheetah conservation project in Otjiwarongo this afternoon.
Founded in Namibia in 1990, the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) is dedicated to saving the cheetah in the wild.
After, return to the train for lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner.
Day 3: Etosha National Park
After breakfast, transfer to Mokuti Lodge in Etosha National Park, home to 114 mammal species, including the rare and endangered black rhino and black-faced impala. Lunch, afternoon game drive, dinner and overnight at the lodge.
Day 4: Etosha National Park
Early morning game drive in the Etosha National Park, where blue wildebeest, mountain and plains zebra, giraffe, hyena, lion, cheetah, leopard as well as 340 species of birds may be spotted. Return to the lodge for breakfast and check-out. Rejoin the Pride of Africa at Tsumeb station for lunch, afternoon tea and dinner on board.
Day 5: Sossusvlei
After breakfast, disembark the train in Windhoek, where you will board a light aircraft for the short scenic flight to Sossusvlei. After check-in and lunch at the lodge, embark on an afternoon desert drive followed by a bush dinner after sunset.
Day 6: Sossusvlei & Windhoek
Enjoy an early morning desert drive with breakfast in the vlei (dry marsh). The dunes of the Namib were created by sand carried by the wind from the coast. The sand here is over 5-million years old and is red due to its iron-oxide content. As the light changes during the day, so does the appearance of the dunes’ characteristic color, allowing for interesting photographs at any time. The wind in the Sossusvlei area blows from all directions causing the sand to form a star shape with multiple arms, hence the name “star dunes.”
Depart Sossusvlei on the one-hour flight back to Windhoek. Have 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 in the city — and the Namibia Craft Centre.
Rejoin the train early evening for dinner.
Day 7: Keetmanshoop & Garas Park
After a leisurely breakfast and lunch, visit Keetmanshoop and Garas Park, home to the famous Quiver Trees, and roughly 300 specimens of the Aloe dichotomy. The prehistoric trees have forked branches that reach up to 16 feet (5 meters) making for great photographic opportunities.
Return to the train for afternoon tea and dinner as the train rolls onward.
Day 8: Luderitz & Kolmanskop
After breakfast, transfer 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 rumored to roam the Namib.
Return to the train for dinner.
Day 9: Fish River Canyon
After breakfast, explore the gigantic Fish River Canyon, largest canyon in Africa. The vast rocky landscape breaks up into a series of spectacular cliffs. Its size is impressive: 100 miles (161 km) long, up to 17 miles (27 km) wide and 1,800 feet (550 m) at its deepest.
Return to the train for lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner on board. Border formalities will be conducted on arrival in South Africa.
Day 10: Upington & the Orange River
After breakfast, disembark for a walking tour of Upington, oasis town on the Orange River, surrounded by the Kalahari Desert and famous for its wine. Next, enjoy a sunset cruise on the Orange River.
Re-board the train for lunch, tea, and dinner.
Day 11: Kimberley
Breakfast on board, followed by a morning tour of Kimberley. Capital of the Northern Cape, Kimberley is well known for the discovery of diamonds that led to its establishment in 1871. Tour the Big Hole and the Diamond Mine Museum before returning to the train for lunch and tea. Enjoy a 1920s-themed dinner on board this evening.
Day 12: Pretoria
Enjoy breakfast as the train continues to travel northeast through the goldfields of the Witwatersrand via Krugersdorp, Germiston and Johannesburg. Arrive at Rovos Rail’s private Capital Park station in Pretoria midday.
Dates & Prices
2024 Dates
March 15 - 26 *
April 2 - 13
April 15 - 26 *
April 30 - May 11
May 17 - 28 *
November 15 - 26 *
*This departure runs Walvis Bay to Pretoria.
NEW for 2024: Itinerary will be lengthened to 12 days. Click here for details of Pretoria-Walvis Bay itinerary; here for Walvis Bay-Pretoria itinerary.
Running times have been tweaked, and visits to Kolmanskop and Lüdertiz, known for its museum, architecture and coastal wildlife, have been added.
Royal Suites are not available on the following 2024 departures: March 15-26, May 17-28, and November 15-26.
| Accommodation | Double | Single | Deposit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pullman Gold | ZAR 165,000 | ZAR 247,500 | 25% |
| Deluxe | ZAR 210,000 | ZAR 315,000 | 25% |
| Royal | ZAR 258,000 | ZAR 387,000 | 25% |
- Prices are per person
- Tour priced in South African Rand (ZAR). For approximate exchange rates, visit http://www.xe.com.
2025 Dates
March 21 - April 1 *
April 1 - 12
April 14 - 25 *
May 12 - 23 *
November 14 - 25 *
*This departure runs Walvis Bay to Pretoria.
| Accommodations | Double | Single | Deposit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pullman Gold | ZAR 179,000 | ZAR 263,000 | 25% |
| Deluxe | ZAR 228,000 | ZAR 342,000 | 25% |
| Royal | ZAR 280,000 | ZAR 560,000 | 25% |
- Prices are per person
- Tour priced in South African Rand (ZAR). For approximate exchange rates, visit http://www.xe.com.
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Reviews From Our Travelers
I cannot praise Eleanor Hardy's company highly enough. She took care of all the planning, paying attention to every detail and thus this trip was smooth running and fabulous. I hope to travel with this company again.
Eleanor makes you feel like you are her only client. Always available to help with even the smallest detail. Our trip was absolutely trouble free. Everything worked exactly like we expected it to.
Excellent! They took care of every detail and made sure we didn’t had any inconvenience at any time. Their hard work and personal attention to every detail was obvious. In a complicated country like India, they made sure we had the maximum enjoyment in every place we visited. Their professionalism and hard work assured it was an unforgettable experience.
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Rates include all accommodation, meals, beverages on board (except international/French champagne), room service, limited laundry service on board, excursions, entrance fees, flights to/from Sossusvlei and government tax.
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