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Travel in style on the world renowned
luxurious Blue Train to exotic destinations and fine hotels in Southern Africa.
Capture the romance of a bygone era.
Experience the magic and mystery of Africa in a relaxed and elegant fashion.
Train travel is the perfect illustration of
South Africa as a world in one country.
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Thrill to the sight of snow capped
mountains through the glass observation deck and marvel at lions, giraffes
and elephants in their natural habitat.
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Glide past vineyards and charming
colonial towns.
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Observe grasslands of the gold-rich
highveld to the haunting barrenness of the Great Karoo.
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Ascend to the highveld through tangles
of indigenous forests, with its deep gorges and ancients cliffs, where
“living fossils” cycads flourish in the high lying land of the primeval
Baobab tree.
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Slide along past tea estates, trout
streams natural woodlands and vast citrus estates.
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Rumble through the spectacular mountain
ranges and scenic winelands of the Cape.
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Roll into Cape Town the Mother city of
South Africa cradled by the imposing bulk of Table Mountain, Devils Peak and
Lions Head..
This unique luxury recreation and business
experience takes you where you want to go in an endless, five-star splendor.
It
pauses only to pick up prestigious World Travel awards for being a cut above the
rest and the Diner's Club accolade for its connoisseur selection of South
African wines.
The Blue Train cuisine puts sheer good
taste on a plate.
A vision of timeless Africa - savor the
beautiful African landscape.
BLUE TRAIN
SCHEDULES
2007
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PRETORIA TO
CAPE TOWN
2007
Selected
Mondays,
Wednesdays & Fridays
|
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CAPE TOWN TO
PRETORIA
2007
Selected
Mondays,
Wednesdays & Fridays |
|
January |
3, 8, 15, 22, 29 |
|
January |
5, 10, 17, 24, 31 |
|
February |
5, 12, 19, 26 |
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February |
7, 14, 21, 28 |
|
March |
5, 12, 19, 28 |
|
March |
7, 14, 21, 30 |
April
|
2, 9, 23, 30 |
|
April |
4, 11, 25 |
|
May |
7, 14, 21, 28 |
|
May |
2, 9, 16, 23, 30 |
|
June |
18, 25 |
|
June |
20, 27 |
July
|
2, 16, 23, 30 |
|
July |
4, 18, 25 |
|
August |
6, 13, 20, 27 |
|
August |
1, 8, 15, 22, 29 |
|
September |
14, 19, 24, 28 |
|
September
|
17, 21, 26 |
|
October |
3, 8, 17, 22, 26, 31 |
|
October
|
1, 5, 10, 19, 24, 28 |
|
November |
5, 9, 14, 19 |
|
November
|
2, 7, 12, 16, 21 |
|
December |
3, 7, 12, 17 |
|
December |
5, 10, 14, 19 |
|
Luxury - Per Person Sharing |
R 8875.00 |
R 10945.00 |
|
Luxury - Per Person Single Use |
R 13310.00 |
R 16415.00 |
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De Luxe - Per Person Sharing |
R 8215.00 |
R 10135.00 |
|
De Luxe - Per Person Single Use |
R 12320.00 |
R 15200.00 |
Low season dates :
01 January 2007 - 31 August 2007 / 8
16 November 2007 - 31 December 2007/8
CLICK HERE FOR CURRENCY CONVERTER
BLUE TRAIN
SCHEDULES
2008
|
PRETORIA TO
CAPE TOWN
2008
Selected
Mondays,
Wednesdays
& Fridays |
|
CAPE TOWN
TO PRETORIA
2008
Selected
Mondays,
Wednesdays
& Fridays |
|
January |
2, 7,
14, 21, 28 |
|
January |
4, 9,
16, 23, 30 |
|
February |
4, 8,
13, 20, 25 |
|
February |
6,11,
15, 22, 27 |
|
March |
5, 10,
17, 24,
31 |
|
March |
7, 12,
19, 26 |
April
|
7, 11,
14,
21, 28 |
|
April |
2,
9, 14, 16,
23, 30 |
|
May |
12, 19,
26 |
|
May |
14, 21,
28 |
|
June |
4, 9,
16, 23 |
|
June |
6, 11,
18, 25 |
July
|
9, 14,
21, 28 |
|
July |
11,
16, 23, 30 |
|
August |
4, 11,
18, 22, 27 |
|
August |
6, 13,
20, 25, 29 |
|
September |
1, 5,
10, 15, 19, 24, 29 |
|
September
|
3, 8,
12, 17, 22, 26 |
|
October |
1,
3, 8,
13,
15, 17,
20, 22,
24, 27,
29,
31 |
|
October
|
1,
3, 6,
10,
15,
17, 20,
22, 24,
27, 29,
31 |
|
November |
3,
5,
7, 10,
14,21,26 |
|
November
|
3,
5, 7,
10, 12,
17,
24, 28 |
|
December |
1, 5, 10, 15, 19 |
|
December |
3, 8, 12, 17, 22 |
|
Departure
Time: Pretoria: 08:50 (am)
Arrival
Time: Cape Town: 12:20 (afternoon) |
Departure Time: Cape Town: 08:50 (am)
Arrival
Time: Pretoria: 12:20 (afternoon) |
HIGH SEASON:
Valid: 01 September 2008 – 15 November 2008
|
Luxury Double – rate per person sharing |
R11 550-00 |
De Luxe Double – rate per person sharing |
R10 605-00 |
|
Luxury Single rate - including supplement |
R17 170-00 |
De Luxe Single rate - including supplement |
R15 900-00 |
LOW
SEASON:
Valid 01 January 08 – 31 August 08 & 16 November 08 – 31 December 2008
|
Luxury Double – rate per person sharing |
R 9 285-00 |
De Luxe Double - rate per person sharing |
R 8 595-00 |
|
Luxury
Single rate - including supplement |
R13 925-00 |
De Luxe Single rate - including supplement |
R12 890-00 |
CLICK HERE FOR CURRENCY CONVERTER
BLUE TRAIN
The Blue Train provides
contemporary luxury and 24 hour service. It has been voted the “world’s leading
luxury train” at the World Travel Awards for four years running.
Its interior design,
service and luxury compare with top five star hotels. Each suite on board the
train has an en-suite bathroom with bathtub or shower, a telephone, TV monitor
and individually controlled air conditioner.
There are four suites
per coach and a professionally trained butler is on duty on every coach to cater
to the needs of his guests. The Club Car is designed along the lines of an old
gentleman’s club for those who enjoy a good port wine and after dinner cigar or
coffee. A large video screen provides a view of the scenery ahead of the train,
courtesy of a camera mounted on the locomotive.
For non-smokers, the
Lounge Car provides a smoke free environment where high tea, various beverages
and snacks are served. Staff is available 24 hours a day and professional chefs
prepare world class cuisine for every meal. A choice of only the finest wines is
served to compliment meals.
The Blue Train operates
only four routes: Pretoria - Victoria Falls, Pretoria - Cape Town, Port
Elizabeth - Cape Town and Pretoria - Nelspruit.
Each route offers a
very different perspective of the Southern African landscape, from flat open
plains to rolling hills and mountains and the magnificent splendor and
excitement of the Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World.
Safari crosses the landscape of the mind,
until it finally merges with the name of the great continent itself, Africa.
JOURNEYS ON THE BLUE TRAIN
The Blue Train offers schedule
and charter services.
The
Scheduled Routes are:
Pretoria to Cape Town (1 day & 1
night) - or Cape Town to Pretoria.
Off-the-train excursions are
offered on the scheduled routes.
The
other routes available for Charter are:
Pretoria - Victoria Falls (2
days & 2 nights); and
Pretoria - Hoedspruit (1 night)
Charter options are applicable
for groups of 20 or more guests interested in chartering the train for exclusive
use.
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PRETORIA TO CAPE TOWN
Board The Blue Train in the
jacaranda city of Pretoria - the administrative capital of South Africa - and
travel south through farmlands and along the 'golden arc'; visible only by the
mining shafts in the distance.
En-route to Cape Town, stop in
Kimberly for an off-the-train excursion. Kimberly, once the epicenter of a
worldwide diamond rush. This city's chequered history is inextricably linked
with the romance of those rare and beautiful stones.
Here The Blue Train guests are
cordially invited to disembark, take a tour through the streets of modern day
Kimberly to visit the Kimberly Mine Museum and the 'Big Hole'. The Blue Train
luxury coach is used to transport guests, alternatively they can be taken on a
historic electric tram when it is available.
Step back into a world of
pioneers and adventurers-circa 1880. Marvel at the sheer magnitude of the "Big
Hole", the largest hole in the world excavated by hand. At a replica of an
alluvial-diamond diggers, try your luck at panning and possibly finding a
diamond of your very own!
Board The Blue Train once more
and continue on to a South bound journey into the heartland of the Great Karoo.
Awaken to the sight of vineyards
and orchards as you descend through mysterious and beautiful valleys and
mountains, such as Drakenstein, Slanghoek and Elandskloof - towards Cape Town's
imposing and instantly recognizable Table Mountain, sentinel and gateway to the
African continent.
The city of Cape Town has a lot
to offer a discerning tourist.
Among
places of interest, you can visit pearl-white beaches washed by the Indian and
Atlantic Oceans, watch colorful, old-style fishing boats in Kalk Bay, explore
the old Malay slave quarters, enjoy the finest seafood in the world, wander
through Greenmarket Square's famous flea market and enjoy a sundowner at the
Victoria and Alfred Waterfront. |
CAPE TOWN TO PRETORIA
Board The Blue Train on the
return leg, follow on the northbound tracks of Cecil John Rhodes, who dreamed of
a railroad from Cape to Cairo.
Pass through the wine lands of
the fertile Hex River valley, in the shadow of imposing mountains, up and inland
to the endless sweeping landscapes of the Karoo.
Here, between high-road and
rail-road, is the tiny hamlet of Matjiesfontein.
The Blue Train guests are
invited for a short ride back in time, on a historical London double decker
bus. Stop a while and savor the vastness and the silence of the surrounding
plains. The Victorian buildings and original nineteenth century London lamp
posts impart to the traveler, the uncanny sense of entering a colonial timewarp
- an oasis suspended in a different age.
Stretch your legs, breathe in
the dry clear air and walk in the footsteps of those who over the years have
been enchanted by this place. Among them, Lord Randolph Churchill, Cecil
Rhodes, Olive Schriener and the Sultan of Zanzibar.
Enjoy a drink at the renowned Lord
Milner Hotel - refurbished in the 1970's by the visionary hotelier and designer
David Rawdon, who bought the entire village.
Board The Blue Train once more
for the journey northward into the interior.
After an exciting interlude guests are welcome to refresh themselves and enjoy
pre-dinner drinks at any one of our lounges.
First sitting for dinner starts at 19:00. Remember dinner is an elegant
affair and men are requested to wear a jacket and tie or dress in
traditional attire and ladies are requested to wear elegant evening or
traditional wear.
Before you drift to sleep,
glance through the window at a sky filled with a trillion stars. And when you
awake, you will be approaching the mining centers on the Gold Reef, and will
soon end your journey in the jacaranda city - Pretoria.
Blue train photo story
Blue train awards
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CLICK HERE FOR RESERVATIONS ON THE BLUE
TRAIN
Or E-mail for reservations |
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