South Africa Guide
Getting Around
Trains
Travelling by train is just about the slowest way of getting around South Africa: the journey from Johannesburg to Cape Town, for example, takes 29 hours – compared with 19 hours by bus. Overnighting on the train, though, does at least save you the cost of accommodation elsewhere, and if you want to use your own car in both cities but can't face the long drive between them, you can actually transport your car on the train for around R2000 in December and January and around R1600 for the rest of the year.
Spoornet ( 
086 000 8888, 
www.spoornet.co.za ) runs most of the intercity rail services.
South Africa offers a handful of luxury trains, worth considering if you want to travel in plush surroundings – often through wonderful scenery – and don't mind paying through the nose for the privilege. Spoornet's celebrated Blue Train runs between Cape Town and Pretoria, and between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, the latter being the only passenger rail service on this route. The full Pretoria– Cape Town fare is just under R12,000 per person sharing a double berth for the 29-hour journey. Passengers must be dressed in "smart casual" clothes during the day, and appear in formal wear for the evening meal. You can reserve a seat on this popular train by booking through Blue Train's central reservations in Pretoria ( 012 334 8459, www.bluetrain.co.za ) or the Cape Town reservations office ( 021 449 2672).
Another luxury rail option is offered by Rovos Rail (Cape Town 021 421 4020, Pretoria 012 315 8242, www.rovos.co.za ), which runs trips on four routes at three levels of luxury with prices to match: from Cape Town to Pretoria (from R9000 per person sharing) and George (R5000); from Pretoria to Durban (from R10,000) and from Pretoria to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe (from R10,000).