Thank you all for your input, guys! I'm from Poland and believe me, I'm well accustomed to poor standards and delays in our railway companies (although I must admit that it has gotten much better in the recent years, not far below Western Europe standards). I love traveling by trains and Kimberly mine is a place I'd like to visit, but after three weeks of backpacking my girlfriend might just be too tired for the scenic route.
@HALIX - I'll let you know how it went if we do choose the train.
#7
Ouch! That's really bad indeed! Thanks for sharing the links.
It looks like trains in SA are strictly for hardcore travellers with a thirst for (mis)adventure and lots of patience and plenty of time.
Yeah, I know of course that SA is not entirely a third world country but it looks like the trains aren't any better than in say Tanzania or Cameroon. :-)
Yup, that's one of the interesting things about SA - some first-world things (mostly private-run) and some third-world things(mostly government-run). Metro trains, meant as public transport for a large portion of the population is horrendous and not suitable for tourists, but like I mentioned before the Rovos Rail and Blue Train are some of the most luxurious train experiences (at a price of course) with the Premiere Classe a more budget-friendly option. It's a shame really, I love traveling by train as well and have done so extensively in Europe, but in SA traveling by car and by plane is usually the most convenient and worry-free ways of going around. Whatever you choose, please let us know how the experience was, be safe and ENJOY!!! :-)
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