Sarah
Are you thinking about taking the train from Johannesburg to Capetown or vice versa? We’ve done it and taken notes and pictures from the Shosholoza Meyl train for you!
End of 2017 we went on our first trip to South Africa. We started in Johannesburg and then decided to go to Cape Town next. As we didn’t want to drive through the whole country, we wondered whether train travel is an option in South Africa.
We have already been traveling by train in Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia – and so we kind of knew how different trains can be and didn’t feel overwhelmed by the thought of doing this is South Africa.
However, safety was always one of our major concerns in South Africa. we checked numerous websites and travel reports before we decided to take a Shosholoza Meyl train from Johannesburg to Cape Town.
But now let’s dive right into it and add some information about safety, comfort, food, and experience of going by train from Johannesburg to Cape Town with Shosholoza Meyl!
If you are looking for a cool 2-weeks itinerary in South Africa that includes Kruger, check this post about a safari-focused itinerary too!
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Trains from Johannesburg to Cape Town – the options!
In fact, there are different tourist trains going from Johannesburg to Cape town on a regular basis:
- Shosholoza Meyl (the cheapest option)
- Premier Class Trains (deluxe train)
- The Blue Train (super luxury train, from Pretoria)
- Rovos Rail / Shogologo (train cruises)
Shosholoza Meyl – the cheapest train from Johannesburg to Capetown
Even though we are luxury travel bloggers, we choose the cheapest option this time – Shosholoza Meyl train – due to timing (and let’s be honest – a bit due to price too!). Tickets cost around 45$ one-way per person – very reasonable!
Shosholoza Meyl is scheduled four times a week – check their website for recent departure days! The trip is scheduled to start at 12:30 at Johannesburg Park Station and to arrive at 3:30 pm in Cape Town the next day.
That means you will be traveling across South Africa for 27 hours as the distance between Johannesburg and Cape Town is 1,400km – and the trains are slow…!
However, this train is known to frequently be waaaaay too late in Cape Town (which turned true in our case) – at around 12:00 the second day a friendly attendant informed us that we will actually be late 4 hours and arrive at 19:30 (which we did)
Premier Classe train from Johannesburg to Capetown – the deluxe version
If you want a little bit more luxury on your train trip from Johannesburg to Capetown (e.g if this is your honeymoon in South Africa!), then you could opt for the deluxe Premier Classe Train!
It only runs once a week though and tickets cost around 220$ per person one way. It’s considerably more expensive than Shosholoza Meyl – but it also comes with more luxury! Basically, it’s a “hotel on wheels” – with food included in the price.
We would certainly consider this for our next train travel in Africa – if the timing fits!
The Blue Train – the super luxury train from Pretoria to Capetown
If you are looking for a super luxury train from Johannesburg to Capetown, you might want to have a look at the Blue Train! Or more precisely, from Pretoria – but that’s just a metro ride from Johannesburg, so we will count it as a Joburg to Capetown train anyway!
The Blue Train leaves 1-2 times a week and costs around 1,300$ per person one-way. Wow, we know this is quite a difference! But hey, for that price, food and drinks included! 😉 It’s considered one of the greatest train rides in the world and would certainly be one of the most luxurious honeymoon experiences that you could have!
We’d really love to experience this train one day – and you never know, maybe we will! 🙂
Train cruises from Johannesburg to Cape Town and vice versa
Last but not least, there are train cruises operated by Rovos and Shongololo Express that go the route from Johannesburg to Capetown by train or vice versa. However, this is only part of their journeys and they then travel on to other destinations in Africa – like Victoria Falls!
Booking and Ticketing for Shosholoza Meyl
There are websites assisting you in booking your trip but Shosholoza Meyl’s website is fairly easy to use and your cheapest bet. After booking, we advise you to print the receipt as there is no booking confirmation by mail (Although you technically don’t need it).
On the day of departures, you need to show up at the station in advance. They will ask for your passport and find your tickets this way in their computer system. You will then get printed tickets and are free to board the train!
The ticket shows your berth number and the wagon, however, there is still a list at the station wall that you need to check to find the letter of your compartment/coupe (A-H) in order to find it within the train!
Shosholoza Ticket Prices
We bought our ticket online on Shosholoza Meyl’s own website for 690 ZAR (~45$) per person.
The actual price depends a bit on the season – but variations are minor (650-690 ZAR). One nice little detail to mention is that the 2-berth sleeper coupe is NOT more expensive than the 4-berth sleeper compartment!
Shosholoza Meyl – the sleeper compartment (coupe)
If traveling as a couple we recommend you book a “coupe”. It is a lockable sleeper compartment with two berths – one lower and one upper berth.
The other available option on the sleeper train is “compartment” with four berths in one lockable room. If you are not traveling in a group, this means you will need to share your bedroom with strangers.
By booking on the Shosholoza Meyl website you can already specify your choice during booking – otherwise, you will find out on the day of traveling. The “coupe” is actually the same price as the compartment! So if you are a couple, DEFINITELY request a coupe!
During day time, the upper berths are usually folded upwards and everyone sits on the lower berths.
Later, a staff attendant will come by and ask if you would like to have bedding (sheet, cushion, and blanket). You don’t have to take it, but bedding is only 60 ZAR per bed and we think it is worth the extra cost 🙂 They will even make the bed for you!
The lower berth is more comfortable than the upper one but both are absolutely fine for sleeping! There is no ladder for the upper berth, however – we always climbed over the table.
What we really liked is that the compartments/coupe can be locked from the inside (and cannot be opened from outside then – even not by Shosholoza Meyl train staff) – this made us feel really safe!
The windows can also be closed with full blinds – no light from stations at night! Just remember to pack earplugs and you will probably have a really relaxing sleep on the train. There are also reading lights and room to store your luggage.
Another thing we liked about the Coupe was that it even came with a small sink (that you can cover with the table). And there was a power supply (bring an adapter) and USB ports – so don’t worry about charging your phone or tablet during the journey from Johannesburg to Cape Town by train.
So let’s sum up the features of the Shosholoza Meyl Coupe:
- 2 beds (one upper and one lower berth)
- Sink and Table
- Power supply (2x USB + 2x South African power socket)
- Lockable from the inside
- Room to store your luggage
Shosholoza Meyl – “the rest” of the train!
There is a bathroom with a toilet and a sink in every car of the Shosholoza Meyl train. It was comparably clean when we started our journey but then “degraded” as expected. As always, it is a good idea to bring some toilet paper and hand sanitizer with you!
There is also a restaurant car on the train. However, we did not use it as you can also have the food delivered to your coupe at no extra cost.
Just having arrived in South Africa, we were very cautious about security and thus didn’t really want to wander around too much.
The views on the train from Johannesburg to Cape Town
One of the main reasons why we love train travel (except for being environmentally friendly!) is that you see so much of the countryside while traveling.
And this train trip from Johannesburg to Cape Town really takes you all the way through South Africa! We show completely different landscapes – from farms to vineyards and on.
Some people even report having seen giraffes and other exotic animals from the train! (Well, we saw cows…)
The food onboard the Shosholoza Meyl Train from Johannesburg to Cape Town
Well, if you are traveling 27 hours (or, 31h) all the way from Johannesburg to Cape Town by train, you will eventually want to eat something!
Since we already read before that food is being served on the train at a very fair price, we did something we usually didn’t do in Asia: we didn’t buy loads of food before traveling. At the beginning of your journey, a staff member of Shosholoza Meyl will bring you a menu with all the available items for both dinners as well as breakfast.
While it is true that the food is cheap, freshly prepared on the train and served both in the restaurant car and by order in your compartment/coupe, we would advise you to carefully overthink our decision. We did not really like the food and would have wished to have another option.
We tried the burger with fries and the mac & cheese for dinner.
The burger was surprisingly okay-ish (had worse burger patties in my life already), but the fries were far from being crispy.
Mac & Cheese was definitely worse. It lacked salt and generally had kind of a “plastic” taste to it. The noodles were also heavily overcooked and would make every Italian cry.
The next day for lunch, we ordered the burger and the beef lasagna. The beef lasagna is better than the Mac & Cheese but still no gourmet food. and could use more salt too. Again, not for Italians 🙂
The worst was the breakfast – at least for our European stomachs. The sausage in our opinion smelled, looked and tasted very disgusting and the steak was quite dry.
They serve the untoasted toast with yellow margarine instead of butter – not our favorite…
Our advice would be to pack sandwiches and just order drinks (coffee is okay and the beer is really cheap – 17 ZAR for 0.5l) – but now you can decide 🙂
Is it safe to travel by train around South Africa?
Safety being our major concern in South Africa, we can happily and honestly say that we felt perfectly safe during this train trip!
It is mainly families from South Africa that travel from Johannesburg to Cape Town by train (and vice versa) and the occasional tourist.
The fact that you can lock your coupe from the inside and (at least as a couple) have the “room” all to yourself, definitely made this very comfortable. As the food is also delivered to your room (even though we didn’t like it), you basically just have to leave the sleeper coupe in order to use the bathroom.
So, should you travel from Johannesburg to Cape Town by train with Shosholoza Meyl?
In our opinion: yes!
Even though we did not fancy the food and were late four hours we really enjoyed the train ride from Johannesburg to Cape Town. And there is so much to do in Cape Town once you arrived!
If you want to know more about Johannesburg, you should definitely also read this Johannesburg itinerary!
Reasons to travel by train (Shosholoza Meyl):
- You will see a lot of the gorgeous countryside of South Africa
- It is much more environmentally friendly!
- It’s perfectly safe
- It is cheaper than a flight
- You will have plenty of time to read my blog 😉 (Hey, do you know already how to book accommodation in Kruger National park?)
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Thank you – this answered several questions I had about this train. I hope to be able to take it in September.
Hi Richard! Very happy to help! This is why I wrote the post and included the pictures (although they are not high quality). Let me know if you have any further questions!