Some places are worth the slow way there.
We travel from Cape Town deep into the Great Karoo, climbing through the Hex River valley and its tunnels before the land opens out into the wide, still plains that make this part of the country what it is.
The day on the train is unhurried by design; this is a trip to settle into, not to rush. At the end of the day waits Matjiesfontein, a Victorian village founded in 1884 and kept as a National Heritage Site, where red-jacketed porters, Karoo lamb at dinner, and a sky thick with stars do the rest.
Two nights at the Lord Milner Hotel or Matjies Mews, all your meals, and a guided look at the night sky are part of it.
Please note this trip runs on diesel and electric haulage, not steam.
