| TRAINS & TRAVEL P.O. BOX 10625 RENO, NEVADA 89510-0625 Chris@traintrips.biz Rail Tours Manager. For question regarding tour itineraries and details. Deborah@traintrips.biz Office Manager: Accounting |
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1-800 359-4870 USA 1-800 752-1836 CANADA 1-800 266-8751 FAX (530) 836-1944 |
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South Africa offers great scenery and some impressive steam locomotives. It may no longer be possible to travel be steam train
across the country, but we are fortunate that the isolated lines that we can use are in such photogenic locations. Big locomotives, including the 25NC 4-8-4 and the GMAM 4-8-2+2-8-4 Garratt should give photographers an outstanding tour. The month of May offers a good chance of cool mornings and clear skies and some of South Africa's best rail photoographers will be helping with runpast selection and preparation.
Bridging the gap to Botswanna The BCL Mine at Selebi Phikwe in Botswana runs some of the last steam industrials in Africa. Conveniently placed about half way between Johannesburg and Bulawayo, a journey to see them is an ideal link between the two major steam centres. In the past we have spent one day on the mine railway, but by popular request this has been extended to two days for the 2012 season. Day 1 Sunday May 20: (L-D) - Pretoria - Bethlehem Our tour will start at Johannesburg's OR Tambo international airport this morning.12h00. The Reefsteamers charter train will leave their Germiston depot. Please note that the train may not be able to wait for late arrivals, it is advisable to overnight in Johannesburg to make sure that a delayed flight does not affect your joining the tour. Lunch and dinner will be served on the train as we travel to Bethlehem. The train, including our steam locomotives, will be hauled by electric or diesel electric traction as far as Bethlehem because Transnet Freight Rail do not permit steam operation on their core lines. Overnight: On the train at Bethlehem. Meals included: Lunch, dinner. Day 2 Monday May 21: (B-L-D) - Bethlehem - Ficksburg Our train will be operated by Class 15F 4-8-2 #3046 and Class 25NC 4-8-4 #3472. During our time on the Bethlehem line, we will use these locomotives together and separately. The Reefsteamers long distance passenger train, in traditional South African Railways colours, will be used but every effort will be made to include some runpasts with a mixed and freight trains. These will be determined by the availability of suitable rolling stock. Morning: Steam from Bethlehem to Ficksburg with photo runpasts at Slabberts, Brandlaagte, Shridan, Meynell, Mount Morkel and Generaalsnek. Afternoon: Steam from Ficksburg to Owanty curves and back with photography at Owanty curves. Followed by Sekonela and back with photography at Sekonela. Overnight: On the train at Ficksburg. Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. Day 3 Tuesday May 22: (B-L-D) - Ficksburg area We hope to travel as far as Marseilles today, but this will be determined by track condition and railway authority. If this is not possible we will revert to Option Two. Option One: Steam from Ficksburg to Marseilles, runpasts to be decided. Option Two: If we cannot run to Marseilles. Morning: Ficksburg to Maynell and back with runpasts at Meynell, Mount Morkel, Generaalsnek and Kommandonek. Afternoon: Ficksburg to Slabberts and back with runpasts at Slabberts and Brandlaagte. Overnight: On the train at Ficksburg. Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. Day 4 Wednesday May 23: (B-L-D) - Ficksburg - Bethlehem A third day with the Reefsteamers Class 15F and 25NC. Morning: Steam from Ficksburg to Fouriesburg. Runpasts to be decided. Afternoon: Steam from Fouriesburg to Bethlehem. Runpasts to be decided. Overnight: On the train at Bethlehem. Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. Day 5 Thursday May 24: (B-D) - Bethlehem - Creighton There will be an early morning photographic session at the Bethlehem depot before breakfast. Later this morning, our coach will leave for Creighton in Natal where we will spend the next three nights. Overnight: Mountain Park Hotel. Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner. Day 6 Friday May 25: (B-L-D) - Creighton - Ncwadi Our steam charter today will be with GMAM Garratt #4074 and a mixed train comprising wagons and three passenger coaches in traditional SAR colours. Runpasts will be arranged as appropriate on this scenic line. This is excellent Garratt country with Creighton at 1,002 metres, Donnybrook at 1,368 metres and Ncwadi at 850 metres. Morning: Leave Creighton for the climb up to Donnybrook. Afternoon: Continue from Donnybrook to Ncwadi. Overnight: Mountain Park Hotel. Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. Day 7 Saturday May 26: (B-L-D) - Ncwadi - Creighton Our second day with GMAM Garratt 4074. Morning: From Ncwadi to Donnybrook. Afternoon: From Donnybroiok to Creighton. Overnight: Mountain Park Hotel. Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. Day 8 Sunday May 27: (B-L-D) - Creighton - Riverside - Creighton. Carriesbrook - Ixopo. Morning: We will travel in the opposite direction from Creighton as far as Riverside with Class 19D 4-8-2 #2669 and a short mixed train. Runpasts will be through the attractive Ngwangwane river gorge. Afternoon: Travel by road to Carisbrooke to join the 2 foot gauge Ixopo - Madonela line. NGG 11 #55 and a mixed train will take us through the forest past Stainton to Allwoodburn Station in Ixopo. Overnight: Mountain Park Hotel. Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. Day 9 Monday May 28: (B) - Natal to Johannesburg. Travel back to Pretoria, arriving late afternoon. This evening there will be a night shoot at the Friends of the Rail depot at Capital Park with their Class 24 2-8-4 #3664. Overnight: Pretoria Holiday Inn Express. Meals included: Breakfast. Day 10 Tuesday May 29: (B-L) - Morning at Capital Park. Rooiwal. Transfer by coach early this morning for a sunrise session at Capital Park, followed by a charter train to Rooiwal power station north of Pretoria. Our train will comprise Class 24 #3664, wagons and suburban coaches in traditional SAR colours. The route to Rooiwal runs over Metro rails and runpasts are not possible. There will be a lunch barbecue (Braai) at Rooiwal, and a chance to visit the power station, before a photo session on the power station tracks. Return this afternoon to Capital Park. Overnight: Pretoria Holiday Inn Express. Meals included: Light breakfast. Lunch. Day 11 Wednesday May 30: (B) To Selebi Phikwe Following your Capital Park visit, motor to Selebi Phikwe in Botswana, arriving in time for dinner. Day 12 Thursday May 31 - Selebe Phikwe. After breakfast we will motor to the nearby BCL Mine to visit the locomotive depot. There will be time to inspect and photograph at the mine before we re-join the coach to chase a train out to one of the remote shafts. Activity today will be determined by the operation of ore trains between the two remote shafts and the smelting plant. There is normally a break in train movements around lunchtime, enabling a short return to the hotel. Overnight: Syringa Lodge, Selebe Phikwe. No meals included. Day 13 Friday June 1 - Selebe Phikwe. Spend a second day chasing steam trains on the BCL Mine network. Overnight: Syringa Lodge, Selebe Phikwe. No meals included. Day 14 Saturday June 2: (D) - Motor to Francistown this morning, in time for the 11h00 train departure to Bulawayo, Zimbnabwe. Day 15 Sunday June 3, 2012: (B-D) Visit the Bulawayo steam shed for sunrise before crossing to the station to join a steam charter train to Cement station with a Class 14A Garratt.. Arrive back in Bulawayo late this morning, with time to visit the railway museum before returning to the steam depot for an evening barbecue and night photography. Overnight: Bulawayo Holiday Inn. Day 16 Monday June 4, 2012: (B-L-D) We have not been able to operate steam on the line to West Nicholson since it was taken over by the Beit Bridge Bulawayo Railway and extended to Beit Bridge. This year, the BBR management in Bulawayo are positive towards our request to run to Mbalabala with either a Class 14A or 16A Garratt. Final approval is awaited from BBR management, if it is not approved we will take the Class 16A to Plumtree and return to Bulawayo this morning. The Plumtree to Bulawayo line faces east, making this the best time of the day for photography. Overnight: Bulawayo Holiday Inn. Day 17 Tuesday June 5, 2012: (B-L-D) Leave Bulawayo early this morning with a charter train to Dete, half way to Victoria Falls and in the Hwange Game Reserve. A diesel electric locomotive will haul the support cabooses, wagons and our coaches and dining car. This will be followed by the steam locomotive, ten wagons and a guard's van. At runpasts, the diesel locomotive and support coaches will be moved forward, making it possible for you to photograph the authentic steam operated goods train without coaches, water tanks, etc. This system will be used between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls. Overnight: Hwange Safari Lodge or on the train. Day 18 Wednesday June 6, 2012: (B-L-D) Our train will continue from Dete to Thomson Junction this morning. If the train runs to time, there will be an option to join a sunset boat cruise on the Zambezi River this afternoon (US$45). This has proven very popular on previous tours. Overnight: The Kingdom Hotel, Victoria Falls or on the train. Day 19 Thursday, June 7, 2012: (B-L-D) Return to Thomson Junction this morning for a charter with the Class 15A Garratt down the main line and through Zimbabwe's only tunnel to Hwange Station. From there, continue to Old Hwange and back to Thomson Junction on the old main line. This afternoon, visit the Hwange Colliery to see their Class 15A Garratts. As this is an industrial operation, any movements using the steam locomotives will be determined by the colliery and cannot be guaranteed. Overnight: The Kingdom Hotel, Victoria Falls or on the train. Day 20 Friday June 8, 2012: (B-L-D) We will again return to Thomson Junction, visiting the Colliery this morning to take advantage of the different lighting conditions. Later this morning, join a charter train with the NRZ Class 15A Garratt to Zanguja. We will focus our photography this afternoon on the area around the Zanguja horseshoes. Overnight: The Kingdom Hotel, Victoria Falls or on the train. Day 21 Saturday June 9, 2012: (B-L-D) Early this morning our charter train will leave Thompson Junction for Victoria Falls. Overnight: The Kingdom Hotel, Victoria Falls. Day 22 Sunday June 10, 2012: (B-L-D) This morning we will take the Victoria Falls Steam Train company Class 14A Garratt #512 across the Victoria Falls Bridge to Livingstone in Zambia. Stop on the bridge for the iconic photograph of the train crossing the bridge, with good fortune the rainbow will make an appearance. At Livingstone the Zambia Railways 12th Class #204 will join us for some shunting re-enactment before we return to Victoria Falls this afternoon. Overnight: The Kingdom Hotel, Victoria Falls. Day 23 Monday June 11, 2012: (B) A transfer to the Victoria Falls airport is included. The flight back to Johannesburg should be booked with your longhaul flight.
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PRICES PRICES ARE PER PERSON Double room occupancy..............................$5498 Single room supplement.............................$ 958 Shorter options available upon request |
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TOUR PRICE: All tour prices are corrected to November 1, 2010 and are subject to change without notice, at any time. All prices based on double room
occupancy. We reserve the right to change tour prices if necessary.
PRICES DO NOT INCLUDE: Personal items, meals not listed in the itinerary, laundry, phone calls, excess baggage charges, rental cars, side tours, insurance, passport fees including visas, vaccinations, gratuities, medical costs, tips to train or motor coach staff, extra tour costs due to unanticipated changes in the itinerary for reasons beyond our control, including weather, travel conditions, or cancellations, government intervention, sickness, political disputes, and failure of transportation or other causes beyond our control.
TRAVEL AND HEALTH DOCUMENTS: A valid passport is required for our international tours. In some cases a visa is also needed. Consult your
health professional for the recommended immunizations and documents. Trains and Travel International , here on referred to as TTI, assumes no other responsibility if a client is refused entry into a country. Cost and cancellation fees will be paid by the client in the event they do not have valid documents.
CHANGE OF ITINERARY: We reserve the right to substitute, alter or modify the tour if any unexpected and unforeseen conditions beyond our control
preventing the completion of such. Conditions can include weather, train schedules, equipment, motive power, revision of train consist, train delays, labor strikes, political disputes, derailments, closure of a rail line, break down of railroad or motive power equipment, railroads not honoring contracts and bus equipment problems. We will always endeavor, in each case, to provide substitutes, if any changes take place. TTI is not responsible for canceled trains,
delays, hotel rooms, route changes or missed connections, for any reason whatsoever. We will not give refunds if such conditions or cancellations take place.
TRAVEL INSURANCE: Travel Insurance is mandatory for all tours. This insurance will cover and give the tour members many benefits and protection. Benefits include baggage, accident, life, trip cancellation, sickness, bankruptcy, strike, weather conditions, employer termination or layoff effecting you or
a person sharing the room with you, terrorist incident in your departure city or city of destination, jury duty, you are subpoenaed, hijacked, or quarantined,
your residence or traveling companion residence is rendered uninhabitable, emergency military duty, traffic accident, single supplement upgrade when your traveling companion cancels their trip, trip interruption, trip delay, missed connections, itinerary change, emergency medical benefits, medical evacuation, baggage delay and loss, pre-existing medical conditions if enrollment is within 21 days of your invoice date, burglary of you or your companion before departure, felonious assault of you or your traveling companion before departure, 24 hour hotline emergency assistance, emergency cash transfer and more.
We will supply you with a travel insurance brochure with rates and application when we mail you the invoice after trip deposit is received. Travel insurance protects your vacation investments and is a very good investment for your travel and vacation money. US law allows us to offer this insurance to all persons
Worldwide. We will accept a "refusal of travel insurance wavier" if you do not wish to purchase any travel insurance. FOR CUBA: Because of the nature of these tours travel insurance is MANDATORY for everyone. We have a special American travel insurance company that will insure all folks going to Cuba on legal US approved tours. This insurance information will be sent to you upon receiving your booking.
RESPONSIBILITY AND LIMITATION OF LIABILITY: Accepting your payment represents an agreement that you understand all the conditions, to
be a member of our tours. TTI gives notice that they are acting agents for the owners, contractors and suppliers, providing the transportation and all related travel services and assume no responsibility for injury, sickness, damage, loss, additional expenses accidental delay or irregularities which may be caused through willful or negligent acts or omissions on the part of the companies providing or engage in transportation, accommodations or services related to the accomplishment of the tour. Nor do we assume responsibility for natural disasters, social or political upheaval, acts of terrorism or acts of nature. TTI reserves
the right to substitute hotels, tour leaders, equipment, motive power, trains, onboard accommodations, routes and to alter the itinerary when deemed necessary without notice. The right is also reserved to cancel any trip or train prior to departure for any reason . TTI is not responsible for expenses incurred by tour members in preparing for the tour, including non-refundable airline tickets, visa fees, planning, phone calls, or any other expenses. TTI reserves the right to decline to accept, or ask to leave a tour, any person whose actions impede the daily operations of a tour, welfare or enjoyment of other tour members. TTI cannot give any refunds for any unused services. The terms contained herein shall serve as a waiver of liability to TTI. Assumption of risk on behalf of the client, their heirs, executor, administrators, successors, and assigns for any and all known persons injuries
RESERVATIONS: A deposit is due in our office within 14 days after you make your bookings. Full payment is due 90 days before departure. You will
receive an invoice, reservation form and current tour bulletins with your confirmation and travel insurance forms. No notice for final payment will be sent
to you. It is your responsible to make the final payment on-time.
CANCELLATIONS: TTI does not accept cancellations on the phone. Cancellations must be received by postal mail, email or fax before any refunds will be considered. Allow enough time if sending your written notice by US mail postal system. When a written cancellation is received in the Trains and Travel
office this will be the effective date of the cancellation. Please take note that it can take up to 60 days to to process some refunds. Cancellation refund rules:
100 days prior to the start of any tour you will receive a full refund less a $100 per person administration fee. 99 to 61 days before the departure of any tour
there will be a 80% cancellation penalty based on the full cost of the tour. Cancellations received 60 or less days before the start of any tour will not receive
any refund. GW Travel Ltd has their own cancellation rules and these will apply. If booking on GW Travel Ltd ask for cancellation rules.
PRE-DEPARTURE TOUR BULLETINS: Tour bulletins will be sent to clients that have booked on tours operated by TTI. Bulletins include travel info related to the tour. Final documents will be sent out about two to three weeks before a tour begins. We offer tours operated by other companies and they may
or may not send out tour bulletins and updates and most send out final documents only one to two weeks prior to the start of their tours.
PAYMENTS: Payments can be made with personal check drawn on a U.S. Dollar account, money order for U.S. Dollars, bank wire transfer, or credit card.
We accept Visa, Master Card, Discover or American Express. Final payment for all tours is due 90 days prior to departure. If final payment has not been received 7 days after the due date, a late fee of $50 per week will apply.
SINGLE SUPPLEMENT: All prices are based on double room occupancy. We will try and match you with a roommate if one is available. If not, you may
be charged the single room supplement listed for the tour you are booked on. Single rooms may not be available in some remote locations and on some trains.
TOUR REFUNDS: If for any reason tour members amend or delete any arrangements during travel, and leave the tour on their own, we cannot give any refunds on unused portions of the tour. If buses and trains are cancelled by the carrier or there is a labor strike or they go out of business, we cannot be held
responsible and we cannot give refunds. Travel insurance will protect you for any of these reasons. If TTI needs to cancel any tour everyone will receive a
full refund. Please take note that in some cases refunds can take up to 60 days to process.
PARTIAL TOURS: We will allow passengers to join or leave a tour at certain points. It will all depend on the tour and the conditions. Give us a call and
we will try and work up a custom option for you.
MILEAGE COLLECTORS: Mileage collectors please take note that TTI does not cater just to mileage collectors. We cater to all folks that enjoy trains and
Rail journeys. We give strong warning that itinerary and route changes do happen and this is totally beyond our control when it does. If the only reason that
you would want to book a tour is to collect the rare mileage, you need to understand that possible route changes do happen.
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