Rovos Rail: The Most Luxurious Train in the World
A (Virtual) conversation WITH Rohan Vos, Owner
How did Rovos Rail come about?
Rohan accompanied a friend to a railway auction and purchased a coach thinking he could convert it into a family caravan and travel with his family around South Africa. You can do this in the United States – hire converted railway cars and hook onto an Amtrak train. When he approached South African Railways (SAR), they at first thought he was completely mad and then wanted to charge him far too much for a family vacation, but they did suggest that he sell tickets. There was a gap in the market for an old-world luxurious train in South Africa so even though he knew nothing at all about the hospitality industry he decided to take the leap and start Rovos Rail.
What is Rovos’ mission?
To offer guests a bespoke, old-world and once-in-a-lifetime rail experience through Southern Africa that is relaxing, safe and one that resonates with the family spirit of Rovos Rail.
What does a perfect day look like on Board?
When full trains depart and arrive on time! We do all we can on board to create a memorable experience for guests, one where they can truly disconnect and relax.
Each train has accommodation carriages, dining cars, a lounge car, small gift shop, smoking lounge and observation car with open-air balcony. Maintaining the spirit of a bygone era, there are no radios or television sets on board.
We welcome all travellers – singles, couples and groups. The dining cars are made up of two-seaters and four-seaters where guests eat together or individually. Our lounge and observation cars – with their big picture windows, sofas and booths – make for great mingling areas or quiet corners to while away the days.
Many of our passengers enjoy the formality of fine china and glassware, crisp linen and silver, and dress accordingly. Days on board are smart casual while evening attire is more formal. On long journeys we enjoy themed evenings where guests can dress up accordingly or opt for smart casual.
An enthusiastic team of chefs is responsible for overseeing the very important task of ensuring guests’ every need is catered for. There’s an accent on fresh local ingredients and traditional dishes are a specialty. Meals are served in one sitting only in the dining cars and are complemented by a selection of fine South African wines.
Do you have a famous menu item we can share with our clients?
There are two traditional Cape Malay dishes on the menu which are often discussed by guests – our Bobotie and our Melktert (milk tart). Bobotie is spiced minced meat baked with a custard topping.
An example of the Bobotie recipe can be found below - as done by Cass Williams. Our recipes are top secret - you will have to visit us to experience them!
INGREDIENTS
2 thick slices of stale white bread
250 ml water
15 ml (1tbsp) vegetable oil
50 ml (4tbsp) butter
2 large onions, chopped
800 g (13/4 lb) beef mince
3 cloves garlic, crushed
15 ml (1 tbsp) Masala
5 ml (1tsp) turmeric
10 ml (2 tsp) ground cumin
10 ml (2 tsp) ground coriander
3 cloves
2 ml (1/2tsp) peppercorns
5 ml allspice
125 ml (1/2 cup) sultanas
60 ml (1/4 cup) flaked almonds
5 ml (1tsp) dried mixed herbs
25 ml (2tbsp) chutney
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
6-8 lemon leaves
250 ml (1 cup) milk
2 eggs, beaten
METHOD
Soak bread in water.
Fry onions in oil and butter until just transparent.
Place all other ingredients except bread, lemon leaves, milk and egg in a large bowl and mix.
Add fried onions in oil to mixture.
Squeeze water from bread, add bread to meat and mix well.
Spread in a greased ovenproof dish. Roll lemon leaves into spikes and insert into the mixture.
Bake at 180C/350F for 30 minutes.
Lightly beat eggs and milk together and pour over meat. Bake until egg mixture has set.
Serve with yellow rice ant blatjang.
Charity of ROVOS’ choice to support?
We support many local charities in wildlife conservation, education, sport, domestic violence and caring for the elderly. If you are looking to make a donation, we also support the KAI Foundation. The KAI Foundation aims to provide the facilities and support to aid the less fortunate in building successful lives for themselves and promising futures for their children. KAI’s first project built a maternity ward in Mugarameno, Zambia that has a population of 20,000. Since the opening in 2016, there have been almost 200 babies born at the Claire Kartagener Maternity Ward. The KAI Foundation is currently working on an additional project in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Luxe & NYX bucket list journey - Namibia Safari
This journey takes the train from the savannahs of the Highveld to the Atlantic in the west. Departing from Pretoria, South Africa, the first stop is Kimberley, centre of one of the world’s famous diamond rushes where there is an opportunity to savour the 1870s atmosphere of the mining village. The train traverses the stark vistas of the Northern Cape to the Fish River Canyon – second in size to the Grand Canyon – and Garas Park with its quiver-tree forest. Guests continue across the untamed beauty of the Kalahari Desert to Namibia’s capital for a tour; Windhoek is a lively, cosmopolitan city with a strong German flavour. Then it’s a short flight to Sossusvlei, a stunning pan in the Namib Desert, for an overnight stay followed by a night in the game-rich Etosha National Park. On the last morning, the train travels the Namib to the perfectly preserved 19th-century German Hansa town of Swakopmund and Walvis Bay – an unforgettable end to a remarkable journey.
Photo Credit-Jos Beltman
Current offers:
You can read more about their short (3-4 days) and long (9+ days) journeys here. 2021 departure dates begin in October. You can plan your whole trip around a long journey or as an addition to a longer stay in Africa. We recommend adding the 2-3 night Garden Route journey after a safari and before/after Cape Town.
Ready to Book or Have Questions?
We can’t wait for you to experience Rovos Rail!
Visit us here or reach out - hello@luxeandnyx.com.
xx, The team at luxe & nyx
