African Golf Itineraries and Specials - Rovos Rail (Luxury Train) has designed a delightful nine-day Golf Safari to entertain the most discerning player with optional excursions for non-playing guests at all venues.

2019 Rates:
Pullman Suite: R59 900
Deluxe Suite: R88 200
Royal Suite: R117 500

 

2020 Rates:
Pullman Suite: R65 000
Deluxe Suite: R96 000
Royal Suite: R127 000

Single Supplement: +40% on all suites

 

Accommodation on board Rovos Rail:
All the suites offer passengers the opportunity to travel in privacy, comfort and luxury, with fittings and facilities that are of the highest standard. The wood-paneled rebuilt sleeper coaches, remodeled and refurbished to mint condition, offer every modern convenience and comfort. In the en-suite bathrooms, original fittings combine with the modern technology of hot showers, hair dryers and shaver plugs. All are equipped with a writing surface and a personal safe for valuables. There is also a bar fridge filled with beverages of the passengers’ choice and room service is available 24 hours a day.

 

The Pullman Suites (±7 sq metres/±76 sq feet) are equipped with a comfortable sofa-seat during the day with a conversion to double or twin beds (bunk) for the evening, and also have an en-suite bathroom with shower. These are ideal for single travelers due to their size.

 

The Deluxe Suites (±10 sq metres/±118 sq feet) accommodate two passengers in either twin or double beds and have a lounge area and en-suite bathroom with shower.

 

The Royal Suites, each of which take up half a carriage, are spacious and elegant measuring ±16 sq metres in size. Each has its own private lounge area and full bathroom with Victorian bath and separate shower. The epitome of luxury with handsome wood panelling and period Edwardian features, the air-conditioned suites accommodate two people offering the option of side-by-side twin or spacious double beds.

Includes
Rate is one way per person sharing and includes accommodation, meals, all alcoholic and other beverages, 24-hour full room service and limited laundry while on board the train, as well as excursions accompanied by a qualified tour guide (where applicable) and government tax.
Golf activities: green fees, carts (where available), halfway house and beverages.

Please note that Gary Player is a walking course and the Lost City is carts only. Should you require a Golf Cart on all courses, kindly provide us with a medical certificate to prearrange this service at the aforementioned courses.

Day 1

Day 2
Golfers: Morning tee off at Lost City or Gary Player Country Club followed by lunch at the club.
Non-golfers: 9am game drive in Pilanesberg Game Reserve. Explore the Lost City followed by lunch at the club.
7.30pm: Dinner on board en route to Heidelberg.

Lost City Golf Course, Sun City (Carts Compulsory)
The course was carved out of undulating and rocky terrain. Situated over a hill from the Gary Player Country Club, the Lost City’s layout is different in character. With the wide fairways and receptive greens it is a fantastic golf experience for golfers of varying standards. The Lost City golf course covers more than 100 hectares and incorporates 28 000 square meters of water features - not surprisingly Golf Carts are compulsory.
The Lost City Golf Course is an 18-hole desert-style golf course with spectacular views across the bushveld. Unique to this 72 par course is the most hazardous 13th hole. Inhabiting the water hazard are 38 crocodiles some of them nearly two meters long. Golfers are discouraged from retrieving their wayward balls from the croc infested pool. This unusual water hazard is just one of the features that make the Lost City Golf Course exciting and interesting to play. No effort was spared to make the course a masterpiece.
The desert style design of the golf course has an exotic allure all of its own and designer, Gary Player has acknowledged it as one of his favorite courses. The Lost City Golf Course is flexible: playing off the forward tee a course length of 5 953 meters, extending to 6 983 meters off the back tee. The course provides spectacular views.
Playing the back nine at Lost City Golf Course is like going on a golf safari. It has often been noted that the game is more exciting when played downhill and this is certainly the case here.
In addition to the previously mentioned 13th, holes eleven, fourteen, fifteen and sixteen are all played from elevated tees offering thrill, excitement and challenge to the golfer with some of the most spectacular African views to be had on a golf course.

Gary Player Country Club, Sun City (no carts)
The Gary Player Country Club is perhaps South Africa’s most famous course thanks to the annual Nedbank “Million Dollar Golf Challenge” which has been hosted here since 1981. Naturally the “Black Knight” designed the course and it’s one of the longest courses in the country, stretching out beyond 7,000 metres from the tips.

Topographically the land is relatively flat but don’t let that lull you into thinking that this is a boring course. It is not. Routed through the bush, past lakes and strategically placed bunkers this is a serious test for any golfer. The greens here at Gary Player Country Club are simply stunning. Some are shaped like kidneys and others shaped like clover but all the greens are well protected by cunning bunkers, water hazards, swales or mounds.
The par fives at the Gary Player Country Club are especially exciting, but the 9th will stick in the memory for eternity. This is a genuine three-shot-hole for most golfers but if you are a long hitter you might be tempted to go for the island green in two.

Day 3
All meals enjoyed on board en route to Estcourt via Ladysmith. Day at leisure on the train.

Day 4
Golfers: Morning tee off at Champagne Sports Resort.
Non-golfers: 09h00 Enjoy a professional tour of the battlefields with lunch at Spionkop Lodge followed by shopping.
Depart for Durban.

Champagne Sports Resort, Drakensberg – Mountain (Carts Available)
This golf course, located in the beautiful Central Drakensberg area, has to be rated as one of the most scenically memorable golf layouts in South Africa. The scenery of the dramatic Drakensberg Mountain range that surrounds this golf course will surely take your breath away. In fact the golf course, the resort and the facilities are bound to have the collective effect of ensuring the whole experience, in this sensational area of South Africa, will forever be imprinted on the visitor’s mind.
The golf course undulates, sometimes severely and sometimes gently, up and around the natural contours of a valley that nestles under the dominant peaks of Champagne Castle and Cathkin Peaks Mountains. Hugh Baiocchi and Kevin Curren have in recent years upgraded the original 18-hole course, designed by Hugh Baiocchi. Their completed design has received deserved accolades for successfully blending the natural attributes of the terrain and the surrounding beauty with the modern demands of a quality golf course.
The course at 7 400 meters is a long par 72, with the first three holes being particularly hard work when walking the course. Those not so fit are recommended to make use of a golf cart.
The golf course incorporates several holes with blind tee shots and it is on second playing that the charm and challenge is best appreciated. The weather patterns of the area have a marked effect on the experience to be encountered here. In summer everything is lush green, while in winter, due to the winter frosts, the mood changes to a rusty brown as (except for the greens) the grasses die. Apart from the visual differences this has little effect on the playing of the golf course (though there is more roll on the brown fairways in winter), especially as the quality of the greens remain constant throughout the year. Indeed the consistency and quality of the greens at Champagne Sports deserve special mention and much credit for these goes to Trevor Livesey, the resident golf professional who has been responsible for their construction and subsequent maintenance. His passion for ‘his’ greens is worthy of mention and remains unabated after his many years at Champagne Sports Resort.
The first impression of the golf course is from the balcony of the charming thatch roofed clubhouse that sits high above the course. From there, there is a panoramic overview of the challenge to come, with the 1st, 9th, 10th and 18th holes as the forefront of a splendid canvas backed by the formidable mountain peaks of the Drakensberg Mountain range. Though the drama of the mighty mountains dominates the eye, the course also enjoys gentle vistas where the lower hills create a kaleidoscope of color and where the layout is blessed with trees, rivers and dams to add challenge to the visual aspects.

Day 5
Golfers: Morning tee off at Durban Country Club/Beachwood.
Non-golfers: 9am disembark for a city tour of Durban followed by lunch with the golfers at the Durban Country Club.
Depart for Hluhluwe.

Durban Country Club, Durban – Beachwood – Links/Parkland (Walking Course)
The seaside golf layout of Beachwood has deservedly received accolades for its immaculate conditioning. Originally designed by Sid & Jack Brews in 1930 it has always been famed for its narrow fairways and indigenous variety of trees and palms, but it is since the club became the second course of the Durban Country Club that it has truly become one of this province’s most sought after golfing venues.
When the Beachwood Club amalgamated with Durban Country Club in the late 1990’s, Gary Player’s design team was asked to upgrade and redesign some of the holes while introducing additional hazards. The results are to be savored, as one plays a course with clever bunkering and water features and quite superb greens. The 5 882 meter 72 par course is set on a narrow strip of land that follows rolling and undulating contours. This allows for the fairways to follow natural valleys between high grassy banks.
The charm of this delightful golf course is made up of the lush sub-tropical foliage, interspersed with banana and palm trees and swamp locations. The sound of the sea also adds to the aura. Though the course is adjacent to the beach, the dense foliage that lines the course protects a little from the sea breezes and shelters the course from any sandy invasion. At the 11th hole, a gap in this foliage allows a glimpse of the brilliant blue of the Indian Ocean, a long and uncluttered stretch of beach and in the distance the Durban City frontage.

Day 6
6am Game drive in the Hluhluwe Game Reserve.
11am Brunch as the train departs for Mpaka, Swaziland.

Day 7
Golfers: Morning tee off at the Royal Swazi Sun.
Non-golfers: 8am Game drive in Mkhaya Reserve. Visit Ngwenya Glass with restaurant lunch and shopping.
6pm0 The train departs for Malelane in South Africa.

Royal Sun Swazi Sun Golf Course, Swaziland (Carts Available)
The scenic beauty of the mountain vistas surrounding the Royal Swazi golf course is matched by the beautiful complexity of the lie of the trees, fairways and greens. The sweeping par 72 is usually played to a length of 6 166 meters off the men's tee.
One of its dominant characteristics is that at the back of the greens slopes away, punishing those who do not pitch with pinpoint accuracy. An overrun often takes the ball down into thick rough or bush.
The first hole carries promise of what is to come. A drive to the left of the fairway opens up the dogleg. An over strong second shot can result in a difficult chip back to an elevated pin. The fourth is the most difficult hole on the front nine. It is a long uphill par 4 with a narrow fairway, requiring an accurate drive. A second accurate shot to a split-level green is essential for good scoring on this hole. Hole number six, a 163-metre par three, is also one of the most difficult. A wayward shot to the right is out of bounds, while one to the left is often a lost ball. On the second nine, hole number thirteen is often the make or break hole of the round. It is an uphill par 4, which requires a good second to a very small green protected in front by a large number of small bunkers, which make it difficult to pitch and run onto the green. The short fourteenth and eighteenth holes are typical of this course, where anything but an accurate shot is severely punished by thick rough water or bunkers.
The not so serious golfer should take time out (without delaying the field, of course) during the round to admire the views, bird life and the spectacular flora. The hibiscus, banana palms, acacias and flamboyant trees are magnificent in the right season.

Day 8
Golfers: Morning tee off at Leopard Creek Golf Estate (subject to availability) on the Crocodile River.
Non-golfers: 8am Game drive in the Kruger Park followed by lunch at Buhala Lodge and curio shopping.
7.30pm Enjoy dinner on board as the train travels to Witbank for the overnight stop.


Day 9
7am Enjoy breakfast as the train departs for Pretoria.
10am Arrive at journey’s end at Rovos Rail Station.

Please note:
We cannot be held liable for any delays due to trains not running to schedule. Off-train excursions cannot be guaranteed and will only be undertaken if time and circumstances permit. Departure and arrival times are approximate and cannot be guaranteed. We reserve the right to alter our routing at any time between departure and arrival points.

 

Golf Course Information kindly supplied by Larry Gould author of “Larry Gould’s Guide to Golf “ (Where to play and where to stay in South Africa)

Book this luxury This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. now.