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Johannesburg & Pretoria to Maputo by train...

It's perfectly possible to travel between Johannesburg or Pretoria in South Africa and Maputo in Mozambique by train, a real adventure, although the South African overnight train currently lacks any sleeping-cars, it just has seats.

Johannesburg & Pretoria ► Maputo
1. Take a South African train from Jo'burg to Komatipoort.       This train is the 'Komati', run by Shosholoza Meyl, www.shosholozameyl.co.za       It runs daily except Saturdays & has economy seats only, there are no sleepers.
Johannesburg	depart	18:10  Mon-Fri & Sun
Pretoria	depart	19:40  Mon-Fri & Sun
Nelspruit (for Kruger Park)	arr/dep	04:15  next morning
Kaapmuiden	arr/dep	05:15  next morning
Komatipoort	arrive	06:38  next morning
2. Walk across the border from Komatipoort to Ressano Garcia        It's only a few kilometres, see below for advice.  The CFM train used to cross        the border, but this proved to difficult for the customs authorities, so now you        must walk across.
3. Take a CFM train from Ressano Garcia to Maputo       This train is run by CFM, the Caminhos de Ferro do Moçambique.       It runs daily, and has 3rd class seats.  www.cfmnet.co.mz.
Ressano Garcia (Mozambique)	depart	12:10 on Mon-Fri, 12:30 on Sat & Sun
Maputo (Mozambique)	arrive	16:40 on Mon-Fri, 17:20 on Sat & Sun

Johannesburg to Komatipoort is 530km (331 miles).  Ressano Garcia to Maputo is 88km (55 miles).

Maputo ► Pretoria & Johannesburg
1. Take a CFM train from Maputo to Ressano Garcia       This train is run by CFM, the Caminhos de Ferro do Moçambique.       It runs daily, with 3rd class seats.  www.cfmnet.co.mz.
Ressano Garcia (Mozambique)	depart	07:45 on Mon-Fri, 08:00 on Sat & Sun
Maputo (Mozambique)	arrive	11:20 on Mon-Fri, 11:35 on Sat & Sun
2.  Walk across the border from Ressano Garcia to Komatipoort        It's only a few kilometres, see below for advice.  The CFM train used to cross        the border, but this proved to difficult for the customs authorities, so now you        must walk across.
3. Take a South African train from Komatipoort to Jo'burg.       This train is the 'Komati', run by Shosholoza Meyl, www.shosholozameyl.co.za       It runs daily except Saturdays.  It has Economy seats only, there are no sleepers.
Komatipoort	depart	18:00  Mon-Fri & Sun
Kaapmuiden	arr/dep	19:36  Mon-Fri & Sun
Nelspruit (for Kruger Park)	arr/dep	20:40  Mon-Fri & Sun
Pretoria	arrive	04:50  next morning
Johannesburg	arrive	06:16  next morning

Fares...

• Johannesburg to Komatipoort costs RS170  (about £14 or $21)

• Ressano Garcia to Maputo costs 15 MT (about 30p or less than $1)

How to buy tickets...

• To buy tickets for the South African train, either buy at the station on the day or call Shosholoza Meyl reservations on 086 000 8888 or book in person at any station reservation office.  Bookings open 90 days before departure, you can't book before reservations open.  Reservations are computerised, so any reservation office can book any journey in South Africa.  When booking by phone, you will be given a booking reference number, which you quote at the station when you pick up and pay for your tickets.  To call from overseas, call + 27 11 7744 555.  www.shosholozameyl.co.za

• To buy tickets for the Mozambique train, simply buy at the station, either at Ressano Garcia or Maputo.

Above:  Economy 'sitter' class seating on the train from Jo'burg to Komatipoort.  Photo courtesy of Shosholoza Meyl.		Above:  The CFM train from Maputo, arrived at Ressano Garcia.  Photo courtesy of Andy Spencer.

Above:  The 07:45 train to Ressano Garcia, about to leave Maputo.  Photo courtesy of Andy Spencer.		Above:  Maputo railway station, Mozambique.  Photo courtesy of Andy Spencer.

Traveller Andy Spencer reports:

Coming from South Africa, arriving at Komatipoort: The Shosholoza Meyl trains are perfectly safe and all classes are patrolled by security throughout the night, but try and sleep with your head on your bag.  I was in with the locals and felt quite safe, the busier the coach the more chance you have the locals shield you from the occasional unsavoury individual.  Sitting alone leaves you vulnerable to approaches from chancers.  While on the train overnight there will be lots of ladies offering Mozambique Meticais (currency), get yours here their as rates are good, but hold on to some Rand as you will need this if you are going to get a Chappa bus later. 

When you arrive at Komatipoort, there are no taxis that go direct to Ressano Garcia station, but you can get a Mozambique-bound chappa (bus) and get out just over the Mozambique border (you may have to negotiate the fare just to the border).  To find the chappas, walk out of the main station entrance gates and 40m up on the left, behind a hardware store, is the Chappa base.

The bus drives out to the border which is about 5 km by road. The Border itself is a large compound about 700m long in total.  You will be let out of the Chappas at the first gate. From here take the path to the left that runs along the compound to the South African immigration hut just along the path. Once you have passed through this building carry on up the path and it brings you back into the main compound, walk along the road and into the Mozambique Immigration hut, which is in the middle of the road. Here go to the first window and buy your entry tax (60MT) step left to the next window and the immigration will then stamp your visa. ( I bought mine in advance so not sure how it works if you need to buy one of these at the border) Walk out of this hut and you will find your Chappa just outside waiting for everyone else. When you rejoin the Chappa as you drive out of the compound you will need to show your passport to the security guards. The locals without passports pay R10 to cross the border, passport free, and this is where the cash is collected. Once clear of the final border gate you will see a road leading back on your left down the hill. Follow this road down for about 600 metres then turn left at the first substantial path. After a further 70 metres turn right, carrying on down the hill, to the station which is another 100m further on. If in doubt the station is at the very bottom of the hill and its location is obvious.

The train experience is similar to the trip from Maputo I describe below.  Your train to Maputo is the return working of the 07:45 Maputo to Ressano Garcia and will hopefully be in the station from about 11:20.  If you have any problems with the train, you can take a chappa all the way from Komatipoort to Maputo, the fare is around R45 plus R15 for any big bags.

Departing from Maputo, bound for South Africa: The ticket window at Maputo Station is open about 30 minutes before departure or the day before. The train appears about 15 minutes before the off if you're lucky! The carriages are very old and dilapidated; there wasn’t a single door inside or out on our coach. Get in and get settled, the train will seem full when it leaves but this is nothing compared to the crowds that join the train about 2km out of Maputo main station. Here the train quickly becomes a village. At its busiest there were 24 people across our bay of 8 seats, so if you want a window seat get it as soon as you get on and keep you bags either on you lap or directly under your seat. Also keep your ticket handy as searching your pocket isn’t easy in the cramped conditions. The train then becomes a social gathering. The locals will test their English on you and they were very warm and welcoming, even offering me cans of drink and food that was being bought direct through the windows. The situation is a little unsettling at first but rapidly becomes comfortable due to the friendly nature of your intimate neighbours. Just enjoy it and be prepared to be stared at all the way by the kids.

At Ressano Garcia there is heavy security and they don’t like pictures, but a couple of cigarettes and smiles can get you anything these days. Follow the crowd out of the station about 100 metres up the hill turn left and a further 70 metres and you reach the main road/path out of the village, turn right up the hill. You will reach the main road after about 600m and turn right toward the border compound. Walking through is easy, into the immigration hut in the centre of the road you will get your passport stamped then walk down the road and into the RSA immigration on the right hand side of the road. From here walk along the road and out of the compound into South Africa.

You can hang around at the South African end of the compound and see if any of the Chappas will drop you in Komatipoort but this is off the main road and most aren’t going that way. So I carried on walking into South Africa and about 1 km further on is “Komati Oasis”, a roadside petrol station area with shops, ATM and Bureau de Change. Here you can also get rid of the last of your Mozambique Meticais by changing them with the ladies (usually sitting on chairs with fists full of cash). Their rates compare very well for the times I used them and they will negotiate. You could try and get a lift to Komatipoort from here but because the town is off the main road you will probably end up walking along the road and once over the Komati River (2.5 km from Komati Oasis) take the first right towards the town and stick you thumb out. Once on this road the main station is about another 2 km further.

I felt perfectly safe, but avoid small groups on the road and if the locals appear to be keeping pace but not interested in engaging, just stop and wait for them to walk on. There are so many people about when you walk away from Ressano Garcia station that I felt quite safe. When walking through South Africa just be wary of individuals. I was only approached once on the road for some food, and handed over a couple of biscuits to a hungry local. Smile and don’t hide behind sunglasses are my hints, but be vigilant of the mood around you, relax and enjoy it. The Shosholoza Meyl trains are perfectly safe and all classes are patrolled by security throughout the night, but try and sleep with your head on your bag. I was in with the locals and felt quite safe, the busier the coach the more chance you have the locals shield you from the occasional unsavoury individual. Sitting alone leaves you venerable to approaches from chancers.
 

Other train routes in Mozambique...

Besides the line to Maputo in the south, there are also various rail lines leading inland from Beira in the north of Mozambique.  However, service is suspended due to line rebuilding.  There are a couple of other lines out of Maputo, see www.cfmnet.co.mz for details.

More information...

If anyone has any more information. photos or travel reports that would be useful for this page, please e-mail me!

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