From Family Dream to Luxury Steam – The Rovos Rail Story

Africa with André · 2025-05-28

18:48

Ever wondered how a family with zero tourism experience created the most luxurious train journey in Africa? In this first of 2 episodes, we chat with Tiffany Vos-Thane, daughter of Rovos Rail founder Rohan Vos, about how her parents turned their love for trains into a world-famous experience.

Tiffany shares behind-the-scenes stories, from the early struggles to setting new standards in train travel — such as private en-suite bathrooms before anyone else had them. Plus, hear how Rovos empower their staff to ensure that their guests have the most wonderful journeys. And how they create world-class meals from a surprisingly tiny kitchen.

This is history, luxury, and a whole lot of passion—on wheels!

Deutsch: Du kannst diesen Podcast auch auf Deutsch hören: “Africa with André auf Deutsch”

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Rovos Rail: https://rovos.com/

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Africa with André

"Africa with André" is a podcast where we "Celebrate Africa - One Story at a Time". With this podcast, I want to break down the misconceptions and misunderstandings that many people have about Africa – and to create a positive image of the continent.
Through interviews with partners and friends in tourism, we will listen to their stories: their experiences, their projects and about how they have made a difference in the lives of others.
I’ve worked in the Africa travel industry for over 25 years, and I’ve had many conversations over the years, both with guests and travel colleagues about spending time in Africa: what they expect it will be like, what they worry about. What their understanding and image of the continent is.
This podcast is not about giving you the normal tips of what to do – I am going to assume that you know that you will see Table Mountain when you’re in Cape Town. Rather, our conversations will highlight some of the goosebump moments you could have, and introduce potential new destinations to you.
I want to help you understand how a holiday in one of Africa’s 54 countries is something to be excited about, like a 5 year old is in the days before Christmas.
And just a quick note at the end: this is a project of love – not a job. I choose friends and partners that have stories which I find interesting and inspiring – and I hope you do too.

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