Solo Female - Cape town to Cairo overland

Heya! I am a solo female traveler, and am just starting to research an idea of mine (a life-long dream, really).

I'd love to travel from Cape Town to Cairo overland. I'd prefer to travel via public transportation.


-How feasible is this idea?
-Have any of you done it?
-Where can I find additional information on this type of journey?

Check out the companies that do this kind of thing - even if only to see the routes they take. Google "overland africa" to find some. You might even end up joining one of them for the safety as a single gal. Or you might be happy travelling on your own.

Hello, if you get into East Africa then this will be easy because the people are friendly and trasport system with the public is okay.thanks.

Hey guys!

Thanks for your responses. Yeah - I have heard a lot of people suggest that I go on a package tour. Not quite my style, though. I travel alone out of preference rather than necessity. I tend to travel *very slowly* and like to be a bit more independent - I think I might go crazy on a long tour

I'm glad to hear that E. Africa shouldn't be a problem -- but what about Southern Africa??

I did the Cape to Cairo overland trek several years ago, using trains for the most part. At that time though, there were spots that you couldn't go through, and I'm sure that's still the case. Nevertheless it's really a worthwhile adventure. Here's one way to go. From Capetown get on one of the Shosholoza trains (either tourist or economy). There are other ones (Premier and Blue) which are more expensive if you want to and have the cash. The Blue train particularly is phenomenally expensive. The train will get you to Jo'burg where you may want to get off for a bit (maybe go visit Kruger National Park?) or you can continue on to Bulewayo where you change to the Rhodesian Railway to Victoria Falls. Beautiful old wooden train cars from the old days of the British Empire. After visiting the Falls (stay at the campground near the falls, cheap cottages available within walking distance of the falls). When you're ready to move on, walk across the Zambezi River on the bridge (highest bunjy jump in the world?) into Zambia and start making your way towards the capital Lusaka. I hitchhiked part of this route before finally jumping on the train, but think that I'd take the train all the way next time. Buses are also available but not really recommended unless you are really on a tight budget. From Lusaka I hitched again into Malawi and then took the boat up the lake and from there to Mbeya where you can catch another train to Dar es Salaam. This is however a difficult piece of navigation although the lake is a fantastic if secret place. Recently it's become more popular and some Europeans and North Americans are even moving there to live, but back then it was pretty wild. You can get on the same train to Dar right from Lusaka. In Dar you might want to boat over to Zanzibar which is a very cool place. Head to the north end rather than the east side of the island unless you are extremely interested in the local culture and don't mind being very bored for lengthy periods of time. Pemba island is also worth a visit. Back in Dar get on one of the local buses and head up to Moshi and stay at the Buffalo Hotel or one of the cheap youth hostels near there while you find someone to guide you up Mount Kilimanjaro. When you're done take another bus up to Nairobi from where you may want to head towards the beaches at Mombassa or even better, further north to Lamu. From here on it got a little wierd for me. Uganda was definitely too dangerous to head through at that time and the rainy season was starting. I really wanted to go through the Sudan with it's cultural crossroads but the South was in the process of seperating from the north and a visa was impossible to get. I ended up having to fly into Cairo and then backtracking up the Nile but you may have better luck now. Anyway, I hope this helps a little. It's definitely doable for the most part and a photographic paradise. Give yourself lots of time if you can, although the trip can be rushed through in a month or even less. Have fun and take a journal.

While overlanding chunks of Africa solo via public transport I met many solo women doing the same. So I wouldn't worry about that aspect of it. The bigger issue will just be whether there are spots you can or cannot get through. These locations do tend to shift from time to time. For a woman's perspective on solo overland Africa travel search posts on this forum from Emeraldeyes or send her a PM.

I've done various parts of the route at various times with the exception of the Ethiopia/Sudan leg, both through overlanding groups and public transport, sometimes solo and sometimes with a sibling. It would be indeed a fun and epic journey to do all in one go! (Tho alas I never seriously considered it, too much of a hassle for US citizens to go through Sudan.)

The reason I did some of it with an overland group (Africa Travel Company was my choice, tho most are pretty much the same) is in some countries public transport doesn't go to areas that are interesting to travelers (think desert in Namibia) and there are a few things that one can't really do solo just showing up because the permits are super annoying- most notable of these is gorilla trekking if you're interested in that (though if you make it to Kampala you can arrange things from there). The rest is certainly doable via public transport.

Also as others have noted just keep an eye on the situation because things can change for sure, don't skimp on cab fares when solo at night, and general "don't be stupid" type things that apply to solo women travelers.

Thanks a lot for your input! The above comments help my confidence considerably - if you have done it, I am sure I will, too


I am wondering... for the most part, do you think that the public transport is best done by train?? I recall that in Egypt the trains are quite good, but I don't remember it as a real option in Sudan. How are the trains in the rest of Africa? I met a Kenyan girl at a party this weekend, and we got on to talking about this trip. She said that I'd be able to take trains from South Africa to Kenya - but she's never done it and doesn't know anyone who has....

It's all down to the areas and countries you are wanting to travel, you can't take local transport to most National Parks and reserves.
I personally would check out the the organised tours, there are many companies out there, some cover the young party crowd so you need to be selective if you are a serious traveler.
We traveled for 6 weeks from Cape Town to Nairobi with Africa in Focus, my husband and I were the only couple the rest were singles age range late twenties to early seventies. We were a group of 6 although the truck carried 16 if it was full.
In addition to this we bought into a weeks trip to the Masai Mara, which was amazing, there were three of us one of the ladies from our previous trip joined us.
We then spent 6 weeks in Watamu in Kenya a town on the coast with a christian conservation group called La Roche. We were located right on the beach a wonderful place and met some great people.
Many locals in Africa rely totally on the mini buses that travel the roads very inexpensively.
You'll need to do quite a bit of research for your trip and get the funds in place, cash is king in Africa and don't expect to see ATMs everywhere, some don't work and others if you can find them don't always accept your cards. Take several cards as back up, on all our trips we have had cards which have stopped working. A money belt is essential.
We traveled in remote areas and camped in the bush which is very different to staying in the cities.
Best of luck
Jean