This is for overland travellers who prefer rail travelling: Global Travel in Amsterdam advertises in Thomas Cook Overseas Timetable again and again that they can book ”All passengerstrains in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania and Kenya without a problem” and even in 70 countries. Apart from being a funny way of saying all passenger trains without any problem this is a pure lie. In 2001 I asked them to book trains for me from Livingstone to Kapiri Mposhi and on the TAZARA line from New Kapiri Mposhi to Dar-es-Salaam. They couldn’t, the only thing they could offer was ”The Blue Train” and ”Rovos Rail”. There is nothing so easy as to book ”The Blue Train” or ”Rovos Rail” from just anywhere! In 2002 I reminded them of that, but asked them if they could book tickets for me from Istanbul to Tehran and from Tehran to Dimashq (Damascus). Now they claimed that they could book Livingstone – Kapiri Mposhi after all, which is again a pure lie, as you cannot buy tickets for that line more than one hour before the departure. The trains Istanbul – Tehran and Tehran – Dimashq Global Travel told me were suspended, and offered me to book bus tickets. They even said that if I wanted to go by train from Tehran to Dimashq I had to change in Ankara! The train Tehran – Dimashq doesn’t even pass Ankara! I made a train ride from Norway all the way to Tehran and Mashhad via Istanbul, from Tehran to Dimashq and Amman and back again via Dimashq, Halab and Istanbul, which according to Global Travel in Amsterdam should be impossible. Keep away from Global Travel in Amsterdam, they know nothing about train travelling and cannot book anything but luxury cruise trains, that any travel agency can manage!
