How to get out Nampula
Nampula is the staging post for journeys further north (towards the Tanzania border) or west (towards Malawi). The only passenger railway service in the Country connects the town with Cuamba near the Malawi border.
The train to Cuamba departs Nampula daily (except Mondays) at 05:00. The journey takes 10-12 hours. Tickets must be be bought the day before from a small window at the train station, between 14:00 and 17:00. The service is quick, friendly and fares are posted on the window. Apparently, you can also buy tickets on the day of departure from the same window (but this is not confirmed).
There is a 3rd class (all days) and a 2nd class (on alternate days - from Nampula on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday). There is no 1st class anymore. The 3rd class cars are simple wooden (hard) benches of 2-3 people providing for a 'real' African experience. It is not bad though, at least if you have a seat. A ticket of neither class guarantees you any seat.
The boarding of the train starts at 04:00, but in order to have even a slightest chance of getting a seat, be at the gates well before 03:00. Even then you will notice two long queues - one male and one female. The guards open the gates at 04:00 and only allow passengers with tickets. Rush to the closest car to claim a seat.
Males and females usually board separate cars, but it's more a convention than a law. Later in the journey the become mixed. If you're a solo female or a female party, queue with other women and travel in a female car. The opposite should apply to males and male parties. If your party is mixed, have females queue with females (the female queue could be shorter and move faster), then have them claim seats for all of you in a male car. Traveling males do not carry as much produce as females, and certainly no screaming babies. One thing to avoid is the first car, since the fumes from the engine are literally breathtaking.
There is no dining car, but the train company employees roam around and sell soft drinks and biscuits. Prices are low. The train also stops every several minutes, where people at stations sell all variety of food: fruit, snacks, chicken, drinks, etc. It's still wise to carry some snacks and water, though.
The whole train has no lighting (so carry a flashlight for winter departures), toilets are vomit-inciting holes in the deck, and external doors tend to be missing as well. Other than that it's a safe way of traveling.
Once in Cuamba, minibuses depart from the train station to Mandimba (on the Malawi border), Lichinga and others.
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The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Nampula
