Useful country information

Libreville (Owendo) to Franceville

Trains link Libreville with Franceville several nights a week, either the faster Train Express Trans-Ogooue (formerly Ntsa Express) or the all-stations Train Omnibus l'Equateur.  The station at Libreville is Owendo, which is about 4 or 5 miles south of Libreville itself.  Although most trains run overnight, there are no sleeping berths, only seats.  Feedback would be appreciated if you use these trains.

Express:  VIP class, 1st class, 2nd class, restaurant car, in cars built in Germany in 2017.

Omnibus:  VIP class, 1st class & 2nd class in some cars built in Korea in 2011, and some 2nd hand 1960s cars from France.

How much does it cost?

How to buy tickets...

• You can buy tickets at the station, but make sure you bring the passports (or photocopies of the passports) of all passengers.

• It can be easier to buy tickets at the Libreville city centre SETRAG office, behind Pellison, although a report in 2019 says this has now been closed.

• To arrange tickets in advance, try the following travel agency:

  NgondeTour
  Galeries Maxime Montee de Louis

  Infoline: (+241) 06 57 39 66
  www.ngondetour.com

• Feedback would be appreciated.

Luggage...

Up to 10Kg of hand luggage can be taken onto the train with you.  Up to 30Kg can be checked before departure for a CFA 1300 registration fee and CFA 500 wrapping fee per item.  You need to check your bags in at the station at least an hour or two before departure.  If you have a 1st class or VIP class ticket there is a 1st class lounge you can use at Owendo to wait for your train.  Feedback would be appreciated.

What are the trains like?

The express train was re-equipped in 2017 with modern air-conditioned German-built cars.  1st & 2nd class is provided, both are comfortable although only seats are provided, no sleeping berths.  There is currently no sign of VIP class cars on the express train even though VIP fares are still quoted, it's possible the VIP cars are still to be delivered.  New restaurant cars should be delivered by the end of 2017.  The train omnibus uses older cars, mainly French-built, but they are still comfortable.  No alcohol is allowed on board these trains.

The air-conditioned Train Express, newly-delivered in 2017.  Photo courtesy of Rémi Favre...

Train Express, new 2017 1st class... Photo courtesy of Rémi Favre		Another shot of the new 1st class on the express.  Courtesy of Stuart Jarvis.

The view along the track at Lope station.  Photo courtesy of Stuart Jarvis...

1st class on the Train Omnibus... Photo courtesy of Stuart Jarvis		SETRAG locomotive... Photo courtesy of Clive Leatherdale

The Train Omnibus, using older cars.  Photo courtesy of Melinda Barry...

Owendo station, some 4 miles from Libreville... Photo courtesy of Ann Johnson		Owendo station... Photo courtesy of Ann Johnson

Traveller's reports...

Traveller Clive Leatherdale reports, "Previous guidebooks have suggested the train is decrepit and prone to breakdown and delay.  To my untrained eye, the train looked modern and reliable. On the day I visited the station it arrived on schedule to the minute.  Owendo station struck me by its cleanliness and efficiency, and Gabon seems proud of its railway."

More information...

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

Find hotels in Gabon...

		◄ Favourite hotel search & price comparison: hotelscombined.com
		www.hotelscombined.com checks all the main hotel booking sites at once to find the widest choice of hotels & the cheapest seller.  It's been named as the World's Leading Hotel Comparison Site in the World Travel Awards and I recommend it to find hotels in even the smallest places and to check that another retailer isn't selling the same hotel for less. ► Favourite hotel booking site: www.booking.com www.booking.com is my favourite hotel booking site, and unless HotelsCombined throws up major price differences I prefer doing my bookings in one place here.  You can usually book with free cancellation - this allows you to confirm your accommodation at no risk before train booking opens.  It also means you can hold accommodation while you finalise your itinerary, and alter your plans as they evolve - a feature I use all the time when putting a trip together.

Other hotel sites worth trying...

• www.tripadvisor.com is the place to find independent travellers' reviews of all the main hotels.

• www.booking.com is my own preferred hotel booking system (Hotels Combined being a search/comparison system).  It has a simple interface, a good selection in most countries worldwide, useful online customer reviews of each hotel, and decent prices, usually shown inclusive of unavoidable extras such as taxes (a pet hate of mine is systems that show one price, then charge you another!).

Backpacker hostels...

• www.hostelworld.com:  If you're on a tight budget, don't forget about backpacker hostels.  Hostelworld offers online booking of cheap private rooms or dorm beds in backpacker hostels in most cities at rock-bottom prices.

Travel insurance & health card...

Take out decent travel insurance, it's essential...

Never travel overseas without travel insurance from a reliable insurer, with at least £1m or preferably £5m medical cover.  It should also cover cancellation and loss of cash and belongings, up to a sensible limit.  An annual multi-trip policy is usually cheaper than several single-trip policies even for just 2 or 3 trips a year, I have an annual policy myself.  Here are some suggested insurers.  Seat61 gets a small commission if you buy through these links.

In the UK, try Columbus Direct or use Confused.com to compare prices & policies from many different insurers.

If you have a pre-existing medical condition or are over 65, see www.JustTravelCover.com - 10% discount with code seat61.

        If you live in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland or the EU, try Columbus Direct's other websites.

  If you live in the USA try Travel Guard USA.

Get a spare credit card, designed for travel with no currency exchange loading & low or no ATM fees...

It costs nothing to take out an extra credit card.  If you keep it in a different part of your luggage so you're not left stranded if your wallet gets stolen, this is a form of extra travel insurance in itself.  In addition, some credit cards are significantly better for overseas travel than others.  Martin Lewis's www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-travel-money explains which UK credit cards have the lowest currency exchange commission loadings when you buy something overseas, and the lowest cash withdrawal fees when you use an ATM abroad.  Taking this advice can save you quite a lot on each trip compared to using your normal high-street bank credit card!

Get a VPN for safe browsing when you travel.  VPNs & why you need one explained...

When you're travelling you often use free WiFi in public places which may not be secure.  A VPN means your connection to the internet is encrypted & always secure, even using unsecured WiFi.  In countries such as China where access to Twitter & Facebook is restricted, a VPN gets around these restrictions.  And lastly, you can select the geographic location of the IP address you browse with, to get around geographic restrictions which some websites apply - for example one booking site charges a booking fee to non-European visitors but none to European visitors, so if you're not located in Europe you can avoid this fee by browsing with a UK IP address using a VPN.  VPNs & why you need one explained.  ExpressVPN is a best buy and I use them myself.