"The service was suspended for a while for necessary maintenance, but the Western Cape's Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Alan Winde, and about 60 invited guests will commemorate its return with a ride from George to Mossel Bay, where they?ll enjoy refreshments as the guest of our Mayor, Alderlady Marie Ferreira," said Mossel Bay Tourism's Marcia Holm.

Ms. Holm said that some unfortunate uncertainty about the Choo Tjoe had arisen during the maintenance period, but that she was delighted that the service would be resumed in time for the coming summer holidays.

?We?re not yet sure what the timetable will be, but we hope that the Choo Tjoe will again run three times a week in the quieter periods, and once a day in season.

?This will have to be confirmed by Transnet, and we will communicate with the tourism industry as soon as we have the final programme,? she said.

The chairman of Mossel Bay Tourism, Neels Zietsman, said that the Outeniqua Choo Tjoe had suffered a serious set-back when floods had damaged the traditional George-Knysna line some years ago.

"Fortunately, though, and at the suggestion of Mossel Bay Tourism, the train was re-routed to the George-Mossel Bay line, and was thus preserved as a tourism attraction for the country as a whole.

"In the process, Mossel Bay Tourism paid for the construction of platforms at the Dias Museum, and, with the train ride starting and ending at the Transport Museum in George, began marketing the unique Museum-to-Museum Tour."

Ms. Holm said that the return of the service would see a resumption of marketing: "We hope that everyone in the tourism industry in the whole of the Garden Route and Klein Karoo and especially in George and Mossel Bay will inform their guests and suppliers that the Choo Tjoe is running again, and that it will soon be running to capacity once more."

The Outenique Choo Tjoe will run Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays out of season, and daily (except Sundays and Christmas Day) between 14 December and 9 January. The traind departs George at 10am, arriving Mossel Bay at 12pm. It then departs Mossel Bay at 2.15pm and arrives back in George at 4.10pm.

Tickets can be purchased from Mossel Bay Tourism (044 691 2202), at the Outeniqua Transport Museum in George (044 801 8289) or on the Choo Tjoe itself. The fare is R140 one way, or R180 return.