South America-Africa was the last cruise added to Canadian Pacific’s offerings, first taking place in 1928. Although the cruise visited some famous sites, including the pyramids and Mount Vesuvius, these were also visited by the world and Mediterranean cruises. Otherwise, most of the places visited, while fascinating, were less well known, such as Corcovada, Brazil; Montevideo, Uruguay; Fame’s Drift, South Africa; and Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanganyika. This probably made it more difficult to sell the cruises.
Click image to view and download a 17.2-MB PDF of this booklet from the University of British Columbia Chung collection.
This makes it surprising that the booklet advertising the inaugural run of this cruise has such a plain cover. Turning the page reveals another surprise: a wonderful painting by Maurice Logan on page 2, which should have been on the cover. Pages 6 to 23 show 17 more paintings, but they are unsigned so were probably done by CP artists Charles Greenwood and/or Gordon Gillespie.
Click image for a larger view.
The Empress of France was used on this trip, and — as revealed in another brochure — fares ranged from $1,500 to $5,250 per person (US$26,000 to US$91,000 in today’s money). The trip started in New York on January 24 and ended at Southampton 92 days later or April 25. The fare included three days in London followed by a return to New York on the Empress of Scotland, which was scheduled to leave Southampton on April 28. Passengers could choose to spend more time in Europe and take a later ship.
Flora and Martin DeMuth participated in the 1928 cruise and produced postcards and sketches. Here are fourteen sketches plus postcards showing an aerial gondola in Rio de Janiero, a Zulu warrior, an Indian merchant on the east coast of Africa, and a native of Zanzibar.
Click image to view and download a 61.5-MB PDF of this booklet from the University of British Columbia Chung collection.
Documents in the Chung collection indicate that CP planned to use the Duchess of Atholl, one of its newest steamships, for the 1929 cruise. But the above booklet says that the Empress of France was used while the Atholl was assigned to West Indies cruises while the South America-Africa cruise was taking place.
The 1929 cruise left New York on January 22 and ended up in Southampton on April 24, making the cruise a day longer. After three days in London, New York-bound passengers would then take the Scotland to Montreal and the train to New York.
Click image to view and download a 6.5-MB PDF of this booklet from the University of British Columbia Chung collection.
According to this fare brochure, the 1930 South America-Africa cruise did use the Duchess of Atholl. Fares still started at $1,500, but the duchesses didn’t have quite the first-class accommodations found on the empresses, so the top fare was $4,000 per person. The trip, which left New York on January 21, was the same length as the 1929 cruise.
Click image to view and download a 79.7-MB PDF of this booklet from the University of British Columbia Chung collection.
I’m going to describe West Indies and Mediterranean cruises after 1931 in separate posts, but since the Chung collection seems to have information on only two South American-Africa cruises after that year, I’m including them here.
The 1935 cruise used the Empress of Australia, leaving New York on January 18 and returning on April 24, thus saving passengers the trouble of changing ships in England. Fares started at $1,350, or a little more than $29,000 in today’s money.
Although this brochure claims to offer “five cruises in one,” it’s the same basic schedule as the South America-Africa cruises from the 1920s. The paintings on the front and back covers of this booklet are unsigned, but are clearly in the style that was shared by CP artists Charles James Greenwood and Gordon Fraser Gillespie.
The Chung collection includes booklets describing many of the shore excursions for the 1935 cruise. These include booklets for Athens, Buenos Aires, Cape Town, Dar-Es-Salaam, Havana, La BreaMadiera, Monaco, Montevideo, Palestine and Egypt, Port Sudan, Rio de Janeiro, and Santos. There is also a program of lectures given during the 1935 cruise.
Click image to view and download a 48.8-MB PDF of this booklet from the University of British Columbia Chung collection.
The 1936 cruise was also aboard the Empress of Australia, which left New York on January 25 and returned to New York on April 29. Fares for the 95-day trip started at $1,350, which is more than $29,000 in today’s money. The cover painting on the above booklet is unsigned, which means it was probably by Greenwood or Gillespie.