gladtotravel

We are considering a trip to So Africa in 2009. Being in country doesn't worry me; the flight from DC raises concern. DH is 6'3" and it is a loooong trip. Would you stop a couple of nights in Europe. Any words of wisdom about how you might or might not break the journey. We've done these kinds of trips with upgrades. This time we might have to do economy. Not being a snob; just being mid-sixties. Thanks.

bigcountry

I'm right with you. being 6'4" economy on the flight on SAA is pretty much unbearable. I usually end up sitting in the back with the flight attendants for long stretches. the last time we upgraded to business class and the flight was a breeze. if i had to fly economy again i would stop in london or paris for a few days and make the 2 flights much more manageable. otherwise you may have a cramping knee for a couple days when you arrive in jburg.

HariS

Check rates for Emirates. You can break your journey in Dubai for a couple of nights. They only fly from JFK or Houston at the moment, though ......

Dana_M

You could consider buying an extra seat. Three seats for the two of you would give you some extra space.

gladtotravel

Thanks for the advice. Dubai of course sounds intriguing. That third seat option was one that never occurred to me. It looks like I could get a free ticket from DC to almost anywhere in Europe with economy plus seating. That would probably work for us with the help of some ambien. What city would you choose as the connecting point in Europe if the big criterion is to find the shortest flight between Europe and Johannesburg (again trying to mitigate my husband's misery.) I just don't see us being able to manage the miles for an upgrade. I always appreciate any thoughts. So often I find the right answer on this board.

DonTopaz

I won't in any way claim to know about all of the airlines flying from Europe to JNB. Of those that I do know, the only one that offers economy-plus seating is British Airways.

I don't know anything about Emirates. However, it would involve several hours more total flying time (about 1,800 additional miles compared to LHR).

HariS

Rizzuto,

I think the flight JFK-Dubai is about 11hours usually due to the favourable winds. Yes, that would be about 4-5 more than JFK-LHR wouldn't it?

Dubai - JNB I think is just about 8 or thereabouts.

julia1

My husband has the same problem. Last October we broke the trip by flying Seattle to Heathrow (we live on the West Coast), which was 8.5 hours, then Heathrow to JNB, about 9 hours.

We spent one night in London between the two flights, stayed at Jury's Inn Heathrow, which is at the airport but just a short walk from the Hatton Cross Underground station. It's perfect for a one-night layover because it's reasonably priced (we paid £60), he was able to get a good nights sleep, plus we took the tube into London, leaving our luggage at the hotel, then picked it up before catching the evening flight to JNB.

We flew BA and upgraded the LHR-JNB and JNB-LHR segments to Club (Business). You can upgrade on BA from economy plus for 25,000 miles. If you need more miles for upgrade, you can purchase up to 19,000 miles each per year. You can also get 25,000 miles each by opening a new BA/Chase credit cards and making one purchase or transferring a balance. https://www.britishairways.com/

We flew home with a stopover in London also, again staying at Jury's Inn. My husband tells friends it's the best overseas trip he's ever had. With the help of a half tablet of Ambien, which I insisted he take, and the lie-flat beds in Club on the LHR-JNB and JNB-LHR segments, he slept all the way to JNB and all the way back to LHR.

moremiles

Check Virgin Atlantic for Premium Econ. on the LHR-JNB route also.

Momliz

we are splurging and paid for biz class on Delta IAD - ATL - JNB. The flight roundtrip will cost a tad more than the safari, but getting there is part of the fun, and I am too old, arthritic and cranky to fly in economy any more. I would have preferred SAA, he seats and planes are nicer, but we had to draw the line somewhere, and this expense is a big stretch for some in our group. We decided not to stop over, we don't have the time, since we are going on the school holidays. If it was just me, I would and make that a fun side trip.

tamtalb

Or, you could fly KLM out of DC to Amsterdam and break your journey there. Then, continue on to Cape Town or JNB.

Gardyloo

Don't know who your miles are with, so the following may not be applicable in whole or in part.

United has "Economy plus" seating - ordinary coach seats but with more legroom, while Virgin and BA both have premium economy products - economy service but considerably bigger/more spacious seats. Virgin's and BA's fares for premium economy are quite a lot higher than E+, relative to "basic" coach. All 3 fly from Dulles to Heathrow; Virgin and BA offer similar seats from LHR to South Africa.

However, both United and British have flights that depart Dulles in the morning, arriving at London in the evening. Economy class (especially on a relatively short flight like IAD-LHR) is much more tolerable in the daytime than on flights to South Africa, which are twice as long and typically overnight in both directions. Flights returning to DC from Europe are virtually all during daylight.

I'd recommend conserving your frequent flyer miles and using them if possible for business class award tickets between Europe and South Africa, paying for coach between DC and Europe if need be. For example, both American Airlines' and United's mileage plans charge 75,000 miles for business class awards between Europe and Africa (vs. 120,000 or 135,000 miles from the US) so it's comparatively good deal <i>if</i> you can get to Europe on an award ticket or an affordable economy purchased ticket. Sleeping in a real bed in London the night before the Africa flight really helps with jetlag too.

longhorn55

My son is almost 6'3&quot; and we did the SAA flight from D.C. to JNB last July. I had the option to book 2 of the 4 seats we needed in the bulkhead seats and I thought he would enjoy the extra legroom. Well, it turns out that the seatbelts for the bulkhead seats have an airbag in them (because you don't have a seat in front to break your &quot;fall&quot; in case of an emergency) and they were mighty uncomfortable. Also, he found that he actually had more legroom by sitting in a regular seat and stretching his legs under the seat in front of him. Fortunately, his sister switched with him and he said that he was comfortable in the regular seat. (So, the moral of the story is don't book the bulkhead seats on the SAA flight from DC to JNB.)
We are frequent long-distance travelers and have come to the conclusion that it's much better to just get a long flight over with than breaking it up into two flights. (Fewer hassles with hotels, airports and jetlag and you generally end up flying for a longer time after all.)
The non-stop flight from Dulles to JNB is just not that bad. Each seat in coach has its own personal TV/movie/game screen with a LOT of choices of each. We were well-entertained for the entire flight. The return flight stops for about an hour in Senegal, but you don't even get off the plane. The return flight is a night flight and we slept a good portion of the trip.

Gritty

I'm 6'3&quot;, and I second the idea of just pushing through and flying as direct as possible, rather than a European stopover, now that I've done both. However, I didn't overnight in Europe, and maybe an overnighter would help.

bevor

One more thought -- from someone who is not a 6-footer but has severe arthritis in many joints....

We flew from the east coast to Zurich (FF miles on AA/Swiss), arriving early in the a.m. Took a short train ride to the city outskirts for a nice 3-hour hike to stretch the muscles and joints. Then checked into an airport hotel to sleep from 1-8 p.m. before getting on an overnight flight to JNB. It worked very well for us.

DonTopaz

One very beneficial side-effect of stopping in Europe for a day or two (or more) on the way to Africa is the elimination of jet-lag as a factor when on safari.

By stopping in Europe first, you can take late afternoon naps or sleep late in the am, and you won't be missing any game drives. And because western Europe and southern Africa are on the same time zone in our summer, your body won't need to make any time adjustments when you travel from Europe to Africa.

Celia

I'm not sure that airlines will allow you to buy an extra seat. If you consider that, be sure to ask the airline in advance.

After many flights from the US midwest to South Africa, we've found the best thing for us is to fly economy to London on a DAYTIME flight, arriving in London around midnight. We go to bed and sleep all night, then spend the day in London, then go business class on BA to Jo'burg. With the lie-flat seats, you can get a pretty good night's sleep, and you've gone a good way toward getting yourself on SA time.

gladtotravel

Thank you for your thoughtful replies. Several options I hand't thought of. We use United and they're not making any upgrades to business or free business available between US and Africa or Europe and Africa. Probably because they're going broke. However, I was able to get a free ticket for me in coach on a non-stop and we will pay for my husband in business. Lest I seem to be a martyr, I'm 5'4&quot; and one ambien assures that I won't know or care where I am for seven hours of the 15 hour flight. Your replies really helped clarify my options.