gigib

Dreaming of a first trip to Africa constantly, we will go as soon as time and money allows.

Our main interest is animals. South Africa/Kruger may be more affordable for us once we get there, but if we decide to climb Kilimanjaro we will go to Kenya/ Tanzania.

We would like to spend a night or two in Europe on the way to break up the journey, but it seems like the best game viewing times are also the most expensive times to fly to Europe, i.e., flying LA to London in July or August. That leg would be cheaper in September (or perhaps May) and I have seen good prices Heathrow to Nairobi, but these may not be good times for safari there.

Would it be cheaper to fly LA-Amsterdam in April, then on to S. Africa? We would rather have heat than rain. However, Amsterdam to Johannesburg isn't as cheap as London to Nairobi.

We have never been to Amsterdam, and would love to spend a couple of days. We've been to England, but like it very much and a night or two in Windsor would be fine.

Or via Frankfurt or Munich, perhaps?
Paris?

I hope my question doesn't sound too vague, I am trying to get a rough idea of the airfare to expect for various time frames and places. I spend lots of time on Kayak!

Thanks

Roccco

Another consideration...

Consider going the opposite way and spending a couple nights in Sydney, Australia. I did this in Nov. 2006 and found rates to be very reasonable (no more than through Europe). I imagine that going in September would only lower the prices to Sydney. Direct flight LAX-SYD and then direct flight SYD-JNB.

ShayTay

Airfares to Kenya (and probably Tanzania) drop the beginning of September. I'm going to Kenya next September because the Migration should be in the Mara. Because the fares are less expensive, it made sense to go then, rather than August. I have a frequent flier ticket, but the trip is planned as a group safari, so anyone that signs up will pay less for their air in September.

The only major airline into Kilimanjaro (Tanzania) is KLM. If you go to Nairobi, there are lots of routings: KLM via Amsterdam, Swiss Air via Zurich, Brussels Air via Brussels, Virgin and British Airways via London. Kenya Airways flies out of several European cities, but mostly from London. Virgin has the least expensive flights I've seen to Nairobi for next year, but it would entail 2 red-eye flights from LA, arriving in the morning, rather than the evening as with most of the other airlines. Their return flights leave in the morning, rather than the evening, which would require an extra overnight stay. One other possibility: Delta will start flying to Nairobi next summer, with a quick stopover in Dakar.

There are a couple of companies I'm aware of that have contracts with NWA/KLM to Africa: Premier Tours and Born Free Safaris. I've used Born Free. They can make a reservation but not issue the ticket until a couple of months before you go, which is when you would pay for it. I think the current contract fare LAX-NBO-LAX is about $1966. A stopover in Amsterdam will cost an extra $150. There are only a limited number of seats available for the contracted rates, however.

annhig

Hi gigib,

i can only offer my own experience which is that using amsterdam airport is a great idea. we did Bristol -amsterdam - CPT, and J'burg -AMS -BRistol and it was trouble-free. It's such an easy airport to use, whether you are just spending a couple of hours there, or going into the city for a day or two.

I haven't been to Gatwick or H'row for years, but all the reports of them convince me that almost anything would be better.

I would definitely choose a route via AMS.

regards, ann

Patty

If you're also considering East Africa, really anytime Jan-Mar or Jun-Oct, avoiding the long and short rains seasons (though these are getting less and less predictable), are good times of year for game viewing. You're not limited to just Jul/Aug.

DonTopaz

In terms of airfare, you don't necessarily need to buy separate tickets (LA-to-Europe, Europe-to-Africa) if you want to stop over in Europe. For example, Lufthansa and KLM both offer fares of about $1530 rt LAX-JNB and you can stop over in AMS or most other European cities either for free or for $50.

mkhonzo

First: nice to see that Rocco is back "on board" so to speak, with that hopefully Destiny Africa too.

If a few nights in Europe is not mandatory some of the best deals can be enjoyed with Emirates either to Nairobi or Johannesburg.

And agree with the other poster: Safari times not confined to June through September...

HariS

Just flew Emirates over the weekend. In brief, they seem to be expanding into too many routes and some of their in-flight staff aren't properly trained. The Dubai airport is an absolute ZOO!!! Awful!!!

sandi

I flew Emirates out of JFK last year and it was great. Better fares than the others, but I visited end-May.

And, the carrier allow a stopover which you can do either direction.

As mentioned, you can seriously consider Kenya/Tanzania for September when the migration is in the Mara; air prices also drop after the busy summer months.

gigib

Thanks, everyone! Good ideas and food for thought.

Sydney, eh?!? We also have to go to Australia, so I'll save that for a separate trip.

RBCal

Are there nonstops LAX to AMS? United flies nonstop LAX to LHR I know.

Patty

<i>Are there nonstops LAX to AMS?</i>

There's a daily nonstop year round. There's an additional seasonal non-daily during the summer. However, due to the morning departure of many AMS-Africa flights, the LAX flights do not arrive early enough to connect same day.

Patty

Forgot to say the flights are on KLM.