Airfare rates

[MLindsay]

Delta, wheel's up in 6 days, Detroit-Atlanta-Joburg:
Comfort+ exit row seats DTW to ATL flights, 13E and F outbound, 10A and B exit row/bulkhead inbound.
Comfort+ bulkhead ATL to Joburg and back, 30A and B.
Purchased in October '23 for $2956 each, all inclusive.
Get 2 free checked bags in Comfort+, also free drinks
I'm 6'4" and my son is 6'9", can't do cattle class

row 30 is great!

 

[sgt_zim]

August 2024
Qatar Air
IAH -> DOH -> JNB
round trip economy+ for 2 people, 16D and 16E (bulkhead right behind 1st class) on all legs
4200 USD

fares were purchased last September as soon as the flights were published

 

[jpr9954]

1. AVL (Asheville) - ATL - JNB - PLZ R/T
2. Delta
3. Economy aka steerage. Aisle seat
4. $2534 including the Airlink flight to Port Elizabeth
5. May 30 - June 10, 2024

 

[CoElkHunter]

August 2024
Qatar Air
IAH -> DOH -> JNB
round trip economy+ for 2 people, 16D and 16E (bulkhead right behind 1st class) on all legs
4200 USD

fares were purchased last September as soon as the flights were published

Just FYI in economy , don’t count on those seats for “all” legs. In 2022, at least two of us were assigned center seats on the way back when we had aisle and window seats respectively on the way over. You’re only guaranteed a seat but maybe you’ll be lucky. Good luck and have fun on your hunt!

 

[Mtn_Infantry]

I bet you can sleep on planes too lol..
Man I wish I could. It would change my perspective. I like to get to Joberg and go sleep or try to anyway. Lots of guys go through Doha like you and love it. For the price I need to try it once as the business class is much more reasonable

If you have status with American or Miles you get higher allowances on bags in both numbers and weight. You can use miles on the ticket with both BA and Qatar. BA allows you to use systemwide upgrades as well.

$1036 for Prem economy the. Upgrades to business class … sub $2k for Prem economy and upgrade to Q-suite. Guaranteed premium economy and normally exit row bulkhead seats if you don’t do the business/qsuite upgrades. I’ll take the 4-5 hour layover at DOH go to the 1st Class Lounge and extra a$$ time

 

[sgt_zim]

Just FYI in economy , don’t count on those seats for “all” legs. In 2022, at least two of us were assigned center seats on the way back when we had aisle and window seats respectively on the way over. You’re only guaranteed a seat but maybe you’ll be lucky. Good luck and have fun on your hunt!

Well, I paid for econ+, about an extra $500 each. Whether I get those exact seats...

 

[Cme1983]

I bet you can sleep on planes too lol..
Man I wish I could. It would change my perspective. I like to get to Joberg and go sleep or try to anyway. Lots of guys go through Doha like you and love it. For the price I need to try it once as the business class is much more reasonable

No one wants you sleeping on a plane. I don’t think they have room for the CPAP machine .

 

[Cme1983]

The deals to be had are in business class. Be patient and be ready to buy when prices drop. I paid 5 and change for delta one this year. With that being said Qatar is the better choice for food, comfort, and service. It seems all flight attendants on delta are apathetic at best.

 

[Safari Dave]

IME, if you are an American hunter traveling to Africa with rifles, you need to use Travel Express or Gracy Travel.

A $200-$300 upcharge is well worth it, because they will facilitate everything.


If your flight goes through Amsterdam, you should just plan on renting rifles...

 

[btheis13]

I'm booked, so now I can contribute.

Chicago to Johannesburg through Heathrow
1st leg is American 2nd leg is British Airways
Economy without luggage
$880 per person x 4 people.

 

[CoElkHunter]

I'm booked, so now I can contribute.

Chicago to Johannesburg through Heathrow
1st leg is American 2nd leg is British Airways
Economy without luggage
$880 per person x 4 people.

Great price on airfare, but "without luggage"? Are you going hunting or vacationing at a nudist camp? LOL

 

[btheis13]

Let me re-phrase...No checked luggage. All 4 of us will be taking a carry-on and personal item. Th

Great price on airfare, but "without luggage"? Are you going hunting or vacationing at a nudist camp? LOL

 

[Red Leg]

Let me re-phrase...No checked luggage. All 4 of us will be taking a carry-on and personal item. Th

Make sure your carry-on will fit the "little" test device at the gate. Some international flights can be real picky about size.

 

[Philip Glass]

I've done alot of searching previous posts and I've never seen anyone mention what they paid for their airfare. I think it would be very beneficial for planning to know what a good rate, average rate and expensive rate is. I know it varies alot, but let's see how much.

Please comment with the following flight details:
1. Origin and final destination airports
2. Airline
3. Fare class
4. Price paid

For instance ord to jnb on delta economy for $2050/pp.

It changes daily. I'll give you what I think is a good price/what I would pay.
Delta (ATL-JNB with a domestic leg prior)
Comfort+ $2200
Premium Select $3000

Qatar (DFW-JNB)
Business $5000 or less ($4300 this year)

Your best bet is to have competent TA and set a Google Flights alert for your preferred dates a destination. Start early and see what the trends are. For instance I have flight alerts set for a Namibia hunt next May.

 

[Philip Glass]

Depends on your tolerance for long vs short itinerary too. For years I’ve seen dudes take these long itineraries to save money and particularly Business/first class. These 10 hour layovers… F that IMO
The shortest direct routes are simple…
Delta ATL to JNB. For years it was about $1,750. It’s now usually like $2,000 or $2,300ish
United direct from Newark to JNB or United from DC to Capetown
These are all 16 hour direct flights and are roughly $2k
There are no magic deals. Variable costs are picking your seats (especially United)
Some major market departures seem to have better Business class deals sometime like Dallas or Chicago

It's worth it. Trust me!

 

[Philip Glass]

I'm booked, so now I can contribute.

Chicago to Johannesburg through Heathrow
1st leg is American 2nd leg is British Airways
Economy without luggage
$880 per person x 4 people.

Don't take rifles on that itinerary. If it was BA all the way it would be ok.

 

[TXhunter65]

April 2022 United Buisness class Dallas to Newark to Joberg and back $3250.

 

[Andrew62]

In March of this year I flew Qatar Airlines, Dulles-Doha-Uganda, business class, 6500.00. Next month I am flying Qatar Airlines, Dulles-Doha-JNB, business class, 4300.00. Typically, I fly United Airlines from Pittsburgh-Newark-JNB. Pricing for next month was 2K more flying United than Qatar, I love the q-suites so I decided to fly the extra 3 hours and go on Qatar this time.

 

[Ridge Runner]

I contacted a Travel Agency to book my 2025 flights. Received the ticket quote and flight itinerary: QATAR, Economy Plus $2217.80USD + Airlink, Economy $240.40USD.

The quoted itinerary has me arriving a day late to my outfitter. Called the TA and working on a new flight itinerary. Waiting to see what the new quote will be.

At the bottom of the quote:
Seats not included in airfare quote. Extra charge for seats: QATAR: IAD-Doha-IAD each way $103.00USD and Doha-JNB-Doha each way $94.00USD.
Additional: Airlink weapons transport fee: R600 per gun case each way.

_________________________________________________

(Sarcasm)
Didn't know there was SRO on flights.
Wonder if I'm allowed to bring my own seat?
It's a nice comfortable recliner with massager that is easy to fall asleep in.

 

[thi9elsp]

@Philip Glass

Thanks for the tip on Google Flight Alerts. I just put in for a potential trip next summary: Depart Tampa 6/26 (6/25 on Qatar due to extra day) and return from Johannesburg 7/13.

Premium Economy on Delta is $4,450 per person
There are rates as low as $3,100 but not flights I would want to take - especially with firearms.
Qatar Airway's site is showing about $8,000 for business class per person

John