Go Back  FlyerTalk Forums > Miles&Points > Mileage Run Deals
Reload this Page >

UA/ET LAX-Lusaka Zambia $1004 4.1CPM

UA/ET LAX-Lusaka Zambia $1004 4.1CPM

Old Sep 20, 2014, 4:46 pm
  #1  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: DFW/SEA
Programs: *A Silver, AA Gold + Miles Scattered Everywhere.
Posts: 2,045
UA/ET LAX-Lusaka Zambia $1004 4.1CPM

LAX to Lusaka Zambia for $1004 on UA/Ethiopian

An unusual destination, but this is a pretty solid deal from the west coast to Africa.

The back breaking routing is LAX-IAD-ADD-HRE-LUN/ LUN-ADD-FCO-IAD-LAX
Nov 10-14 comes to around 4.1 CPM (23,021 miles) which is rare for Africa. Some dates in Nov and wide open early next year.

Unusual tech/transit stops in Harare and also Rome.

Books into O class which earns 100% on UA and also Aegean. So one of these would get you *Gold if crediting to Aegean.

Would make an interesting trip report This would also make a good base for a side trip to Victoria Falls which are quite impressive. I visited the falls myself earlier this year.
aaron1262 is offline  
Old Sep 20, 2014, 5:16 pm
  #2  
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: NY
Programs: UA 1K MM
Posts: 630
UA/ET LAX-Lusaka Zambia $1004 4.1CPM

Better yet just go to ADD and burn 35,000 miles to hop over to the Seychelles.
pduck01 is offline  
Old Sep 20, 2014, 5:47 pm
  #3  
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: San Diego
Programs: IHG Spire Amb, HH Diamond, DL Diamond and 1MM
Posts: 3,610
Lusaka is Good for Victoria Fall

Lusaka + all-day drive in a rental car (or bus) gets you to Victoria Falls.
Avoid the rainy season, and you have an excellent adventure vacation.
Bowgie is offline  
Old Sep 20, 2014, 7:41 pm
  #4  
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: SEA/DEN
Programs: Hostelworld.com Diamond Plated Platinum
Posts: 390
Originally Posted by Bowgie
Lusaka + all-day drive in a rental car (or bus) gets you to Victoria Falls.
Avoid the rainy season, and you have an excellent adventure vacation.
+1 on that. We were at the end of the rainy season when the rains were finally coming through from Angola and it was literally like a shower. I wore my swim suit.
AJCU is offline  
Old Sep 20, 2014, 7:52 pm
  #5  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Canada
Programs: UA*1K MM
Posts: 23,274
Make sure to get a double entry visa on arrival in Lusaka, if planning on crossing over the bridge to the Zim side of the falls - which you should do.
rankourabu is offline  
Old Sep 20, 2014, 9:28 pm
  #6  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: DFW/SEA
Programs: *A Silver, AA Gold + Miles Scattered Everywhere.
Posts: 2,045
Should note that similar fares are valid to many other African cities as well:

East Africa: NBO, JNB, DAR, Maputo, Kigali Rwanda, Entebbe Uganda, Harare.
West Africa: Lome Togo, Accra Ghana, Luanda Angola, Kinshasa

All under 5CPM. Not your typical destinations, but it's always difficult to find reasonable fares to Africa aside from maybe JNB and NBO. So these are great for anyone looking to head to the continent.
aaron1262 is offline  
Old Sep 21, 2014, 6:51 am
  #7  
 
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Berlin
Posts: 1,765
Do you have experience driving with a rental car in Zambia? Would be interested to hear those stories.
largeeyes is offline  
Old Sep 21, 2014, 10:29 am
  #8  
168
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Programs: UA-1K, AA-Gold, H GP-LIfeTime Diamond
Posts: 802
Originally Posted by pduck01
Better yet just go to ADD and burn 35,000 miles to hop over to the Seychelles.
Just make sure you are not doing this during their low season. We used UA miles to get to SEZ from the USA and after lodging is paid, ET cancelled their ADD-SEZ flight. No other *A flys to SEZ, so UA only dropped us off at DXB even with 1K status. It was stressful having to find our own way to SEZ 3 weeks before our departure! EK direct flight was US$500 one way, so we end up using Kenya Air via NBO to get there.

Agreed SEZ is beautiful!
168 is offline  
Old Sep 21, 2014, 10:44 am
  #9  
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 469
Originally Posted by largeeyes
Do you have experience driving with a rental car in Zambia? Would be interested to hear those stories.
Just AVOID it !!!!
Driving a rental car is safe only in a handful of African countries...
FFlyerCDG is offline  
Old Sep 21, 2014, 11:45 am
  #10  
 
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: New York City
Posts: 3,999
This works from SEA too.
WillTravel is offline  
Old Sep 21, 2014, 12:48 pm
  #11  
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: OZ, Perth
Programs: QF QR Silver, DJ,TG,MH
Posts: 509
Originally Posted by largeeyes
Do you have experience driving with a rental car in Zambia? Would be interested to hear those stories.
We flew into JRO (Kilimanjaro), then self drove a Safari vehicle into the Serengeti. A absolute wonderful adventure for seeing animals and just "being there".
Think of the worst gravel road you have ever driven on - it just went on and on, for 150Kms. It shook the daylights out of us and the 4WD Landrover, though it and us, never missed a beat.
in2it54 is offline  
Old Sep 21, 2014, 1:34 pm
  #12  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Hilton Contributor Badge
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: IAH
Programs: DL DM, Hyatt Ist-iest, Stariott Platinum, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 12,760
This is pricing from IAH for ~$100 more. If I didn't already have a crazy flight booked for January I'd be considering this.
krazykanuck is offline  
Old Sep 21, 2014, 6:01 pm
  #13  
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Denver, CO
Programs: UA 1K, AA Exec Plat, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Plat
Posts: 85
UA/ET LAX-Lusaka Zambia $1004 4.1CPM

Looks like the O fare will give you 100% EQM on UA, do ET operated flights earn double RDM for 1K?
bertrob is offline  
Old Sep 21, 2014, 6:02 pm
  #14  
 
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: EWR
Posts: 2,109
Originally Posted by bertrob
Looks like the O fare will give you 100% EQM on UA, do ET operated flights earn double RDM for 1K?
No
steveman518 is offline  
Old Sep 23, 2014, 9:42 am
  #15  
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Posts: 6
Originally Posted by largeeyes
Do you have experience driving with a rental car in Zambia? Would be interested to hear those stories.
I rented from City Drive Rent a Car in Lusaka and it was a good experience overall. They were the only company that would allow us to take the vehicle into Malawi, though we had to pay a little extra for them to prepare the paperwork. Unfortunately, we were fined at a checkpoint in Malawi for not having insurance coverage and also had to purchase a new insurance policy in Lilongwe, which was a total mess. City Drive admitted it was their fault though and paid me back for the fine and the new insurance policy. It was a big hassle, but in Africa you have to expect things like that to happen. There were no mechanical problems with the vehicle and we drove it over 1200 miles, including off road safari drives. I would certainly rent from them again.

www.citydriverentacar.com/
qwzx1234 is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.