Getting out of NBO
 

I am planning a 1W award that goes like this:

USA-Abuja, Nigeria-NBO-DXB
it looks like i have to connect in LHR thrice and although some have reported success getting away by making one a stopover i don't want to use luck. so is there routing that does not use LHE 3 times? One that I know of is using IB via MAD but that would get me to Lagos, Nigeria only. I don't like it as the flight into LOS lands at night and also I would then have to take Virgin Nigeria to ABV the next day.

To get to and from ABV, you're simply going to have to go through London. You don't have a choice. However, getting from Dubai back to the US, you have a choice. DXB is served by BA, EI, CX and AY. If I remember right, the AY flights are "leisure" flights, which are single cabin and generally treated like charter. That leaves EI on the short route and CX if you like to fly. Depending on the program you're using, the miles cost could be the same (AA) or it could be very different (the rest).

They will allow you to use LHR twice as a connection and once as a stopover (> 24 hours) as specificed in the rules of the program. The only downside is that if you are using AA then adding in LHR as a stopover will affect your overall point-to-point mileage for the award.