Need help getting to DAR
 

Hey guys, wasn't sure where to post this, hope this works.

So I did a few favors for a friend of mine who has paid me back in the form of 2 delta buddy passes. My best friend and I were looking at using them for a couple week vacation early next year. We had decided on visiting Zanzibar, however I have just learned that the passes work on delta flights only, not any of the partner airlines. So we are now trying to find a way to get there partly on the passes, we could fly to Europe on delta, or Johannesburg, and take something local the rest of the way. Does anyone know a good local route to take? Something I may not have thought of? Thanks!

KLM flies to DAR direct from AMS. From DAR, you can take a ferry or a puddle jumper to ZNZ - Air Tanzania.

Is it cheaper to fly from AMS to DAR or to fly into Africa, prob JNB, and buy a local flight? We are trying to get the maximum value from the buddy pass and pay as little as possible for the inter-africa flight

be careful if combining buddy passes and paid flights. On the way there, assume you won't get on the plane on the first day and have couple days built in at your connecting point (AMS, JNB, etc). This is especially true if you are going in high season (summer for europe, winter for SA). On the way back, you can buy a piad ticket since you are getting TO you departure point with Delta. If JNB flights look ok, I'd go with that. When i looked in the past, very often price of ticket Europe-East Africa was sthe same as NA-East Africa, so no point using buddy passes.
If I were you, i'd look on the map where Delta goes and pick the most interesting, far away place you can get to on Delta, without complicating it with additional tickets (except maybe very cheap local short-hops that you can throw away or change without too much $$).
My #2 option would be to use miles/award tickets for the 2nd leg. This way, if you misconnect, you can either change or redeposit miles for a known max cost (sometimes free if you're elite).
If you want beach, i'd look into flying to JNB, spending some time in SA (cities, safari, whatever) and going to Mozambique. Equally bueatiful beaches. Not as much history as Stonetown, but most people don't go to Zanzibar as a destination. Most go there as a rest stop after safari in Kenya/Tanz.
Also ask about embargo date, where no buddy pass travel is alound, regardless of loads.

Kayak is your friend

yea but kayak dosent always show the low cost regional airlines, was hoping someone here knew of a good one to use.

JNB to DAR is expensive - you might be better off finding a cheap flight to Kenya (check charter airlines from Europe) - or a regional flight to NBO or DAR from Egypt/Middle East (Air Arabia?). The options will be limited if using a buddy pass. You wont find many low cost alternatives as Dar isn't really served by any.

Check Ethiopian Airlines using a travel agent (e.g. cheaptickets.com).

Why ZNZ? It is a great place to visit but you might be better of elsewhere if cost is an issue - Kenya is especially cheap at the moment/can be combined with ZNZ - and (mostly) safe.

Precision Air recently started up a red-eye flight between JNB and DAR - I think they fly 4-5 times a week. I'm not sure of the cost - check their website. (But you might want to use a travel agent to book - I know people who have had problems with purchasing via the Precision website.)

There's also a low cost carrier from South Africa that flies from JNB to ZNZ - I think it's 1time airlines (or something like that). I've never flown them, but it might be worth checking out. I doubt they fly everyday, though, so you may need to be flexible.

Or go to South Africa, Mozambique -- or elsewhere (Vic Falls?).

If you do go to ZNZ, note that the Sauti za Busara music festival is in February, and so a) this might (or might not) be something you want to go to, and b) Stone Town accommodation is usually fully booked at this time.