How to book business class to Southern Africa for 70,000 miles
Finding flights to Africa can be quite a task, especially if you're aiming for destinations further south on the continent. As you venture down, the cost and difficulty of securing award flights tend to escalate, making it quite a challenge both in terms of availability and pricing.
There is a rarely discussed alternative for traveling to Africa that has become increasingly appealing: Condor, the German airline, can now be booked through Alaska Mileage Plan. For a long time, Condor was known for having a subpar business class experience, but they have recently invested heavily in improving their amenities and according to most reviews, it has paid off. Furthermore, the cost of redeeming business class awards through Alaska is incredibly reasonable: just 65,000 miles for a one-way trip to the Maldives or 70,000 miles for a one-way trip to Southern Africa and Mauritius.
Condor's Business Class Rates
How's Condor Airlines' Business Class?
To start off, let's give a quick summary for those of you who might be wondering, "What in the world is Condor?" Back in the 1950s, Condor emerged as an airline primarily focused on catering to German vacationers seeking leisurely getaways. Initially, Lufthansa held around 25% of the airline, and it operated flights to popular European destinations where people could bask in the sun, such as the Canary Islands, Balearic Islands, and eventually even Southeast Asia. Various changes in ownership occurred over time, until the majority share of the airline was acquired by the travel agency Thomas Cook, which unfortunately went bankrupt. As a result, Attestor Capital now holds the current ownership of Condor.
I initially began utilizing it back in the Thomas Cook era, when they operated 767s from the West Coast to Frankfurt which regrettably took us back to a less comfortable era of air travel. The seats were angled-lie-flat, the catering was subpar, and the prices were relatively affordable, which was what made a Condor long-haul flight "unique." However, when Attestor acquired the airline, a substantial amount of money was injected, resulting in a remarkable enhancement of the business class offering.
Condor is currently retiring its outdated 767s and substituting them with Airbus A330s, which boast an excellent business class experience that has garnered positive reviews. The seating arrangement is now 1-2-1, providing passengers with a spacious 78″ fully-flat bed. Additionally, travelers can enjoy perks such as WiFi, Bluetooth headphones, ample in-seat power, and an impressive 4K in-flight entertainment system. Although I have not personally experienced this new product, the feedback I have received thus far has been largely positive.
Right now, only the Alaska Mileage Plan is collaborating with Condor in the United States. This partnership offers an excellent opportunity to use points and miles for travel to Europe, the Middle East, and even Africa. The combination of competitive pricing, attractive products, and good availability make it a highly appealing option.
Book Condor Business Using Alaska Miles
There's both positive and negative information regarding the process of reserving Condor awards using Alaska miles. The positive information is that you can book almost all of Condor's flight routes online through Alaska.com. However, the downside is that it is not always easy to see if there are available seats. Let's examine the steps for finding availability for two individuals who want to return from the island of Mauritius at some point in late May 2024.
Finding Transatlantic Business Options On Condor
Typically, I begin by referring to a visual representation of the travel route, like the example provided underneath. Initially, I aim to locate vacant seats for a journey across the Atlantic Ocean, and subsequently, I search for flights from Europe to Africa. Lastly, I assemble the specific flights I desire into a single rewards ticket.
The majority of Condor's flights in North America start from Frankfurt.
Condor offers flights to Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Phoenix on the West Coast. If I want to search for all of these airports simultaneously, I'll use seats.aero, which is my preferred platform for conducting comprehensive searches like this. For my search, I specifically want to find options for Alaska Mileage Plan on non-stop flights, with two available seats. Additionally, I'm interested in checking for extended availability so that I can view flights for next May (please note that accessing extended availability, non-stop flights, and multiple seats may require payment).
Additionally, take note of the fact that I have adjusted the search preferences on the lower right corner to display only flights departing from Frankfurt (FRA). This allows me to narrow down my search specifically to Condor flights. Upon reviewing the outcomes for the final two weeks in May, I have discovered a few dates where there are at least two available seats for the FRA-San Francisco (SFO) route.
Occasionally, I notice that there are extra days marked as open on the schedule of a real airline compared to what I observe on seats.aero. This situation arises when I visit alaskaair.com. Specifically, I can spot a total of 14 days in May where two or more seats are available for business class on flights between Frankfurt (FRA) and San Francisco (SFO). These flights depart on Mondays to Thursdays towards the end of the month.
Excellent! Now, let's check if there are any open slots for the flight between Africa and Frankfurt, and then we'll be all set.
Discover Condor's African Business Class Availability
There's a problem in the plan here: Alaska won't display the majority of Condor's connecting flights unless they are combined with a flight across the Atlantic. If I simply search for a flight from Mauritius (MRU) to Frankfurt (FRA) towards the end of May, this is what I observe:
This implies that there are no vacant seats between Mauritius and Frankfurt for the whole month of May. However, this is inaccurate. Let's attempt to find business class seats from MRU-SFO since we are aware that there are available seats for the FRA-SFO route for eight days towards the end of the month (so any available MRU-SFO dates should match with them). Here is the displayed calendar:
Great news! I found exactly what we were looking for: only two flight options are available and, as anticipated, they both require 70,000 miles plus taxes/fees for a business class ticket. When we click on the 27th, we can confirm that the entire journey is in business class, spanning approximately twelve hours from MRU to Frankfurt, followed by an additional 11.5 hours from FRA to SFO (with an overnight layover). This means we get to enjoy almost a full day of comfortable lie-flat seating on the relatively new A330 aircraft, all for the price of 70,000 miles plus taxes.
Finding More Condor Availability With Multi-city Itineraries
There is a peculiar aspect to booking these tickets through Alaska Airlines: not all the flights that are available will be displayed when you input your starting point and destination as a one-way trip. However, if you enter the itinerary as a multi-city trip, you will often find additional options with a layover included (it is important to note that when booking award flights with Alaska Airlines, layovers are free on one-way trips). Therefore, I decided to keep the flight from Frankfurt to San Francisco on May 27th, as I was already aware that it was available. Then, I searched for any other flights from Mauritius to Frankfurt between the 20th and the 27th.
Indeed, when we altered the Mauritius segment to 5/23, a different date emerged where there were at least two seats in business class up for grabs.
To sum up, we have discovered options for two individuals traveling in business class from Mauritius to Frankfurt on 5/20, 5/23, and 5/27. Additionally, we have identified eight different flights from Frankfurt to San Francisco. It is possible to combine these flights with a layover, and regardless of the duration of the layover, the cost will be 70,000 miles for one-way travel.
More African Examples
The same rules are relevant for other locations too. Here's what Alaska displays for the current status of flights from Zanzibar (ZNZ) to San Francisco (SFO):
The exact same dates (5/20 and 5/27) are still open. However, if we backtrack from the 27th, we can discover another available date for a multi-city trip, which happens to be on Saturday, 5/25.
When you search for a one-way itinerary from Mombasa, Kenya (MBA) using the calendar, you will see that the only available dates are 5/20 and 5/27. However, just like in the case of Zanzibar, there is another option for traveling from Africa to Europe between those dates if you switch to a multi-city search.
Increased Access To/from East Coast
Up until now, all the information we've explored has focused on reaching the West Coast. However, when it comes to Condor, there tends to be a greater number of options available for traveling to the East Coast, particularly JFK and Boston. Take a look at Alaska's schedule for two individuals traveling from Frankfurt to New York (JFK) between May and July next year.
Practically, there is almost an opportunity every day. Due to this widespread availability, it is also significantly more convenient to discover flight options to and from Africa. This is evident when searching for a one-way trip from Mombasa to JFK in June of the following year.
For individuals who possess Alaska miles, Condor has emerged as a more and more appealing and cost-effective choice for traveling to Europe and particularly Africa. It boasts a diverse and fascinating array of European locations, along with intriguing possibilities in Africa, the Middle East, and the Indian Ocean. While there may be a few peculiarities when searching for available flights, the fact that Condor's business class service is now on par with other airlines flying across the Atlantic makes it an attractive option in terms of both availability and cost. This is a prime opportunity that shouldn't be overlooked.
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