Using eBird To Plan Your Birding Trip (Target Species Focus) In 10 Easy Steps

Over the last year or so, I have been using eBird to help plan my travels.  I am usually a species-focused birder when I travel.  That means I have certain species in mind and I will plan my trip to locations where I am most likely to see that species.  Another style of planning might be when you have a trip booked to a destination and you want to know where to go birding and what kind of species you might find there.  For example you have a business trip to Sydney and would like to get in some birding in your spare time.  But the steps below are basically what I do.

STEP 1

Go to eBird, set up an account or log in if you already have one.  Then click on Explore Data and scroll down to Species Maps.

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STEP 2

Enter the name of the species you want to see-either in English or the scientific name.  In the examples below, I will be using the Hooded Parrot which was one of my target species when we went to the Northern Territory of Australia.  The technique works no matter where you want to go and which birds you want to see.  African Grey Parrots in Uganda, Resplendent Quetzals in Costa Rica or Antpittas in Ecuador are all there to be found!

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Now that I have entered the Hooded Parrot, I can see where they are concentrated – just south of Darwin in the Northern Territory of Australia.  This tells me what airport I will need to fly into to begin my trip.  The darker the purple, the more sightings of that species have been logged in eBird.ebird4

STEP 3

Refine the search by using the dates I want to travel.  I will usually choose the quarter that represents the month I will be there and a 10 year data.  Sometimes I scale that back to the most recent 3 years if there are a lot of results.  Also pay attention to red points as they represent sightings of a bird within the last month.  I also click on “Show Points Sooner” on the right side of the screen to make all those points appear.

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By zooming in, I can see the big concentration of points around Pine Creek, Nitmiluk and Katherine.  I note that either would be a simple 2-3 hour drive south of Darwin.  I like to organize my birding for early mornings and late afternoons and use the middle part of the day to drive from one place to another.ebird6

STEP 4

Now I want to examine these “points” that represent bird sightings in more detail.  I will right click on each point in the general area and open in a separate tab.  I want to see what the numbers look like.  Are they big flocks being constantly seen over a period of weeks or months?  This indicates the birds are common to the area and you have a good chance to spot them.  You can also see exact locations such as which park, what street, etc.  This location looks really good, various people (including me) are reporting good sized flocks.  So now I want to examine the Hotspot in more detail.  Right click on “Explore Hotspot” highlighted in yellow.

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STEP 5

Research the Hotspots.  If you are a destination birder rather than a species-specific birder you can come straight to the Hotspot section (see Step 1) and skip the other steps.  Seeing my target species is exciting enough but seeing a lot more birds in the same area is even better.  If I have limited time, I want the most “bang for my buck” so I want a Hotspot that not only has my target but lots of other interesting birds as well!

I have highlighted in yellow the information I want from this screen.  “Get Directions” will get me a Google map to the exact location of the Hotspot.  On the right side, I am looking at how many species are in the average checklist to get an idea of what other birds can be seen and how common they are.  I also take note of names which appear on a regular basis.  These people will be locals, maybe even birding guides so their lists are more likely to be accurate.

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STEP 6

Examine the bar chart for patterns in when the birds are being seen.  For example the Hooded Parrot is commonly seen between July to December.  They haven’t been reported at all in this location between mid January to June so I am glad my trip is in September!  One thing to note:  This location is pretty popular and gets a good amount of reports.  If you don’t see the bird being reported in a particular month, always check to see if ANY birds have been reported in the month.  For example if I were going in March, I would be concerned that no one has reported Hooded Parrots in March but other birds ARE being reported so it’s not a case that no one has filed a report yet for that month.  Birders are there in March, the Hooded Parrots are not there.

Now I scroll though to see what other birds are likely to be seen in September – quite a few parrot species so this looks like a great spot!ebird9

STEP 7

OK I know it isn’t “green” to print things out but it can be very handy to have a checklist readily available.  This is the first time I used this feature on a birding trip and it was invaluable to help me remember what I saw.  It also helped me identify some birds.  I would Google the bird species and match the results against my photos.

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STEP 8

Most people have more than one target species in mind when they go birding.  I do this procedure for all of my main target species (usually parrots but also bowerbirds, fairy-wrens, Gouldian finches).  Then I compare the checklists and bar charts to see what is the fewest number of stops I have to make to get all the desired species.  I had about 20 “Must-sees” for this trip to the Northern Territory.

STEP 9

I  like to cross reference what I learned from this procedure with other birding reports such as those found on Cloudbirders, Surfbirds and anything else that pops up on Google!  Sometimes I find good recommendations for accommodation and guides.

STEP 10

Now that I have my birding Hotspots sorted, I can start to look at other travel arrangements.  I need to fly to Darwin, rent a car and get accommodation near each of those Hotspots!

Top 8 Airline Miles Programs – 2016 Edition

I last made my recommendations of which airline miles programs to join back in 2012 so with all the changes I think it’s time for an update!  Which programs are still good?  Which ones no longer exist?  Which ones are less valuable than before?  How can Australians and Americans get free miles from credit cards?  Read on!

WHAT MAKES A PROGRAM “GOOD”?

  • I attribute greater value to programs which require minimal outlay of cash (no fuel surcharges) and better opportunities to get miles from everyday credit card spend and sign up bonuses.
  • “Buy miles 100% bonus” deals may have value to people who have cash to outlay but since this is a guide for cash poor people who want to travel I am not including them here.
  • These recommendations are for eco-tourists so I haven’t considered luxury travel to Europe and Asia redemptions.
  • Free miles from E-Rewards is a plus.
  • I have not taken elite programs into account in any of the below programs.
  • I am not a credit blogger so please use other resources to find the best deals on sign up bonuses.

1.  American Airlines AAdvantageOne World member

Has more options between USA and Australia on Qantas, Air Pacific or Air Tahiti Nui, also great for LAN or AA to South America and Africa via Qatar or direct QF flights.  Can book several of their partners online with AA planning to add more as they go along.  One way awards at half round trip rates.  Save AA miles for long hauls if possible, use BA for short haul.  No fuel surcharges except BA and IB awards.  E-Rewards participant.

Americans get miles from Citibank co-branded cards and the grandfathered Barclays Aviator cards (not available to new applicants).  You can also transfer points from SPG best done in blocks of 20k to get 5k bonus.

Australians get miles by transferring preferably blocks of 40k Amex MR points to get 20k SPG, then blocks of 20k SPG to get 5k bonus.

2.  United Airlines Mileage PlusStar Alliance member

Good for awards to South-east Asia on UA, SQ & TG; Central & South America on Copa & Avianca and Africa on South African, Ethiopian and Egypt Air.  Also very good for intra-Latin America and intra-Africa.  E-Rewards participant.

Americans get miles easily via Chase’s Ultimate Rewards cards and co-branded United Explorer card.

Australians have a much harder time getting miles as the SPG route is a poor value at 20k SPG gets 10k United plus bonus of 2500.  Most Aussies will find Singapore a better Star Alliance partner.

3.  Singapore Airlines KrisFlyerStar Alliance member

Don’t keep miles in here if you can’t use them within 3 years because they expire whether you have activity or not.  Be careful of fuel surcharges on Asian routes.  Good for redemptions on NZ between Australia and Pacific islands & redemptions on Avianca & Copa for Central/South America trips as no fuel surcharges.

Americans get miles from Chase’s Ultimate Rewards cards, Citibank Thank You cards, American Express Membership Rewards & SPG.

Australians get miles from American Express Membership Rewards 1000:1000 and transferable rewards programs from Westpac and ANZ.

4.  British Airways Avios and Iberia AviosOne World members

Same Avios currency but you need to join both BA and IB’s versions to maximize it.  Pretty easy to earn Avios via E-Rewards and can also credit stays at Accor hotels to Iberia’s program and transfer easily between BA and IB.    Not a great program for long haul or itineraries needing connections but excellent for short haul within South America on partner LAN, the BA-Comair flights within Southern Africa or within Australia on partner Qantas.  Some nice 5th freedom flights in the Caribbean – Trinidad to St Lucia gets you between 2 islands with good birding.

Americans get miles from Chase’s Ultimate Rewards cards and co-branded British Airways card. You can also transfer points from SPG best done in blocks of 20k to get 5k bonus.

Australians get miles by transferring preferably blocks of 40k Amex MR points to get 20k SPG, then blocks of 20k SPG to get 5k bonus.  Aussies need to use a European or American address as they don’t accept memberships with Australian addresses.

5. Flying BlueSky Team member

Be careful as most redemptions here attract fuel surcharges.  Flying Blue can get you some places that are otherwise very difficult to get to such as Kenya Airways flights to Madagascar and Garuda domestic Indonesia flights (no surcharges).  Also use on short haul flights on Gol, Aerolinas Argentinas (no surcharges) and some other interesting partners.  Participates in E-Rewards.  Miles expire after 20 months of when they were earned unless you credit a Sky Team flight to Flying Blue.  Non-flying activities such as credit card spend and E-Rewards don’t renew your expiration date.

Americans get miles from Citibank Thank You cards & Amex Membership Rewards.  You can also transfer points from SPG best done in blocks of 20k to get 5k bonus.

Australians get miles by transferring preferably blocks of 40k Amex MR points to get 20k SPG, then blocks of 20k SPG to get 5k bonus.

6.  Virgin Velocity – Not in an alliance. 

Good for short-haul to New Zealand and Pacific islands, domestic Australia flights and sometimes long haul to USA and Asia.  Participates in E-Rewards.

Americans get miles from transfering SPG points best done in blocks of 20k to get 5k bonus.  You need an Aussie address to join.

Australians have numerous credit cards (basically every bank in Australia) that earn Velocity points directly or transfer there.  Keep an eye out for huge sign on bonuses which have greatly improved in the last year or so.  There is a new partnership with BP to get 2 points per litre with occasional targeted bonuses.

7. Etihad Guest – Not in an alliance

I never looked twice at this program until they partnered up with Flybuys.  I did a recent review with Aussies in mind (sorry Americans) and found some interesting options with partners and decent value to Africa.  Probably not a good program for Americans to join, better to use AA redemptions on Etihad awards.  Beware of miles expiring after 2 years, don’t transfer them until you are within booking range.  Activity does not renew the expiration.

Americans get miles from Citibank Thank You cards.  You can also transfer points from SPG best done in blocks of 20k to get 5k bonus.

Australians get miles from American Express Membership Rewards 1000:1000 and the new Flybuys partnership FB 10,000: EY 4000.

8.  Qantas Frequent FlyerOne World member

Use for domestic Australia or short-haul to NZ, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia.  Has fuel surcharges on most routes with the possible exception of LAN intra-South America.

Americans get points from Citibank Thank You cards.

Australians get points from co-branded Qantas cards, just about every bank in Australia has them.  Unfortunately the Woolies and Optus partnerships are gone so much harder to get points now outside of credit cards.

Dream TravelObviously not everyone needs to use ALL these programs.  It depends on where you want to go.  Situations change so you need to be constantly evaluating.  A month ago I wouldn’t have considered Etihad Guest but now I can see getting at least 16,000 free miles each year just by grocery shopping at Coles and using bonuses.  From the previous list US Airways Dividend Miles is gone and the Avianca Lifemiles program is no longer as valuable as it once was due to devaluations.  It is no longer so easy to get Qantas miles as they eliminated their best “every day spending” partners.  American may lose it’s #1 position if they devalue their awards.  I say as long as it’s free to join a program, then do so as you never know what deals may come in the future!

 

Getting To Mauritius With Frequent Flyer Miles

Although most frequent flyer programs group Mauritius with Africa to determine it’s zone, there are far fewer options because not many airlines fly there.

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STAR ALLIANCE

South African Airways is the only Star Alliance member to serve Mauritius so you will have to get to JNB, then connect to Mauritius.  Availability on this route isn’t the best and sometimes only available in business class so if you can only afford an economy ticket this won’t work for you.

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Assuming you can find availability, one way (double for RT) awards would cost:

NORTH AMERICA – MAURITIUS 40,000 Y    80,000 J

EUROPE – MAURITIUS                30,000 Y    55,000 J

AUSTRALIA – MAURITIUS            50,000 Y     75,000 J

Given the distances involved, it is much better to combine Mauritius with South Africa and have a better chance of finding those elusive seats!

ONEWORLD

The only OneWorld carrier serving Mauritius is British Airways so the best programs to look at are American AAdvantage for long-haul segments and British Airways Avios for short hops from JNB-MRU.

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Beware of transiting LHR enroute to Mauritius as the airport taxes can be extremely high.  Try to route on QR via DOH or EY via AUH to JNB, then pick up the JNB-MRU on BA.  Assuming you can find availability, one way (double for RT) awards would cost:

NORTH AMERICA – MAURITIUS 37,500 Y    62,500 J

EUROPE – MAURITIUS                30,000 Y    37,500 J

AUSTRALIA – MAURITIUS            37,500 Y     50,000 J

American currently offers the best deals on mileage awards to Africa but these rates are unlikely to hold once the merger with US Airways is completed so if Mauritius/Africa is on your bucket list, this is a good time to book your trip!

SKYTEAM

Air France is the only SkyTeam member serving Mauritius but you can use Delta (if anyone is still a member of Delta) to book these awards.  If you are using credit card points or transferring from SPG, then Flying Blue is your best bet.  All SkyTeam members charge YQ fuel surcharge on these tickets so you are better off using United or American for long haul awards.  Here’s a couple examples for a North American award and a European award.  Flying Blue won’t let you route from Australia via Europe to Mauritius.

MRU FB1 MRU FB2AIR MAURITIUS

Air Mauritius dominates the market. Here is a list of their destinations from MRU.

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They are a partner of Air France Flying Blue but they are not a member of SkyTeam.  If you want to use Flying Blue miles to book Air Mauritius you will have to call in.  I tried on the MRU-TNR (Antananarivo) route but the fuel surcharges were so high it would have been a total waste of SPG points which can be better utilized elsewhere.  If you are booking a cash ticket, then Air Mauritius does have a lot of options, keep an eye on their website for specials.

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Support Miles To The Wild

If you enjoy this blog and would like to support MTTW, there are a few ways you can help.

REFERRAL LINKS – AFFILIATE

I have an affiliate relationship with Amazon.com and Scottevest.  If you use my links to begin your shopping I get a small commission at no added cost to yourself.

REFERRAL LINKS – NON AFFILIATE

I don’t have any kind of marketing relationship with these companies.  I joined some time ago using someone else’s referral link and now have links of my own.  If you use my link to join, you will get some kind of bonus as detailed below and then you will get a link of your own to share.  If there are any really good promos on, I will usually blog about them seperately.

UBER – Usually you get $10, a free ride or more depending on what deal they have going.  I get $10 in my account.

POINTSHOUND – We both get 250 miles in any of their partner airlines after your first booking.

ROCKETMILES – We both get 1000 miles in any of their partner airlines after your first booking.

TOPCASHBACK – We both get $10 free cashback in our accounts.  To receive your Tell-a-Friend bonus, the person you have referred must sign up to TopCashback from your link and earn $10.00 payable cashback or more. View the full Tell-a-Friend Terms and Conditions.

COPY.COM – Cloud storage, we both get an extra 5GB when you use my link.  Max of 25GB per account via referral bonuses.

CREDIT CARDS

Occasionally Chase and Amex have promos where people who have certain cards can refer other people by an email invitation.  The inviter gets a specified number of points and the invitee (you) gets a good sign up bonus.  An example is you get 40,000 Ultimate Rewards + 5000 if you add an authorized user and I get 5000 Ultimate Rewards for inviting you to get a Chase Sapphire Preferred.  Deals vary and are not available year round but if you email me I can tell you what I have.  The cards I sometimes have invitations for are:

Chase Sapphire Preferred

Chase Freedom

Amex SPG (USA)

Amex Platinum Reserve (and other Aussie Amexes)

If you are considering one of these cards and would like an invitation, please contact me on tara at milestothewild.com.

DO YOU HAVE CASH TO SPARE?

Don’t send it to me.  The whole reason I got into eco-tourism is because I am passionate about birds and parrots in particular.  If you are feeling generous, please send a donation to World Parrot Trust.  You can either donate to their general fund or choose a species to direct your donation to.

Donate to World Parrot Trust

Thank you in advance if you decide to use any of these links, I do appreciate it!  Even if you don’t, thank you for reading my blog and I hope you have some great birding & ecotourism adventures and I can be of some inspiration to you.

Multimodal Transport Search: Rome2Rio

I have already been blogging about how to use airline miles to make your eco-tourism travel dreams come true.  But what do you do when the destination you want is far away from the main gateway airport?  What if you don’t have the right kind of miles to get there?  Is a bus REALLY the cheapest option?

Enter ROME2RIO!

One the home page, you can enter any two destinations.

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In this example, we are going to say that we are using Star Alliance miles to visit Brazil for birding.  Our final destination is the Pantanal to see the stunning Hyacinth Macaws and other birds.  We will be traveling in 2015 and booking the trip in mid 2014 and TAM will have left Star Alliance to join One World.

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There are no Star Alliance options to get to Cuiaba so we can join our Pantanal tour, we need to spend money.  So how do we determine the best option?  Enter Sao Paulo & Cuiaba, then put in your date in the Rome2Rio search engine.  We get a screen that looks like this.

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We have 4 options.  You can click on any option to get further details.

 

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Make your choice between the non-stop or the somewhat cheaper one-stop.  Either way you are arriving in Cuiaba at an inconvenient midnight-ish hour.  You can then click on the flight of your choice to be directed to their website to book it.

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Beware the prices are not always accurate on Rome2Rio but at least you can click over to the airline’s website to compare.

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The main value I see in the site is comparing different modes of transport so you can make a decision if a bus is cheaper than a flight and if the difference in price is worth the longer time it would take.  For example, option 1 on our Rome2Rio search query gives a total time estimate of 5 hours 17 minutes.  The different components of the trip:  metro, plane, taxi individually add up to 2 hours 47 minutes so the program is also allowing for time spent checking in, going through security & retrieving checked bags.

Now look at the bus option on #4 and the car option on #5.  You are going from city centre to city centre so they only give the bus travel time.

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The bus will save you around $100 per person but will take you 20 hours longer to get to Cuiaba.  Depending on how much time you have, this may or may not be worth it to you.

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The car option only gives the estimated cost of fuel and driving time.  You need to add the cost of a rental car on to this.  Then you need to work out the per person cost, compare the dollar amount to the loss of time vs flying you would have if you choose to drive.  If you are not returning to Sao Paulo by car, you would also have to add the drop off fee which in Brazil can be pretty bad!

Rome2Rio is a very clever tool which can give you a lot of information you need in making decisions about what mode of transport you will take once your mileage-booked flight deposits you at the the gateway airport.  You can learn more about this enterprise and their carbon offsetting program on their “About” page.  Scroll down for 2 very interesting videos which explain more uses of the tool.

 

Chase Sapphire & Freedom Cards

Although I don’t have an affiliate marketing relationship with Chase or any other banks, for a limited time they are allowing current card members to get a bonus by referring friends & family.  Anyone who is interested in eco-tourism and birds is a friend of mine!  This is what the offer you get by email looks like.

* Always check the Chase forum on FlyerTalk to see if any better offers are currently running.

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And here is the email from the Freedom card.

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This promo expires on 31 March so if you want to get the card in time so you can pass on your own referrals to your friends & family you should start pretty quick.  If you would like to help me and this blog by letting me refer you, please send your full name & email privately.

This is what the credit app looks like when it loads.

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2014 List Of Miles & Points Credit Cards – USA Edition

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ARE YOU NEW TO MILES & POINTS CREDIT CARDS?  READ MY NEWBIE GUIDE TO LEARN HOW TO USE THEM TO FULL ADVANTAGE!

  • This is simply a list of which travel credit cards (airlines, hotels, travel points) cards are in existence and where you can look for more information.

  • This is not a list of current best deals on offer.

  • Do not apply for any of these cards until you have checked all resources to make sure you are getting the best deal.

  • You should also check on the airline or hotel’s website and FlyerTalk to see if there are any better offers going.

  • Cash back cards are not included in this list.
  • The links are to the bank’s page and are not affiliate links.
  • I’m not going to list cruise cards as they are such a bad deal, you are better off with a cash back card.
  • The figures may have changed by the time you read this.
  • Cards will be listed by bank issuing them in alphabetical order.
  • Although some cards may be “churnable”, meaning you can get the same card more than once, it is best to assume they are one-time only bonuses and keep you eye on FlyerTalk to see if others are currently churning a card.

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I am only listing the name of the card, sign up bonus, minimum spend and annual fee (waived or not) for each card.  Some cards will have extra benefits such as category bonuses, free checked bags, priority boarding, elite benefits, lounge passes.  To see these, click on the card’s link.  Some cards also have business versions, please click on the respective links for details.

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AMERICAN EXPRESS (MEMBERSHIP REWARDS & CO-BRANDED TRAVEL CARDS)

THESE CARDS EARN MEMBERSHIP REWARDS

Amex Platinum Card – 25,000 sign up – $2000 minimum spend – Annual fee $450, not waived

Amex PRG (Premier Rewards Gold) – $25,000 sign up – $2000 minimum spend – Annual fee $175, waived first year

Mercedes Benz – 10,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend – Annual fee $95, not waived

Most people wouldn’t sign up for the next two but downgrade an existing card to avoid the annual fee and keep collecting Membership Rewards.

Amex Gold Card – No sign up bonus/minimum spend – Annual fee $125, waived first year.

Amex Green Card – No sign up bonus/minimum spend – Annual fee $125, waived first year.

CO-BRANDED CARDS: POINTS POST DIRECTLY TO PARTNER’S PROGRAM

Gold Delta SkyMiles – 30,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend – Annual fee $95, waived first year.

Platinum Delta SkyMiles – 35,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend – Annual fee $150, not waived.

Delta Reserve – 10,000 sign up – No minimum spend – Annual fee $450, not waived.

Jet Blue – 20,000 sign up – $2000 minimum spend – Annual fee $40, waived first year.

Hilton HHonors – 40,000 sign up – $750 minimum spend – No Annual fee.

Hilton HHonors Surpass – 60,000 sign up – $3000 minimum spend – Annual fee $75, not waived.

Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) – 25,000 sign up – $5000 minimum spend – Annual fee $65, waived first year.

BUSINESS CARDS AVAILABLE:  PLATINUM, GOLD, DELTA, SPG

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 BANK OF AMERICA

Alaska Airlines – 25,000 sign up – No minimum spend – Annual fee $35-75, not waived.

Asiana Airlines – 10,000 sign up – First purchase         – Annual fee $99, not waived

Spirit Airlines – 15,000 sign up – First purchase             – Annual fee $19-59, not waived.

Virgin Atlantic – 20,000 sign up – First purchase            – Annual fee $90, not waived

BankAmericard Travel Rewards – 10,000 sign up – $500 minimum spend – No annual fee.  Points can be used to pay any travel expense on your statement, not transferable to airlines.

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BARCLAYS

Be careful with this bank.  They will deny you if you have what they deem to be “too many recent inquiries” or “sufficient credit with them”.  They have a lot of partners (see link above), most of which don’t represent a good deal.  I wouldn’t waste an inquiry on Aer Lingus, Best Western, Choice, China Airlines, Iceland Air, Wyndham unless they come out with a major sign up promo.  They do have a couple good partners such as US Airways but this card will likely disappear once the merger is final.  Barclays is also fond of bait & switch.  You apply for a signature card and get a gold card for example.  They also advertise what looks like good sign up bonuses, then in the fine print, you need to do a balance transfer to get a lot of it.

Balance transfer points are not included below.  Check on FlyerTalk before applying as this Bank is constantly changing bonuses and terms.

Frontier– 40,000 sign up – $500 minimum spend            – Annual fee $69, not waived. No fee card available with lesser bonus.

Hawaiian Airlines (new) –

Lufthansa Miles & More – 20,000 sign up – First purchase            – Annual fee $79, not waived unless elite with LH.

US Airways – 30,000 sign up – First purchase         – Annual fee $89, not waived.

BarclayCard Arrival – 40,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend, $89, waived first year.  Points can be used to pay any travel expense on your statement, not transferable to airlines.

BUSINESS CARDS AVAILABLE: FRONTIER & US AIRWAYS

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CITIBANK

These cards can be churned, usually by waiting until Citibank thinks you are a “new” customer again.  This can take anywhere from 15-24 months.  Best advice is in the FlyerTalk thread, where you can usually find much better offers as well.  I haven’t listed the “Thank You” series of Citicards as they are more cash back than travel orientated.

AAdvantage Citi Gold – 25,000 sign up – $750 minimum spend, $50, waived first year.

AAdvantage Platinum – 30,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend, $95, waived first year.

CitiBusiness AAdvantage World Mastercard – 30,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend, $95, waived first year.

Hilton HHonors Reserve – 2 weekend nights, $2500 minimum spend – Annual fee $95, not waived.

Hilton HHonors Visa Signature – 40,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend, No annual fee.

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 CHASE

Chase is probably the miles & points collectors’ favourite bank.  They have a wide variety of Ultimate Rewards cards and Co-branded cards.  Ultimate Rewards can transfer to various airlines & hotels or be used to pay for travel or statement credits.  You need a card with an annual fee to be able to transfer Ultimate Rewards points out.  Co-branded cards directly sweep to the partner’s program after each statement.  Using a combination of United Airlines cards and Ultimate Rewards cards it is pretty easy to get enough from a sign up bonus for even long-haul business class awards or several shorter flights.

ULTIMATE REWARDS CARDS

Chase Freedom – 10,000 sign up – $500 minimum spend, No annual fee.

Chase Sapphire – 10,000 sign up – $500 minimum spend, No annual fee.

Chase Sapphire Preferred – 40,000 sign up – $3000 minimum spend, $95, waived first year.

Ink Cash – 20,000 sign up – $3000 minimum spend, No annual fee.

Ink Classic – 20,000 sign up – $3000 minimum spend, No annual fee.

Ink Bold – 50,000 sign up – $5000 minimum spend, $95, waived first year.

Ink Plus – 50,000 sign up – $5000 minimum spend, $95, waived first year.

CO-BRANDED CARDS

British Airways Visa – 50,000 sign up – $2000 minimum spend         – Annual fee $95, not waived.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier – 25,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend         – Annual fee $99, not waived.

Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus – 25,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend         – Annual fee $69, not waived.

United Mileage Plus Explorer – 30,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend – Annual fee $95, waived first year.

United Mileage Plus Club Card – $100 Statement credit after first purchase, United Club membership – Annual fee $395, not waived.

Fairmont Visa – 2 free nights, $1000 minimum spend – Annual fee $95, waived first year.

Hyatt Credit Card – 2 free nights, $1000 minimum spend – Annual fee $75, waived first year.

IHG Rewards Club – 60,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend – Annual fee $49, waived first year.

Marriott Rewards Signature Visa – 30,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend – Annual fee $45, waived first year.

Marriott Rewards Premier Signature Visa – 50,000 sign up – $1000 minimum spend – Annual fee $85, waived first year.

Ritz-Carlton Visa – 70,000 sign up – $2000 minimum spend         – Annual fee $395, not waived.

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US BANK

Although their cards are with foreign airlines, two of them are very useful to eco-tourists:  Avianca Lifemiles & LANPass.  They also have one of the best hotel cards on the market, the Club Carlson Visa.  Most of their cards have anniversary bonuses built in, see card’s web page for details.

U.S. Bank FlexPerks® Travel Rewards Visa – 20,000 sign up – $3500 minimum spend         – Annual fee $49, not waived.  Award travel starts at just 20,000 FlexPoints (up to a $400 ticket value) on over 150 airlines with no blackout dates or redemption fees.2 List of available airlines.

AeroMexico Visa Card – 15,000 sign up – No minimum spend – Annual fee $45, waived first year.

AeroMexico Visa Signature Card – 20,000 sign up – No minimum spend – Annual fee $80, waived first year.

LANPASS Visa – 15,000 sign up – No minimum spend – Annual fee $45, waived first year.

LANPASS Signature Visa – 20,000 sign up – No minimum spend – Annual fee $75, waived first year.

Lifemiles Visa – 15,000 sign up – No minimum spend – Annual fee $45, waived first year.

Lifemiles Signature Visa – 20,000 sign up – No minimum spend – Annual fee $75, waived first year.

Skypass (Korean Airlines) Visa Classic – 5,000 sign up – No minimum spend – Annual fee $50, not waived.

SkyBlue Skypass – 5,000 sign up – No minimum spend – No annual fee.

Skypass Visa SIgnature – 15,000 sign up – No minimum spend – Annual fee $80, not waived.

Club Carlson Visa Signature – 50,000 Gold Points after your first purchase plus 10,000 points once you spend $1,500 on your card within the first 90 days – Annual fee $50, not waived.

Club Carlson Premier Visa Signature – 50,000 Gold Points after your first purchase plus 35,000 points once you spend $2,500 on your card within the first 90 days.  Annual fee $75, not waived.

ALL CLUB CARLSON CARDS -Bonus Award Nights – When you redeem Gold Points for 2 or more consecutive Award Nights, your last night is free.  Exclusively for cardmembers!

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In future posts, I will be referring back to this list in showing you how to strategize best use of these credit card sign ups to get the points you need for YOUR trip.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

USA Based Amex Card Referrals

It’s no secret that credit card sign up bonuses are currently the biggest source of acquiring frequent flyer miles.  You have probably seen numerous posts on travel blogs about them.  I rarely blog about credit cards but just thought I would share this deal.  American Express has a special deal where existing card members can get a bonus if they refer friends and family for cards they have.  For example, I have the SPG Amex and the Amex PRG and can offer referrals for either one of them.  This is what the offer currently looks like.

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The offer of bonus points you get looks like these.

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I can’t refer for cards I don’t have such as any of the Platinum cards.  The offers above are equal to the best offer currently on the market for this card so you don’t lose anything by letting me refer you and you help me to keep traveling, birding and writing if you do use my links.  I need your first name, last name and email address to refer you so it would be best to do this privately.

The benefits of the Amex PRG include the Membership Rewards program and the ability to transfer your points to many different partners.

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This is my go-to card for airline fees as I get the 3x.  Even when booking award tickets, there will be taxes & fees.

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With the SPG card, your points will automatically sweep to your SPG account so you should have one set up before you apply.  Once they are in you SPG account, you can use them for hotels or transfer them to any of their airline partners.  It is best to transfer in lots of 20,000 points because you get a bonus 5000 miles in the program you have transferred too.  For example you transfer 20,000 SPG to American Airlines.  You will get 25,000 miles in your AAdvantage account.

If you have friends and family who want to get started in the miles & points game, once you have your own card, you can get a referral link of your own and start referring them!

REQUEST A REFERRAL FROM ME HERE

 

Getting To Central America Using Frequent Flyer Miles

Central America

You will have to check each individual program to see which countries they consider as “Central America”.  All of them will include Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.  Some will also include Mexico, Caribbean Islands and the northern part of South America.  All of these countries have impressive bird lists and are a great destination for eco-travelers.   I already have a blog with my recommendations for which programs to join if you are new to the world of miles and points.

The main gateway cities for Central America include Belize City (BZE), Flores (FRS – for Tikal), Guatemala City (GUA), Tegucigalpa (TGU), Managua (MGA), San Salvador (SAL), San Jose (SJO) and Panama City (PTY).      Once you have been in the miles and points game for awhile, you will get a feel for which airline to use where but if you are just starting out, Wikipedia will show you a list of all airlines that fly into a given airport.

Let’s take San Jose, Costa Rica for our first example.  So we can see that San Jose is served by a few international airlines.  AA flies from Miami, Dallas & New York, Copa and Avianca-Taca flies from several Central American cities which also have good connections to the USA.   In most cases you will have to transit through the USA even if you are coming from Australia, Europe or Asia direct to San Jose but there is a direct flight on Iberia from Madrid which could save Europeans the trouble of transiting the USA.   Your best choices are One World or Star Alliance because they have several airlines flying into the area.  Sky Team has a few flights on Delta.

ONE WORLD OPTIONS

From North America you can use American Airlines.

From South America you will need to use Star Alliance.

From Australia and New Zealand you can use Qantas & AA via the USA.

From UK and Europe you can travel via the USA using BA or IB to get to the USA, then AA, or the direct IB flights from Madrid to Central America.

From Asia or Africa there are no direct flights so you will need to travel via the USA or Europe.

STAR ALLIANCE OPTIONS

From North America you can use United, US (until they merge with AA), Avianca-Taca or Copa

From South America you can use Avianca-Taca and Copa.

From Australia and New Zealand, Europe, Asia and Africa there are no direct flights, you will need to travel via the USA.  Depending on which program’s miles you have, this may require one or two awards.

SKYTEAM OPTIONS

From North America you can use AeroMexico or Delta.

From Europe you can use Air Europa, Air France or KLM, to you can connect in the USA to Delta.

From Australia you will need to connect in the USA, this may require 2 awards.

From Asia and Africa there are no direct flights, you will need to travel via the USA or Europe.

HOW MANY MILES WILL IT COST?

Every airline member of the 3 main alliances has it’s own frequent flier program.  They often have alliances with other airlines outside the program.  I have made some reference charts for the airline alliances and I strongly recommend that you check out the program of the airline in your country and the USA based partners of each program as the USA airlines tend to have the most lucrative bonuses.  Americans can get very generous credit card bonuses.  Details of credit card partners (and other partners) will be on each airline’s website, however often there are more lucrative sign up bonuses.  Details are usually posted in the Flyer Talk credit card forum so I strongly suggest you read this thread and the Miles Buzz forum before you apply for any cards just in case a better bonus has been offered.  I don’t have any affiliate links and I recommend you do extensive research on your own when applying for airline credit cards.  I have some general posts about credit cards which basically let you know which bank serves which airlines and hotels so always check with Flyertalk for the latest news.

USING ONE WORLD

AMERICAN AIRLINES

No matter where you live, frequent flyer programs based in the USA usually offer the best deals but it’s still a good idea to look at other members of the alliance.  Try to avoid carriers that charge a fuel surcharge.  Looking at AA’s award chart, we can see that Central America shares a category with Colombia, Peru and Venezuela.

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So let’s look at the chart.  You will notice there are taxes and fees with certain routes and that the awards are prices as one way trips.

We can see that a South Pacific to Central/South America award will cost 40,000 miles each way (80,000 round trip) in economy, 65,000 (130,000 round trip) in business class and 75,000 each way (150,000 round trip in first class.  AA doesn’t allow you to transit the USA on this award so you must fly on the only carriers that operate between Australia and South America-Qantas and LAN to Bogota or Caracas.  To be honest, I wouldn’t use AA miles for this type of award or use 2 awards to connect in the USA.

If you are based in North America, economy will cost 17,500 each way (35,000 round trip), business class  is 30,000 each way (60,000 round trip) and first is 40,000 each way or 80,000 round trip.  You would be flying on AA.

AVIOS (BA OR IB)

Avios can be a great bargain for shorter flights.  The awards are priced by distance flown per segment rather than zone to zone.

Using the Great Circle Mapper, we can see that a direct flight from Miami to Belize or San Jose would cost 7,500 Avios each way, a direct flight from Miami to Panama City is very annoyingly 1 mile into the next band for 10,000 Avios.    If you are using credit card miles, transferring them to Avios rather than UA or AA could save you some points.  If you need a connection from elsewhere in the USA to the gateway city, you need to pay for that segment separately with the Avios cost for the distance flown.  Example OKC-MIA is 1222 miles so you need to add 10,000 Avios to the total price of the ticket.

QANTAS FREQUENT FLYER

For Qantas, it is easiest to use their points calculator to see how many points you need, then look for availability.  Here is an example of SYD-DFW-GUA in economy class.  For the record, business class (if you can get it) would cost 128,000 each way.

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Awards are distance based, but look what happens when we quote on Perth-Guatemala City!  Price for economy stayed the same!

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If you are based somewhere else, leave a comment if you don’t understand this part and I will help you out.  Meanwhile, here is a reference list for other One World carriers.

USING STAR ALLIANCE

US AIRWAYS

Star Alliance is King in Central America!  With the two main Central American airlines-Taca and Copa based there, they have an unbeatable network of routes.  Let’s use US Airways as an example.   US does not offer one way awards so these are round trips.  US Airways groups Central America with Mexico.  You can use any Star Alliance carrier so if you are in North America, you could use a combination of United, US Airways, Avianca/Taca and Air Canada to get there.  For Aussies and Kiwis it gets a bit more complicated.  Theoretically you should be able to use Air New Zealand to LAX and then pick up Avianca/Taca which is probably fine in economy but availability is scarce in business.  US Airways has recently been enforcing MPM (maximum permitted mileage) so while in the past we could route through Asian airports such as Singapore, Bangkok, Tokyo and Seoul; this may no longer be possible.  The new partner EVA AIrlines has added more possibilities of connections in Taipei.  US is in the process of merging with AA so these attractive awards may not be around much longer, book ’em while they last!

UNITED AIRLINES

United Airlines is a USA based carrier that offers one way awards on its own flights and other Star Alliance carriers.  Due to the size of their award chart, I can’t paste it here so will link to it and give examples.  Seattle to San Jose has availability on several dates which I picked at random.  They are colour coded for economy, business/first or all three classes.

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Here is the best routing that came up.  Beware of the “mixed cabin” in business class, that means you will have to be in economy for one or more segments.

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Another random search on PTY-LAS (a much easier airport to use to enter the USA)  has good availablilty for saver awards in economy and business on Copa which is a Mileage Plus member airline.

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AVIANCA TACA LIFEMILES

Lifemiles has some very attractive promos to buy and share miles.  While this doesn’t give you a free trip, it can greatly reduce the cost of a trip especially if you are after business or first class awards.  You need to be an existing member of Lifemiles when they announce  a promo so join now if you haven’t already.  Use their calculator to get an idea of award costs.  This will be a range which depends on class and any promos.

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Click on View Availability to see the exact breakdown.

They have a Star Alliance Award chart and you can see that they divide the region of Central America into northern and southern regions.  Snippet is incomplete due to size, so click over to the whole chart.

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Australia and New Zealand are in the “Others” category.  The chart shows round trip awards but you can redeem one ways for half the price shown.  For Aussies, it’s much cheaper to use US miles while they last or United for Star Alliance awards.  I prefer to keep my Lifemiles for intra-South/Central America awards which can get pricy but are bargains using awards.  This is where you find the real hidden gems!   Here’s an example of a trip we just did from Flores (Tikal) via Guatemala City to San Jose.

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The 11,000 mile award can be brought down to 5000 miles if you are willing to pay an extra $90.  Last year when we booked our trip, it was even cheaper.  They raised the price last year but it’s still a good deal.  Even though they have a special for business class, with flights this short I’d rather save my money and use the miles!

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SINGAPORE AIRLINES

While there are no bargains here, if you are flush with Amex Membership Rewards you want to transfer to SQ, you can also book flights to Central America which shares a zone with Hawaii using Krisflyer.

For those who want to use other programs, I have made up a reference list of all the airlines with links to their websites so check them out to see if any of them are better suited to your needs. Bear in mind that the tickets are not completely free, there is usually a booking fee of $25-50 and various taxes, but you would have to pay the taxes whether you pay cash or miles for the ticket in any case.

Getting To South Africa Using Frequent Flyer Miles

Africa attracts the lion’s share (pun intended) of eco-tourists and the good news is you don’t have to spend a fortune to get there!

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There are several regions in Africa that will appeal to birders especially so in this post we will have a look at South Africa.  Most people would be flying into Johannesburg (JNB) but some may prefer to fly into Cape Town (CPT) so I will give options for both using my recommended frequent flier programs.

STAR ALLIANCE

UNITED AIRLINES

With United, it’s easiest to use their interactive award chart.  To illustrate the mileage required you can just look at the “from Africa” section.  These awards are on a one-way basis.  If you are planning a multi-destination trip around Africa, you should book it as a round-trip to take advantage of a free stopover and open jaw to get more destination in the award.

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Region Definitions: The chart above is for travel between the following regions.

  • Central & Southern Africa (includes Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Cote D’lvoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Reunion Island, Rwanda, S. Africa, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe)

 

Mileage award rates are quoted for one way savers.

To get to South Africa from the USA and Canada, it’s 40k in economy and 60k in Business.   JNB is served by South African Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, Thai, Egypt Air, Turkish and Singapore.  CPT is served by South African.

From Australia and New Zealand, it’s 50k economy and 75k business.  You’d be using Singapore or Thai connecting to South African, Ethiopian or Egypt Air.

From Europe it’s 30k economy and 45k business with connections on South African, Egypt Air, Turkish and Ethiopian.

You may also want to use your miles for intra-Africa trips but for domestic flights you would probably be better off paying for a cheap ticket online.  You can get to other places in Africa for 12.5k economy and 25 business with South African, Ethiopian.  Please note that Egypt is in the North Africa region so costs 22.5k economy and 35k business.

AVIANCA-TACA LIFEMILES

This program is a favourite with those who can’t easily get miles from the generous USA based credit cards as they often sell miles cheaply.  The mileage costs are roughly the same as United but please note in the screenshot how much you can save by using the “More Money” feature to buy miles at roughly $0.15 each if you can’t otherwise get Lifemiles.   Of course if you have more Lifemiles than $$ then simply book the “More miles” option.  Check them out on their website.   In the examples below, I show you an economy trip from New York to Johannesburg and a business class trip from Brisbane to Johannesburg.

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SINGAPORE AIRLINES KRISFLYER

SQ is a great option if you live in a country where Amex Membership Rewards transfer to Krisflyer such as Australia.  The YQ fuel surcharge can be pretty high but if you book online for SQ metal awards you save 15% of the mileage cost.  See this example of a one way Brisbane – Johannesburg where the price comes down from 72,500 miles to 61,625 miles.

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Notice the yellow highlighter below of the $430 YQ surcharge.  This is why I don’t use Krisflyer for redemptions like this.  I would use United in this case.

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ONE WORLD AIRLINES

AMERICAN AADVANTAGE

This is the most popular of the One World alliance frequent flyer programs and they do have some great award options.  If you are coming from North America and route via LHR on BA or MAD on IB you will have to pay fuel surcharges.  You can save these charges if you use Air Berlin or Finnair from North America to Europe, then Etihad to Johannesburg.  British Airways is the only airline serving Cape Town so you will most likely have to use Johannesburg as your gateway with One World.  Later this year, when Qatar Airways joins One World, that opens up more routings too.  Honestly, for trips to Africa, Star Alliance rules so I would be using their miles first.

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All awards are priced as one way awards, add 2 to get a round trip.

From North America – Economy is 37.5k and business is 75k.  Use British Airways, Iberia (see note above) or Air Berlin or Finnair to Europe, then Etihad to Johannesburg.  In late 2013, Qatar Airways will be available.

From Europe – Economy is 30k and business is 37.5k.  Use British Airways, Iberia (see note above) or Air Berlin or Finnair to Europe, then Etihad to Johannesburg.  In late 2013, Qatar Airways will be available.

From Australia & New Zealand – Economy is 37.5k ,business is 50k.  Use Qantas, Malaysian or Cathay Pacific to Asia, then Etihad or Qatar (late 2013) to Johannesburg.

Within Africa – economy is 10k, business is 17.5k.  Options are very limited with only a few routes served by British Airways/Comair such as Johannesburg to Cape Town, Durban, Harare, Livingstone, Maputo, Mauritius, Port Elizabeth, Victoria Falls and Windhoek.

BRITISH AIRWAYS & IBERIA AVIOS

This is a distance-based program so use Great Circle Mapper and the Avios Chart to calculate the award cost.  All awards are priced as one ways awards, add 2 to get a round trip.

Avios Zone Chart

You have to add each segment’s award separately.

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In these examples, London to Jo’burg is 5620 miles so falls in zone 7 and costs 30k in economy and 60k in business.  If someone connects in Doha when Qatar Airways joins One World, there are 2 segments.  New York to Doha is 6703 miles which falls in zone 8 and costs 35k in economy and 70k business class.  Then you add Doha to Jo’burg which is 3862 miles, falling in zone 5 and costs 20k economy and 40k business.  The whole trip from New York to Jo’burg would cost 55k economy and 110k business.

The British Airways/Comair flights can be a bargain.

In the examples above, Jo’burg to either Harare or Victoria Falls is in zone 1 so only costs 4500 Avios each way in economy or 9000 business.  Jo’burg to Cape Town is in zone 2 and costs 7500 economy, 15k business.  Jo’burg to Mauritius is in zone 3 and costs 10k economy, 20k business.

QANTAS

Qantas has direct flights from Sydney to Johannesburg with connections from other Australian cities.  The awards are not cheap though.  In this example from Brisbane to Johannesburg it’s a whopping 255k in economy one way!   May be of use to Aussie business travelers who get lots of points from their work travel but too rich for my blood!

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Using Points plus Pay doesn’t bring any relief but on the bright side it appears to include the YQ tax.

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SUMMARY

Star Alliance rules Africa!  If you have to use One World, avoid going through London on BA because of the taxes.  I have a trip planned for 2015 and am currently collecting United Miles for this trip.