Flying to Africa Voyage Tips and guide

Contents

Airfares can be cheaper when booked from the European capital that has a strong colonial link to your destination, which typically means from Brussels, Lisbon, London, and Paris. Egypt also has plentiful, cheap connections with the Middle East & Europe, Kenya, which is increasingly an important air travel hub, owing to its strategic location on the continent, South Africa and a handful of West African destinations (e.g. Canary Islands, Cape Verde, Madeira, Morocco) popular with British tourists and accessible with cheap holiday flights.

Airlines such as Emirates, Etihad Airways, Qatar Airways & Turkish Airlines have greatly expanded their services to Africa, and offer connections to many major African cities at competitive rates than other European airlines.

If you have additional travel time, check to see how your total fare quote to Africa compares with a round-the-world fare. Don't forget to add in the extra costs of additional visas, departure taxes, ground transportation, etc. for all those places outside of Africa.

See your destination's article for more specific information on flights. Bear in mind that many African countries only offer a few international flights each day, or in some cases, each week. While it isn't hard to reach South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, or Egypt, getting to Malawi or Togo can be quite a challenge.

Johannesburg O.R. Tambo International Airport, Addis Ababa and Nairobi can be considered to be the main hubs of sub-Saharan Africa, so many flights to other parts of Africa will connect in one of these hubs.

There are more flights to Africa from Europe than from any other continent. Popular holiday destinations such as Egypt, Morocco, Cape Verde, Kenya & South Africa, Mauritius are well-served from Europe's major cities, even with discount and charter airlines. Air Algeria, EgyptAir, Ethiopian Airlines, Royal Air Maroc, and Tunisair have a good selection of European destinations and at least serve a couple of major cities like London or Paris. The cheapest flights to African cities are often through the African country's former colonial power. There are a good number of connections between France and Reunion, Madagascar, Comoros, and Mauritius. Cities with large immigrant populations such as London, Marseilles, & Paris have a good number of flights to Africa.

Chief European airlines flying to Africa are:

• Aegean Airlines is the best if you plan to fly to Africa from or near Greece, you have some options. They are not a big airline and they fly around the Mediterranean area.
• Air France is the best (although not cheapest) carrier serving French-speaking Africa, with service to most major cities of West, Central, & North Africa.
• British Airways is the best (although not particularly cheap) way to fly to former British colonies, such as Kenya, South Africa, Mauritius, Seychelles, Ghana, Nigeria & Egypt.
• Brussels Airlines flies from Brussels to most francophone countries in West and Central Africa.
• KLM, the Dutch flag carrier, flies to major cities in Africa, including in the former Dutch colony of South Africa. Part of why they operate in Africa is that Amsterdam is a strategic city as an airport hub.
• Lufthansa flies to major cities in Angola, Ethiopia, Equatorial Guinea, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, North Africa, South Africa. Surprisingly, they do not serve Windhoek directly, despite it being the capital of a former German colony.
• TAP Portugal flies to former Portuguese colonies (Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Sao Tome & Principe, Mozambique, Angola) and other metropolitan hubs in Africa.

Many European discount and leisure airlines serve major tourist destinations in Africa (especially Morocco, Cape Verde, Tunisia, Egypt, Algeria, & the Gambia), including Norwegian, Wizz Air, easyJet, Pegasus Airlines, Smartwings, Volotea, & Ryanair.

The only countries with direct flights to Africa are the United States, Canada, Brazil and Argentina . (updated Feb 2025)

• All the options noted below involve many flying hours to destinations and demands on stamina that can stress mature travelers. They should consider scheduled flights that allow such as overnight stays en route.
• For all, take care of en-route stops. Ensure they have adequate facilities, staff (and nearby lodging if needed), and are not suffering disruptions due to strikes, protests, etc., e.g., see Lagos.

As of February 2025, these airlines are among the ones flying to Africa from the USA:

• Delta Air Lines
• Ethiopian Airlines to Addis Adaba
• Royal Air Maroc to Casablanca
• United Airlines
• EgyptAir to Cairo
• Kenya Airways to Nairobi

Delta's Flight 200/201 between Atlanta & Johannesburg was listed as the tenth longest non-stop scheduled, commercial flight by distance, (it's actually 757 km longer than the Johannesburg-New York flight by Great Circle distance!). By scheduled time between departure & landing, it's eleventh-longest scheduled, commercial flight (at 16 hr, 3 min), behind a United flight between Singapore & San Francisco (16 hr, 25 min).

Outside the peak travel times to Europe (e.g. summer) you might be able to get a good deal to London or Paris and book a fare from there to Africa separately on a European travel website. But don't book the United States to Europe portion until you get confirmed on Europe to Africa portion first. Through fares to Africa from the United States can be quite expensive, so avoiding peak travel times to Europe can sometimes save a lot. However, there are more non-stop flights to Africa, and Europe is much more expensive than it used to be, try getting a direct quote first, then see if you can do better. Another growing option is flying through the Middle East on Emirates, Qatar Airways, or Turkish Airlines, which serve a reasonable selection of African & American cities.

In Canada, Montreal and Toronto have flights to some African airports.

As of February 2025, these airlines are among the ones flying to Africa from South America:

• Kenya Airways to Nairobi
• Ethiopian Airlines to Addis Adaba
• LATAM
• Royal Air Maroc to Casablanca
• TAAG Angolan Airlines to Luanda

If you're flying to a smaller African country, many of Africa's major airlines all have extensive coverage in Africa and fly to a handful of Middle Eastern destinations.

Nearly all North African countries along with Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti, & Somalia have extensive connections with the Middle East. And similarly, countries with large Muslim populations are likely to have a connection to Jedda/Mecca either year-round or seasonal (e.g. during hajj).

If you want to fly in directly from Australia, your choices are limited to fly to South Africa or Mauritius. Of particular note is the Qantas flight from Sydney to Johannesburg, which passes close enough to Antarctica for it to be seen. The only other options are Air Mauritius from Perth to Mauritius or South African Airways from Perth or Sydney to Johannesburg . (updated Feb 2025)

There are no direct flights from New Zealand to Africa, so you'll have to change flights in Perth or Sydney . (updated Feb 2025)

From the Pacific islands connections are almost non-existent, so be prepared for a very long trip via Australia or Asia.

• General aviation such as bush planes
• O.R. Tambo International Airport has more information if you're flying to Johannesburg.
• Flying to South America