Israel’s airline EL AL is currently selling cheap business class tickets from Amsterdam to Johannesburg. Prices around €1,311 are fantastic for business class trips to far-away destinations.
Israel has travel restrictions in place for people who want to enter Israel. However, so far transit passengers have not been excluded from transiting in Israel. Please keep an eye on IATA’s website which publishes the latest information on travel restrictions.
El Al is having financial problems for some time now. The Coronavirus outbreak is causing El Al huge losses, because the government put very strict travel restrictions in place. Keep that in mind before booking this fare.
From Amsterdam, you would fly to Tel Aviv on a Boeing 737 (roughly 5 hours) and then continue to Johannesburg on a Boeing 777 (roughly 9 hours).
Search & Book
The only restrictions that are known to us are that your trip has to include a Saturday and may not exceed 3 months. EL AL does not fly daily to Johannesburg, so you should try using Google Flights to find available dates that suit you. Sometimes you will see extremely long layovers in Tel Aviv on the outbound flight. In that case, set your departure date to one day later. That usually eliminates the long layover. On the inbound flight, you’ll almost always have a 9-hour layover in Tel Aviv, but that gives you a good opportunity to discover the city, so that should not be a disadvantage.
Once you’ve found your preferred dates, we recommend using our Travel-Dealz flight search to book the flights, as EL AL’s website doesn’t seem to be working (at least for booking flights. Maybe the bug will be fixed in the following days).
To facilitate your search for the dates that have the shortest layovers, we’ve created an availability calendar that only includes those good flights:
Miles
All flights are issued in booking class J. The only mileage program that will give you miles for EL AL flights, that we know about, is Alaska Mileage Plan, which will credit you roughly 27,440 miles for this roundtrip.
El Al’s Business Class
El Al’s premium cabin is subject to generally bad reviews. Especially aboard their Boeing 747 and Boeing 777 aircraft, they don’t offer amenities or technology that have become Business Class standard over the past few years. A prime example is the lack of lie-flat-seats. They’ve improved their Business Class greatly in their new Boeing 787 fleet. Unfortunately, the flights in this deal are not flown by the Boeing 787.
Information & Tips for Johannesburg
Johannesburg is known for its role in South Africa’s history, with key sights like the Apartheid Museum, Constitution Hill, and Soweto’s Vilakazi Street. The local currency is the South African rand (ZAR), and most places accept cards, though cash can be useful in smaller shops and markets. Prices are generally affordable compared to global standards. The city has a mild, high-altitude climate—summers (October to March) are warm with afternoon thunderstorms, while winters are dry and sunny with cool nights.
We’ve compared various eSIM providers, such as Airalo and BNESIM. To see which plan is best for your travel needs, and which network offers the best coverage, feel free to read our detailed guide:
The Best eSIM Plans for South Africa 🇿🇦 Compared
→ All Dealz for Johannesburg
Hotels
When travelling to Johannesburg, one should read reviews about the hotel. This is not only important in terms of getting the best bang for your buck but also in terms of safety. We would recommend using booking.com for that:
Make sure to also check out our hotel vouchers and coupons:
Cover Picture: © sw_stock - fotolia.com
Comments (2)
Are these flights affected by the quarantine process in Israel?
Israel has travel restrictions in place for people who want to enter Israel. However, so far transit passengers have not been excluded from transiting in Israel officially. We would recommend reaching out to the Israeli consulate or embassy before booking a flight.