Johannesburg: €383 Etihad Flights from Milan (Incl. Checked Luggage)

Etihad Airways brings us today a deal from Milan to Johannesburg starting at €383. The only catch with this price is that it requires long layovers of up to eight hours in Abu Dhabi, which you could use to visit the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. The fare includes up to 23kg of checked luggage, and departures are available from February to September, with blackout dates during summer school vacations.

This fare is a bit quirky, as the flights are operated by Etihad, the ticket is issued by ITA Airways and you can buy them exclusively from OTAs.

Our availability calendar highlights all possible flight dates at the lowest price for trips up to 28 days. It will forward you to Skyscanner with your selected flight dates.

The flights are issued by ITA Airways, but both flights are operated by an Etihad Boeing 787 with a 3-3-3 configuration. If you purchase the same flights on Etihad’s website, it will cost you an extra €120.

Search & Book

This deal doesn’t have an expiration date but a minimum stay of three days, and a maximum stay of twelve months applies. Available dates are between from February to September, with blackout dates during summer school vacations.

You can find suitable dates using our calendar above or with the help of Google Flights. Normally, we recommend booking directly on Etihad’s website, but in this case you can find cheaper prices with Skyscanner. However, booking on OTAs has its downsides.

Why is booking with an airline better than with an online travel agency?

More often than not, online travel agencies offer lower fares than airlines do. We still recommend booking with the airlines directly. There are two main reasons for that:

Better Customer Service
In case any problems like delays, cancellations or missed connections arise, you can communicate directly with the airline. The airline has to take care of you because you have a contract with them.

If a travel agency issues your ticket, you may have to reach out to them first. You also depend on your OTA to forward information like flight changes instead of receiving them directly from the airline. In many cases, you may get a prime exhibition of responsibility shifting rather than problem-solving.

This especially applies to premium tickets. You don’t want to spend more than €1,000 to wind up with some budget OTA’s telephone hotline in case anything goes wrong.

Baggage and Other Fees
Economy fares not including hold luggage are industry standard by now. In most cases, travel agencies charge much higher baggage fees than the airlines themselves. If bags are not included in your fare, airlines are often the cheaper alternative.

This also applies to other things like food services, insurances or priority treatment. In almost all cases, you pay less for additional amenities when booking on the airlines’ website.

Mileage

This ticket is issued by ITA Airways in booking class X for the flights to/from Abu Dhabi and booking class E for the flights to/from Johannesburg. Here are the miles and points you can earn from this deal:

Destination

Information & Tips for Johannesburg

Johannesburg has 9,6 million inhabitants and is the largest city and most important business and financial center in Africa south of the Sahara. The city is well connected to Europe by air, flights for under 500€ (round trip) are becoming increasingly more common.

Best Time to Travel

The best times to visit Johannesburg are during fall (March – May) and during spring (September – Novemver). Temperatures are warm but pleasant and rainfall is comparatively rare.

From the Airport to the City

One possibility is taking the Gautrain, a type of local commuter rail. A trip to the city center takes about 25 minutes and costs approximately 12€. Taking a cab or an Uber runs you about 18€ to 24€.

→ All Dealz for Johannesburg

Cover Picture: Photo by Clodagh Da Paixao on Unsplash