With Star Alliance members Lufthansa and SWISS, you can currently get inexpensive business class trips to Dubai, Delhi and Nairobi in Kenya. With departure from Budapest, you can secure return flights to Dubai starting at HUF 480,100 (~€1,298). These flights are available from March through December 2023 (depending on the destination).
Our availability calendar highlights all possible flight dates at the lowest price for trips up to 28 days. It will forward you to Lufthansa with your preselected flight dates. You can also check what OTAs have to offer, as they sell these tickets up to €100 cheaper.
First, you’ll fly the feeder flight to Frankfurt or Zürich. Then, you’ll fly on to Nairobi with Lufthansa onboard an Airbus A340 or A330. Both planes feature a similar business class cabin. To Delhi, you would fly a Lufthansa Boeing 747 or a SWISS Airbus A330. To Dubai, your choices include SWISS’ and Lufthansa’s A330.
If you don’t like surprises, you’ll be on the safe side with Lufthansa in one aspect: all planes have the exact same seats. That, however, will no longer be the case when Lufthansa receives its first Boeing 777 planes with the new business class. Many of our readers may have already experienced the current business class. Generally, Travel-Dealz writers and readers are not big fans of the Lufthansa business class, even though it is definitely not bad. One reason for that is that the service is too inconsistent: From extremely friendly and quick to unfriendly and slow – everything is possible with Lufthansa, even in business class.
With SWISS, it very much depends on the specific seat, as SWISS has a throne seat in every row. While the double seats share a platform in the middle, the throne seat has its own platform on each side, which you won’t have to share with anyone. Those seats thus offer privacy and comfort to an extent that the other seats cannot compete with. Therefore, you may be disappointed if you don’t get one of the throne seats, even if the other seats obviously also have a very high standard.
Search & Book
The fare rules say the following:
- Expiration date: Unknown
- Travel Period: See the availability calendar
- Minimum Stay: A Saturday
- Maximum Stay: 12 months
The best way to search for dates is to use our availability calendar above, which will take you to Lufthansa’s website. Their website also has a best price search, although similarly to Google Flights, you’d need to trick with the duration. We recommend booking through Lufthansa, although you can save money by booking through an online travel agency using the Travel-Dealz flight search.
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
The tickets are issued in booking class P. For a round trip to Dubai with a transfer in Frankfurt both ways, the credit is as follows:
- 11,356 Kilometers on Air China PhoenixMiles
- 8,818 Miles on Singapore KrisFlyer
- 7,518 Points on SAS EuroBonus
- 7,056 Miles on LATAM Pass
- 7,054 Award Miles + 1,412 PQP on United MileagePlus
- 7,054 Miles on Copa ConnectMiles
- 7,054 Miles on Thai Royal Orchid Plus
- 6,536 Miles on Air Canada Aeroplan
- 4,940 Miles on ANA Mileage Club
- 3,364 Award Miles + 7,518 Tier Miles on Miles&More
- 3,364 Award Miles + 480 Points on Miles&More 2024
- 1,036 Award Miles + 1,038 Tier Miles on Asia Miles
You can use our mileage calculator below to calculate your mileage for your route:
Destination
All three destinations have cheap hotels, starting at €50. However, you should be careful when selecting your hotel. Our recommendation is to search on booking.com, or even on our own Travel-Dealz hotel search:
Information & Tips for Nairobi
Nairobi is the capital of Kenya. In addition to the city centre, the Nairobi National Park, a large game reserve where black rhinos threatened with extinction are bred, is also located in the city area. Giraffes, zebras and lions also live here. There is also a renowned breeding station for young elephants run by the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. Nairobi is often the starting point for safaris to other parts of Kenya.
Best Time to Visit
The short rainy season starts from late October to through December and November typically has four inches of rain. Average rainfall during the other months is about two inches. The best time to plan your Nairobi tour activities is during the dry months of July through October and also January and February.
Airport
Jomo Kenyatta International Airport is the international airport of the Kenyan capital Nairobi. The airport serves as a hub for the airlines Kenya Airways and Jubba Airways. With over 5.8 million passengers in 2011, it is the largest airport in East and Central Africa.
→ All Dealz for Nairobi
Information & Tips for Dubai
Thanks to oil billions, Dubai has created a world of splendour and glitter that is second to none. Whether it’s an artificial island or skiing in the desert, everything is possible there. Thanks to Emirates, there are non-stop flights to many destinations worldwide, from Europe you can reach Dubai within 5-6 hours even with cheap flights.
The Best Time to Visit
Dubai reaches temperatures of up to 45° in summer, and even in winter, the weather is hot. The best time to travel is from November to March when temperatures are comparatively low.
From the airport to the city
A taxi from the airport to Jumeirah Beach (where many hotels are located) costs around €13 – €17. By metro, the journey to Burj Khalifa takes about 20 minutes and costs only €1.
Finding the Best eSIM Plan
We’ve compared various eSIM providers, such as Airalo and Airhub. 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 for Dubai & Abu Dhabi 🇦🇪 Compared (United Arab Emirates)
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Information & Tips for Delhi
Delhi or New Delhi is the capital of India, the world’s second most popoulos country. The city combines architectural elements from more than 1,000 years. Therefore it appears as a timeless conflux of several cultures. From Hinduism, Moghul India through British colonial influences, the poeple of Delhi inhabited and preserved what they got from whomever ruled the city.
The result is a city full of sights like pompous temples and mosques, regal colonial buildings and buzzing shopping districts. One of India’s best public transport systems and a steady flow of taxis and rickshaws help you get around. With its undeniable contemporary influences, Delhi is the best gateway to enter the culturally vastly different country of India.
Best Time to Travel
Delhi is hot – from May through August, the average daily temperature is above 30 degrees, making this an unpleasant time to visit the city. From mid-september, when monsoon season is finished, to November is a great time go. While December and January can be cold and unpleasant, from February to April is another good time frame for a trip to India’s capital.
From the Airport to the City
Delhi’s Indira Gandhi Int’l Airport serves as hub for Air India. Delhi’s excellent subway connects it to the city. A ride to the city center takes around 20 minutes and costs less than €1. Furthermore, al large number of air conditioned buses are available, charging an ever lower fare. Taking a taxi can take up to an hour, due to heavy traffic. Prices are around €5.
→ All Dealz for Delhi