SkyTeam partners Air France and KLM are selling cheap flights from various UK airports to Punta Cana, Havana, Accra, Nairobi, and Rio de Janeiro. The cheapest prices can be found for flights from Birmingham, Manchester, and London. Other UK airports are also available but at a slightly higher price. Luggage is not included (unless you’re a SkyTeam status holder) and would cost another £60 (~€70) for the entire trip.
If you book these flights for within 2021, they’ll be fully refundable.
There’s (sometimes quite limited) availability between September 1 through December 14, 2021, or from January 1 until April 30, 2022.
These are the cheapest flights we could find:
- Punta Cana: £319 (~€371)
- Accra: £321 (~€374)
- Rio de Janeiro: £323 (~€376)
- Havana: £334 (~€389)
- Nairobi: £337 (~€392)
- and more…
You would first fly to either Paris or Amsterdam and then fly on to your final destination. Both KLM and Air France offer roughly the same service, with meals and drinks being included and the seats being quite fine.
By the way, we also have many other deals for economy class flights departing from the UK:
Search & Book
This sale will expire on May 25, 2021. Your flights may take place from September 1 through December 14, 2021, or from January 1 until April 30, 2022. You will, however, have to respect the minimum stay requirement of 5 days (or a Sunday).
You can find the exact availability for each route on Google Flights. We do, however, recommend that you then book directly on KLM’s website.
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 short flights between the UK and Amsterdam/Paris are issued in booking class L, while the long-haul flights are issued in booking class G. Flying from Birmingham to Punta Cana via Paris (and back) should roughly get you:
- 5,000 Award Miles + 70 Tier Points on Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- 3,260 Miles on CSA OK Plus
- 2,760 Miles on Aeromexico Club Premier
- 2,760 Miles on Saudia Alfursan
- 2,504 Miles on MEA Cedar Miles
- 2,504 RDM + 530 MQD on Delta SkyMiles
- 2,260 Miles on Aerolíneas Argentinas AerolíneasPlus
- 2,260 Miles on GOL Aéreos Smiles
- 2,064 Miles on Vietnam Airlines Lotusmiles
- 2,064 Points on Malaysia Airlines Enrich
- 2,064 Miles on Korean Air Skypass
- 2,064 Miles on Garuda Indonesia GarudaMiles
- 2,064 Miles on Air Europa Suma
- 2,064 Award Miles on Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
- 1,912 Award Miles on Etihad Guest
- 558 Award Miles + 30 XP on Flying Blue
Source: flynous – Thanks!
Cover Picture: © Christophe Leroux Air France