I am in the planning stages for a hunt this november,I have to fly into Harare,I would appreciate hearing from folks that have flown into Harare before from here in the USA,what route would you recommend? which airline?how much should I expect to pay? thanks much in advance for your help.

Last month I flew SAA from the US to Jo-berg, overnighted there at African Sky Guest House (which I highly recommend) and flew the next morning to Harare. The way the flight schedules work it sounds like that is what most folks end up doing. The flight is, of course, long with a fuel stop in Dakar on the way down but not on the way back. The Airbus is definitely more cramped than the 747, though if you can spring for business class, that shouldn't be a problem.

If you do overnight in Jo-berg and are travelling with firearms, I would strongly recommend one of the meet-and-greet services to get you through customs, SAPS, etc. It cost me something like $200, but it was well worth it. The whole process went very smoothly, no standing in lines.

Bal
You will go thru J-berg on your way to Harare. If you can get on the Delta 777, i would. It is so much better than stopping in Dakar. It should be $2200 - $2400 that time of year.

PM me with who you booked with.

Chris

Steve Turner at Travelwithguns.com is an awesome agent, and can help you prevent some of the pitfalls. He got us out of JFK a day early to beat hurricane Irene. Competitve prices, well worth the phone call...

Thanks for the tips gentlemen.

Bal, good advice to call Steve Turner. I typically go through Dulles to Jo'burg then on to Harare. That way you are on SAA the whole way. Try to avoid having to overnight in Jo'burg if you can. Just slows you down. There is a flight to Harare that leaves around 7:30 p.m. and gets into Harare around 9:00 p.m. It's going to be hot in November. Consider bringing Chilly Pads and/or a battery operated fan.

Good advice Mike,where do I find the chilly pads and a batt operated fan?
thanks.

The connection from Jo'burg and Harare is pretty tight time wise,for those who have done it any problems?

I just did the ATL - JNB - HRE route. I had close to 3 hours of layover at JNB before 7:40pm flight to HRE.

Only hiccup was that my rifle case did not show up in Harare. My rifles did make the next flight in from JNB, so my charter in to camp wasn't delayed.

I flew to Harare in June. My route was a redeye from Salt Lake City to New York, then SAA to Johannasberg. I got in about 7:00 am, and then flew SAA to Harare. The flight was a little late, but got in to Harare about 2:00 pm. I made my flight arrangements through Steve at Travel With Guns. I would highly recommend using Steve. Ask you PH to send you the Zimbabwe firearms forms. You can have them all completed, in 3 copies, when you get there. That will speed things getting out of customs. The visa cost is $30. It is good to have the exact change, as they all seem to have trouble making change.

Knock on wood, I have never had a problem making the connection between Jo'burg and Harare. Seems like the connection time is generally at least a couple of hours if not more.

On the Chilly Pad, someone said you can get them on EBay. Also do a search on the African forum, there was a thread on battery operated fans within the last month or so.

Bal
The fans you want are "O2-cool". They work great and last a fair amount of hours. Be sure to take extra batteries with you.

Another Big ++++ for Steve Turner. He will take care of everything. By far the best.

Thanks again.