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— South Africa
Jul 24 — Jul 311
Return
1 adult
Economy
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Sun 24/7
Sun 31/7
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Good to know
Low season | October |
|---|---|
High season | December |
Cheapest flight | R9 962 |
Average price (return flight) | R20 872 |
Good deal (return flight) | R18 604 |
Good deal one-way | R11 072 |
Best time to beat the crowds (4% less expensive on average)
Most popular time to fly (10% more expensive on average)
Flight from San Francisco to Johannesburg OR Tambo
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FAQs for booking flights from San Francisco Bay Area to South Africa
Top 5 airlines serving from San Francisco Bay Area to South Africa
Scores according to KAYAK customer reviews8,3
EmiratesOverall score based on 15859 reviews
8,3Boarding
8,2Comfort
8,4Crew
8,5Entertainment
8,0Food
very nice experience…
Cons: "I wish the 777 had slightly wider seats like the A380"
Pros: "Great flight."
Pros: "So so"
Cons: "Food is junk."
Cons: "More meals during the flight would have helped. Also the snacks had limited variety(most of them chocolate) and not enough fruit available."
Cons: "They delayed the flight over entertainment system and that caused me to miss my connection"
Pros: "Friendly cabin crew, new movies"
Cons: "Long wait after boarding before takeoff"
Pros: "Stewardesses were great"
Cons: "It took them 1.5hours to give me my luggage. Everyone else had left. They kept making me go back and forth saying it was coming but nothing. This had never happened before and was ridiculous given it was a direct flight"
Pros: "The a380 business class was the greatest flying experience I ever had. Second to NONE! Must try and book if possible. I fly a LOT and this was just absolutely amazing."
Cons: "Nothing really! Although they do run out of food options so sit as far in the front as possible."
Pros: "Nothing specific"
Cons: "I was specifically asked for the vegetarian food n mentioned that I am highly allergic to the eggs....in spite of that no vegetarian food was served till I asked the staff about my food...i was told that there is no vegetarian food for me....n at last I was served with very basic food .....not at all good...i could not eat that n stayed hungry n could not even sleep due to headache n acidity This FOOD experience was extremely Disappointing"
Cons: "Food, quality of the food"
Pros: "I find the A380 in the Emirates configuration to be more comfortable than other planes/configs."
Cons: "Wish we had a few more choices like carnatic music and an expanded list of movies."
Pros: "Smooth flight. Attentive crew. Good entertainment options"
Cons: "The toilet had no toilet paper so I used the paper hand towel and prayed it did not block when I flushed. The beef option was not that great. I should've chosen the chicken."
Pros: "The seats in economy at least had TVs"
Cons: "After 4+ hours sitting on the plane we never even left San Francisco. The Emirates plane was less than standard in economy class and we weren’t even offered water for the entire time we waited. The customer service was terrible and we weren’t even able to retrieve our carry on bags that we were forced to check (not due to the size). This was by far the worst first time experience I’ve had and will not be flying Emirates again."
Pros: "Horrible experience!!!!"
Cons: "1. Emirates has only one piece option. With Laptop bag weighing about almost 5kgs, you are left with just 2kgs which the carry bag itself would weigh. Not sure, how Emirates is getting away with this discriminatory attitude, while rest of airlines do allow -Carry on + a personal item. 2. There is no check on the carry-on weight at SFO airport. While in DXB, they entice customer to buy all duty free and then when it comes to boarding, you will be 'shocked'. No more than 10kg allowed. 3. You will be directed to read instructions before boarding. Then the corruption deal starts...read point 4 4. The man will say, remove anything in excess of 10kg or pay extra luggage, knowing very well, that people buy duty free at DXB. 5. Once you start negotiating, then the deal-making starts... 6. I managed it. More on Facebook review..."
Cons: "Seat bookings in just fly are messed up. Kayak took me to just fly for the bookings. The seats for the the 16hr+ flight on just fly we're window seats however at time of check-in I got middle seats in the center 4 seats. It was the worst flight booking experience on kayak so far."
Cons: "Very good"
Pros: "Good serevice"
Cons: "food provided is not good. All western style most passengers are from Asia"
Pros: "Everything from food to seating was quite comfortable."
Cons: "Boarding was a bit more difficult since they did not call boarding zones"
Pros: "Boarding went smoothly, flight was very comfortable with great entertainment options. Attentive staff!"
Cons: "Seat wouldn’t recline Checked with Air hostess She said it cannot be fixed So travel 15 hrs in pain"
Pros: "Non"
Cons: "They treat you what kind a color your Skin color"
Pros: "The Services, crew, procedures, and the standards."
Pros: "Not much."
Cons: "- Seats in bad shape - Dirty bathrooms. Ran out of soap and other supplies and did not refill - Horrible food - Cabin crew was not friendly"
Cons: "The wifi wasn't working throughout the journey."
Cons: "I didn't get hotel and the staff in the airport were too strict and mean"
Cons: "restroom water not available, not so well maintained air hostess didnt come on after pressing help button seat overall bad experience and surprising from emirates"
Cons: "I requested the waiter(Asian) to serve me a non-egg breakfast if there were any remaining. He curtly told me that if I had not pre-booked the non-egg breakfast he could not provide me. Few minutes later I made the same request to another waitress and she quickly provided me the non-egg breakfast."
Pros: "Smoothness of the flight."
Cons: "Nothing."
Cons: "During flight from San Fransico to Delhi,flight was to changed at Dubai for Delhi.There was no information on board as new the "gate no" at Dubai for Delhi."
Pros: "Crew is friendly and good service"
Cons: "Emirates did not honer the cost of the Hotel night in Dubai. Neither Kayak, nor Emirates advised us to book the hotel within 24 hours of flight time. We called Kayak, they have Zero customer service. We called Emirates, they blamed it on Kayak. They said that they should have advise us to book the Hotel at least 24 hours before departure. We ended up paying for our Hotel and meals and it should have been coveted by the Airline. Randa"
Pros: "The entertainment systems is good a lot of choices."
Cons: "The toilet are so dirty, nobody cleaning them for the entire trip that's more than 15hours, unacceptable for the price they charged."
Cons: "The Crew was very inexperienced and had difficult time in managing the passengers. The food also below par!"
Pros: "The food Staff is superb My niece enjoyed the most. The crew clicked photos with her and made her moments memorable."
Pros: "Excellent service in flight and nice food"
Cons: "NA"
Pros: "Good"
Cons: "Nothing"
Pros: "Flight was light and was comfortable"
Cons: "The flight was light. Even with that the crew seemed checked out. Did not come by to offer additional drinks or snacks. I noticed some unprofessional physical contact between few Crew members."
Pros: "Very Classy all around!"
Pros: "Roomy and very comfortable A380 flight is great"
Pros: "The crew were friendly."
Cons: "wifi wasn't good - I couldn't connect. Wine choice wasn't good (white). Would have preferred a sav blanc"
Cons: "this experience with emirates was super duper bad. I was travelling to India as my dad had passed away that morning on 9/11. Bad service, no attention paid to the flight attendant button, water provided after 45 min....after 2 fligh attendants came by and said they would bring water. i provided verbal feedback and they were extra nice to me then...brought me crackers , chiocolates...etc etc...but it was just to calm me down. I went and got my own food from the kitchen area as I had a splitting headache, I was traveling to india as my dad had passed away on sep 11th morning. They gave me the same dinner mushroom and peas for vegetarian snack. Then they exchanged it after I had waited for so long. IT was just ridiculous servide and"
Pros: "Crew v good"
Cons: "Food .. Fish undercooked ... Aircraft bit dated"
Pros: "Seats were comfortable and food was good."
Pros: "Boarding, cabin crew. Entertainment, aircraft, everything was top notch."
Cons: "Food is outdated. Menu is not based on nutrition. The pizza served at end of flight is terrible. It should be replaced with a high protein snack. Food is tilted heavily towards carbohydrates and main entree is about 25 percent less than it should be. If the menu evolves a bit to include slightly larger portions, more fiber , protein, vitamins and minerals , it would be a true 5 star experience. Other than food, I rate this flight and experience 5 stars ."
Pros: "Excellent service, food and media."
Pros: "On time Large LCD in each seat back They kept the public announcements to a minimum"
Cons: "It took asking 5 crew members and 2 hours to fix one of our screens that wasn't working. Apparently there were other displays that did not work either so they reset everybody's LCDs. The food was bland"
Pros: "Fresh food, customer service"
Pros: "I could not get the barding pass to chennai at seatle itself"
Pros: "enjoyed the flight this time around. my last experience in Emirates was not good. happy this time."
Pros: "Amazing service. Incredible comfort."
Cons: "Nothing"
Pros: "Crew was good"
Cons: "Boarding, comfort of seat"
Pros: "On time departure and arrival. Hard working crew members."
Cons: "No slippers for long flights."
Pros: "Everything- leg space, crew were great, relaxed atmosphere, great entertainment systems"
Cons: "Nothing"
Pros: "Everything."
Pros: "Crew was very polite and helpful."
Cons: "Quality of food could be better Hindu meal was not as good as expected"
Cons: "maybe they can offer more snacks on the plain"
Cons: "More refreshments"
Pros: "Crew was OK."
Cons: "Seats in business class extremely uncomfortable, almost no recline. Very old entertainment equipment. Really disappointing flight given lack of comfort in business class."
Pros: "I like that they deliver me safe and sound to Vietnam"
Cons: "I would prefer no interruptions while I am watching my movie"
Pros: "1. All flights were on time. 2. The aircrafts were clean and tidy. 3. The choice of entertainment was plentiful. 4. Possibility to connect to internet provided on outbound leg, not on inbound."
Cons: "1. The boarding process, in general, could be improved. 2. The "official" transit time was one hour, but passengers were made to wait while the business class disembarked, reducing actual transit time to 30 mins. Considering distance to departing gate, and security checks, this was stressful."
Pros: "The airline was helpful even though the flight was delayed"
Pros: "Short flight. Attentive crew"
Cons: "The airline demaged both of my completely new suitcases. They both had TSA approved locks. One of the suitcses has a missing wheel, another one ripped zipper and missing lock and it was wraped in plastic. A few items were missing from that bag."
Pros: "Service and entertainment."
Cons: "Food."
Pros: "The entertainment was reasonable, I enjoyed the festive choices."
Cons: "Screaming babies, obese people sat next to me, water rationing, not a pleasant experience. Arrived sleep deprived and dehydrated. I have much better experiencs on a visit to Australia - this was my third time this year!"
Pros: "Same again the crew were fab"
Pros: "Everything is fantastic from the stuff, food and a lot of leg room."
Cons: "Nothing"
Pros: "The crew and comfort of the flying ship is excellent."
Cons: "No one stopped several children from screaming almost the entire flight. I’m thinking they need to put all families with children younger than 8 behind a partition. HAHA!! Just kidding. But that was very frustrating."
Pros: "Super check in, great entertainment options"
Cons: "Cabin crew were not very helpful. Food was average at best."
Pros: "Good food and good hospitality"
Pros: "Good food, overall good service"
Pros: "5 star service"
Cons: "no wifi"
Pros: "the attention in general for me was excellent."
Cons: "may be the fact that it was the same kind of food in both of the flights I had, is not that it was bad just in my opinion they should have more option, especially for south american people, thank you"
Pros: "Flight Attendants were really helpful especially when one of my child had a nose bleed, we had at least 3 attendants, tending to our needs when that happened and they did not leave until the situation was resolved."
Pros: "Great crew members. Very friendly and helpful. Qatar Airways is great about providing pillows, blankets, ear plugs and eye masks. Really good food as well."
Cons: "The seats were very close together. With the tray folded out it was right against me without being extended. Leg room was cramped."
Pros: "Comfort of the seat/bed"
Pros: "The airline stewardesses were Fabulous! Especially one from Doha to Cape Town. Food was good and more than enough to eat. I was impressed by the scheduled meals and drink offers , very important for a dietetic"
Cons: "No leg room, can't stretch your legs properly so my bad knee was in pain"
Pros: "The staff are outstanding! Friendly, helpful and accommodating."
Cons: "Poor choice of movies. Their 'world' movies should have subtitles"
Cons: "I did not like the fact that on now 3 flights I have lost miles, as on every flight I have tried to sign on as a member or frequent flyer and on all flights, there were no entry forms. This is also after my attempt to complete one on line, which I have had no response to."
Pros: "The flight went fairly smooth, the staff were courteous and the food was as good as can be expected of airline food. There were several courses and options, which is always appreciated."
Pros: "Crew are great and entertainment options are good."
Cons: "The seats are quite uncomfortable and small. Really struggled to get comfortable."
Pros: "Seats are comfortable with plenty of leg space. Aircrafts were clean and tidy. Landing and take off were smoothest I have ever experienced."
Cons: "Menu choice was very basic and quantity was also poor. Food quality was below par in terms of taste and presentation. In-flight crew was inefficient and flow. Meal trays laid on meal tables for hours after the passengers finished food. Flight attendants literally responded in over 30 min of call. I pressed special meals online before boarding. However, the flight attendants were not sure. They went back to kitchen to verify that and return with the ordered meal."
Pros: "it was nice on the plane the guests were professional"
Cons: "before boarding the officials lacked professionalism"
Pros: "Had a great experience with this flight"
Cons: "Nothing"
Cons: "NA"
Pros: "Aircraft was much better than the flight from US, food was great. The only thing I wished for was more movies."
Cons: "Lack of movies"
Pros: "Their food and crew was good."
Cons: "Seats are very small now and the entainment system was all messed up that day for the whole plane. We were trying to watch something else and system was playing something else."
Pros: "'Low cal meal for you?' Sorry embarrassing. Nothing low cal really bread butter potato corn thing ... kinda gross, just ate rice which is not low cal. Still waiting for my luggage ... driver will now have waited over an hour... sorry ..."
Pros: "N/a"
Cons: "N/a"
Pros: "Punctuality"
Cons: "Food quality - lot's of sugar in child meal. Entertainment system slow. We were forced to move the seats into upright position half an hour before landling on a night flight."
Pros: "It was a good flight. I'd give it 4 of 5 stars."
Cons: "I had cancelled my flight with qatar airways due to the current political problems. My ticket was booked through the agent airfare.com. They have handled the issue terribly. To start with. They said that they have to charge me a $615 penalty on top of the $750 i had payed for the ticket for cancellation. They mentioned that ill be refunded my $750 from qatar as they got a waiver for me. I received $250 from qatar airways and nothing yet. Airfare's customer service staff is highly uncooperative and v rude"
Pros: "The trip was very pleasant as usual, being frequent flyer on Qatar airways since 2005, I can only tell that this is so far the best airline company. Great service. On time if not ahead Never lost a bag or got it delayed. Very diversified entertainment program Lovely staff Confortable and clean flights. And of course convenient price. Briefly, I love Qatar Airways and it is my first choice wherever I travel."
Cons: "So far nothing."
Pros: "Crew was fantastic! Food was above average."
Cons: "Qatar Airways needs to abandon its draconian policies and disconnected, overy segregated procedures. Also, an allegedly five-star airline needs to upgrade aircraft which would make FlyDubai blush. No entertainment guys? Really?"
Cons: "Flight attendants raising shades so that light was in your face. Blocking aisles near bathrooms"
Pros: "The plane was neat, clean and the services was world class. I was made to feel at home with service always at my finger tips."
Cons: "Nothing to report."
Pros: "Aircraft was new and good."
Cons: "Non Vegetarian meal was over by the time the service reached me."
Pros: "Check was extremely slow & delayed"
Cons: "Missed the connecting flight due to some delay. Had to sleep over for a night. A lot of discomfort. New flight time was very later the next day. Messed up all my bookings and schedule."
Pros: "Helpful friendly crew, reasonable ticket prices."
Cons: "Luggage was delayed by 24 hours, customer service desk in Johannesburg EXTREMELY helpful, in Kigali they were clueless. Transit area very crowded, humid and stuffy."
Pros: "The two check in bags rule."
Cons: "Not applicable"
Cons: "Time was never kept. we had a delay in LGW for more than 2 hrs. I had a 17hrs layover in Kigali. I was not aware that i would not be booked in a hotel to rest. I had to make my own arrangements. And another extended delay out of Kigali to Nairobi"
Pros: "I was happy to avail of Wifi in the sky."
Cons: "No entertainment! For an major international flight, one expects some seatback entertainment"
Pros: "New plane, fresh feel. Food is ok."
Cons: "Airline feels basic and no frills."
Pros: "The Flight attendants are all awesome and undesrtanding...and the open wifi ate Kigali airport was great."
Cons: "No vegetarian option Bad boarding procedures, no one gets direction and it was very slow"
Cons: "THERE WAS MEAT INSIDE MY "VEGETARIAN" MEAL!!! This is totally unacceptable!"
Pros: "Food and in-flight services"
Cons: "Entertainment package"
Pros: "The crew members are very polite and professional"
Cons: "The food is not very nice, the drink is don’t taste so great either . The airline seats are too small"
Pros: "Food and free WiFi. Ample seating space."
Cons: "Rerouted through Dar-es-Salaam at last minute rather than being a direct flight as scheduled"
Pros: "They respect the timing"
Cons: "The luggage escalator is not working and you have to carry it from one point to another..."
Pros: "That there were not many people on the second leg and that the plane was clean"
Cons: "The fact that we had an itinerary change with an extra stop (unannounced until 15 minutes before I boarded the flight) that delayed us by 1+ hours, that we were delayed from leaving Kigali by 1.5 hours and none of the crew could explain what was going on, that the rwandair staff was rude. I mean... It's Rwanda so I didn't expect much customer service (they are generally particularly bad by African, European, Asian or American standards) and I definitely wasn't impressed"
Pros: "Everything was perfect. On time arrival."
Cons: "Loud Nigerian co-passengers"
Pros: "The food initially given at 2:00am IST was really good and so I didn't even have to wake up again to eat."
Cons: "The breakfast was not as appetizing."
Pros: "The aircraft was nice, clean and seemed new. The staff was very professional, immaculate uniforms and appearance. Great attention to detail. We traveled from US - Nairobi - Kigali - Johannesburg, changing planes four times. These were some of the nicest planes. I felt very safe traveling this airline."
Cons: "Too much bread in the meals. The meals were adequate in quantity but each meal came with two rolls, which was excessive. Just a note - for the boarding area in the airport. Please have restroom facilities in boarding area, past security so you can use the restroom without having to go through security again. Also, if food and beverage is available for sale in the boarding area more passengers would make purchases."
Pros: "Good and clean planes, good service"
Cons: "We had couple of ours delay and not well communicated"
Pros: "Nice comfortable new planes."
Cons: "There wasn't much not to like."
Cons: "We incurred significant extra costs (visas, taxi, hotel costs) because Rwandair changed our flights around from what we had originally booked, with no compensation or help navigating the visa process."
Pros: "Friendly staff, decent snacks and entertainment options"
Pros: "New airline. Left 20 mins early."
Cons: "Nothing."
Pros: "the snack was terrific!"
Pros: "What did you like? the attendants were very kind"
Pros: "Information during flight"
Cons: "No TV or programmes to entertain slong"
Pros: "Was good on time"
Pros: "on schedule. staff at counters and flight crew were courteous and professional."
Pros: "Very slow check in. Bit slow and chaotic at gate. Pleasant enough service but not excetional. Smooth flight. Informative pilot. Silly short bus ride to terminal. Very very long wait for baggage."
Pros: "Good food, friendly and professional staff, a new and sparkling clean plane, swift retrieval of luggage upon arrival in Kigali. Thank you!"
Pros: "The crew was very welcoming"
Cons: "We had a delay of 40 minutes at Kigali airport without prior announcement"
Pros: "Overall comfort and staff friendliness"
Cons: "Landing was a bit turbulent"
Pros: "Flight was delayed over an hour. Otherwise the plane was new, everything felt good, and I have nothing to complain about!"
Pros: "Rwanda air crew"
Cons: "Lagos international airport"
Pros: "New plane, friendly crew"
Cons: "Cramped seating, poor signage & boarding announcements"
Pros: "Plane was clean and very comfortable, staff was courteous. Surprisingly good food for a short flight"
Cons: "Changed flight times without informing passengers on BOTH of the legs. Staff were polite, but were more interested in following the rules than helping people get on their flights. No customer feedback forms were available"
Pros: "I like the overall service in the plane."
Cons: "I didn't like changing the boarding time."
Pros: "Planes were great and flight crew excellent."
Pros: "Clean, comfortable plane and seating. On time service, courteous attendants. A meal served on a flight that was only about an hour in duration - very nice. Very pleased with this airline."
Cons: "Nothing."
Pros: "The crew is nice"
Cons: "Both flights were terribly delayed and while the crew apologized we sat on a small plane. In Entebbe the reason was they overbooked the flight. So leave those people behind to take the next flight, don't keep us prisoners on a plane for hours... Stupid management decisions."
Pros: "movie dinner on each leg of the flight"
Cons: "the movie didn't finish in the first leg and they didn't show it for the second leg, so I never learned the ending the flight arrived 40 minutes late"
Cons: "Too cold on the plane - way, way too cold"
Pros: "RwandAir flew us to Nairobi instead and I thought that was good of them to make that change for us. The above evaluation pertains to the flight to Nairobi."
Pros: "Food was beef brochettes, one of the best economy meals I have had. Wine was very good, from South Africa."
Cons: "Seats were not adjustable. It may be that I was in front of the exit row, but I looked and didn't see anyone leaning back anywhere. On the other hand, flight was only 1 hr 20 minutes."
Pros: "The Rwandair plane was modern and clean. Kigali airport has a nice cafe, and check-in was efficient. The plane left a few minutes early."
Cons: "Check-in closes one hour before your flight. Economy class: Food was a clingwrapped sandwich. The attendant gave me two bottles of a good South African wine. Security has gotten quite uptight at Kigali airport. They now stop your cab a couple hundred meters short of the airport, and have a dog check the vehicle. You have to pass through another security checkpoint at the entry to the airport building, and a third security into the boarding area. The final security check even takes away any empty bottles you have. And don't take any fingernail scissors in your handcarry, even if they have blunt points. You may have an hour or more wait in preboarding, and without water or bathroom excess. So takke care of these needs in advance."
Pros: "Clean planes"
Cons: "Ground crew at NBO - Rwanda Air has Kenyan Airways do the work in the terminals. Bad idea!"
Pros: "Nothing."
Cons: "This airline is an operational nightmare. I purchased a ticket with a connection, and the second flight being a codeshare, two months in advance. On the day of travel, I checked in, checked two bags, and headed to the gate. An hour before the flight, a Rwandaair agent approached me to inform me that they were no longer code sharing with precision air, the second flight. Chaos ensued, my bags got lost, I got stuck in Nairobi, etc. in Nairobi, one of the Kenya airways agents literally said to me 'avoid Rwandaair and precision airlines - they are both airlines that do not follow any regulations, and not just operational, but safety as well.'"
Pros: "The flight times were perfect and the seats were comfortable."
Cons: "The food was just ok"
Pros: "Everything was excellent, service, cabin, food."
Cons: "First announcement cockpit was just before landing. Would have liked some information before takeoff and once in the air"
Pros: "Orderly, organized, courteous"
Pros: "In general, it was a pleasant flight from Entebbe to Kigali. The Bombardier was in pristine condition. There was no food offered (the flight is 45 minutes) and there is no entertainment available. The crew was pleasant and the seat comfortable (I am 5'11). I would fly again with RwandAir."
Cons: "There was nothing significant enough taken into consideration the characteristics of this flight and the construction in Entebbe."
Cons: "The arrival time was stated as 1:40pm but in reality it was a 1:10pm arrival so I had arranged my driver to collect at the wrong time and he wasn't there when I arrived."
Cons: "The sitting was so very small, I never traveled so crumpled."
Pros: "Excellent"
Pros: "The crew was friendly and helpful."
Pros: "Good crew, food was good for airline food. Entertainment offerings were good."
Cons: "Too many seats, 3-4-3 configuration means not even enough room to walk down aisle without bumping people in their narrow seats."
Pros: "Orderly boarding process. Considerate reseating when bulkhead with extra legroom were not usable."
Pros: "The crew was amazingly efficient serving food and drink. In the recline position the seat bottom extended which was far more comfortable than simply reclining."
Cons: "The food was mediocre and the selection of movies was very limited."
Pros: "Great organization, very efficient"
Cons: "Bag fees were not made clear on Kayak or Swiss website, seats on Edelweiss A320 we’re spaced too close together for my legs, though was not a problem on the 777."
Cons: "I never made it on the flight. It was over booked, they switched me over... I'm still at the airport, missing two days of my vacation. Flights have been delayed from SFO, causing me to miss so many of the connecting flights..."
Cons: "seat comfort"
Pros: "Smooth transfer from Terminal 3 to the International Terminal. Great airport. Easy boarding, friendly crew and very smooth flight."
Cons: "I was very happy with my flight experience with Swiss."
Pros: "The seat was ok, I paid $ 115 per Trip ( total of $ 230) just to sit at the emergency exit to have some leg room and then I am sitting next to the bathroom and people stepping on my feet because they tend to hang out around the bathroom."
Cons: "The flight attendant not wearing perfume. Food was very poor to say the least."
Pros: "None"
Cons: "Seats"
Cons: "Lost our bags"
Pros: "Friendly crew"
Cons: "Very good overall"
Pros: "Full array of entertainment."
Cons: "Seats were not too comfortable."
Pros: "Everything!"
Pros: "The food was great. The service is excellent. Swiss Air gets an A+."
Pros: "Swiss is Swiss"
Cons: "nothing"
Pros: "Food/ staff/access to TV/movies etc!"
Cons: "Seating/facilities"
Pros: "Great friendly crew. Efficient systems."
Cons: "Tight seats. Very little leg room."
Pros: "Flight was very smooth and on schedule."
Cons: "Seating in economy was very cramped (pitch felt like 77”) and food and entertainment nothing special. Somehow I had higher expectations for comfort and service, even in economy."
Cons: "Did NOT know ticket was economy light!!!! I WAS UPSET WE HAD TO PAY BAGGAGE FEE!!!!"
Cons: "It was torture in the cramped seats"
Pros: "Great cabin crew!"
Cons: "While waiting to board SFO-ZRH flight Swissair personnel walked around and randomly pulled out passengers from line to check luggage dimensions. Since manufacturers adhere to airline baggage standards, no violations were found during checks. This misguided effort only resulted in publicly humiliating Swissair customers. Boarding process was pure pandemonium...this was the first time in recent memory, where all coach passengers were invited to board at the same time! Very inefficient! Crowded seating in coach,with ten passengers sandwiched in across Boeing 767 aircraft. Competing airlines flying identical aircraft have nine across seatings Thin seat cushions cause leg cramps after a few hours."
Pros: "I was gratified to see that the 777 Boeing aircraft have now replaced the older Airbus aircraft..... This is my sixth time traveling to Switzerland from San Francisco on Swiss....Their service in my opinion remains excellent......The cabin crew was cheerful friendly yet remained very efficient at the same time... The food was very good, , The two meals that comes with one's Ticket still also comes with complimentary beverage service .... and even a warm moist towel is offered towards the end of the flight ... not bad for a seat in coach ...."
Cons: "I had no complaints except that there was a 40+ minute delay in receiving our checked baggage..... this could have been a problem With the airport ground crew at Zurich airport ....."
Cons: "2 hours delay!"
Pros: "The food wasn’t bad"
Cons: "Business seats suck"
Pros: "Families with small children can board with first class passengers. The staff member who checked us in greeted my son by his name at the plane door!"
Cons: "Some flight attendants were not attentive to service."
Pros: "The seat is designed beautifully. Staff and crew incredibly nice."
Cons: "Movie and TV choices were so limited. You really need to add more options. I found only 1 movie I liked."
Pros: "Entertainment was excellent and they made it a very comfortable flight."
Pros: "Enjoyed the service."
Pros: "entertainment selection"
Cons: "upgrade entertainment system, needs touch screen and screen wouldn't turn off completely. leg room and space under seat"
Cons: "Could use some more seating space"
Pros: "Great customer service."
Cons: "Breakfast was a strawberry yogurt, orange juice and a croissant. Sugar free options ie. Eggs, rye or whole grain bread are a few examples of sugar free breakfast items that could be provided."
Pros: "We were very pleased with our flight on Swiss Air."
Cons: "No plugs for USB chargers in economy. Entertainment units were broken."
Pros: "Enjoyed the food. On demand entertainment. Beverage service."
Cons: "Despite paying for extra leg room I somehow needed more. Not Swiss Airs fault, but I know better for next time."
Pros: "seat too tight"
Cons: "100% of our checked luggage was lost and two days into our one week biking trip in Sweden we have heard NOTHING from Swiss Air. No knowledge of where the four large bags are, no follow up and no help. Basically, we have been left with biking clothing and little hope that our bags will show up before we leave Sweden. Unacceptable and we will NEVER fly this airlines again."
Pros: "Good service... Quick boarding"
Cons: "Older plane, seats too narrow and short for 11hr flight. Bathrooms are TINY even by airline standards. Entertainment system has lots of choices but screens are low quality."
Pros: "Nothing"
Cons: "The most racist and unfriendly and uncivilized people ever."
Pros: "Staff were nice"
Cons: "Very old plane. Had a big metal box at my feet, could not stretch out. Tv screens old and hard to watch. Food was pretty bleak too. Very disappointed."
Cons: "Old plane, hard uncomfortable seats, no wifi, rigid flight attendants, awful food, middle seat (after paying for premium seating) with two enormous guys on either side, fixed armrest, AC dripped on me most of the flight and was told nothing could be done, interminable."
Pros: "Great crew, and on time, of course: there Swiss!"
Cons: "Tech old and seats uncomfortable and plane loud."
Pros: "Stewards were great. The food was good and generous."
Cons: "Seat rows were too close together and seats were uncomfortable for the 11 hour flight."
Pros: "Jennifer - Appreciate the security and follow-up"
Cons: "Not the traveler will need to get boarding, crew, comfort, food and entertainment next week."
Pros: "Service was nice. Food was decent."
Cons: "The flight attendants did not have much in the way of personalities. Efficient, but no sparkle."
Cons: "Food was marginal, the service. Was pretty good. I'd use them again, but expected more from a European carrier."
Pros: "Clean. Elegant. Modern. Very friendly. Food above average."
Cons: "It's always very hard to upgrade to business class. And the Swiss Miles & More website is not very user friendly to navigate"
Pros: "Enjoyed the service"
Cons: "The seats were really hard for a 12 hour flight and not enough leg room."
The entertainment system was broken
Pros: "Crew was wonderful"
Cons: "For this COVID to be over"
Pros: "Everything! the best part was that the they kept the middle seat empty!"
Cons: "nothing"
Pros: "great everything!"
Pros: "The flight attendants have so much patience, it’s amazing. Because passengers are idiots."
Cons: "Do you really need to charge every person to pick their seat?"
Pros: "The seats were extremely comfortable! I"
Cons: "Nothing"
Pros: "food"
Pros: "Crew was great"
Cons: "Lots of screaming children. Not much to do about that..."
Pros: "Movies and usb charging"
Cons: "4 hour flight and all we get is a cookie?"
Cons: "Took forever to wait in line to board this relatively small plane."
Pros: "Crew attentive and helpful"
Cons: "N/a"
Cons: "Flight was delayed out of the gate from ATL. No one was available for at least 15 minutes to move the jetway to let us off the plane when we arrived in RDU."
Pros: "Wow. I have been flying American and United for years. Delta is friendly, competent, professsional and enjoyable. They treated us like friends instead of like cattle. It was great! Great job Delta. Oh, and for the first time in 50 years of flying my bags arrived sky first. Yes! They get it!"
Cons: "Perfect experience. Well done. Treat people like friends. Simple. Works."
Pros: "The crew was great and very friendly."
Cons: "Never enough room and the food was okay. But what’s new about this when it comes to air travel?"
Cons: "The check-in process was abysmal. The crew gave poor guidance delaying my ability to check in my bag, then refused to check it. They then told me to cancel my skymiles flight and purchase a new ticket. I was able to check my bag at the gate. Show up 2 hours before to account for their incompetenc"
Pros: "The seats were very comfortable even though legroom was limited in the basic cabin."
Cons: "Everything was excellent."
Pros: "Very smooth and friendly TSA personnel at the security point. Very friendly and respectful of the military. My husband is a Vietnam veteran."
Pros: "No turbulence"
Cons: "Cramed plane"
Pros: "Nice people"
Cons: "Waiting at gate in KC"
Cons: "The pplane was two hours late to depart due to technical issues."
Pros: "Perfectly fine first class trip"
Cons: "Breakfast meal was awful"
Cons: "Almost an hour late leaving the gate."
Pros: "Not crowded?"
Cons: "It's a 6A flight from RNO to SLC meaning you are up really early to get to the airport, checkin and wait. There's no Delta lounge, so you're stuck trying to find something to eat and somewhere to sit well before our flight. The exit row seating does help, but the seats didn't recline making it a bit more uncomfortable."
Cons: "It was it little confusing that I booked with AeroMexico but it was really a Delta flight."
Pros: "Great and friendly crew"
Cons: "baggage rules, check in with baggage, change fee for flight when it was not customers issue that caused the 5 min delay! Unable to reach reservation desk on line or via phone (neither was the gate agent)"
Pros: "Customer service was great"
Cons: "They change schedule day before we flight, the change schedule 2 time while were flighting"
Pros: "Could be among the best landings ever. I felt nothing as we touched down in Salt Lake!!!"
Pros: "The flight was practically empty!"
Cons: "Paid for comfort, Delta offered free drinks to everyone. Unfortunately though the flight attendant did not bring us the alcohol we ordered and mixed 3 different kinds of whiskey into two glasses! We always are given our bottles separate from the mixer. Oh well. Did to being in so late it took us an hour to get a cab in Detroit."
Pros: "On time departure and arrival. The Airbus plane has enough legroom for tall persons."
Pros: "Always a good experience with Delta! They’re the best!"
Cons: "Left about 2.5 hours late because of a broken seat of all things. Apparently Delta doesn't bother to have maintenance staff on site at the airport."
Pros: "Everything"
Cons: "Nothing"
Pros: "I fist and most importantly, I liked the price of the flight. The airports were very helpful with guiding and helping speed up the checkin, boarding, and safe travel through my only stop in Mexico City."
Cons: "N/A"
Pros: "The flight was great, the food really tasty and really nice plane."
Cons: "Standing in line for 5 hours without knowing what I'll be able to do. My entire body still hurts!"
Pros: "The almonds and Fresca"
Cons: "Nothing"
Cons: "All "carry-ons" were taken at the jetway, which was fine. But, when we landed, as passengers were trying to get off of the plane, the attendants were putting all of the collected luggage at the entry to the jetway. It created congestion. Then, anyone who had luggage, had to lineup against the side of the jetway, awaiting their luggage, and increasing the congestion. First, it was inconvenient. Worse, if there was any kind of emergency, I believe it would have created a unsafe environment. Very Poor Design & Process ! ! !"
Cons: "Very dated plane. First class seat was worn, crooked, and uncomfortable. No entertainment offered. Almonds or biscuit cookies were the only food options."
Pros: "Very Comfy plane."
Pros: "The flight left on time and landed earlier than anticipated"
Cons: "The seats were narrow and very upright"
Pros: "Flight was very comfortable and had a lot of space to move around"
Cons: "The gentleman indicating on the loud speakers what zones will be loading first was very rude."
Pros: "I would like the airline service to do more for our veterans. Especially the 100% disabled veterans"
Cons: "Seats not comfortable enough"
Cons: "Took 8 hours to get from Oakland to Los Angeles. Flight delayed then cancelled at Oakland. Driven from there to San Francisco. That flight delayed by 45 minutes. Got on board and then they neede 4 people to get off the plane since it was overweight. That took another hour. Bad day of travel."
Pros: "Lots of seat space even in economy, I felt very comfortable and not cramped on my flight. Food was decent and flight attendants were very attentive. My flight was kind of an outlier experience as someone on my flight fell very ill and needed immediate medical attention. The KLM employees on board did a very good job of taking care of the situation and making sure everyone else on board still had a calm flight experience."
Cons: "My connecting flight was scheduled too close to my landing time."
Cons: "I feel Delta didn't try very hard to get me a flight and I stood in line for four hours"
Pros: "Gate agent arranged flight via Salt Lake City and also gave me $15 lunch coupon for my troubles. She was awesome!"
Cons: "Dealing with West Jet to refund a mistake on the ticket purchase."
Pros: "Ability to change planes with a 30 minute layover."
Pros: "The Crew was very nice and helpful."
Cons: "The flight was delayed, but due to no fault of Delta's...it was weather. Of course, the seats are very tight and this is something that Delta has control over."
COVID-19 information
Safety measures for airlines flying from San Francisco Bay Area to South Africa
Airlines flying from San Francisco Bay Area have enacted additional safety measures and adjusted policies to better accommodate travellers. Policies vary by airline.
Heightened sanitation
Daily cleaning, installation of cabin HEPA filters on flights from San Francisco Bay Area
Mandatory masks
Masks required on board, masks provided on flights from San Francisco Bay Area
Social distancing seating
Middle seats unavailable to book on flights from San Francisco Bay Area
Pre-flight testing
Testing for antibodies, testing for symptoms for flights from San Francisco Bay Area
Flexible cancellations
Waiving of change fees. Search flexible flights from San Francisco Bay Area
Book cheap flights from San Francisco Bay Area to South Africa
Recent return flight deals
20/9Tue
2 stopsKLM
53h 16mOAK-CPT
4/10Tue
2 stopsKLM
32h 50mCPT-OAK
R11 989
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25h 10mOAK-CPT
25/10Tue
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47h 33mCPT-OAK
R12 085
23/11Wed
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30h 10mSFO-JNB
28/11Mon
1 stopTurkish Airlines
30h 55mJNB-SFO
R14 224
23/11Wed
1 stopTurkish Airlines
30h 10mSFO-JNB
28/11Mon
1 stopTurkish Airlines
30h 55mJNB-SFO
R14 240
23/11Wed
1 stopKLM
30h 15mSFO-CPT
27/11Sun
1 stopKLM
45h 55mCPT-SFO
R14 527
21/11Mon
2 stopsKLM
30h 25mSFO-CPT
4/12Sun
1 stopKLM
45h 55mCPT-SFO
R14 607
19/9Mon
1 stopTurkish Airlines
37h 25mSFO-CPT
26/9Mon
1 stopTurkish Airlines
27h 20mCPT-SFO
R14 703
7/11Mon
2 stopsDelta
29h 30mSFO-CPT
15/11Tue
2 stopsDelta
34h 13mCPT-SFO
R14 735
21/11Mon
2 stopsDelta
25h 30mSFO-CPT
4/12Sun
2 stopsDelta
33h 59mCPT-SFO
R14 751
19/11Sat
1 stopBritish Airways
30h 10mSJC-CPT
7/12Wed
1 stopBritish Airways
31h 20mCPT-SJC
R17 113
21/11Mon
2 stopsBritish Airways
33h 23mSJC-CPT
6/12Tue
1 stopBritish Airways
29h 15mCPT-SJC
R17 193
23/11Wed
2 stopsSWISS
34h 00mSFO-JNB
28/11Mon
1 stopSWISS
29h 45mJNB-SFO
R17 768
5/11Sat
2 stopsMultiple Airlines
56h 25mSFO-JNB
3/12Sat
3 stopsMultiple Airlines
40h 49mJNB-SFO
R17 864
16/11Wed
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28h 30mSFO-JNB
28/11Mon
3 stopsEthiopian Air
50h 05mJNB-SFO
R18 087
8/11Tue
2 stopsLufthansa
25h 55mSFO-JNB
22/11Tue
1 stopLufthansa
26h 50mJNB-SFO
R18 167
16/11Wed
2 stopsAir France
31h 01mOAK-JNB
28/11Mon
2 stopsAir France
30h 34mJNB-OAK
R19 588
21/9Wed
2 stopsQatar Airways
29h 45mSJC-CPT
5/10Wed
2 stopsQatar Airways
35h 52mCPT-SJC
R21 599
17/8Wed
1 stopIberia
26h 05mSJC-JNB
11/9Sun
1 stopIberia
30h 15mJNB-SJC
R25 351
11/10Tue
1 stopEmirates
38h 30mSFO-DUR
25/10Tue
1 stopEmirates
28h 20mDUR-SFO
R25 846
31/7Sun
2 stopsAmerican Airlines
42h 05mSJC-JNB
16/8Tue
1 stopAmerican Airlines
30h 15mJNB-SJC
R28 432
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20/9Tue
2 stopsKLM
53h 16mOAK-CPT
4/10Tue
2 stopsKLM
32h 50mCPT-OAK
R11 989
11/10Tue
2 stopsDelta
25h 10mOAK-CPT
25/10Tue
2 stopsDelta
47h 33mCPT-OAK
R12 085
23/11Wed
1 stopTurkish Airlines
30h 10mSFO-JNB
28/11Mon
1 stopTurkish Airlines
30h 55mJNB-SFO
R14 224
23/11Wed
1 stopTurkish Airlines
30h 10mSFO-JNB
28/11Mon
1 stopTurkish Airlines
30h 55mJNB-SFO
R14 240
23/11Wed
1 stopKLM
30h 15mSFO-CPT
27/11Sun
1 stopKLM
45h 55mCPT-SFO
R14 527
21/11Mon
2 stopsKLM
30h 25mSFO-CPT
4/12Sun
1 stopKLM
45h 55mCPT-SFO
R14 607
19/9Mon
1 stopTurkish Airlines
37h 25mSFO-CPT
26/9Mon
1 stopTurkish Airlines
27h 20mCPT-SFO
R14 703
7/11Mon
2 stopsDelta
29h 30mSFO-CPT
15/11Tue
2 stopsDelta
34h 13mCPT-SFO
R14 735
21/11Mon
2 stopsDelta
25h 30mSFO-CPT
4/12Sun
2 stopsDelta
33h 59mCPT-SFO
R14 751
19/11Sat
1 stopBritish Airways
30h 10mSJC-CPT
7/12Wed
1 stopBritish Airways
31h 20mCPT-SJC
R17 113
21/11Mon
2 stopsBritish Airways
33h 23mSJC-CPT
6/12Tue
1 stopBritish Airways
29h 15mCPT-SJC
R17 193
23/11Wed
2 stopsSWISS
34h 00mSFO-JNB
28/11Mon
1 stopSWISS
29h 45mJNB-SFO
R17 768
5/11Sat
2 stopsMultiple Airlines
56h 25mSFO-JNB
3/12Sat
3 stopsMultiple Airlines
40h 49mJNB-SFO
R17 864
16/11Wed
2 stopsEthiopian Air
28h 30mSFO-JNB
28/11Mon
3 stopsEthiopian Air
50h 05mJNB-SFO
R18 087
8/11Tue
2 stopsLufthansa
25h 55mSFO-JNB
22/11Tue
1 stopLufthansa
26h 50mJNB-SFO
R18 167
16/11Wed
2 stopsAir France
31h 01mOAK-JNB
28/11Mon
2 stopsAir France
30h 34mJNB-OAK
R19 588
21/9Wed
2 stopsQatar Airways
29h 45mSJC-CPT
5/10Wed
2 stopsQatar Airways
35h 52mCPT-SJC
R21 599
17/8Wed
1 stopIberia
26h 05mSJC-JNB
11/9Sun
1 stopIberia
30h 15mJNB-SJC
R25 351
11/10Tue
1 stopEmirates
38h 30mSFO-DUR
25/10Tue
1 stopEmirates
28h 20mDUR-SFO
R25 846
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2 stopsAmerican Airlines
42h 05mSJC-JNB
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1 stopAmerican Airlines
30h 15mJNB-SJC
R28 432
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R39 942
R19 700
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