FCF’s side hustle delivers the goods – even during the post-lockdown, high-fare, fewer-deals era.
We haven’t discussed our Stopover Loophole Strategy (SLS) since Before Lockdown (BL) when we were combining Europe and Africa, including Cairo, Casablanca, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Lagos, and Marrakesh. But now it’s time to bring it back. We found some great SLS fares that travelers should consider jumping on right now.
SLS Crash Course
What is the Stopover Loophole Strategy again? Here’s a quick refresher on how it works. A stopover is a planned stop of more than four hours (domestic) or 24 hours (international) between flight segments on a trip. But longer stopovers are sometimes allowed for free (or a very small fee) – i.e. these allow you to enjoy a “second destination” for several days or much longer – most often in the applicable airline’s hub city. This presents an interesting opportunity for business travelers and/or those wanting to add a little extra pleasure to an upcoming trip.
That’s because the stopover can be turned into a vacation if you’re on a business trip or a second vacation if you’re already traveling for pleasure. So the SLS strategy allows you to add a bucket list destination for a fraction of the normal price, or even free in many cases! And on top of that, the flight to your original destination can even be less. See some examples of this below.
Savings That Scream “Why Didn’t I Know About This?!”
The following SLS options combine Europe and Africa. Here are two scenarios that demonstrate this opportunity:
Scenario #1: You are going to Africa, and you’d take a side trip in Europe if it were free or cheap, or actually lowered your fare to Africa.
Scenario #2: You are going to Europe, and you’d take a side trip in Africa if it were free or cheap, or actually lowered your fare to Europe.
Either way, the SLS works hard to get you the most bang for your buck.
Nelson’s Pyramid Scheme
Nelson from New York has always dreamt of seeing the many wonders of Egypt. If he pays a regular round-trip fare in Business Class on Lufthansa to Cairo, he’d have to dish out $3,121. On the other hand, if he goes to Cairo via a stop in Munich, he’s looking at $2,819 – a savings of $302. That’s more for less for an awesome trip. That’s the kind of deal we love to see.
The chart below shows a lot of other options. Many of them allow you to add a city for less, about the same, or only a bit more. In all cases, it’s definitely something worth considering for your next trip.
Great Deals on Loop(hole) For Travelers to Africa to Add Europe Destination
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As you can see, you either pay up to just $456 more for a whole extra city OR you pay up to $302 less, in the examples provided. In those cases you’re essentially being paid for the privilege of visiting another city. You also have the choice of spending a short or long layover in the European city on the way to Africa. Make it a vacation in itself – it’s entirely up to you.
Great Deals on Loop(hole) For Travelers to Europe to Add African Destination
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As you can see, you either pay up to just $98 more for a whole extra city OR you pay up to $1,091 less, in the examples provided. In those cases you’re essentially being paid for the privilege of visiting another city. You also have the choice of spending a short or long layover in the European city and add-on Africa. Make it a vacation in itself – it’s entirely up to you.
Got Another Place in Mind?
If the cities featured aren’t the ones you have in mind, remember that travel within Europe is inexpensive and there are many options for you to get around. For example, Berlin is just a one-hour flight from Frankfurt, and it’s about the same distance to Vienna. Also, play around with dates and itinerary combinations for many other opportunities we haven’t highlighted.