Paid Fares and Award Rates for United's New Cape Town Nonstop
Subject to government approval, United will begin flying to Cape Town, South Africa (CPT), later this year. As of Tuesday, the airline's latest planned route is now officially on sale, with the first flight scheduled to depart Newark (EWR) at 8:30pm on Dec. 15, 2019, on the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.
As of now, United is showing the old 2-2-2 business-class configuration, but with retrofitted aircraft expected to enter service later this year, there's a small chance that the new CPT nonstop will launch with Polaris seats, instead.
While business class isn't available on the inaugural itself, there are plenty of economy seats for sale. One-way fares are astronomically high, however, so you'll want to book a round-trip or multi-city itinerary, instead.
If the lowest fares are what you're after, you'll want to wait until later in the season — rates drop considerably after January.
Economy tickets start at $956 round-trip — not a deal-worthy fare, of course, but competitive for a nonstop. "W" fares, which are required for elite members to apply upgrade certificates, can be had for $1,398 round-trip. United doesn't appear to be selling basic economy on this route, and hopefully that'll still be the case at launch.
Business-class seats can be booked starting at $3,814 round-trip, though the fares are double that amount on many dates.
Award rates are steep, unfortunately, since United hasn't opened lower-level economy or business-class space and the inaugural begins after the airline's new dynamic pricing kicks in. As a result, you're looking at some pretty unbelievable one-way economy redemptions:
And business class is hardly a bargain as well — the lowest redemptions I'm seeing there start at 207,000 miles each way, worth $2,890 based on our valuations.
We can hold out hope that rates will drop as we get closer to launch, though I'm not terribly optimistic. United's new EWR-CPT flight only operates three days a week, and for a period of just over three months, from Dec. 15, 2019 through March 27, 2020. I think demand will be especially high, given the short run-time, and how far in advance the airline announced service. And while these nonstop United flights may eventually be bookable at far lower rates through partners, that doesn't appear to be the case right now.
TPG featured card
at Bilt's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 1X | Earn up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee |
| 2X | Earn 2X points + 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases |
Pros
- Unlimited up to 1 Bilt Point per dollar spent on rent and mortgage payments
- Elevated everyday earnings with both Bilt Points and Bilt Cash
- $400 Bilt Travel Portal hotel credit per year (up to $200 biannually)
- $200 Bilt Cash annually
- Priority Pass membership
- No foreign transaction fees
Cons
- Moderate annual fee
- Housing payments may include transaction fees, depending on the payment method
- Designed primarily for members seeking a premium, all-in-one card
- Earn points on housing with no transaction fee
- Choose to earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday spend. Use Bilt Cash to unlock point earnings on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee, up to 1X.
- 2X points on everyday spend
- $400 Bilt Travel Hotel credit. Applied twice a year, as $200 statement credits, for qualifying Bilt Travel Portal hotel bookings.
- $200 Bilt Cash (awarded annually). At the end of each calendar year, any Bilt Cash balance over $100 will expire.
- Welcome bonus (subject to approval): 50,000 Bilt Points + Gold Status after spending $4,000 on everyday purchases in the first 3 months + $300 of Bilt Cash.
- Priority Pass ($469/year value). See Guide to Benefits.
- Bilt Point redemptions include airlines, hotels, future rent and mortgage payments, Lyft rides, statement credits, student loan balances, a down payment on a home, and more.