Want to visit both Dubai and Mumbai on a single trip for under $1,000? Now you can. If you’ve been following along this week, you know that United has placed a bunch of destinations on sale between Los Angeles and the Middle East. India is also on sale but the challenge is finding mileage earning fares on both outbound and return segments.
We’ve been playing around the last few days and this is what we’ve come up with. There are cheap segments on the return from Mumbai but not on the outbound. So here’s what we recommend:
- Go to Dubai first, stopover for a few days and then go to Mumbai
- With this, you will be buying a ticket from Los Angeles to Dubai and returning from Mumbai to Los Angeles. You will buy a separate ticket from Dubai to Mumbai.
- This would be a significant saving over normal prices and you get in a bonus side trip.
This requires a bit of work, but it is easily doable.
Mumbai, India. Photo: babasteve, used under Creative Commons License (By 2.0)
Sample Travel Date:
- November 3rd – 12th
Fare Availability:
- Valid for travel from November 1st – 30th or January 10th, 2014 – March 10th, 2014.
- Use ITA Software Matrix Airfare Search and flexible month search to see availability. Search for roundtrip between Los Angeles and Dubai first (LAX – DXB). Enable advanced routing codes and enter “IAD” on the outbound and return fields to search only United availability.
- Search for a roundtrip between Los Angeles and Mumbai (LAX – BOM). Enable advanced routing codes and enter “EWR” on the outbound and return fields to search only United availability.
- Pick the dates with cheap outbound and return fares.
- Must purchase by March 31st, 2014 (Will not last until then)
- Use Skyscanner.net to search for cheap flights between Dubai and Mumbai.
- Beginner’s Guide on How to Use Matrix by ITA Software
- How to Read Airfare Rules and Use It to Your Advantage
Routing:
- LAX – IAD (Washington D.C.) – DXB (Dubai) / OPEN JAW / BOM (Mumbai) – EWR (Newark) – LAX. This will be $830!!!
- One-way from Dubai to Mumbai; Using Skyscanner, we found it to be as low as $136 with IndiGo (the number one low cost carrier in India)
Mileage:
- 19,617 miles or 5.0 cents per mile.
- The segment between Dubai and Mumbai will most likely not earn miles depending on which carrier you select.
$830 for Los Angeles to Dubai then returning from Mumbai to Los Angeles!
Dubai to Mumbai for 498 AED or approximately $136USD
How to Book:
- Use dates found on ITA Software Matrix Airfare Search and go to Hipmunk.com.
- On the From field, enter “LAX:: O:UA O:UA”
- On the To field, enter “BOM:: O:UA O:UA” – see screenshot below
- This will show the itinerary and will link you to United.com to book.
- United’s risk free cancellation policy here
Background Information:
Dubai, United Arab Emirates:
- Visa: US Citizens – not required. Other nationals, check the TIMATIC Visa Database
- Currency: Emirati Dirham (AED). $1USD = 3.67 AED
India:
- Visa: US Citizens – Visa required prior to arrival. Prices vary. Other nationals, check the TIMATIC Visa Database
- Currency: Indian Rupee (INR). $1USD = 54.84 INR
Tips for saving when using credit cards at international destinations:
- No Foreign Transaction Fee Credit Cards to save on international purchases
- Don’t get hit with Dynamic Currency Conversion
- Get your taxes refunded when shopping
- How to Avoid International Data Roaming Charges
For more of the latest cheap Los Angeles Flight Deals:
- Go to the The Los Angeles Flight Deals page
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The Flight Deal does not sell travel products or services. We provide you with information about third-party travel suppliers’ offers, and link you to their sites. The information posted by The Flight Deal is valid at the time of publication. However, we have no control over the suppliers, and we therefore do not warrant or guarantee that their offers will not change or become unavailable. Nor are we responsible for their products, services or site content. Please see their sites for their most up-to-date offer information and all applicable terms and conditions.
