introduction
Welcome back to my West African Series
As this year is the 'Year of Return', Ghana is welcoming all persons of African descent back to the shores of the nation. It is a year long event marking 400 years since the first slave ship left Africa for the Americas. Ghana has been on my list for ages and I could not have chosen a better time to go.
As I booked my flights to Ghana, coincidentally Emirates sent me an email saying my miles would be expiring June 30, 2019. I decided to do some research and realized the best way to not let these miles go to waste was to book an intra-african route between Accra, Ghana and Abidjan, Cote d'ivore. The entire Emirates route is : DXB-ACC-ABJ-ACC-DXB using a Boeing 777-300ER. The ACC-ABJ route is also operated by Air Cote d'Ivore, South African, EgyptAir and Middle East Airlines.
Flight routing
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4ABJ-ACC
- 5ACC-LHR
- 6LHR-JFK
- 7EWR-YUL
- 8YUL-YTZ
BOOKING
One way a redeemable flight was 8,750 miles which was pretty good. I quickly grabbed a seat! Below is a statement from my account.
TERMINAL
Arriving at the airport about 2 hours prior to departure, the terminal was not too busy. There were only regional flights operating at this time.
The terminal and duty shop area.
A Senegal A319 taxiing to DSS.
inflight
Aircraft : Boeing 777-31HER
Registration: A6-EPM
Age: 3.0 Years
Layout: F8C42Y310
Our aircraft waited for us to board as we were the last ones.
Contrasting to my last report, this cabin was luckily the newly upgraded one. The televisions were huge and the digital handheld was a great touch.
Push back and Taxi.
Another feature I enjoy while flying would be the nose and belly cameras.
The load between ABJ and ACC was pretty light as most passengers board in ACC to DXB.
Line up RWY 21.
Upwind with western Abidjan in the distance.
The Ivorian coastline.
The crew swiftly came around 10 minutes after takeoff to distribute the snack box. A cake, sandwich and water.
There was a lot of cloud cover as we neared Accra.
During cruise I took a stroll down the cabin and grabbed some pictures from seat 49A.
descent & arrival
Descent came about 10 minutes prior to arrival.
Approach over the Greater Accra Region.
SN to Lome seen as we arrived at ACC.
Our EK chariot as she prepares for her 8hr journey to Dubai.
Departing the airport with the old terminal in the foreground.
Another great TR JAZ350 ?
Yes, but only Air Cote d'Ivore and South African (along with EK of course) can pick up pax on this specific leg!
You were lucky to get a new cabin on this flight - too bad you did not have enough time to enjoy it. for sure compared to ACI (A319) it must be a level above with IFE and so many empty seats!
Do you mind to explain why Accra gets two 9/10 grades (for departure and arrival), while Abidjan gets 6,5 as a departure airport and 5,6 when you arrived?
Just curious, what were the main issues?
Anyway, thanks a lot for sharing with us this rare route!
Hey thanks a lot! :)
I usually grade my verdicts individually by experience. So on arrival ABJ airport customs and immigration was extremely slow and their attitudes showed that they had no interest to work in an effective and timely manner. On departure, the scenario was also the same and I was even asked inappropriate personal questions by the custom official. Whereas in Accra on both departure and arrival I spent no more than 5 or 10 minutes (10 minutes as I causally had a conversation with one of the security about my country).
Indeed, You have valid points here, glad you've clarified these.
They should be aware that they are directly the first/last positive or not impression that one can remember about their own country...
Very interesting flight! I wonder how long it'll last if the loads continue to be so low. Thanks for sharing this one with us :)
It truly is an interesting flight. I can definitely see Ghana's flight remaining, not sure about the Cote d'Ivore leg, however. You're welcome!
What a nice report! Africa is top of my bucket list, and Ivory Coast is one of the destinations I don't want to miss.
Some day.... :D
Great service that of Emirates! At least for my local standards!
Thanks a lot for sharing!! :)
Thank you, I truly recommend you traveling to the region! There is so much to see and the food is amazing.