(Posted 17th December 2025)
United’s ups service to meet increased demand on Cape Town routes:
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United’s passenger bookings from Cape Town to the U.S. have increased by 7% during the South African summer holiday travel season (December 18 – January 6) compared to the same period last year.
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To meet the increased demand, United increased service between Cape Town and New York/Newark from three to four-times daily flights during the peak holiday period.
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For travellers heading abroad over the holiday period from South Africa, the most popular U.S. destinations on United’s network include New York/Newark, Washington D.C. and Chicago.
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United launched its Cape Town-Newark service in 2019 and added its Cape Town-Washington DC service in 2022.
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Since 2021 United has also added routes to Johannesburg, Accra, Lagos, Dakar and Marrakesh, giving it a significant footprint on the continent.
U.S. Originating Travel Forecast, i.e. across its entire global network over the Dec-Jan holiday season:
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United expects to fly about?10.3 million people?between December 18 to January 6 – the most passengers it has ever flown over the Dec-Jan holiday travel season.
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On average, it expects to fly almost 520,000 passengers?and operate around 4,700 flights a day.
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The?busiest travel day is expected after Christmas:?approximately 560,
000 passengers are expected to fly with us on Saturday, Dec. 27. -
It’s most popular international destinations for travel from the US are Cancun, London and Frankfurt.
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And its most popular US domestic New Year’s Eve destinations?are Orlando, Las Vegas and Honolulu.
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This holiday travel period follows United’s busiest Thanksgiving holiday season ever, where the airline also posted its highest ever customer satisfaction (NPS) score for the month of November.
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Travel Tips and Hacks:
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The?United app?saves travelers up to 30 minutes:
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On-demand customer service help via text, chat or video call.
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Auto rebooking options if travel is disrupted.
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Real-time bag tracking.
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Connections made easy: turn-by-turn directions, estimated walk times, live flight status, notifications when the plane is held for a few extra minutes.
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