Flight Intel
- What are the fees and surcharges that travelers needed to pay in order to book their award flight?
- How was the availability of a given route(s) when it came to booking the award flight?
- Are there tricks that program members used in order to optimize their redemption?
- Which specific flights were used for the award ticket? Are some flights better than others?
- How does this award ticket compare to other programs and how does it compare to a ticket bought with cash?
- Are there specific sweet spots in the award tables that one should try to take advantage of?
- Are there exceptions to the award tables where our calculations are not accurate?
- What was your overall experience with a particular award ticket?
- Was it worth cashing your miles in for a given flight?
Frankfurt (FRA) to Chicago (ORD) with Miles from [OLD] Aeroplan (Air Canada) / Star Alliance
The one-way first class redemption with Lufthansa from Germany (FRA) to Chicago (ORD) has very reasonable fees of only CAD 150. This is a great deal for Lufthansa's first class cabin. The award fees for the return flight from ORD to FRA on the same LH flight, however, are priced much higher at CAD 631!
An alternative would be a redemption with Swiss, with one connection in Zurich, which incurs fees of only CAD 27 for the trip starting in the USA.
24 January, 2018
Frankfurt (FRA) to Chicago (ORD) with Miles from Amigo (Avianca Brasil) / Star Alliance
The one-way first class redemption with Lufthansa from Germany (FRA) to Chicago (ORD) has fees and surcharges of only USD 370. This is a great deal for Lufthansa's first class cabin. The first class seats on the Lufthansa flights usually become available about 12 days before the travel date.
24 January, 2018
Tokyo (NRT) to Seoul (ICN) with Miles from United Mileage Plus / Star Alliance
According the an article in SF Gate the direct Asiana flight from Tokyo to Seoul represents a sweet spot in the United award chart. The one-way flight can be booked for only 8,000 miles!
Link to the article.
17 January, 2018
Shanghai (PVG) to Hong Kong (HKG) with Miles from United Mileage Plus / Star Alliance
According the an article in SF Gate the direct Air China flight from Shanghai to Hong Kong represents a sweet spot in the United award chart. The one-way flight can be booked for only 8,000 miles!
Link to the article.
17 January, 2018
London (LHR) to Frankfurt (FRA) with Miles from United Mileage Plus / Star Alliance
According the an article in SF Gate the direct Lufthansa flight from London to Frankfurt represents a sweet spot in the United award chart. The one-way flight can be booked for only 8,000 miles!
Link to the article.
17 January, 2018
Cape Town (CPT) to Johannesburg (JNB) with Miles from United Mileage Plus / Star Alliance
According the an article in SF Gate the direct South African Airways flight from Cape Town to Johannesburg represents a sweet spot in the United award chart. The one-way flight can be booked for only 8,000 miles!
Link to the article.
17 January, 2018
Casablanca (CMN) to Johannesburg (JNB) with Miles from United Mileage Plus / Star Alliance
Star Alliance has very good coverage of the African continent with three local airlines in the program: South African Airways, Ethiopian Airlines and Egypt Air.
The long journey from Casablanca in Morocco to Johannesburg (a distance of almost 5,000 miles) can be redeemed by Mileage Plus members for 20,000 miles one-way in economy, a sweet spot in the United awards table according to the article below:
Link to the article in SF Gate.
17 January, 2018
Chicago (ORD) to Champaign / Urbana (CMI) with Miles from United Mileage Plus
There are some good direct short-haul (under 700 miles, direct flight) redemptions available in North America, especially if there is no competition on the same route from other airlines. One such example is the Chicago - Champaign (Ill.) itinerary. One-way can be booked for 10,000 miles.
Link to the article in SF Gate.
17 January, 2018
Boston (BOS) to Zurich (ZRH) with Miles from [OLD] Aeroplan (Air Canada) / Star Alliance
Various option to get to Switzerland from Boston with Star Alliance, the direct Swiss flight easily topping the list, at only CAD 7 in fees. Avoid the redeeming with Lufthansa through Munich (MUC) if you want to avoid the very high fees (CAD 677 for the one-way to Zurich). Using Turkish Airlines with a connection in Istanbul is quite inexpensive at CAD 15.
7 December, 2017
Auckland (AKL) to Tokyo (NRT) with Miles from [OLD] Aeroplan (Air Canada) / Star Alliance
The two most attractive and available options to travel on a Star Alliance award ticket from Auckland (AKL) to Tokyo (NRT) with Aeroplan miles are:
- An all Royal Thai (TG) itinerary with a connection in Bangkok (BKK), fees for this are CAD 31 one way.
- A Singapore Airlines (SQ) and ANA (NH) route connecting in Singapore (SIN) for CAD 60 one-way.
7 December, 2017