Why is nobody talking about this?
When you start thinking about overnight flights and long haul destinations, business class is the dream. Flat beds, comfy lounges and food and wine worth consuming sound a lot better than the alternative, and thanks to points, there’s no reason you can’t partake. There’s a brilliant way to stretch the value of your points twice as far, while enjoying more than 22 hours of delightful flat beds between Europe and Asia, starting in either direction. Here’s how to get in on the fun…
This opportunity is all about having points with SPG, Marriott, or Lufthansa Group’s “Miles & More” program. If you’ve got any of these, you’re in for a treat. If you don’t, it’s highly worth taking a look at why SPG Points, which are soon to become Marriott Rewards Points can be so valuable. Miles & More offers a credit card in many markets, including the U.S. where there’s a sign up bonus of 50,000.
Mileage Bargains
Miles & More runs monthly promotions which can offer absolutely fantastic value for your points. In the latest installment, round trip business class between Europe and Asia can be had for just 70,000 points, instead of the standard 135,000! If you start in Europe, you’ll face surcharges up to €500, but if you start in Asia, there are ways to mitigate these pesky fees, locking in flights for less than €150 in cash. There are so many cities you can start from on either side.
You may have just scratched your head, wondering why it says 70,000 points, when you thought it would be 60,000. If you have SPG Points, you receive 5,000 bonus miles for every 20,000 you transfer. Therefore, to reach a total of 70,000 Miles & More Miles, you’d only need to transfer 60,000 SPG Points.
The Cities
For 70,000 Miles & More Miles, you can fly round trip business class to or from virtually any major European city Lufthansa flies to, such as London, Barcelona, Helsinki, Paris, Munich, Madrid, Lisbon, Milan, Amsterdam and Athens. The list is truly endless. On the other side, you can originate or terminate from Hong Kong, Shanghai, Osaka and Seoul. This gives tons of flexibility.
These special deals must be booked by September 2nd, 2018, for travel from December 12th, 2018 thru January 15th, 2019. You must wrap up your travels during this time. If this “kills the deal” for you, keep in mind that these promotions run regularly, and there will likely be something very similar for the following months launched shortly. Consider this your introduction into half priced business class using points! You need the miles in your account to be able to search with Lufthansa, so the best way to get around that if you don’t already have enough is to search for the flights on United.com, ignoring their rates, but looking for their “saver” availability.
How To Book
This is actually pretty easy. You’ll need to get your points squared away in your Miles & More account, before you can book, so start there. If you’re transferring SPG Points over, do note that there’s always the risk that availability can change in the time it takes to move your points into Miles & More, and points can’t get transferred back. To book, head to this special Miles & More “Miles Bargain” page, and select the city you’d like to start from. Input your dates, search for availability and lock it all in right there. If you don’t mind surcharges, you can start anywhere in Europe. If you want to pay the lowest surcharges, start in Scandinavia, Spain or ideally, Hong Kong or Korea. Enjoy!
Two questions:
1) How do you change the country try of origin. It defaults to German cities.
2) Can it be booked as one ways?
Thanks!
1. By using the options menu and choosing a different country.
2. No, but you could just throwaway the second leg, since it’s the price of a normal one way anyway.