Advance Planners Score First Class to Asia Easy

July 2019
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We’ve recently been looking at airlines that offer good First Class availability if you plan ahead. Not many airlines do these days, but Japan Airlines bucked that trend on no less than four routes.

We been following First Class availability on JAL and have thought that opportunity here might be a short-lived anomaly, but happily, it seems to be powering on. Right now, the month to book is June of next year for good First Class award availability for up to two passengers to Tokyo from Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago and New York.

Tokyo: Gateway to Asia. First Class: Gateway to Peace.

The world’s most populous metropolis, Tokyo is a superb city to experience, a dizzying whirl of futuristic architecture, traditional culture, standout museums, and best-in-class restaurants, all tangled together like a tasty bowl of udon noodles.

Tokyo also makes a great starting point, both to the rest of Japan and Asia beyond. And flying First Class, well, it could help start and end an unforgettable vacation.

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Compare Japan Airlines First Class Booking Options

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[["","<strong>Japan Airlines<\/strong>","<strong>Cathay Pacific<\/strong>","<strong>British Airways<\/strong>"],["<strong>Stopover in Tokyo allowed on award ticket at same cost<\/strong>","Yes","No","No"],["<strong>Cost Los Angeles to Tokyo\/Japan<\/strong>","140,000","240,000","206,000"],["<strong>Cost New York to Tokyo\/Japan<\/strong>","#rowspan#","#rowspan#","288,500"],["<strong>Cost to book beyond Tokyo\/Japan<\/strong>","Cost varies: second add on ticket, 60,000 to 100,000 miles ","Varies: 220,000-345,000 award miles (oneworld) based on 10,000 to 50,000 flight miles R\/T","Varies a lot by route: sample, 330,000 miles from LAX to Singapore, and 412,00 miles from NYC"],["<strong>Cost to book U.S. connecting cities<\/strong>","Cost varies: flight distance oneworld chart (160,000 to 330,000 R\/T; 10,000 to 50,000 flight miles R\/T)","#rowspan#","#rowspan#"],["<strong>Partner award availability<\/strong>","Does not apply as flights are operated by JAL","If JAL has a First Class award seat available, then you have a good chance of using use partner miles","#colspan#"],["<strong>Award taxes (based on LAX departure)<\/strong>","$270","$103","$276"],["<strong>Transfer partners<\/strong>","Marriott","Amex, Marriott, Citi","Amex, Marriott, Citi, Chase"]]