This EasyUp published fare only costs $500 more than Business Class—and is often a better choice than free or upgrade mileage awards.
Here at FCF we are like wildcatters for oil: constantly drilling and digging to find the fares that fly without lights.
This month we hit a gusher, a year-round, First Class fare to Buenos Aires on a major carrier, American, and available from 20-plus U.S. cities. It ranges from $3,951 to $4,871— 69% off normal fares. Sure, this isn’t for everyone, but it’s a good deal, relatively speaking
Whatever your destination in South America, this fare is worth considering.
The Better Deal: First Class Anomaly Fare or a Free Mileage Award Ticket or Upgrade?
This fare is so low that the return on your hard-earned miles plummets (so just pay cash, and save multi-step upgrade strategies for another day). In return, you get security—a confirmed seat at a significantly reduced price—on a fare that we think will be here tomorrow.
On Miami-Buenos Aires, for example, American charges 125,000 miles and $159 in taxes for a free First Class award ticket. This EasyUp fare is $3,951 (all in) and earns about 13,251 miles—worth about $414. That brings the cost down to $3,537. Coach can otherwise cost you close to $1,300— making the two-class upgrade just about $2,200 (for perspective’s sake). Yeah, and for 18 hours (round-trip) of being locked inside a tin can, at 30,000 feet, if that doesn’t excite you.
[aside headline="What Makes this an “EasyUp” Fare?" alignment="alignright" width="half" headline_size="default"]
It’s based on the published fare for the class below it, in this case Business Class, and it has a built-in upgrade surcharge, $250 each-way.
This makes a mileage upgrade useless because it requires a $1,100 surcharge plus 50,000 miles.[/aside]
If you book the free award ticket, your return on miles is about 2.3¢ ($3,951 minus $159, divided by 138,000, minus the value of the miles earned). That’s well below the minimum 3¢ return on miles I recommend, because it’s the usual cost to buy miles from the airline or one of its multi-currency partners.
Not Flying to Buenos Aires?
If your departure city is not listed in the chart to the right, consider buying a separate ticket.
Chile Connection Example: If flying to Easter Island, you have to make a connection in South America anyway, so why not go through Buenos Aires and get this amazing fare.
The lowest First Class nonstop fare, on a major airline to São Paulo from Chicago, is $9,969 on United, versus $5,650 on American via Buenos Aires. That’s $4,871 for AA’s Chicago-Buenos Aires ticket and $779 for the second ticket on LAN in Business Class to São Paulo, a savings of $4,319 (43%) and a second city (Buenos Aires) for free.
American First Class Anomaly Fares to Buenos Aires that are only $500 More than Business Class*
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