Last month I described the when, why, and how of using one-way awards, which carriers offer them, and which make them available through partner airlines.
This month I’d like to take it a step further by highlighting the the best one-way award program, the best within each alliance, and show you how to work the system to get more access to award space.
The Best One-Way Award Program
American Airlines’ is my favorite for a number of reasons:
- Awards can be used on 19 other carriers—more than any other one-way award program.
- Getting miles is easy: Credit card points can be transferred from Starwood and Diners Club, and, if need be, you can buy up to 40,000 miles per year.
- It offers some of the lowest award redemption rates of any one-way mileage program.
- It offers redemption for First Class travel.
The Best One-Way Program within Each Alliance
oneworld: American Airlines, for the reasons above.
SkyTeam: The weakest one-way award offerings of any alliance. Only three of its members offer them, and only one, Air France, offers 50% off the round-trip cost and the option of transferring credit card points. Also, Air France doesn’t offer First Class awards unless you have elite status, and its partner redemption program is laughable—only Air Europa and Kenya Airways.
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Use Singapore Airlines’ redemption chart for travel in North America (Continental U.S. and Canada) in Business Class because it charges only 20,000 miles one-way—20% fewer miles than most other carriers.
For flights to Europe ranging from 2,501 through 5,000 flight miles each way (such as Chicago to London at 3,953 miles), use Cathay Pacific in Business Class, which charges 45,000 miles one-way, saving you at least 10,000 miles on a round-trip ticket.
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Star Alliance: Singapore is my top pick in this pack, and it’s also my second favorite all-around program. It allows one-way awards on 16 carriers, and credit-card point transfers from Amex Rewards (which allows members to buy up to 500,000 points annually), charges 50% of the round-trip cost for a one-way award, and allows First Class redemption.
Working the System I keep at least 100,000 miles in both American and Singapore accounts at all times because they give me access to more than 30 airlines for Business Class award redemption and more than ten airlines for First Class award redemption. This hugely increases my odds of scoring a premium award seat, compared to gambling with an airline that doesn’t offer one-way partner awards, such as United.
Mileage Costs for One-Way Awards from North America
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