FirstClassFlyer

Round-trip upgrades to First Class with Star Alliance miles you can buy to score a ticket normally $10,785 on Lufthansa

Problem: If you’re an elite status member or seeker, say with United, not only are you owned by the airline, but you can’t leverage some of the best deals in the sky — the ones with the buy miles strategies — because you don’t earn miles or elite credit on free award tickets.

But that wouldn’t be a problem if United had decent availability using miles to upgrade, which they don’t really. You see, when you buy a coach or Business Class ticket and you use miles to upgrade, you earn elite credit, unlike free award tickets. So what are you going to do?

Solution

Here’s how to get that golden ticket — an upgrade from Business to First Class on Lufthansa, but without the staggering $10,785 price tag. You can slip into the luxury cabin for a fraction of the cost by spending $2,997-ish on a Business Class fare and using 140,000 miles to upgrade to First (which anyone can buy), for a savings of $5,959, or 55%.

If you don’t have the miles, they can be acquired during one of Lufthansa’s frequent buy miles bonus promotions, for the cost of just $1,829, at about 1.3 cents each. Even at the regular rate of 1.9 cents, the upgrade still only adds $2,733 for a total of $5,532 to $5,802 all in — a far cry from the full fare of $10,785 and a savings of up to $5,241 / 49%.

HOW TO work IT

First, you secure your Business Class ticket on routes between the U.S. and Europe. Lufthansa’s upgrade inventory is the same for award and upgrade seats, so if an award seat is open, you can use miles to upgrade. Check First Class availability on Lufthansa first.

If you buy the Business Class ticket online at united.com, you have 24 hours to get it refunded if anything goes sideways. If you travel often and know you can eventually use the Lufthansa miles, for a free ticket or upgrade, buy miles when on sale, so you have the miles you need when you need them.

Otherwise, you risk upgrade award availability shifting if the miles take too long to arrive after you purchase them. Usually, the miles purchase transaction is instant, but it can take a few days in some cases.

Many Routes Possible

Lufthansa offers First Class on the long-haul leg of your trip from major cities like New York, Boston, or Chicago, connecting through Frankfurt or Munich to many destinations within Europe.

Here are 13 low Business Class fare sample routes to upgrade:

Seven routes from Boston to Athens, Bilbao, Copenhagen, Dublin, Milan, Palma, and Venice
Three routes from Chicago to Barcelona, Dublin, and Rome
Three routes from New York, Copenhagen, Dublin, and Warsaw

Making a Connection

Upgrades to First Class are valid on the long-haul flight. Routes within the U.S. would require a separate Star Alliance upgrade, if available, at an additional cost.

First Class Availability TREASURE MAP

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The best part? You’re not just spending miles — you’re earning them, too. When you pay for Business Class, you’re earning more miles to fuel future upgrades and getting elite status credit.

The real victory is getting there in First Class for a fraction of the cost.

[["\nTo/From Europe","Upgradeable\nBusiness Class Fare","Cost to Buy 140,000 Miles at\nthe Sale Cost of 1.3 Cents Each","Typical Published\nFirst Class Fare","\nSavings","#colspan#"],["Boston - Athens","$2,997","$4,826","$10,785","$5,959","\n55%"],["Boston - Bilbao","$2,974","$4,803","$10,763","$5,960","#rowspan#"],["Boston - Copenhagen","$2,871","$4,700","$10,785","$6,085","56%"],["Boston - Dublin","$2,799","$4,628","$10,763","$6,135","57%"],["Boston - Milan","$2,991","$4,820","$10,779","$5,959","55%"],["Boston - Palma","$2,973","$4,802","$10,798","$5,996","56%"],["Boston - Venice","$2,988","$4,817","$10,777","$5,960","55%"],["Chicago - Barcelona","$2,983","$4,812","$10,422","$5,610","54%"],["Chicago - Dublin","$3,069","$4,898","$10,413","$5,515","53%"],["Chicago - Rome","$2,966","$4,795","$10,437","$5,642","54%"],["New York - Copenhagen","$2,997","$4,826","$10,785","$5,959","55%"],["New York - Dublin","$2,789","$4,618","$10,763","$6,145","57%"],["New York - Warsaw","$2,987","$4,816","$10,775","$5,959","55%"]]

[["\n\nTo/From","Outbound","#colspan#","#colspan#","Return","#colspan#","#colspan#"],["#rowspan#","4 to 8 Days per Month","9 to 12 Days per Month","13+ Days per Month","4 to 8 Days per Month","9 to 12 Days per Month","13+ Days per\nMonth"],["Boston - Frankfurt","Oct., Sept.","Nov., May","Nov. to April, May, July to Aug.","","Nov., May, Sept.","Nov., Dec. to April, June to Aug."],["Chicago - Frankfurt","Nov., Dec., May, June","Nov., Jan., Feb., April, May","Feb., March, April, June, July, Aug.","Nov., March, May, June, Sept.","Nov., Dec., April, May, July, Aug.","Dec., Jan., Feb., March, April, May, June to Aug."],["Los Angeles- Frankfurt","March, July, Aug.","","","March, Aug.","",""],["New York - Frankfurt","Nov., Dec., April, June","Nov., Dec.","Jan. to Feb., July, Aug.","Nov., Dec., April, June, July, Aug.","","Jan. to Feb."],["San Francisco - Frankfurt","Jan., March, July, Aug.","","","Dec., Jan., June, Feb., March, July","Dec., Jan., March, Aug.","Feb."],["Washington, DC - Frankfurt","","July, Aug. ","","","April","April, May to Aug., Sept."],["Boston - Munich","","May","April, May, June to Aug.","","","April to Aug."],["New York - Munich","May, June","April, June","July, Aug.","April, May, Sept.","May, June","July, Aug."]]