Top Options for Summer 2016 Business Class to Europe on Oneworld and Star Alliance Airlines
Top Options for Summer 2016 Business Class to Europe on Oneworld and Star Alliance Airlines
Get busy because some of these strategies require booking now.
Last month FCF covered SkyTeam in The FCF Playbook, a new column. In this issue, we’re doubling up because of the advance-purchase requirement on some fares. The format is identical to last month. We cover options for both elites and non-elites, outline the best options for earning elite miles and elite dollars, show how flexibility pays off, and weigh the merits of gambling on a pop-up fare versus locking in plans.
The Oneworld Playbook covers Air Berlin, American, British Airways, and Iberia. We did not include Finnair because it does not have a credit-card transfer partner.
The Star Alliance Playbook covers Austrian, Brussels, LOT, Lufthansa, Singapore, SWISS, and United. We excluded Air Canada, Scandinavian Airlines, TAP, and Turkish Airlines for reasons ranging from not having a mileage upgrade program to not having a credit card transfer partner.
The FCF Playbook: Summer Business Class to Europe on oneworld Airlines
| Booking Option | British Airways | Iberia | Airberlin | American | Upgrade Option Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mileage Upgrade (Using Cash and Miles) | Elites: Good option if you need EQMs, as you earn more EQMs for upgradable Premium Economy (T class), 1.5 versus 1 on an AA discounted economy fare. Everyone Else: Use miles for a free award because upgrade and free space are pulled from the same inventory. Cheapest way to book a BA flight is on Japan Airlines, which avoids the big tax imposed by BA on an upgrade (save $400 to $600). | Elites and Everyone Else: Forget about upgrades. Upgradeable fares are high. New YorkMadrid for example costs $2,854 in economy (H class) in July, plus 34,000 miles (off-peak), but Business Class is $2,677. A free ticket costs as little as 68,000 miles from NYC (LAX |starts 85,000) offpeak in summer. | Elites: A bad EQM deal on low economy tickets, which only earn .5 EQMs. Everyone Else: Go for the upgrade because the cost can be low. JFK-Berlins upgradable fare (E) is only $1,248 and 50,000 miles roundtrip for July travel, while Business Class goes for $4,980, a savings of $3,732. Airberlin is a Starwood transfer partner, so 40,000 points gets 50,000 miles. | Elites: EQM desperadoes, go for the upgrade, as AA usually offers much more inventory than free awards. The savings is not always great: In July, New York-London, including the co-pay, is $2,482, plus 50,000 miles, whereas a Business Class ticket is $3,254, $772 more. But on the paid economy ticket you only earn 1 EQM, whereas on the Business Class ticket you earn 2 EQMs. Everyone Else: Upgrade is an option on high-fare routes (i.e. Los Angeles to Frankfurt which goes for $5,000+) and from the West Coast, since the upgrade often saves some money and the miles required are not bad at 50,000, plus the inventory is pulled from different buckets, so you have a better chance of getting an upgrade when a free award is not available. | Elites: Upgrade if youre desperate for EQMs on AA or BA. Everyone Else: Forget about British Airways and Iberia, unless theres a great fare sale for Premium Economy on BA. American and Airberlin are an option when Business Class fares are high since the upgrade often saves money and miles required from economy are reasonable |
The FCF Playbook: Summer Business Class to Europe on oneworld Airlines
| Booking Option | American Miles | Multi-Airline Currency (MAC) Miles (British Airways, Iberia, Airberlinvia Amex Rewards, Chase, and Starwood) |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miles (Free Award Tickets) | The odds that a free saver award ticket will be available on your exact route and dates are low. Flexibility is key. If you're not, you'll wind up paying cash (more on that below). If you're using miles for a free ticket, you're probably not an elite-focused flyer, so, you have no reason to amass AA miles. Get rid of those AA credit cards. If you're a die-hard elite, think about upgrades and if you're not, think about MAC points. | You can get lucky, because there are many airlines available through these cards. Check free award space firstdont forget the last page of the FCF monthly newsletter and our newsrooms Sweet Redeems. Keep in mind that Iberia (Starwood and Amex partner) is again the best bet here, starting at 68,000 from NYC and 85,000 from LAX (32% savings) off-peak. You can buy the miles through Amex Rewards. Second best: Airberlin (80,000 miles), a Starwood transfer partner. The chances are decent using BA/Iberia/Airberlin miles, which you can transfer or buy from Amex Rewards and Starwood. The only downside: high taxes. Find routes that have had sweet redeems in the past on AA and BA, and remember, for no extra cost in miles, you can get a feeder flight to the domestic gateway and/or a connection beyond the European destination when using AA miles. | ||||
| Cash | Like Certainty or Not Flexible on Dates or Routes | Somewhat Flexible or Lite Risk-Taker | Aggressive Upgrade Gamer | |||
| Advice: Book in advance. The lowest fares require a 150-day advance purchase, nowadays; the second best deal is often when buying more than one ticket (usually 50-day advance purchase). Don't wait: 150 days from now is the beginning of August. | Advice: Grab a published EasyUp fare, even if its to a different city in Europe or through a different alliance. At $1,300 to $2,400, EasyUps are often the best deal, but they dont last long (often only days or hours). Over the last three months we have not seen oneworld offer any of these fares for summer 2016, but Star Alliance had a promo, in which Business Class fares started at $1,684 from the East Coast, $2,200 from the Midwest, and $3,300 from the West Coast (we expect to see more of these fares for summer travel). Virgin Atlantic had EasyUp fares starting at $1,339 on several occasions (more recently Shannon had fares starting at $1,949). Stay on top of Flash EasyUp fares through the FCF Daily Alerts. | Advice: Have a back-up plan. Use miles for a sweet redeem perhaps, but also look for an amazing fare right up until departure (and just redeposit/save your miles for a trip that doesn’t have a discounted fare). To find an EasyUp Fare will require aggressive patience, and knowing when to spring for another option as departure date gets closer. This is what FCF refers to as The Upgrade Two-Step: Lock in something, likely an award, and then wait for a $1,300 Business Class fare to come along (which would ideally be upgradable to First). Even if it doesn’t, youre still covered. |
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The FCF Playbook: Summer Business Class to Europe on Star Alliance Airlines
| Booking Option | Austrian, Brussels, LOT, Lufthansa, SWISS (Miles & More) | Singapore | United | Upgrade Option Summary | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mileage Upgrade (Using Cash and Miles) | Elites: Think twice because this option earns no PQDs towards elite status. Everyone Else: Upgrade only when Business Class fares are really high, as the upgrade offers modest savings and requires 60,000 miles r/t from discounted Premium Economy (E class). Chicago-Frankfurt costs $2,939 in July, while a Business Class ticket is $4,704. But always compare, in August, JFK-Frankfurt costs $2,839 in Premium Economy, while a Business Class ticket is $2,512. Lufthansas upgrade and free award space are pulled from the same bucket and a free award costs only 105,000 miles r/t, so go for a free ticket. (Economy to Business Class upgrades are also offered but have no value since the lowest economy fares require 100,000 miles for the upgrade r/t.) | Only two routes between Europe & the U.S.: Houston-Moscow and New York-Frankfurt. Elites: Think twice because this option earns no PQDs towards elite status. Everyone Everyone Else: Houston-Moscow the savings is huge, $5,488+ (79%), a great option if you do not have access to a lot of miles. Economy costs $1,487 (E class) in May, plus 60,000 miles r/t, while Business Class fares start at $6,975. JFK-Frankfurt savings are only $800+, but an ok option if you do not have access to a lot of miles. Premium Economy costs $1,666 (E class) in July, plus 60,000 miles r/t, while Business Class fares start at just $2,494. A free ticket for both routes only costs 115,000 miles r/t, and the inventory bucket is the same. | Elites: If you are desperate to earn EQMs and EQDs, then go with an upgrade, as they are much more plentiful than free awards. But the savings are hit and miss. In July, New York-London (including co-pay) is $2,482 plus 50,000 miles, while a Business Class ticket is $3,254. You save $772, but only earn 1 EQM on the paid economy ticket, whereas you earn two on the Business Class ticket. Everyone Else: Try to upgrade when Business Class fares are high, which is often, as it only costs 50,000 miles, and is much easier to find than free tickets | Elites: Upgrade only with United if youre desperate for the MQDs. Everyone Everyone Else: Upgrade savings vary by route and airline, so only use when Business Class fares are high. |
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| Miles (Free Award Tickets) | United Miles | Multi-Airline Currency (MAC) Miles Air Canada, Austrian, Brussels, LOT, Lufthansa, SWISS (Miles & More program), Singaporevia Amex Rewards, Citi ThankYou and Starwood |
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| The odds that a free saver award ticket will be available on your exact schedule and dates are low. Flexibility is key; if youre not, youll have to pay cash (see below)or book coach, waitlist Business, sweat buckets in the meantime, and likely be unhappy in the end. If youre using miles for a free ticket, youre probably not elite-focused, so theres no incentive to go for United miles, especially on international routes. My advice: Get rid of your United credit cards. If youre a die-hard elite, think about upgrades (see above) and if youre not, think about MAC points (see right). | You can get lucky, because there are many airlines available through these cards. Keep an eye on our Sweet Redeems. Keep in mind that the Miles & More program has the best rate here (105,000 miles round-trip), which you can get via Starwood for only 85,000 points. The only downside: high taxes. There are no extra charges for the connecting flight to a domestic gateway and/or beyond the European hub. | |||||
| Cash | Like Certainty or Inflexible on Dates or Routes | Somewhat Flexible or Lite Risk-Taker | Aggressive Upgrade Gamer | |||
| Advice: Book now. The lowest fares require a 150-day advance-purchase, which as of today is the beginning of August. The second best deal is when youre buying more than one ticket (50-day advance-purchase). | Advice: Grab a published EasyUp fare, even if its to a different city in Europe or through a different alliance. At $1,300 to $2,400, EasyUps are often the best deal, but they dont last long (often only days or hours). Star Alliance had a recent promo offering Business Class fares at $1,684 from the East Coast, $2,200 from the Midwest, and $3,300 from the West Coast. Virgin Atlantic had EasyUp fares starting at $1,339, and more recently six major airlines had fares to Shannon starting at $1,949. Stay on top of Flash EasyUp fares through FCF Daily Alerts. | Advice: Have a back-up plan, perhaps using miles for a Sweet Redeem, then look for an amazing fare right up until departure (just redeposit your miles). To find an EasyUp Fare requires aggressive patience and knowing when to spring for another option as departure date approaches. This is what FCF refers to as The Upgrade Two-Step: Lock in something, likely an award, and then wait for a $1,300 Business Class fare to come along (which would ideally be upgradable to First). Even if it doesnt, youre still covered. |
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