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If you’re considering booking a trip to Europe with the travel rewards you’ve accumulated, now is the time to make it a reality.
When it comes to using points and miles to travel to Europe, there are plenty of redemption options, whether you want to go in economy or splurge to fly in business class. However, some options are better than others, both in terms of comfort and the amount of points you’ll spend.
Let’s take a look at some of the best airline programs to book business-class award flights to Europe. These flights can be booked with popular credit card rewards currencies like American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Capital One miles, Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou by leveraging their respective transfer partners.
Iberia business class to Madrid for 34,000 points
The cheapest way to get to Europe in business class is a sweet spot in points and miles: business class from the East Coast for 34,000 Iberia Plus Avios.
Iberia prices its tickets on peak/off-peak dates and uses a distance-based award chart for its flights. In other words, flying long distances on peak travel dates will cost more Avios (Iberia’s term for airline miles) than short flights on off-peak travel dates.
The exact dates for seasonal pricing vary slightly each year. Fortunately, Iberia is generous with what it considers “off-peak,” with nearly two-thirds of the year falling into that category. You can view all off-peak dates on Iberia’s website.
The distance-based award chart means that the best deal is flying nonstop from certain East Coast airports. During off-peak dates, you’ll pay just 34,000 Avios for a one-way flight in business class from New York (JFK), Boston (BOS), Washington-Dulles (IAD) and Chicago-O’Hare (ORD) to Madrid (MAD). Taxes and fees are under $150 one way and connecting flights cost slightly more Avios.
How to earn Iberia Plus Avios
Earning Iberia Plus Avios is relatively easy as the program partners with Amex Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Capital One miles and Marriott Bonvoy.
Chase also issues the Iberia Visa Signature? Card. This card offers new card members 85,000 Avios after spending $5,000 within the first three months of account opening. Other benefits includes a 10% discount on Iberia flights purchased on iberia.com/Chase10 and no foreign transaction fees.
It’s also important to note that you can transfer British Airways Avios to Iberia Avios and vice-versa. This means that you can book these if you’ve already earned British Airways Avios.
Star Alliance business class for 88,000 miles round-trip
All Nippon Airways (ANA)’s Mileage Club loyalty program is another incredible way to get to Europe. The program’s award charts are incredibly generous and price out significantly better than most other programs.
For just 88,000 miles round trip, you can fly from the US to Europe and back in business class on almost any Star Alliance carrier. The caveat is that you cannot book ANA awards one way, and that this price increases to 110,000 miles for a round-trip ticket on April 18, 2024.
While one-way bookings are not allowed, you can visit two European cities for the price of one by booking an open-jaw ticket where you fly into one city and home from another.
For example, you can fly from JFK to Warsaw (WAW) and then return from Krakow (KRK) for 88,000 miles and roughly $229 in taxes and fees on LOT Polish Airlines. That said, other airlines may have higher taxes and fees since ANA adds fuel surcharges to flights operated by select airlines.
There are plenty of options when flying with Star Alliance, but you may want to focus on the airlines that don’t add fuel surcharges. Examples include LOT Polish Airlines, TAP Air Portugal, Turkish Airlines and United Airlines.
How to earn ANA Mileage Club miles
ANA Mileage Club is an Amex Membership Rewards transfer partner. Transfers occur at a 1:1 ratio and typically take 48 hours to process, according to travel website The Points Guy. Consider finding a couple of back-up itineraries in case your preferred itinerary sells out before points transfer.
Some of our favorite credit cards for earning Amex Membership Rewards points include:
- The Platinum Card? from American Express: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $8,000 on eligible purchases within the first six months of card membership. $695 annual fee (see rates and fees).
- American Express? Gold Card: Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $6,000 on eligible purchases in the first six months; plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first six months of card membership (up to $100 back). Limited Time offer, ends 11/6/24. $325 annual fee (see rates and fees).
- The Blue Business? Plus Credit Card from American Express: Earn 15,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $3,000 within the first three months of card membership. $0 annual fee (see rates and fees).
You can also transfer points from Marriott Bonvoy at a 3:1 rate to ANA Mileage Club. You’ll earn 5,000 bonus ANA miles for every 60,000 Marriott points transferred.
Virgin Atlantic business class for 47,500 miles
Virgin Atlantic is the second largest airline in the UK. It specializes in long-haul travel, which is apparent in its extensive route network from the US to Heathrow (LHR) and Manchester (MAN). If you don’t mind paying high taxes and fees, you might consider booking award tickets with its Flying Club loyalty program.
This is because the program offers one-way business-class flights from the East Coast to the UK for 47,500 miles and from the West Coast to the UK for 67,500 miles. However, expect to pay $900+ in taxes and fees on each one-way business-class ticket.
How to earn Virgin points
You can transfer points from Amex Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Capital One miles, Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou to Virgin Atlantic. Bank of America also issues a Virgin Atlantic credit card.
Looking to earn Capital One miles to transfer to Virgin Atlantic? Consider one of these cards.
- Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 within the first three months from account opening. $95 annual fee.
- Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 within the first three months of account opening. $395 annual fee.
- Capital One Spark Miles for Business: 50,000 bonus miles after spending $4,500 within the first three months of account opening. $95 annual fee.
- Capital One Venture X Business: 150,000 bonus miles after spending $30,000 within the first three months of account opening. $395 annual fee.
Further, Marriott Bonvoy points transfer at a 3:1 ratio, with a 5,000-point bonus awarded for each transfer of 60,000 Marriott points.
Air France or KLM business class for 50,000 miles (or less)
Another great way to get to Europe is with Air France-KLM Flying Blue. It uses dynamic pricing, meaning that award prices vary depending on the route and day you choose to book. Although this may inflate mileage redemptions at peak travel times, you can still find very cheap awards.
We’ve found that the “base” level for business-class flights from the US to Europe is usually 50,000 miles. You’ll generally find this price on off-peak travel dates or when booking far in advance.
For example, here’s a sample business-class flight we found from New York-JFK to Prague (PRG) via Paris (CDG) in Feb. 2025. It costs just 50,000 miles and $223 one-way.
Flying Blue program also offers promotional fares dubbed Promo Rewards. These awards are available on flights to/from select airports and are offered for a reduced number of miles, sometimes half of what would be normally be required. Promo Rewards change every month and are valid for travel during a specific period.
This month, you can fly from Houston (IAH) to various European destinations in economy for just 15,000 miles one way. Keep an eye on Flying Blue’s Promo Rewards page for the latest fares.
It’s also worth noting that Flying Blue levies carrier-imposed surcharges on award tickets. Expect to pay between $200 and $350 per one-way business-class flight depending on your final destination.
How to earn Flying Blue miles
Earning Flying Blue miles is incredibly easy since it’s a transfer partner of nearly every major transferable currency, including Amex Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Capital One miles, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy.
All transfers occur at a 1:1 ratio, except with Marriott Bonvoy. Marriott Bonvoy points transfer at a 3:1 ratio. Again, if you transfer 60,000 points in a single transaction, you will get 5,000 bonus Flying Blue miles.
If you’re looking to transfer Ultimate Rewards points to Flying Blue, consider opening one of these Chase credit cards.
- Chase Sapphire Preferred? Card: Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on the card in the first three months. $95 annual fee.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve?: Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on the card in the first three months. $550 annual fee.
- Ink Business Preferred? Credit Card: Earn 90,000 bonus points after spending $8,000 on the card in the first three months. $95 annual fee.
Book Lufthansa first class for 87,000 miles with Avianca LifeMiles
Finally, we have arguably the most luxurious way to get to Europe using points and miles: Lufthansa first class. However, this is among the hardest flights to book with travel rewards.
This is in large part because award space is very hard to come by. Lufthansa only opens first class award space to partner loyalty programs 15 days before departure, and there are rumors that this window has shortened to as few as three days in recent months.
Regardless, if you can find award space, this is an excellent deal. The best way to book Lufthansa first class is by transferring your credit card rewards to Avianca LifeMiles.
The LifeMiles award chart prices awards based on the region you’re flying to and from. Award rates between North America and Europe start at 63,000 miles in business class and 87,000 miles each way in first class. LifeMiles does not add fuel surcharges to award tickets, so taxes and fees are minimal.
How to earn Avianca LifeMiles
Avianca LifeMiles is a transfer partner of Amex Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards Capital One Miles and Citi ThankYou Rewards. All transfers process at a 1:1 ratio. You can also transfer points from Marriott Bonvoy to Avianca at a 3:1 ratio, but you will not receive a 5,000-mile bonus on large transfers.
Bottom line
With so many airlines flying to Europe, redeeming travel rewards for business-class travel to the region may seem overwhelming. But once you know where to look, the process gets a lot easier.
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