I want to be very clear: this is NOT the best points redemption for transatlantic business class flights! But I’m sharing it anyway because I’m sure many will still be interested… and especially because I want to show you a preview of our new pages for deals in points!!!
If you haven’t read our guide on how to fly in business class for less than economy class, you won’t understand anything here. And that’s normal; you need to know the basics first.
Flights in luxurious lie-flat business class pod seats paid for in points (instead of paid for in cash, for several thousand dollars) are literally and objectively the best deal that exists in the entire travel world (in terms of how much money you save).
So obviously, you need to put in a little bit of effort. It’s just logical.
Here are the details of business class seats spotted on Air France and KLM for direct flights this summer thanks to Flying Blue miles (you can transfer your Amex points).
Basics of transatlantic business class flights
Aeroplan points are the best for business class flights across the Atlantic specifically. I just paid 60,000 points, the guaranteed fixed price on 40+ partner airlines, for the excellent business class on Lufthansa’s A350 from Montreal to Munich. The taxes/fees were only $119.
But there are other programs that can be alternatives, even if they’re not as good for those who want to pay the least possible (like us).
Avios points can be good, but with way fewer available seats. You can get them by transferring RBC Avion points, with a free 30% bonus until the end of the day today (that’s we just updated our post on the best redemptions of Avios points).
Air France-KLM Flying Blue miles can also be good, but with several caveats that I’ll explain. You can get them by transferring Amex points, but the rate is slightly less good than for Aeroplan and Avios: 1-to-0.75 (instead of 1-to-1).
Basics of the dates spotted on Air France and KLM (direct flights)
There are currently several seats available in good business classes on direct transatlantic flights for this summer!
It costs 50,000 Flying Blue points from Montreal/Ottawa/Toronto/Vancouver to Paris or Amsterdam. These are direct flights on Air France and KLM, among the best European airlines.
But the main caveat is that the program unfortunately charges much more in taxes/fees than Aeroplan: about $360.
It’s still obviously cheaper than the price of these flights in cash…
But it’s clear that it’s not as good as with Aeroplan.
Especially since to get 50,000 Flying Blue points, you need to transfer 66,667 Amex points (while you only need 50,000 Amex points to get 50,000 Aeroplan points).
This still gives you an excellent value of 8.3¢ per Amex point, but it’s actually less than the 6.5¢/pt value I just got with Aeroplan… because to calculate the real value, it’s best to use the roundtrip cash price and divide it by 2 (one-ways in cash are way overpriced).
It’s still much better than our conservative Flytrippers valuation of ≈ 1.5¢/pt (or ≈ 2.1¢/pt for business class).
I’m still sharing the dates because I know how many travelers are unfortunately unable to make a simple connection, the only way to easily find available business class seats!
Paris and Amsterdam on direct flights will be more expensive with Aeroplan (because there are no partner flights). And I know how many travelers love Western Europe (unfortunately, considering the huge overtourism problem currently).
So if you absolutely want direct flights to these 2 cities. Or if you don’t feel like searching for available seats with lower taxes/fees with Aeroplan, this might interest you.
I had shared dates we spotted for Aeroplan and Avios in May, so I thought it would be good to share some for Flying Blue too… especially so you can see our new format of point deals.
Dates spotted on Air France and KLM (preview of our new pages for deals in points)
I told you we were preparing a new section for deals in points, and it’s much more complex to do than for our dozens of daily deals in cash.
But we have a first draft page to present to you (don’t hesitate to share your comments at the bottom of this article or at points@flytrippers.com)!
Remember that these are prices in Flying Blue miles! You’ll need to transfer a bit more Amex points to get that amount due to the lower transfer rate.
Toronto-Paris
Toronto-Amsterdam
Ottawa-Paris
Montreal-Paris
Montreal-Amsterdam
Québec City-Paris
Vancouver-Paris
Business class deal from Vancouver to Paris for 60,000 Flying Blue miles one-way!
Edmonton-Amsterdam
Learning how to travel for less
Join over 100,000 savvy Canadian travelers who already receive Flytrippers’ free newsletter so we can help you travel for less — including thanks to the wonderful world of travel rewards!
Summary
This preview of our new business class deals section is to gather your feedback before launch… and obviously to help those who want to go to Europe in luxurious business class this summer (and who have Amex points).
What would you like to know about these business class deals? Tell us in the comments below.
See the flight deals we spot: Cheap flights
Discover free travel with rewards: Travel rewards
Explore awesome destinations: Travel inspiration
Learn pro tricks: Travel tips
Featured image: Paris, France (photo credit: Unsplash+)
