I’m a traveler who often makes last-minute plans. The secret to my habit is points and miles. A surprise trip to New York for the U.S. Open Tennis Championships at the end of the summer is a great example.
I had the opportunity to participate in the US Open in August, but due to the busyness of work and life, I had to put my plans on the back burner. I only had three days left before the event, so I wanted to fly business class from Los Angeles to New York. I decided to use points and miles to save money.
Here’s how I booked a round-trip business class flight from LAX to JFK with just $25 out of my pocket. And of course, I also got to experience two nights of electric tennis action.
A primer on points and miles
One of the best ways to maximize your points and miles is by accumulating flexible credit card rewards. Having flexible point currencies like Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, and Bilt Rewards means you can book on nearly every major airline. So in addition to accumulating air miles (with airlines like American Airlines), I also make sure to accumulate credit card points.
Flexible points are valuable because they can be transferred directly to a variety of airlines and hotels. Transferring credit card points is a more advanced strategy than redeeming points or miles directly at a travel portal, but it can be useful in some situations.
For example, Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be transferred to a United Airlines MileagePlus account at a 1:1 ratio (1 Chase point equals 1 United mile). Or, in my example below, Bilt Rewards points can be transferred to Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles (also at a 1:1 ratio).
How you made your reservation
Booking a flight last minute can result in a higher ticket price, but the opposite can be true if you use points or miles. In some cases, airlines may prefer to book seats for fewer miles than depart with empty seats.
In my experience, of the major U.S. airlines, American Airlines is the most likely to offer last-minute reservations for these so-called “saver” benefits. Let’s take an example involving a flight similar to the one I booked.
Typically, American Airlines offers lie-flat business class seats between JFK and LAX for 100,000 American AAdvantage miles. The required miles after 2 weeks are as follows:
american airlines
However, American Airlines sometimes lowers the price of these awards, especially at the last minute when seats are still available. Here’s the same itinerary, but departing just three days later.
View flights available for American Airlines points.
american airlines
As you can see, the miles are discounted significantly. In my case, I was able to book a one-way ticket from LAX to JFK for the same 31,000 miles and $5.60 in tax and fly to the US Open in business class on the LieFlat American Flagship.
For my return flight to LAX two nights later, I decided to book a different option on American Airlines. My American AAdvantage mileage balance was running low, but I still wanted to get on a plane and fly home.
Here’s how flexible points transfer can help (along with knowledge about airline alliances and last-minute availability).
Instead of redeeming my miles for an American Airlines flight, I decided to use my Alaska Airlines miles to book the same American Airlines flight. Alaska Airlines and American Airlines are partners and both are part of the oneworld alliance. This means you can use Alaska miles to book flights in the United States (and vice versa). Most flights won’t show up online, but if they have a “save money” offer, they will.
Most importantly, unlike the US, Alaska is also a remittance partner for the leading flexible currency, Built Rewards. This means I was able to transfer 35,000 Built Points to my Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan account and it was transferred instantly.
Alaska is slightly more expensive than booking directly with American. I had to cough up 35,000 miles and $19 in taxes and fees.
Was it worth it?
To summarize, my total cost was 66,000 miles (31,000 miles on American Airlines and 35,000 miles on Alaska Airlines via Bild) and $25 in cash for round-trip business class from New York to Los Angeles.
This luxury transcontinental route can be very expensive, with business class seats typically costing more than $1,000 each way. With this mileage reservation, I got all the same benefits as someone who paid in cash, including lounge access at both JFK and LAX, a lie-flat seat, and a multi-course meal on board.
It was well worth the effort to find an available award seat. Growing up in suburban New Jersey, it was always a tradition for me to attend the U.S. Open every year. I was able to watch my favorite sporting events live and catch up with friends across the coast.
