There are countless chances to book travel at a discount, from paid ticket sales to redemption programs.
Few deals, though, are as dependable as the Promo Rewards that Air France-KLM Flying Blue offers each month.
These specials, which offer savings on flights to and from particular cities or area pairs, frequently appear on the Flying Blue website.
There is a predetermined travel window and all discounts are only bookable through the end of the month.
Economy flights from the United States to Europe are currently available for as little as 11,250 Flying Blue miles, plus all relevant taxes and fees. Flying Blue miles are easily transferable from a variety of transferable points schemes.
Basics of deals
Airlines: KLM and Air France.
Routes: To and from Europe, there are flights from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York (JFK), Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD), Miami International Airport (MIA), Dulles International Airport (IAD), San Francisco International Airport (SFO), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA).
Cost: varies by airport.
Starting at 11,250 miles each way (to/from JFK and ORD), the most expensive route in economy class is 22,125 miles each way (to/from SEA).
Travel is available from October 1, 2022, through March 31, 2023.
Pay the taxes and fees with one of the following cards: Citi Premier® Card (3 points per dollar on travel), Chase Sapphire Reserve (3 points per dollar on travel), American Express® Gold Card (3 points per dollar on travel when booked directly with the airline or through Amex Travel), or The Platinum Card® from American Express (5 points per dollar on airfare booked directly with the airline or through Amex Travel, on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year) (2 points per dollar on travel).
Between North America and Europe, promotional rewards
This month, you may discover inexpensive economy award flights starting at just 11,250 miles round-trip from four North American airports to numerous locations in Europe.
There are advertised economy deals from Miami, Washington, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Seattle, but the lowest awards are from New York and Chicago.
The promo awards from Air France and KLM on the West Coast are the cheapest at 15,000 miles one-way.
Additionally, KLM offers incentives from Seattle to Europe for 15,000 miles each way.
Remember that you may book Flying Blue awards all around Europe, often at no additional miles, even though the majority of long-haul Air France and KLM flights fly to Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS).
Here is the Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport route from San Francisco to Barcelona (BCN).
Flying Blue miles are worth 1.2 cents each, so you can book a round-trip economy journey to Europe for less than $300, which is a fantastic price.
The low taxes and fees on Flying Blue flights are a drawback, so before making a reservation, compare the total award cost to the price of a cash ticket.
These Promo Rewards tickets must be purchased by October 31 in order to be good for travel through March 31.
There is a modified rebooking policy for Promo Rewards, which you can read about here, even though they typically "cannot be amended, cancelled, or refunded."
Additionally, it appeared that the rebooking guidelines for promo awards were the same as those for regular economy-class award tickets.
How to book
On the websites for Air France or KLM, purchase Promo Rewards tickets.
Once you've logged in, go to the home page of your account and click the "Book with Miles" button.
Next, enter the itinerary of your choice and press the red search button.
When I looked, I found reasonably decent availability for the rest of the year at Washington's Dulles Airport.
You'll see that KLM's connecting trip via Amsterdam uses fewer miles than Air France's nonstop flight.
You should never transfer points without specific dates in mind if you intend to use them to book this award. Instead, identify award space first and then transfer your points.
Getting Flying Blue miles
Fortunately, since the program partners with all of the major transferable points currencies, increasing your Flying Blue balance is simple.
Points from American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Capital One, Chase Ultimate Rewards, and Citi ThankYou Rewards can be transferred at a 1:1 ratio.
Additionally, Marriott points can be transferred at a 3:1 ratio with a bonus of 5,000 miles for every 60,000 points transferred.
According to our tests, transfers made with Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, and Citi should post instantly.
Sadly, that wasn't the case with the Marriott test transfer, which took three days to reach our Flying Blue account.
In other words, if you want to make a quick reservation, your best bet is to use credit card points.
Enhance your purchase
Don't forget to pay taxes and fees on your award ticket using a card that earns extra points on airfare transactions.
Some of the best cards are Citi Premier (3 points per dollar on travel), Chase Sapphire Reserve (3 points per dollar on travel), American Express Gold Card (3 points per dollar on airfare when booked directly with the airline or through Amex Travel), The Platinum Card from American Express (5 points per dollar on airfare booked directly with the airline or through Amex Travel, on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year), or Chase Sapphire Preferre (2 points per dollar on travel).
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