This post is about the Flying Blue program as a great choice for family travel. Looking for a travel rewards program that offers more than just award flights here and there? Look no further! The Flying Blue program is a treasure trove for travelers who need more than one seat and want to take advantage of transfer bonuses that make award bookings a breeze.
Unlocking Abundant Award Seats
If you’ve been struggling to find flights that accept your hard-earned miles, you’re not alone. Many airlines make it difficult to book using miles, which can be frustrating after you’ve spent so much time accumulating them. Don’t worry! Air France and KLM have your back with plenty of award seats to choose from.
For example, you can find nine business class seats on flights from New York to Paris! That’s right, NINE! Whether you’re planning a family reunion or a romantic honeymoon, all those seats can help bring your travel dreams to life. It is not just the East Coast; there are loads of seats available from the West Coast too. Check out Vancouver to Paris or Los Angeles to Paris routes.
How about KLM? Their long-haul flights also offer an abundance of award seats, often providing up to seven to nine seats per route. And if that’s not enough, you can earn Miniature KLM Delft Blue Houses along the way!
Maximize Your Points with The Flying Blue Program
Why are there so many award seats available? It’s all thanks to the joint loyalty program Flying Blue. Air France and KLM save extra award tickets for their loyal members to redeem There are plenty of ways to earn Flying Blue miles, and credit cards are one of the easiest.
Credit Card Points Transfer
Earning Flying Blue points is a piece of cake. There are four major US credit card rewards systems you can convert points from any of these programs into your Flying Blue account at a 1:1 rate, including:
Worried about wait times when transferring points from the bank? The good news is that transfers to your Flying Blue account are almost instantaneous, making it easy to snag award seats as soon as they become available.
Boost Your Points with Transfer Bonuses
The standard 1:1 transfer rate is common in the US, but it can get even better! Credit card rewards programs often offer bonus transfer deals. For instance, Amex recently offered a 25% bonus, and Chase UR is currently running a 25% boost too. With a 25% bonus, transferring 1,000 points nets you 1,250 Flying Blue miles, which is a 0.8:1 conversion rate.
Get Ready for Amazing Trips
Flying Blue miles offer fantastic value for solo and group travel alike.
- Example: One-Way Trip from Vancouver to Paris
Let’s revisit the example of nine available award seats on Air France business class from Vancouver to Paris. It costs 450,000 miles plus $2,053 in taxes for all nine people. That breaks down to 50,000 miles plus $228 per person. Considering a one-way business class ticket in cash costs around $4,200, those 50,000 Flying Blue miles give you nearly $4,000 in value (4,206 minus 228 = 3,978). That’s an amazing 8 cents per mile!
- Example: Return Trip from New York to Paris
Looking at a return trip from New York to Paris, using miles can offer significant savings. For instance, a round-trip business class ticket can cost around $2,857 in cash. If you use Flying Blue miles, you’ll need 100,000 miles plus $535 in taxes, which works out to 2.32 cents per mile. This option generates 35% additional value for each mile you earn.
More Redemption Across the World for Your Family Travel
As mentioned earlier, Flying Blue partners with many US credit card companies, making it easy to convert flexible points into Flying Blue miles. Sometimes Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR) offers bonus on transfers to Flying Blue, so it could be a great chance to convert those points if you have a Chase UR account.
We have created the following bucket lists for the destinations that people are most looking forward to visiting:
Fancy a Family Luxury Safari
- Route: New York (JFK) to Nairobi (NBO), Kenya
Availability: Three to five seats! As low as we see 95,000 Flying Blue miles per person vs. a revenue ticket priced at $4,970+ on Air France. Your miles are worth more than 5.0 cents per mile.
With 25% Transfer Bonus: The miles will become 76,000 Flying Blue miles per person, increasing the value to over 5.5 cents per mile. Given that points earned from sign-up offers are valued at $1.13 ~ $1.15, the effective cost of your business class ticket is approximately $1,100 ~ $1,200.
Take a New Perspective on Europe
- Route: Tokyo to Paris (CDG)
Availability: Three seats in the inventory! 95,000 Flying Blue miles per person vs. a revenue ticket priced at $4,200+ on Air France Business Class.
With 25% Transfer Bonus: The miles will become 76,000 Flying Blue miles per person, offering a similar cpp and value as the first case.
Discovering Europe
- Route: Venice to Manchester
Mileage for this route is as low as 8,500 miles vs. $200 ~ $300 cash.
With the 25% transfer bonus: the mileage cost drops to 6,800 miles per person.
Based on points earned from credit card sign-up offers, the ticket price is around $110, resulting in a 45% saving. While low-cost carriers are an option, their prices may increase due to additional fees. There are more than six flights a day running between Venice and Manchester (via Amsterdam or Paris).
Dive into the Great Barrier Reef
- Route: Brisbane to Cairns, Australia
Qantas is one of partner airlines of Flying Blue, even though it is not a SkyTeam member. 7,000 Flying Blue miles for this 2-hour flight on Qantas in economy class.
With 25% Transfer Bonus: The mileage cost drops to 5,600 miles per person, and the value becomes more than 5.0 cents per mile.
Cash price starts as low as $150 one way, but the policy for this fare is restrictive and may end up costing more than expected.
South Pacific Island Dreams
- Route: Los Angeles (LAX) to Papeete
Availability: Nine seats! 70,000 Flying Blue miles per person flying to Tahiti in Air France business class vs. a $3,800 cash price.
With 25% Transfer Bonus: The mileage cost becomes 56,000 miles per person, reducing the cost to about $840 and saving over 80% (the value is jetted up to more than 6.7 cents per mile).
Returning Home to Asia
- Route: Vancouver to Hong Kong
98,500 Flying Blue miles per person traveling via Taipei in business class on China Airlines, a Taiwan-based carrier, with five seats available.
With 25% Transfer Bonus: The mileage cost drops to 78,800 miles per person for a $4,000 revenue ticket.
- Route: Los Angeles to Taipei
95,000 Flying Blue miles per person, with common availability of two to four seats from the West Coast.
With 25% Transfer Bonus: The mileage cost becomes 76,000 miles per person. The cash price for one business class ticket on China Airlines Airbus A350 and Boeing 777-300ER aircrafts and Michelin-starred menu is nearly $4,000. This is an exceptional value not found elsewhere.
Take Advantage of Points Diversity
Flying Blue runs different bonus transfer promotions every month. It’s essential to “gather as many different flexible credit card points as possible” to capitalize on future bonus transfer deals. Here are some great sign-up bonuses you can take advantage of:
- Chase Ink Business Preferred: Earn 100,000 points when you spend $8,000 in three months with just a $95 annual fee.
- Amex Gold Card: Earn 60,000 points when you spend $6,000 in six months with a $250 annual fee, plus $240 in statement credits.
- Capital One Venture X: Earn 75,000 points when you spend $4,000 in three months with a $395 annual fee, but receive $300 in statement credits and a renewal gift worth over $100.
Earning Through Buy Points Promotion
If none of these credit cards appeal to you or you prefer not to increase your credit line, buying miles directly might be a smart move. Flying Blue often offers sales on miles, so keep an eye on TripPlus for the latest deals. The usual price is 1.53 cents per mile (10,000 miles for $153). It will be a separate topic in the future if you are interested.
Final Thoughts
Flying Blue is a hidden gem for making big group and family travel a reality. You can find 4 ~ 9 seats on various routes around the world, allowing you to travel in style without breaking the bank. Earning Flying Blue miles is easy with partnerships from the major US credit card issuers. Whether you’re collecting points from sign-up offers or taking advantage of bonuses, Flying Blue offers exceptional value and makes (family) traveling a dream come!
