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New Zealand is an ultimate destination for many as the island nation provides idyllic scenery and desirable weather. As you’re flying to the other side of the world, flying to New Zealand with points in business class is ideal for comfort and minimizing your out-of-pocket costs. Here’s how it can be done.
How To Fly to New Zealand with Points in Business Class
If you want to fly to New Zealand with points in business class, you can. It won’t be as difficult as you might think. Here’s how you can do it with a couple of the top airlines.
United Airlines
You can fly on United Airlines Polaris business class from San Francisco (SFO) to Auckland (AKL) for as low as 100,000 miles one-way. This is one of the most affordable business-class routes to fly to New Zealand. However, inventory can be limited as there are relatively few flights, and demand can be high.
You can anticipate paying as much as 250,000 or even 300,000 per business class seat when booking through United. Most non-stop flights depart from Los Angeles and San Francisco.
If you have a United Airlines credit card, you can use your United miles from your card. Or, if you have certain Chase cards, you can transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards® points at a 1:1 ratio to United, which is your best transfer option. One writer used her Chase Sapphire Reserve® to get to New Zealand.
Another consideration is the Marriott Bonvoy airline miles bonus, as you get more miles when transferring to United versus the other airline transfer partners. You will receive 10,000 bonus miles for every 60,000 points transferred versus 5,000 bonus miles for the other carrier. The transfer ratio is 3:1, meaning 3,000 Bonvoy Points equals 1,000 airline miles.
American Airlines
You can find business class itineraries on American Airlines from 80,000 miles each way from 80,000 miles each way. However, you may need to make two stops depending on your origin point. One sample itinerary from this price point is from Dallas to Los Angeles (American-operated), LAX to Sydney (American-operated), and Sydney to Auckland (Qantas-operated).
American also operates non-stop service from Dallas-Ft. Worth (DFW) to Auckland with prices starting at 100,500 miles in business/first on a 787-9 Boeing Dreamliner.
Depending on your travel dates, one-way flight prices require from 100,000 to 450,000 miles.
Even with competitive prices, it’s worth asking, what points transfer to American Airlines? In most cases, you will need to convert hotel points, but Bilt Points are a flexible solution.
Delta Air Lines
Delta SkyMiles won’t be the cheapest premium cabin option to fly to New Zealand with points in business class. A non-stop flight from Los Angeles to Auckland requires 410,000 miles in the carrier’s Delta One service. Still, if you are a frequent Delta flyer, you may find that this is the best option.
Premium cabin flights have a similar 410,000-mile price tag from other departure points across the United States with one stop. Co-brand Delta Skymiles credit card customers can lessen the sting with the Delta award travel discount.
ANA
Al Nippon Airways (ANA) can also be worth pursuing as they have competitive business-class flight prices. Anticipate spending 120,000 miles one way, although you will need to spend time searching for availability and may need to make a stopover along the way.
You can transfer American Express Membership Rewards® to ANA. It’s also possible to book a Star Alliance partner flight through the United Airlines platform.
Summary of How to Fly to New Zealand with Points in Business Class
Getting to New Zealand may not be as easy or cheap as other destinations (such as Europe or the Caribbean), but these award flight options make luxury travel attainable. You can fly for as little as 100,000 miles with a flexible travel schedule.
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Also need to add Alaska for 55,000 miles with the chance to stopover in Fiji. Alas just checked yesterday and could only see east coast as alaska does not seem to be connecting to West Coast.