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I'll be the first to admit it. Once you've flown internationally in business class, it's REALLY hard to go back to economy. 😂
The lie-flat seats. The champagne. The actual sleep on an overnight flight instead of arriving at your destination feeling like you haven't closed your eyes in three days.
But there's one thing I refuse to do.
Pay thousands of dollars per person for it.
When our family of four flew business class to Thailand, the cash price for our flights would have been more than $13,000 each way.
Instead, we transferred flexible credit card points to Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer and used them to book our business-class flights, paying just a fraction of the cash price in taxes and fees.
And here's something that makes our strategy a little different from a lot of the business-class award travel advice you'll find online.
We're booking for FOUR people.
Finding one or two business-class award seats is one thing. Finding four seats on the same flight, on dates that work with school schedules, without using every point you've ever earned? That's a completely different challenge. 😂
We have two kids, two working parents, a mortgage, and all the usual expenses that come with raising a family.
So we've had to get pretty strategic about earning enough points, choosing which ones to use for flights, and finding award availability for everyone.
And if you've ever searched for cheap business-class flights only to find tickets costing $4,000, $5,000, or more per person, I'm going to show you why you shouldn't automatically rule them out.
My Strategy for Earning Enough Points for Business Class Flights
Here's something I've learned after years of booking international flights with points: not all credit card points are created equal.
And when I'm trying to earn enough points to book business-class flights for our family of four, there's one particular rewards program I focus on more than the others.
Why? The airline transfer partners are SO good.
I can't name the specific rewards program here because of the advertising guidelines I have to follow. (I know, making this more mysterious than it needs to be. 😂)
But if you're curious, you can see the travel cards I focus on for earning points toward business-class flights here.
Having access to so many airline loyalty programs gives me more options when I'm searching for affordable international business-class flights.
Instead of being limited to one airline, I can search multiple loyalty programs, compare award prices, and transfer my points to whichever eligible partner offers the best redemption.
For example, when we booked our family's business-class flights to Thailand, we transferred flexible credit card points to Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer to book our tickets.
Those flights each way would have cost more than $13,000 in cash, but we were able to use points instead.
And when you're booking for four people instead of one or two, having access to multiple airline transfer partners can make a HUGE difference.
That's why my strategy is to prioritize earning these particular points for international business-class flights, while often using other rewards programs for our hotel stays.
And while earning enough points is important, knowing how to use them is just as important.
Because the same business-class seat can cost wildly different amounts of points depending on which airline loyalty program you book through.
And that's where airline partnerships, award sweet spots, and a few of my favorite flight search tools come in.
1. How to Book Cheap Business Class Flights Through Airline Partners
This is probably one of the biggest things I wish more people understood about booking flights with points and miles.
You don't always have to book through the airline you're actually flying.
Let's say you want to fly Japan Airlines business class to Tokyo.
You might assume you need Japan Airlines miles to book that flight.
But you can also book eligible Japan Airlines flights using American Airlines AAdvantage miles or Atmos Rewards points.
Same airplane. Same lie-flat business-class seat. Different loyalty program.
And potentially a VERY different number of miles required.
That's because airlines have partnerships that allow you to redeem miles for flights operated by other airlines.
Here are a few examples worth knowing:
Japan Airlines: Book eligible flights using American Airlines AAdvantage miles or Atmos Rewards points.
ANA: Book eligible business-class flights to Japan using Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points.
Air France and KLM: Compare Flying Blue pricing with eligible partner awards through Virgin Atlantic.
Lufthansa and SWISS: Look for eligible business-class flights through Air Canada Aeroplan.
And here's where it gets even better.
Some airline loyalty programs are transfer partners with major credit card rewards programs.
So you don't necessarily need to earn miles by flying with that airline. You may be able to transfer credit card points into its loyalty program when you're ready to book.
The catch? Airlines don't make every available seat bookable through their partners.
But once you understand how airline partnerships work, you have SO many more ways to find affordable business-class flights.
And if you're sitting there wondering which credit card points transfer to which airlines, I made something to make that a whole lot easier.
Grab my free Airline Transfer Partner Cheat Sheet to see which credit card rewards programs transfer to which airline loyalty programs.
Because trying to remember all those partnerships in your head? Absolutely not. 😂
2. Best Airline Sweet Spots for Cheap Business Class Flights
If you've started researching how to fly business class with miles, you've probably heard people talk about award travel sweet spots.
Basically, a sweet spot is an opportunity to book a flight for an especially good number of miles compared to other booking options.
And some of these are REALLY good.
Here are a few worth knowing about if you're hoping to book international business-class flights without spending a fortune.
Business Class to Europe Starting at 55,000 Atmos Rewards Points
This is one of my favorite examples of why understanding airline partnerships can save you points.
Atmos Rewards is the shared loyalty program for Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines.
And one of the interesting things about Atmos is that you can redeem points for flights on several international partner airlines.
Certain business-class flights from the United States to Europe can start at just 55,000 Atmos Rewards points one way.
Atmos uses distance-based starting award prices for many partner flights, so the number of points required depends partly on the distance of your itinerary.
For flights between the Americas and Europe, the published starting business-class rates include:
45,000 points one way: 1,501–3,500 miles
55,000 points one way: 3,501–5,000 miles
70,000 points one way: 5,001–7,000 miles
Some partner airlines worth checking include Aer Lingus, Iberia, and Finnair.
And here's what makes this so useful.
You don't need to fly Alaska Airlines to use Atmos Rewards points.
You can search eligible partner flights through Alaska Airlines and redeem your points for those flights.
Just remember that these are starting rates. Actual award pricing, availability, and taxes and fees can vary.
Japan Airlines Business Class Using American Airlines Miles
Japan is one of those destinations where business-class tickets can cost thousands of dollars.
But you may be able to book Japan Airlines business class between the continental United States and Japan for around 60,000 American Airlines miles one way, depending on the route and award availability.
And remember, you're flying Japan Airlines even though you're booking through American Airlines.
Atmos Rewards is another program worth comparing for Japan Airlines business-class flights.
The catch?
Japan Airlines business-class award availability can be difficult to find, especially if you're trying to book multiple seats.
But if Japan is on your travel list, this is absolutely a partnership worth learning about.
ANA Business Class to Japan Using Virgin Atlantic Points
Another popular business-class sweet spot is booking ANA flights to Japan through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
Yes, Virgin Atlantic. Even though ANA is a Japanese airline.
Eligible ANA business-class flights between Japan and the continental United States have published partner award rates starting around:
52,500 Virgin points one way from the Western United States
60,000 Virgin points one way from the Central or Eastern United States
Finding these seats is the challenging part.
ANA business-class availability released to partners can be extremely limited, and booking multiple seats on the same flight is even harder.
You'll also need to consider taxes and carrier-imposed surcharges, and these awards generally require contacting Virgin Atlantic to book.
But this is a great example of why I always recommend checking partner airlines before spending your points.
Air France and KLM Business Class Using Flying Blue
If you're looking for cheap business-class flights to Europe using points, Flying Blue is a program I'd definitely familiarize yourself with.
Flying Blue is the loyalty program for Air France and KLM, and business-class flights between North America and Europe can sometimes start around 60,000 miles one way.
One of my favorite things to check is Flying Blue's monthly Promo Rewards, which offer discounted award pricing on select routes.
But here's something I REALLY love about Flying Blue, especially for families.
Kids ages 2–11 get 25% off eligible award tickets when traveling with an adult!
So if you find a business-class award for 60,000 miles one way, an eligible child's ticket could cost just 45,000 miles.
For our family of four, with two kids in that age range, that could mean:
Two adult tickets: 120,000 miles
Two children's tickets: 90,000 miles
Total: 210,000 miles instead of 240,000!
That's 30,000 miles saved on ONE direction of travel. And when you're booking for four people, I'll take every mileage discount I can get. 😂
The discount applies to eligible award tickets booked through Flying Blue, not the taxes and fees, and you'll still need to find enough available award seats for everyone.
You can also compare eligible Air France and KLM flights through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, but remember that Flying Blue's child discount doesn't automatically apply when booking through a different loyalty program.
My advice? Always compare the total cost in points AND cash before booking.
3. Best Tools to Find Cheap Business Class Award Flights
Okay, so now you know about airline partnerships and sweet spots.
But how do you actually FIND these flights?
Because searching airline websites one at a time can feel like a full-time job. And I already have one of those. 😂
Thankfully, there are some really useful award search tools that can make finding cheap business-class flights with points and miles much easier.
These are three I'd recommend knowing about.
Thrifty Traveler Premium: Find Business Class Flight Deals Without Constantly Searching
One of my favorite strategies is letting a good flight deal help determine where we travel.
Instead of deciding we absolutely HAVE to go to Italy during one specific week, I love seeing what incredible deals are available first.
And that's where Thrifty Traveler Premium comes in.
Thrifty Traveler sends flight deal alerts, including business-class award opportunities, so you don't have to spend hours searching for flights yourself.
You can receive alerts about deals departing from your selected airports, including international flights that can be booked with points and miles.
And sometimes those deals are for destinations you weren't even considering.
Maybe you were planning a trip to Paris, but an incredible business-class deal pops up for Madrid.
Well, suddenly Spain is looking pretty appealing. 😂
This is especially helpful if you're flexible with your travel dates or destinations.
And for families who are juggling work, school schedules, and everything else, having flight deals delivered to your inbox can save a TON of time.
Check Out Thrifty Traveler Premium & get $20 of your 1st year with code MCM.
Roame: Search Business Class Flights Across Multiple Airline Programs
Roame is another award search tool worth knowing about.
Instead of searching individual airline websites, you can enter your departure airport, destination, and travel dates to see award flight options across supported loyalty programs.
This is especially useful when you're trying to figure out which airline transfer partner offers the best business-class redemption.
For example, you might search for business-class flights from New York to Paris and find multiple booking options.
You can compare mileage prices, see which loyalty programs offer the flights, and determine whether your credit card points can transfer to those programs.
Roame offers free basic searches, along with paid features for more advanced award searches.
Search Award Flights With Roame
Seats.aero: Find Business Class Award Availability Across Flexible Dates
Seats.aero is another tool I recommend learning, especially if you have flexibility with your travel dates.
One of the biggest advantages is being able to explore award availability across multiple dates and destinations instead of searching one day at a time.
For example, instead of searching for business-class flights to Tokyo on June 10 and giving up when nothing appears, you can explore other dates and available routes.
Depending on your membership, you can also create alerts for certain award flights.
This is especially helpful when you're trying to find harder-to-book business-class seats.
And if you're traveling with kids like we are, finding four business-class award seats on the same flight can be a completely different challenge than finding one or two.
One important reminder: award search tools don't always display perfectly current availability.
Always verify that the flight is actually bookable through the airline loyalty program before transferring your points.
4. How Positioning Flights Can Save You Points on Business Class
Here's another strategy that's opened up so many more international flight options for our family.
Stop searching only from your closest airport.
We live in the Panhandle of Florida, and while I love the convenience of flying from our home airport, it isn't always the best place to start searching for international business-class awards.
Sometimes the cheapest business-class flights using points are departing from larger airports.
Think New York, Boston, LAX, San Fransisco, Seattle, Chicago, Miami, Atlanta, or Washington, D.C.
If I find a great business-class redemption departing from one of those airports, I'll compare the cost of getting there separately.
This is called a positioning flight.
For example, let's say you find business-class flights from New York to Europe for 55,000 points, but the award options from your home airport are significantly more expensive.
Booking a separate domestic flight to New York might make more sense.
Of course, you'll want to consider the additional flight cost, baggage rules, and connection risk.
If your flights are on separate reservations, a delay on the first flight could cause you to miss your international departure without protection from the second airline.
For international trips, I prefer allowing plenty of extra time, sometimes even arriving the day before.
But being willing to depart from a different airport can open up SO many more possibilities.
And if Europe is on your travel list, don't overlook the possibility of flying into a different European city than the one you're actually planning to visit.
Sometimes the best business-class award availability is to a nearby destination, and you can take a short flight or train to reach your final stop.
Just make sure to factor in the extra transportation costs and travel time before deciding whether it's worth it.
And if you're planning your first European vacation, I also put together a FREE First-Time Europe Travel Guide with some of the things I wish more people knew before their first trip, including transportation, money, packing, and navigating Europe without making the mistakes we learned from along the way.
5. When to Book Business Class Flights With Points for the Best Deals
One of the biggest misconceptions about booking business-class flights with miles is that you have to book everything nearly a year in advance.
And while booking early can absolutely help, it isn't your only opportunity.
Some airlines release award seats when their booking calendars first open.
Others may release additional premium cabin seats closer to departure.
And sometimes availability changes because people cancel or modify their trips.
My advice?
Start searching as soon as you have a general idea of when you'd like to travel.
If you don't find anything, don't immediately assume you're out of luck.
Set award availability alerts, check nearby dates, and consider alternative departure airports.
If you're trying to book business class for a family, I also recommend searching for one or two passengers first to see whether any award availability exists.
Then check whether enough seats are available for everyone traveling.
Just remember that finding two available seats doesn't mean four will be available.
And while last-minute award availability can be great for flexible travelers, I wouldn't rely on it when planning a big international family vacation.
6. How to Book Business Class Flights With Points for a Family of Four or More
Here's something that doesn't get talked about nearly enough in the points-and-miles world.
Booking business class for a family of four or more is a completely different game than booking for one or two people.
Let's say you find an incredible business-class flight to Japan for 60,000 miles one way.
For a solo traveler, that's 60,000 miles.
For a couple, it's 120,000 miles.
For our family of four? 240,000 miles. ONE WAY.
And if we wanted business class in both directions at that same rate, we'd need 480,000 miles.
That's before taxes and fees, hotels, or anything else.
So when I see people sharing incredible business-class redemptions, the first thing I'm looking at isn't just the mileage price.
I'm wondering how many award seats were actually available.
Because finding one business-class seat for 60,000 miles doesn't mean there are four available at that price.
Why Our Family Travel Rewards Strategy Looks Different
When you're booking international flights for an entire family, you have to think about both earning enough points AND finding enough award seats.
Here's what I prioritize:
Welcome offers: These have been one of the biggest ways we've built our points balances without increasing our normal household spending.
Transferable points: I want options. If one airline doesn't have four business-class seats, I want to be able to check another program.
Flexible departure airports: We're willing to position to another airport if it means finding better award availability.
Award alerts: I don't have time to search every airline website every single day, so I use tools to help find available flights.
Being realistic about business class: Sometimes we'll book business class one way and economy the other. And sometimes we'll fly economy both ways so we can save our points for another trip.
I also try to plan our bigger international trips far enough in advance that we have time to earn the points we need.
For example, if I know we want to take a big international trip next summer, I'm already thinking about how many points we'll need, which airline programs might work, and which rewards we should focus on earning.
And I don't transfer those points until I've found flights we can actually book.
The goal isn't just finding cheap business-class flights. It's finding a way to book them for our entire family without using every point we have.
Because as much as I love a lie-flat seat, I'd rather take my girls on multiple international adventures than use our entire points balance on one flight.
7. Best Types of Credit Card Points for Booking Business Class Flights
Now, finding an incredible business-class award is exciting.
But you still need the points to book it.
And this is exactly why I love earning transferable credit card points.
As I mentioned earlier, there's one particular points currency I tend to prioritize for international business-class flights because of its airline transfer partners and strong welcome offers.
But there are several travel rewards programs that offer transferable points, and the best one for you depends on which airlines you want to fly.
The biggest advantage is having options.
Instead of earning rewards that can only be redeemed with one airline, transferable points may give you access to multiple airline loyalty programs.
That means you can find the best business-class award flight first and then determine which eligible points you can use to book it.
For our family, welcome offers from travel rewards credit cards have played a major role in helping us earn enough points for international travel.
We've earned those offers by meeting spending requirements with expenses we already planned to make.
Groceries. Insurance. Home expenses. Travel. Everyday spending that was happening anyway.
And we always pay our statements in full.
Because earning points isn't worth it if you're paying interest to get them.
If you're just getting started with travel rewards, I recommend learning which cards offer airline transfer partners that fit your travel goals.
You can explore some of our favorites here:
My Favorite Beginner Travel Cards
My Favorite Premium Travel Cards
My Favorite Airline Credit Cards
I also keep an updated list of the BEST CURRENT OFFERS.
8. How to Transfer Credit Card Points to Airlines Without Losing Them
If you remember one thing from this entire article, make it this.
NEVER transfer your credit card points until you've confirmed that the flight you want is actually available to book.
Most transfers from credit card rewards programs to airline loyalty programs are irreversible.
That means once you've transferred your points, you generally can't move them back.
Before transferring, I always recommend checking:
The exact flight and travel date
The number of available business-class seats
The total number of miles required
The taxes, fees, and surcharges
Whether the flight is bookable through the airline loyalty program you're using
And if you're booking through a partner airline, double-check that the availability is real.
Sometimes award search tools display flights that aren't actually bookable. This is commonly referred to as phantom award space.
If you're unsure, contact the airline loyalty program before moving your points.
Because finding a great business-class deal is exciting.
Transferring hundreds of thousands of points and then discovering you can't book the flight? Not so much. 😂
9. Is Booking Business Class With Points and Miles Worth It?
For our family? Absolutely.
But I also think it's important to remember that not every business-class redemption is a good deal.
I love flying business class.
But I also love taking multiple international trips a year.
And sometimes those two goals don't align.
If a business-class ticket requires an outrageous number of points, I'm perfectly happy to book economy and save those points for another trip.
For our family, the goal has never been to fly business class on every single flight.
It's to travel more, experience incredible places with our girls, and make our points go as far as possible.
Sometimes that means lie-flat seats and champagne.
Other times it means four economy tickets to Europe and enough points left for our next adventure.
I'm happy with both.
Ready to Book Your First Cheap Business Class Flight With Points?
If there's one thing I hope you take away from this, it's that you don't have to be wealthy to experience international business class.
You just need to understand how points and miles work.
Learn the airline partnerships. Know which award sweet spots to look for. Use flight search tools to find availability. And be flexible when you can.
Because that $5,000 business-class ticket you keep seeing?
There might be a way to book it for a fraction of the cash price using points and miles.
And once you learn how to find those opportunities, booking international flights starts looking a whole lot different.
If you're ready to start earning points toward your next trip, check out my Free Beginner's Guide to Points & Miles.
I'll show you how we got started and how you can begin using travel rewards to make your own travel goals possible.
Award pricing and availability are subject to change. Mileage examples reflect published starting rates for eligible awards and do not guarantee bookable seats. Taxes, fees, and carrier-imposed surcharges may apply.
