If you're seeing high airfare for a domestic trip this year or next, you're not alone. But we have a better way: Use your Delta SkyMiles and take advantage of some great domestic rates instead.
Our team of flight deal experts searches 24/7 to find the best SkyMiles deals, and we just keep finding them for domestic roundtrip flights starting from just 7,000 SkyMiles to 9,000 SkyMiles – a fraction of what most other airlines charge. We've sent Thrifty Traveler Premium members deals to Hawaii, Las Vegas (LAS), Orlando (MCO), New York City (JFK), and more – all for 9,000 SkyMiles roundtrip … and sometimes even less. All you have to do is fork over a few thousand miles and pay the $11.20 in taxes and fees.
Delta never advertises these sales … but don't worry, we find them anyway. Don't believe us? We'll let the deals below speak for themselves. You might have enough SkyMiles for your next trip and not even know it.
Here's a look at some of the deals we've found recently and how you can grow your stash of SkyMiles to get you on your way.
Read our step-by-step guide to finding and booking the best Delta SkyMiles deals!
- The SkyMiles Sweet Spot: Domestic Flights
- Hawaii from 13K SkyMiles Roundtrip!
- Miami Under 19K SkyMiles
- Las Vegas For 7K SkyMiles Roundtrip!
- Asheville from 10k SkyMiles
- New York City for 7K SkyMiles
- Orlando from 9K Roundtrip
- San Francisco for 8K SkyMiles
- Denver from 9K SkyMiles
- Washington, D.C. for 13K SkyMiles…or Less!
- Anchorage, Alaska from 26K SkyMiles
- The Best Ways to Earn Delta SkyMiles
The SkyMiles Sweet Spot: Domestic Flights
There are plenty of people in the travel world who really hate Delta SkyMiles. You might've heard them referred to as “SkyPennies” because SkyMiles are priced on an ever-changing, sliding scale that is hard to understand.
If you do a quick search for some overseas Delta SkyMiles rates, you're likely to see 120,000 SkyMiles or more for a big trip abroad – or 400,000-plus SkyMiles in business class seats. No, thank you.
Yet cheap SkyMiles rates are still out there … if you know where to look.
Get amazing Delta SkyMiles deals and other alerts to use your points and miles with Thrifty Traveler Premium!
That's right: a trip to Maui (OGG) as low as 9,000 SkyMiles roundtrip. And if you have a Delta SkyMiles credit card in your wallet, you get an automatic 15% discount on SkyMiles bookings, making deals like this one even cheaper.
Welcome to the world of Delta SkyMiles flash sales. Whether you're aiming to visit New York, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Denver, Seattle, or other cities, cheap trips using your SkyMiles are out there.
Bottom line: Flying within the United States is the best way to get the most value from your SkyMiles. Here's why.
Hawaii from 13K SkyMiles Roundtrip!
Can I interest you in a trip to Hawaii and back from just 12,000 SkyMiles roundtrip?
This was a fantastic one, but I promise we're searching for deals like this all the time. This one was an unusually good value as even the best ways to use points and miles to fly to Hawaii often involve shelling out at least 30,000 miles roundtrip.
With the way these SkyMiles fares are trending lately, it's possible we could see fares like this pop up again in 2024. Our latest Hawaii SkyMiles sale included 19 different cities – including many Delta hubs – flying across the Pacific this winter and spring.
This deal is long gone – get the next SkyMiles deal emailed straight to your inbox with Thrifty Traveler Premium!
And while most of these fares have quick connections on the West Coast, sometimes, Delta puts its long-haul nonstop routes to Hawaii on sale, too. The latest example came after Delta announced a new route from Boston (BOS) to Honolulu (HNL). Typically, these long-haul Hawaii routes will run you 100,000 SkyMiles or more. But not this time…
Your SkyMiles can get you to Hawaii this year, and you should let them!
Miami Under 19K SkyMiles
A trip to Miami (MIA) can help cure anyone's winter blues, and the latest Delta SkyMiles flash sale was a perfect example of how to get there for less.
All of the fares on this deal were under 19,000 Delta SkyMiles, including a low, low fare from Atlanta (ATL) down to South Beach for just 11,000 SkyMiles plus the taxes and fees – or just 9,200 miles if you have a Delta card thanks to the TakeOff 15 benefit!
If you've been looking, it's easy to see that Florida flights have been expensive lately. But not if you have SkyMiles.
Las Vegas For 7K SkyMiles Roundtrip!
If you literally play your cards right, you could make money on your Las Vegas trip thanks to this Delta SkyMiles deal.
Only Thrifty Traveler Premium members get SkyMiles deals like these – sign up to get the next one!
SkyMiles deals to Vegas are plentiful, but this one was one of the best yet. Starting for as low as 7,000 SkyMiles roundtrip, you could take the money you saved and spend it at the blackjack table, the roulette wheel, or the sportsbook when you land in Vegas.
Not a city person or a gambler? Las Vegas is also an underrated jumping-off point for some great attractions off the Strip, including getting a set of wheels and road-tripping out to Utah's amazing national parks!
When flying Delta, Las Vegas is as connected as ever right now, too. Delta recently added nonstops from Austin (AUS), Sacramento (SMF), and San Diego (SAN) to Las Vegas, which it has now determined is a “focus city” for the airline.
That means flyers in those cities now have a sweet new nonstop route to redeem their SkyMiles this year or next.
Asheville from 10k SkyMiles
While the biggest mountain ranges in the U.S. get most of the love, don't sleep on the mountains in North Carolina. And the best part is, these mountains are close to most travelers based east of the Mississippi and available for just a handful of Delta SkyMiles, too.
Thrifty Traveler Premium members could get to the Blue Ridge Mountains for under 20,000 SkyMiles roundtrip with this deal. While Asheville cash fares aren't typically expensive, these fares are an even better value for travelers. Save your cash for the breweries!
Get deals like this one with Thrifty Traveler Premium!
New York City for 7K SkyMiles
There are a million reasons to visit New York City. Here's reason No. 1,000,001.
For just 7,000 SkyMiles roundtrip, you could fly into the Big Apple for a Broadway show, see all the sights, or just get lost in the concrete jungle and stumble upon the strange, amazing world that is New York. And you could get there for just a few thousand SkyMiles from airports big and small all across the country!
This SkyMiles deal featured dozens of departure cities from all over the country with nonstop flights into each of New York's three major airports.
From Michigan to Florida and all the way to Texas, New York's network of nonstop flights is robust, meaning so many travelers have access to a nonstop flight to the Big Apple. And all you need is 19,000 SkyMiles or less to make it possible!
Orlando from 9K Roundtrip
Orlando, Florida is the kind of place you bring the family, so when you're staring at $1,000+ in airfare (at least!), you might balk at making the trip happen. Not if you have SkyMiles, though.
Our latest Delta SkyMiles sale to Orlando included tons of great nonstop routes, but also one-stop connecting itineraries all under 19,000 SkyMiles roundtrip.
For rates like that, taking the whole family to Florida feels a lot more palatable this year or next.
San Francisco for 8K SkyMiles
The San Francisco Bay Area is an always-popular travel destination, but cheap flights aren't always abundant there. SkyMiles deals, however, just keep popping up.
As always, Thrifty Traveler Premium members got this one first – Delta never advertised these dirt-cheap award rates. Cities like Allentown (ABE) and Appleton (ATW) got in on the deal under 25,000 SkyMiles, and our friends to the north also saw some sub-25,000-SkyMile fares from places like Calgary (YYC) and Edmonton (YEG). But the lowest price of all was from Seattle (SEA).
Whether you're a skier, a wine connoisseur, a foodie, or a hiker, there's a reason to explore Northern California. And at just 8,000 SkyMiles, you're running out of excuses not to!
Denver from 9K SkyMiles
If you are looking to get outdoors or escape the hustle and bustle, jump on one of these crazy low SkyMiles fares to Colorado this year, instead.
This deal sent to Thrifty Traveler Premium subscribers had plenty of availability to get to Denver (DEN) all summer long – including over the Fourth of July! Or if you're a skier, it could put you within an hour or two of the slopes this winter.
Starting at just 9,000 SkyMiles roundtrip, you could get yourself to Denver and save your money for a cold drink after a hike or a warm drink after a few laps on the slopes in 2023. Plus, airports like Cincinnati (CVG) and New York (LGA, JFK) both lowered their Denver prices to get in on this nonstop deal, too. But flyers based in Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) lucked out with the best deal of all.
Washington, D.C. for 13K SkyMiles…or Less!
We keep finding cheap flights to Washington, D.C., but why spend any cash at all when all it takes is 13,000 SkyMiles or less?
This latest SkyMiles deal to the nation's capital had just that. Many of the nonstop routes to Baltimore (BWI), Dulles (IAD), and Reagan (DCA) were put on sale which lead to these awesome fares from a number of cities across the country.
Anchorage, Alaska from 26K SkyMiles
A trip to Alaska isn't your everyday domestic flight. These long flights drop you off in a northerly wilderness the likes of which you cannot find anywhere else in the United States. And while it will cost you a few more SkyMiles than a trip to Orlando or New York, these sale fares are a tremendous value for travelers.
These fares from all over the western U.S. up to Anchorage (ANC) are the perfect way to start a vacation. The best part: Many of these cities included August – October availability, which is the perfect time to visit Alaska.
We don't often see the nonstop flights from Minneapolis (MSP) and Salt Lake City (SLC) go on sale, either, making this an especially rare, unadvertised sale.
The Best Ways to Earn Delta SkyMiles
From credit cards to flying Delta to riding with Lyft and even buying Starbucks coffee, there are plenty of great ways to earn SkyMiles. And you won't have to work too hard to earn enough to book one of these flights.
For one, right now, you can pick up a Delta co-branded credit card like the *delta skymiles gold card*, or the *delta skymiles platinum card*. While these cards now carry higher annual fees, they also come with new, money-saving credits and a big SkyMiles bonus.
You might be surprised to hear that the best credit card for racking up SkyMiles is not a Delta SkyMiles credit card at all. Instead, look at one of American Express's Membership Rewards credit cards like *amex platinum* or the *amex gold*.
With bigger bonuses when you buy groceries, pick up the restaurant tab, or book flights, these cards both earn points much faster than the SkyMiles cards. Most importantly, Delta is one of many Amex transfer partners. That means you can instantly transfer your points to your SkyMiles account when a great sale like one of these hits your inbox.
Read next: The Perfect Two-Card Combo for Most Delta Flyers
Bottom Line
Using your SkyMiles on domestic trips will give you incredible value to make your flights nearly free this year. We think using SkyMiles to book your domestic trip is one of the savviest moves you can make – especially with award rates this low.
If you pair your SkyMiles stockpile with a Thrifty Traveler Premium subscription, you can book flights for just $11.20 in taxes and fees all year long!
I have been flying to Texas for the past 2 years and guess I never joined the SKY Miles and wondered how I can go about this.
You can create a SkyMiles account here: https://www.delta.com/join-skymiles/
I would get the premium membership if it wasn’t so expensive. I prefer not to read your posts about what I “could” have had if I were a premium member. Rubbing salt in the wound of missed opportunity doesn’t inspire me to go premium.
I have had the Delta Platinum AE card since 2014, however, the recent increase in fees and changes to earn you earn status, is making the $395 annual fee less appealing. I also have the Chase Sapphire and recently got Capital One Ventyre X. We fly often with Delta and enjoy the companion ticket. However, I will like options on how to maximize the benefits without paying so much in fees. Would you recommend canceling the Delta Platinum card? My husband got his own last year. Should he cancel his? Thank you!
Hi Darlyn, the fee is $350 (not $395 as you mentioned). If you fly even a few times a year with Delta, it could make sense to downgrade to the cheaper Delta Gold card. You won’t get a companion pass, but you’ll still have access to free checked bags when flying with Delta and the airline’s TakeOff 15 benefit that gives you a 15% discount on all SkyMiles bookings on Delta operated flights.