JetBlue’s TrueBlue program doesn’t get the love that flashier mileage programs do – and with most routes up and down the East Coast, it’s easy to assume those points are best for cheap hops to Boston, New York, or Florida.
But look closer and you’ll find some shockingly good long-haul redemptions: Think Condor Business Class to Germany, Qatar Airways Qsuites – the world’s best business class – and trips that can take you as far as Japan, Abu Dhabi, and beyond.
TrueBlue points aren’t the easiest to earn and JetBlue certainly won’t serve flyers from every U.S. airport, but if you’ve got a stash – or can transfer from Chase, Citi, or Amex – you might be surprised how far they’ll fly. Our Thrifty Traveler Premium members know it: We’ve flagged 15-plus TrueBlue award opportunities in the last year alone.
Here are the best TrueBlue sweet spots – and exactly how to book them.
Condor Business Class to Germany from 54k Points Each Way
Condor Airlines – the little-known German carrier with a surprisingly chic new business class product – is your ticket to a comfy journey to Frankfurt (FRA) this year or next. And thanks to its recently expanded partnership with JetBlue, Condor flights can now be booked with TrueBlue miles.
If you want to fly up front in seats that look like this, you only need 54,000 of them, too!
We couldn't wait to alert our members to this new booking opportunity, because of how great the experience with Condor is and these rates make it one of the best ways to book … from some cities.
To book these Condor routes – including rare nonstop flights to Europe from cities like Anchorage (ANC) and Calgary (YYC) – you can use your collected TrueBlue points from 54,000 each way. Longer flights to and from West Coast gateways like Los Angeles (LAX) and Seattle (SEA) are much pricier at 99,000 TrueBlue points in each direction.
Germany? Check.
Qatar QSuites from 90K Points Each Way
Qatar Airways flies what we (and many others) consider to be the best business class in the world. While you might be able to save points by booking with American Airlines AAdvantage miles – or using Qatar or British Airways Avios – you can also book these flights for just 90,000 TrueBlue points each way to and from Doha (DOH).
As you can see, the taxes and fees on these bookings are also comically low, with one-ways starting at just $7 and the roundtrip coming out to $55!
Like with all of these deals, you can also book economy class flights with TrueBlue points, too, so you don't need to have a massive stash to make a trip to the Middle East and beyond happen.
JetBlue Mint Business Class in the U.S. & Caribbean from 28K Points Each Way
Using JetBlue points to fly JetBlue? What a concept!
Even better: JetBlue has some fancy seats of its own. They're called JetBlue Mint, and the airline's business class is sneakily one of our favorites – especially the JetBlue Mint Suites.
And while Mint Suites aren't the cheapest when booking through TrueBlue (that designation goes to Qatar Avios), they're still a good bargain for what you're getting most of the time.
The best value for booking these seats is flying in and around North America, where JetBlue often deploys these fancier planes on some high-profile routes. This nonstop flight from JFK to San Juan (SJU) is one where you'll often find the fancy seats.
You could book these to SJU – and often Aruba (AUA) as well – for 28,000 TrueBlue points each way – a great deal to make your trip to the Caribbean a little fancier.
JetBlue also flies Mint lie-flat seats on its transcontinental routes between the east and west coasts for a little bit more.
You can find Mint on the routes from Boston (BOS) and New York (JFK) to Las Vegas (LAS), Los Angeles (LAX), Phoenix (PHX), San Diego (SAN), San Francisco (SFO), Seattle (SEA). Also some long-hauls from Fort Lauderdale (FLL), Newark (EWR), and West Palm Beach (PBI). We've even found them flying to Bozeman, Montana (BZN) during ski season at Big Sky!
Economy Flights Around the U.S. from 2K Points RT
What's nice about TrueBlue points, is that JetBlue often runs appealing flash sales on its many routes, too. The end result? Fares like this…
If you see a roundtrip flight for less than 10,000 points, book it! That's going to be about as good as you can do … with any airline.
As you can see from this next deal, though, the word “about” is doing a lot of heavy lifting in my previous sentence…
Yes. You are seeing that correctly. In a recent flash sale, JetBlue was selling roundtrip flights to Florida, Boston (BOS), and New York (JFK) for less than 2,000 points … roundtrip!
If you searched in one-ways, you'll see that these flights were clocking in at 700 points. No, I did not miss a digit. Seven. Hundred.
Using just 700 JetBlue points and $5.60 in taxes and fees is probably the cheapest fare you'll ever find!
Etihad Flights to Abu Dhabi and Beyond
Etihad is one of those fancy Middle Eastern airlines that offers a traveling experience unlike anything we have here in North America. And thanks to a (relatively) short list of partners, Etihad flights can be tough to book with other programs.
Etihad Guest miles – the airline's own loyalty program – are often inflated to really high rates. JetBlue TrueBlue offers travelers some savings, though.
Importantly, JetBlue often gets access to award availability that other airlines don't. When partners like American Airlines get shut out, often, those same flights will be bookable with JetBlue instead.
Japan Airlines to Japan
Like Etihad, Japan Airlines flights to Tokyo (HND, NRT) are also bookable with TrueBlue points – and are usually more readily available than some of JAL's other partner programs.
These two daily flights from Chicago (ORD) to Narita (NRT) and Haneda (HND), for instance, are both bookable in economy or premium economy on JetBlue's site from 49,000 points each way.
How to Earn (Or Transfer) JetBlue TrueBlue Points
Besides flying a lot with JetBlue, there are a few ways to pad your TrueBlue account to take advantage of some of these sweet spots.
Earning with JetBlue
For one, you earn double TrueBlue points when you book flights through JetBlue or the JetBlue app.
Also, you can earn on packages including hotels, dining, rental cars and more through JetBlue's booking platform, or when you book with JetBlue's partners like Avis, Budget, IHG hotels and YOTEL.
Finally, you can also earn points through JetBlue's suite of Mastercard credit cards. The highest level Premier card can earn you up to 80,000 points with a $499 annual fee, but some of the cheaper cards can also earn you more modest bonuses.
Swiping a JetBlue Credit Card
Like most airlines, JetBlue offers travelers the opportunity to earn TrueBlue points by swiping one of their co-branded credit cards. There are four to choose from – including a business version, and JetBlue's new “premium” card, which comes with a Priority Pass Select membership and access to the airline's yet-to-open lounges in New York and Boston.
Bonus offers on these cards vary, but it's often possible to earn a whole bunch of JetBlue TrueBlue points in a hurry by adding one of these cards to your wallet and continuing to swipe it for your everyday purchases.
If you often fly JetBlue, most of these cards come with added benefits like free checked bags and the ability to spend your way to Mosaic elite status.
Share TrueBlue Points with Friends & Family
Another great feature of TrueBlue is the ability to pile together points with friends and family. With points pooling, you can add up to seven friends and family members to a group where you can pool your points to book TrueBlue rewards. This feature makes it easy to use your partners points, get a few points from friends or family when you're just short, or more easily organize a group trip.
Transferring from Chase & Citi ThankYou Points
You can transfer points from Chase Ultimate Rewards or Citi ThankYou points on a 1:1 basis. That means one Chase or Citi point earns you one TrueBlue point.
So long as you have one of Citi's top travel cards like the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card, the new Citi Strata Elite℠ Card, or the Citi Prestige Credit Card (which is no longer open to applications), you can transfer 1:1 from Citi.
Transferring from Amex Membership Rewards and Capital One Venture Miles
While it's not the best deal, you could move some American Express Membership Rewards and Capital One miles over to TrueBlue as well.
The reason it's not the best deal: The transfer ratio isn't 1:1, it's slightly worse than that.
Transfers from Amex Membership Rewards only net 800 JetBlue TrueBlue points for every 1,000 points transferred. Meanwhile, Capital One transfers are even worse: Every 1,000 Capital One miles you transfer will get you 600 TrueBlue points. All transfers are usually instant.
Bottom Line
JetBlue's TrueBlue program can take you much further than the airline's hubs on the East Coast. With partners like Qatar Airways, Japan Airlines, Etihad, Condor, and more, TrueBlue points can take you far – and often can get you into a lie-flat business class seat, too.
Utilize transfer partners like Citi and Chase to earn TrueBlue points faster to book some of these best sweet spots.
