For Some of the Best (& Coolest) Points & Miles Flight Deals, Look Outside the U.S.

Using your points and miles to travel from North America to destinations around the world is what we're all about here at Thrifty Traveler, but for the intrepid traveler who loves piecing together bigger trips abroad, some of the best flight deals out there won't ever touch U.S. soil. 

While there are hundreds and hundreds of great redemptions that can fly you to and from your home country, flights between other countries – operated wholly outside of the U.S. – can often be priced competitively and take you to some of the best destinations on earth, too. 

In many of these cases, these non-U.S. flights are the greatest (if not the only) way to fly some of the best airplane seats in the world, and give you a chance to get unthinkable value from programs like American AAdvantage, Delta SkyMiles, Air Canada Aeroplan, Alaska Atmos Rewards, and more! 

These deals we bucket into a classification of Thrifty Traveler Premium flight deal alerts we call, “Nerd Alerts.” They're not for every traveler, but they are for the most savvy ones. 

OK. Buckle up, because we're going to zoom around the world so I can show you why the best flight deals might never touch U.S. soil. 

Japan Airlines New Biz Class to Paris from 75K Miles

We've been hunting for award space to fly Japan Airlines' fancy new business class for more than a year now. If Japan Airlines' A350 Business Class was a person, what we're doing would probably be considered stalking …

We're intent on finding it … but so is everyone else … which is why it's so rare to find open space on routes flying to and from the U.S. But you know where it's not rare? To and from France! 

75,000 American Airlines miles or Alaska Atmos Rewards points are enough to book you on this lovely 14.5-hour flight to and from Europe and Tokyo.

Plus, this deal included availability over Christmas and NYE! If you're planning a big international adventure that touches either Europe or Tokyo, make this flight a part of a crazy international journey. 

Qatar First Class to Thailand and Australia

Qatar Airways is best known for its Qsuites business class, which are easily among the best business class seats in the sky. But did you know Qatar also operates a first class cabin on some routes?

While increasingly rare, Qatar First Class can be found on routes flying this leased Boeing 777 from Cathay Pacific, decked out in Qatar's signature maroon colors instead.

Best of all, you can fly this seat from Qatar's hub in Doha (DOH) to Bangkok (BKK), Hong Kong (HKG), and the Maldives (MLE), too! It might be the long way around the globe if you're trying to get to Asia from North America, but it's possibly the most stylish!

And if you have 30,000 American Airlines miles or 53,000 Qatar Airways Avios (which can be transferred in from Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, or from your British Airways account), you can make one of these seats yours for that long haul flight.

Plus, on a different Qatar First Class route, you can also use your points to fly all the way to Perth, Australia (PER). 

Just 100,000 American AAdvantage points is enough to book this seat … which is a lot better than the nearly $10,000 cash price!

An Apartment in the Sky from 63K Points

There's first class and then there's the Etihad First Class Apartment. Just look at this thing. Yes, that's on an airplane!
 

These ludicrously spacious first class seats are widely viewed as the best in the world, firmly earning their place on the bucket lists of many aviation geeks. There's just one problem: Etihad only flies the Airbus A380 – the so-called Whale Jet – equipped with these Apartments on a handful of routes. Finding award availability to book these seats with points and miles is incredibly difficult. 

Your best bet at finding affordable award rates for The Apartment is on the on the routes between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and London (LHR) and Paris (CDG). When we sent this Nerd Alert to our Thrifty Traveler Premium subscribers, 62,500 American Airlines AAdvantage Miles was all you needed to make this apartment your home for a six-hour flight.
 

We found a similar deal on the routes to Paris (CDG) and Singapore (SIN), too, this time bookable with Etihad miles instead. 

Fly Lie-Flat…to Easter Island

I'd assume Easter Island – an uber-remote island far off the west coast of Chile – feels out of reach to most travelers. From the U.S., it's almost impossible to find an itinerary to get there affordably. And if you want to fly lie-flat, forget about it. 

But our flight deal gurus dug up this sweet (or should I say “suite”) deal flying LATAM's new Mini-Suites business class from Santiago (SCL) to Easter Island from just 35,000 points each way … or $415 in cash!

This deal was extra special because of that insanely cheap cash price … but also because you can book with points like Alaska miles, Delta SkyMiles, Virgin points, British Airways Avios, and more! 

If Easter Island was on your bucket list, this is by far the best way to get there. Our Nerd Alert subscribers got first dibs … as always!

Qantas First or Biz Class from 95K Points

The coolest seats … on the coolest plane … on one of the coolest routes on earth. This deal is just plain cool. 

Qantas First Class is about as fancy as it gets in the sky, and you can only find it on the famous A380 double-decker airplane. 

And to top it all off, this 14-hour flight is between South Africa and Australia, making it one of the most unique routes in the southern hemisphere, too. This one's really for the nerds – you have to do a lot of work to get to either Sydney or Johannesburg, after all – but this is an unforgettable experience to be sure. 

As you can see, you can also snag business class on these routes for 95,000 points each way instead, if you want to save a few points. 

Emirates First Class for 102K Points (Or $940!)

From bottomless Dom Perignon and caviar in your own private suite to an onboard bar and even a shower, flying Emirates First Class is one of the most incredible experiences you can have in the sky. Emirates outdid itself with its Gamechanger First Class suites featuring floor-to-ceiling walls for unparalleled privacy.

But finding an affordable way to book these ridiculously cool suites is elusive … and Emirates recently made it harder by restricting first class award seats to members with Skywards elite status.

Thankfully, there's an easy(ish) workaround: You can get complimentary Silver or Gold elite status just by holding an Emirates co-branded credit card. Or book these first class awards through a partner program like Qantas instead. 

While it's nearly impossible to find Emirates First Class flights using points and miles to and from the U.S. for more than one passenger, you can find it abroad. This year, Emirates is flying planes equipped with these Gamechanger suites to Brussels (BRU), and lo and behold …

And recently, we also found availability flying between Dubai (DXB) and Melbourne (MEL) for a paltry 171,000 Emirates miles each way, too. 

There are other flights where you can book Emirates first class for less, too. Including a strange one…
 

These typically-expensive suites can sometimes be booked for less than $1,000 when you snag them on one of Emirates' unique fifth-freedom routes, like this one from Christchurch, New Zealand (CHC) to Sydney (SYD)!

These seemingly random routes that allow airlines to fly between two cities where the carrier itself isn't based can be a great way to fly some of the best seats in the sky – often for substantially less than what you'd pay on a “normal” route. Speaking of which … 

Cathay First Class … on Air New Zealand?!

How about flying Cathay Pacific First Class with Air New Zealand between Auckland (AKL) and Melbourne (MEL) for just $490 each way?

If you need to read that again, I understand. Let's back up: Air New Zealand has been leasing an old Cathay Pacific plane (the same ones Qatar is using on certain routes) with these first class seats onboard. But because Air New Zealand does not have first class itself, they're pricing these luxurious pods much like business class seats instead.
 

Just $490 one-way would put you in what Air New Zealand is calling “Business Preferred.”  That's some insane value for an incredibly comfortable ride between Australia and New Zealand.

British Airways Club Suites for 15K Points!?

All but the nerdiest travelers will be surprised to hear British Airways flies a fifth-freedom route between the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands. Best of all, you can fly lie-flat for that short two-hour flight.

Flying in a bonafide business class suite doesn't get cheaper than this.

You can book British Airways' amazing Club Suites business class from just 15,000 points each way between Nassau (NAS) and Grand Cayman (GCM) and only $1 in taxes and fees. British Airways is a transfer partner of almost all the major banks – Amex, Chase, Capital One, and even Bilt.

That's the crazy value you can find on this hilarious fifth-freedom route, which gets you all the bells and whistles of business class travel, without the long flight.

Singapore Airlines First Class (& Singapore Suites!)

Singapore Airlines is one of the best airlines in the world, renowned for its luxurious business and first class cabins. To fly to Singapore (SIN) in first class from the U.S. is a tough ticket to find: It's expensive and extraordinarily rare to book it using points and miles. 

But Singapore flies these seats all around the rest of the world. 

If you want to fly between Sydney (SYD) and Singapore (SIN), for instance, on the unbelievable Singapore Suites on the A380, you can do so for 155,000 Singapore miles. That may seem like a lot – and it is! But these seats are rare and expensive no matter how you're booking. 

Intra-Asia Business Class

Finally, there are also some super cheap ways to fly business class within Asia.

For travelers with Delta SkyMiles, the sneakiest best use of your points and miles might be intra-Asia business class flights on the likes of Vietnam Airlines. 

Just 40,000 SkyMiles can put you in a lie-flat seat from Vietnam to Osaka (KIX), Tokyo-Haneda (HND), or Tokyo-Narita (NRT).

SkyMiles can also put you in one of Korean Air's brand new suites between Seoul (ICN) and several Asian destinations this year or next. 

Only 15,000 SkyMiles will get you in these flights on Korean's fancy new 787-10 airplane. 

No points? No problem! This fifth-freedom flight on Amsterdam-based KLM Airlines between Singapore (SIN) and Bali (DPS) is one of the funkiest flights out there. And it's also one of the cheapest ways to fly business class, period!

How to Get Nerd Alerts

To find availability on any of these routes is a real sicko's journey. That's a lot of time spent on foreign airline websites looking for availability on obscure routes. My recommendation: Outsource your work to a group of real sickos like us!

Thrifty Traveler Premium members can get every Nerd Alert sent straight to their email inbox the moment we find them. It's the single best way to find yourself on one of these incredible flights all over the world. 

Simply log in to your Premium account online and go to “Settings” and “Deal Filters.” Scroll to the bottom, and toggle on “Nerd Alerts” to start receiving them.
 

You can also see any nerd alerts and all our recent flight deals in your Premium account. Scroll through the deals to find them or type “Nerd Alerts” into the search bar at the top.
 

Bottom Line

Some of the best flights on Earth happen wholly outside of the U.S.

Whether it's a first class flight from the Middle East to Asia, a business class flight within Asia for 15,000 SkyMiles, or one of the newest business class seats in the skies only bookable between Tokyo and Paris, there are dozens of examples of why your points might be best used abroad.