Condor has a fancy fleet of new planes (with a criminally underrated business class seat) flying between many different U.S. cities and its hub in Frankfurt (FRA). But those flights are hard to book with miles unless you're flush with Alaska Atmos points.
That just changed. JetBlue and Condor on Tuesday announced an expanded partnership, giving JetBlue flyers a new way to redeem their TrueBlue points – and, perhaps more importantly, opening the door to booking the German carrier using transferrable credit card points from banks like Chase, Amex, and Capital One.
Best of all, the rates are reasonable: Shorter flights from the East Coast across the Atlantic start as low as 19,000 JetBlue points each way in economy and just 54,000 points up in business class! Critically, finding Condor business class award space that you can actually book with points is much easier than many other European carriers.
It's just the latest addition to JetBlue's stable of airline partners meant to make its reward program more alluring – not just for travelers based in JetBlue strongholds like New York (JFK) and Boston (BOS), but even those on the West Coast or as far flung as Alaska. In just the last year or two, JetBlue has also added the ability to redeem points on Icelandair, Etihad, and Qatar Airways.
This JetBlue-Condor partnership is actually a decade old, but points redemptions are brand new. Plus, TrueBlue members can also now rack up or rack up points with JetBlue when flying Condor, too.
While the list is shorter after some painful cuts last year, Condor flies to Frankfurt (FRA) nonstop – plus onward to 70-plus destinations with connections – from a dozen gateways in the U.S. and Canada:
- New York City (JFK)
- Boston (BOS)
- Miami (MIA)
- Los Angeles (LAX)
- San Francisco (SFO)
- Seattle (SEA)
- Las Vegas (LAS)
- Portland (PDX)
- Anchorage (ANC)
- Toronto (YYZ)
- Vancouver (YVR)
- Calgary (YYC)
Just last year, we flew Condor business class on the new A330-900neo and found it was one of the absolute best ways to cross the Atlantic. From the state-of-the-art lie flat seats to the ultra-sharp 4K seatback screens and delicious meal service (including onboard Jågermeister!), this is one heck of a good way to redeem TrueBlue points … in some cases.
JetBlue's award pricing for Condor largely depends on where you're flying from. If you start on the East Coast in cities like Boston, New York, or even Toronto (YYZ), you can expect to pay 19,000 TrueBlue points for an economy class seat or 54,000 for business class. Meanwhile, premium economy will only set you back 34,000 points and the same $14 in taxes and fees.
This pricing is actually a little bit better than what Condor's other U.S. partner, Alaska Airlines, charges for the exact same seats.
But if you're starting in Miami (MIA) or out on the West Coast, prepare to pay up. Flights from cities like Los Angeles and Seattle start at 39,000 points and $14 in taxes and fees each way in economy. Premium economy will set you back 59,900 points and business class costs a whopping 99,900 points each way.
Like many other loyalty programs, TrueBlue is full of oddities, though. Take this one-way business class flight from Portland to Frankfurt, for example.
While its West Coast neighbors all price out at nearly 100,000 points for a one-way business class fare, you'll only pay 79,900 points when flying from Portland instead.
In each case, it would be cheaper to book these awards from the West Coast with Alaska Airline's new Atmos Rewards points. But considering all the ways you can earn TrueBlue points, this is still a good option to have.
How to Earn TrueBlue Points
What makes this new partnership so special is just how easy it is to earn TrueBlue points. JetBlue partners with several big banks like American Express, Capital One, Chase and Citi, meaning you probably have access to TrueBlue points and might not even know it.
If you've got points with multiple banks, Chase and Citi are far and away the best options for transferring to JetBlue. Both Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou points transfer at a 1:1 ratio to JetBlue TrueBlue.
Meanwhile, American Express Membership Rewards transfer at a wonky 250:200 ratio, meaning 1,000 Amex points will get you 800 TrueBlue points. And Capital One miles convert at an even worse 5:3 ratio, so every 1,000 Capital One miles you transfer will get you 600 TrueBlue points.
Bottom Line
JetBlue TrueBlue members can now earn and redeem points on Condor-operated flights, opening up new options to book trips to Europe and beyond. With nonstop service from nine U.S. cities to Frankfurt, this expanded partnership gives travelers more flexibility – and in some cases, better award pricing on flights to Europe.
