25,000 SkyMiles … roundtrip … to Australia. We had to read that number a few times when we saw it yesterday. Delta briefly slashed its award prices to some of the cheapest rates we’ve ever tracked – and from nearly 200 airports. We’ll also show you the fare-hold trick that gives you more time to lock in a flight risk-free, plus a $450 sale to France and Spain.
🤯 Did You Miss the Best Delta SkyMiles Deal of the Year?
I can’t believe it. I honestly can’t believe it.
Flights to Australia and New Zealand typically cost $1,200 and most carriers charge 80,000-plus miles for a roundtrip. On Delta, that’s more like 150,000 SkyMiles or more.
And yet here’s what we sent Thrifty Traveler Premium members yesterday: Roundtrip Delta flights nationwide to the Land Down Under from 25,400 SkyMiles total.
That’s not a typo. I didn’t miss a zero. And yes, that’s roundtrip.
Don’t believe me? I brought receipts.
That’s the cheapest SkyMiles redemption to Australia we’ve ever found – and not just on the nonstop from Los Angeles (LAX) or one or two other big hubs, but from nearly 200 airports nationwide. The cash price? On some of these routes, close to $2,000.
Wow. Forgive me, but my brain is still a bit broken. Honestly, all of us here at TT HQ momentarily lost our minds when our team of flight deal wizards unearthed this absolute gem.
That’s a trip to Australia for less than a flight to New York or Vegas these days! And yeah, it’s a long time in economy … but when you can take a family of four that far for less than a solo ticket, does that really matter?
Here’s the thing about deals this crazy: They don’t last long. Case in point: Just six hours later or so, Delta started raising award rates on all but the nonstop routes to Brisbane (BNE), Sydney (SYD), and Auckland (AKL) from Los Angeles (LAX)
… but not before hundreds of our Premium members booked it.
Even if you didn’t jump on it, this deal underscores three major (and shockingly positive) changes going on with Delta SkyMiles – and why we’re more bullish on Delta miles than we’ve been in almost a decade.
- Delta’s SkyMiles strategy has clearly changed. Gone are the days of the occasional cheap domestic redemption and maybe a discounted trip to Europe in January or February. Delta is slashing SkyMiles rates left and right now. But these days, most of these sales are completely unadvertised: Without us, you’d miss them.
- SkyMiles deals are getting much broader. Just a few years ago, most of the cheap Delta redemptions were bookable from just a few target airports – think New York City (JFK), Boston (BOS), and maybe some American or United hubs. No more: Delta is increasingly spreading the love to more airports nationwide, from the big hubs (which previously got penalized with higher rates) to even smaller regional airports with a connection or two.
- SkyMiles deals are better than ever. Honestly, this is the result of points 1 and 2. This 25,000-SkyMile trip to Australia didn’t happen in a vacuum: It’s just the latest in a months-long slew of tremendous Delta deals – and not just discounted economy deals to Mexico and Europe but also 79,000 SkyMiles to fly Delta One to Tokyo-Haneda (HND) or 97,000 SkyMiles to fly lie-flat to Europe during peak summer.
Last month, I shocked many of the 300-some fellow sickos who joined us for the Thrifty Traveler Podcast Live in Minneapolis with a bold take: That, somehow, SkyMiles were on track to become one of the best mileage programs in the country.
Today, I’m feeling better than ever about that take.
Not yet a Thrifty Traveler Premium member? Join us so you don’t miss the next crazy deal like this.
– Kyle Potter, executive editor
🤝 Deal of the Day: France or Spain from $450 Roundtrip!
Heat scale (out of 3): 🔥
Why we love it: Got World Cup fever? Pay a visit to France or Spain this fall or winter (during the Ligue 1 and La Liga seasons, respectively) for less than $584 roundtrip!
Flying from several U.S. and Canadian cities to Barcelona (BCN), Madrid (MAD), and Paris (CDG/ORY).
Sign up now to get all the details on this deal & don’t miss the next flight deal alert.
Already a member? Log in to see all your deals. (Not seeing it? Remove your airport filters to see every deal.)
– Gunnar Olson, Thrifty Traveler Premium deal analyst
🫸 Fare Holds: How to Lock in Your Fare Before You Pay
You probably already know about the 24-hour free cancellation rule for flights, but travelers – especially American Airlines travelers – should consider taking advantage of “fare holds”, too.
Fare holds let you lock in your rate for a few days or even weeks – sometimes for free, sometimes for a fee – before you ever have to pay for the flight. It’s a great strategy when you’re hunting for cheap flights or award availability.
And one airline stands out from the rest: American Airlines.
When you check out with American Airlines, one of the payment options is a free, 24-hour hold (highlighted in red above).
It allows you to snag the fare without paying for free until 11:59 p.m. the following day – meaning it’s actually more than 24 hours in most cases. (Highlighted in red below.)
Plus, once you pay, you get the 24-hour free cancellation rule, which gives you until 11:59 p.m. the following day (more than 24 hours) to cancel for a full refund.
That’s nearly four days to lock in your fare risk-free!
With American, you can do this for cash or AAdvantage award fares. And there are several other airlines you can do this with, too.
Read my full breakdown of the best programs for award fare holds.
– Gunnar Olson, travel reporter & host of the Thrifty Traveler Podcast
📡 On Our Radar
Welcome to On Our Radar – a weekly look at the news and trends we’re watching lately!
🛩️ American’s Small New Airports Strategy
American has been adding new service to tiny airports with zero or close-to-zero existing commercial service lately, and it’s a strategy I’m fascinated by.
This week, our friend Ishrion Aviation pointed out that AA is considering flying from Miami (MIA) to Marathon, Florida (MTH), in the Florida Keys – an airport that hasn’t had commercial service since 2009, when something called Cobalt flew to nearby Ft. Myers. (Delta also gave ATL-MTH a run in the winter of 2007.)
When I read this news, it struck me that AA has been doing this more and more. Here’s what I mean:
🌴 Naples, Florida (APF) – Charlotte (CLT): Launches Dec. 2 with 2x daily service
⛳ Carlsbad, California (CLD) – Phoenix (PHX): In service, started in 2025
🛥️ Marathon, Florida (MTH) – Miami (MIA): Not yet approved
In all three of these cases, American is going into an airport with no service, near a tourist hot spot, in very wealthy areas, that are just far enough away from a nearby bigger airport.
My guess is American is hoping the wealthier travelers who live in these places (or have vacation homes there) will pay a premium to skip the drive from the bigger airports. (And a premium they’ll pay – we’ve seen some eye-popping fares at APF or CLD so far.)
Maybe it’s just my obsession with new routes, but I love American’s strategy here. The airline world continues to cater to the premium customer, but only American is flying straight to their houses.
🇬🇧 Wait, British Airways Didn’t Fly from Heathrow to Orlando?
Right? I was shocked to learn that British Airways doesn’t typically operate nonstop flights from London-Heathrow (LHR) to Orlando (MCO).
The airline has historically only operated London-Gatwick (LGW) to Orlando (MCO), except for a one-year stint between Dec. 2021 and Dec. 2022, according to Cirium Diio data.
I realized this because BA will operate LHR-MCO this summer, from July 21 to Aug. 29, to bring park-goers from across Europe to Florida during its peak holiday season.
LGW flights are typically tailored to London-based travelers, while Heathrow offers connections from all over the U.K. and the world. It’s interesting they’re giving LHR another go. (Might be a good place to hunt down some award space flying to the U.K. 😉)
– Gunnar Olson, flight deal analyst & travel reporter
🎙️ On the Pod: Where to Find Summer Deals
✈️ Is airfare starting to drop? The guys dig into some positive airfare trends before digging into where you can still find great travel deals for this summer. Plus, we rant about Delta Basic Business and gush about Flighty’s update.
Tune in now on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!
📊 Track Every Card Perk (and Point) in Our Free Tool
If you’ve got more than one travel credit card, you already know the problem: credits that reset monthly, quarterly, or annually, on cards whose annual fees keep climbing. Losing track of even one credit is like leaving free money on the table.
That’s why we built the Thrifty Traveler Credit Card Benefits Tracker – a free online dashboard that keeps tabs on all of it for you.
And in case you missed it: It also just got a major upgrade. Here’s what makes it worth setting up (or revisiting if you already have):
- It flags credits before they expire – orange at 30 days out, red at 14 – so you’re not scrambling at the end of the month.
- It shows you exactly when a card has paid for itself. The tracker shows you that math automatically, so you know when you’ve crossed into pure upside.
- It calculates your Chase 5/24 status for you … as long as you enter in the dates you opened your cards.
- You can now track authorized users, add multiple copies of the same card, add custom cards and benefits, and much more.
Read about all the updates here
We might be biased (OK … very biased), but we think it’s the best tool available for keeping your cards and points balances organized. Give it a try and let us know what you think!
– Nick Serati, Thrifty Traveler co-founder
✈️ Other Travel Tidbits
- 💎 ICYMI: The big sign-up bonus offer on the *csp* is ending soon!
- ✈️ Delta just made it official: nonstop flights from Los Angeles (LAX) to Manila (MNL) begin March 28, 2027, flying three times weekly on the Airbus A350-900 before going daily on June 7. It’ll be the only U.S. carrier flying the route nonstop.
- ❤️ Southwest is adding 15 new routes across 20 cities starting in March, with Nashville and Las Vegas each landing four new routes. The standout? A rare “reverse redeye” from Vegas to Honolulu, departing at 2:45 a.m. (The Points Guy)
- 💼 There’s a new offer on the *world of hyatt business*: Earn *world of hyatt business bonus offer*
