I am not the origional poster of this thread but i need help too. I have 40k SPG (Which =50k airline miles) and hopefully will soon have 30k Amex MR. What is the cheapest way to get roundtrip from NY to Israel for Sukkos?? From reading some older posts it seems that with some airlines (Alitalia for ex) 50k is enough. How do I decide which Airline to choose? What are my best options? I assume the first step is checking availability with airlines?? Do i just call Alitalia for ex. and ask what dates/flights can be redeemed for 50k? Do I call the other skyteam members also and if any have avail I just transfer to Alitalia and then book?? How much should I expect to pay in $$ aside from the points?? I am new at this and it is soo confusing. Basically, what is the cheapest option, and how do i go about it?? Thanks to whoever can assist.
youre asking the wrong question, instead of asking for the cheapest option (non-Rule Buster) you should be asking is there still anything available. most choice dates are already gone and those that remain will probably mean at best a 12 hr layover at the European connecting city
step 1 = figure out which dates you are willing to fly
step 2 = which dates you cantfly (for whatever reason)
step 3 = call the different programs to see what if anything they have or use thier websites if you know how to
the problem is usually CO is best for cashing in for *A but SPG to CO or UA is 2 SPG = 1 mile not very good at all and you wont have enough to get anything, AA (OW) also you wont have enough
So you are down to ST DL is 80k but youd never see TLV for that at best 130k so Alitilia is probably your best bet
