Topic Wiki

Please follow the following rules when posting in this thread. Failure to do so may result in you request being ignored or deleted.

(If you are looking to purchase a paid ticket, please post here)

FAQs:

Q: How can I use my credit card points to book a USA-TLV ticket?
A: Please read Dan's very helpful and informative guides found here and here

Great tool to see the mileage cost for a route http://www.awardhacker.com

Q: Do I have to pay a lot of money when using miles for a ticket?

A: Sometimes. For more information read this

Q: How do I find award availability?
A: For Star Alliance (United, AirCanada, Lufthansa, Swiss, and others) see this guide

For OneWorld (AmericanAirlines, BritishAirways, Iberia, Malev, and more) You can use BA's award search engine (you need to have a free BA account to access the engine). In addition, you can use Qantas' engine (free account needed as well), which will (to an extent) search Elal. As of this posting, the Elal business flights that show up are coach, and vice verse.

For Delta and AirFrance, use their respective sites. While not perfect, they are quite manageable for the casual searcher.

And of course, many of us here will take time out to help someone who is trying to learn.

Q: All this searching is making me crazy. Is there an easier way?
A: Yes, but it might cost you. Check out AwardNexus.com, KVStool.com, and expertflyer.com.

Q: I see AirCanada availability, but when I call AirCanada they say I can't use my United miles with them. Aren't they partners?
A: You can only use miles with the airline that issued them. Through that airline (in our case United) they can issue a ticket on a partner (ie AirCanada). Trying to call AirCanada with United miles, is like trying to use shekels in Mexico.

Q: I can't find availability on my dates. What should I do?
A: You should try to be as flexible as possible. Can you add a stop or 2? Can you be more flexible with your dates? The airports?
If all else fails, keep trying. Availability is constantly opening up.

Q: Can someone please help me find a ticket?
A: No! Find it yourself.  ;D ;D Just kidding. Please copy the following lines, delete the non bolded parts, and fill it out in your post.

One way/Round-trip:
Non-stop/Maximum stops/Any:
From: All airports from which you can depart
To: All airports which you can arrive at. For multiple destinations, just keep adding this line
Departure dates: All possible dates that you can depart on. Please be as specific as possible.
Return airports:If different from 'To' line. Delete this line for One-way tickets
Return dates: Delete this line for One-way tickets
Class: First/Business/Coach/Any
Seats: Total number of people traveling over the age of 2
Alliance/Airline: What airline or alliance are you looking to fly with

IF you have any airline status or credit cards (Ie, United CC or status) that gives extended seat availability, please add that. Would be helpful to find you correct availability.

An additional note about using miles for direct flights from NYC-TLV

NYC-TLV is only served by 3 carriers non-stop, United, Delta, and El Al. Saver availability on Delta is non-existent. Saver availability on United is rare but sometimes available close-in. It is almost never available on or near holidays or holiday weekends, or around yomim tovim. Any award space that opens will be snatched up immediately so you have to constantly be checking if you hope to snag it if/when it opens. El AL awards are more readily available but prohibitively expensive using Matmid points (El Al's frequent flyer program) but may be able to be booked using Quantas points (transfers from Citi & Amex) at a much more reasonable rate.

This leaves the following options if no saver availability:

The Chase travel portal will let you use Ultimate Rewards, or a combination or UR and cash to book flights. If you have a Sapphire Reserve or a Sapphire Preferred, the redemption rate will be 1.5 cents per point or 1.25 cents per point respectively, instead of the regular 1 cent per point without them. (A, Ink cash or Ink Preferred will also give you the 1.25 cpp redemption rate.)

The Amex travel portal will let you redeem points at 1 cent per point towards the cost of air travel. If you have a grandfathered Business Platinum card, you will get 50% of the points you redeem back around a month after you book the ticket. If you have a non-grandfathered card, you will get 35% of your points back. (This is only available when redeeming points for tickets on your selected American carrier in economy class or on any airline in business or first class.)

The Citi travel portal also lets you redeem points at 1 cent per point towards travel and seems to have better pricing on El Al in business class.

Alternatively, you can sell your points (not here on DDF) and use the cash to buy regular tickets. This is usually the best option for people without either a Chase Sapphire Reserve or grandfathered Business Platinum who are flying economy.

Those are your only options for nonstop travel. For options with a stopover and more information in general, see https://www.dansdeals.com/points-travel/milespoints/the-ultimate-israel-mileage-award-chart/

This keeps on getting asked over and over. Besides Dan's comprehensive list of how to get to, or from, TLV here is a short list of options for travel to or from NYC in Y:
Lowest point per RT is FB 50K (less with promo, but YQ of ~$500 unless you can find unicorn DL availability), AA 80k (AA metal for transatlantic), AC 80k (LX or LO for low YQ) and UA 85k. Half that for OW.

Please add any other information to this wiki that you feel might be useful.



Author Topic: Need help finding a ticket? Post here! Award ticket edition (Master thread)  (Read 1839460 times)

Offline Club2000

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I booked ticket with AA miles on AA flight to Europ

Can I get infant ticket only with BA avios to travel on aa

Thanks

Offline DMYD

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I booked ticket with AA miles on AA flight to Europ

Can I get infant ticket only with BA avios to travel on aa

Thanks
You should ask that question here. http://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=12574.0

Offline Club2000

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thnaks

Offline chayankkim

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  • Location: NYC
Non-stop/Maximum stops/Any:     Non-stop
From:     ANY NYC
To:    TLV
Departure dates: SEPT 7 2015 (OR SEPT 6)

Return dates: =   SEPT 10
Class: BUSINESS (OR FIRST)
Seats:   3 PERSONS (1 INFANT UNDER 1)
Alliance/Airline:  ANY

I have 700k+ amex points
250k AA in 1 account
50k AA in a different AA account
want to fly with rewards spend least possible

Offline nathan13

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  • Location: New York
Non-stop/Maximum stops/Any:     Non-stop
From:     ANY NYC
To:    TLV
Departure dates: SEPT 7 2015 (OR SEPT 6)

Return dates: =   SEPT 10
Class: BUSINESS (OR FIRST)
Seats:   3 PERSONS (1 INFANT UNDER 1)
Alliance/Airline:  ANY

I have 700k+ amex points
250k AA in 1 account
50k AA in a different AA account
want to fly with rewards spend least possible
are you willing to make a stop?

Offline Sam Finkelstein

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  • Location: New York, NY
Non-stop/Maximum stops/Any:     Non-stop
From:     ANY NYC
To:    TLV
Departure dates: SEPT 7 2015 (OR SEPT 6)

Return dates: =   SEPT 10
Class: BUSINESS (OR FIRST)
Seats:   3 PERSONS (1 INFANT UNDER 1)
Alliance/Airline:  ANY

I have 700k+ amex points
250k AA in 1 account
50k AA in a different AA account
want to fly with rewards spend least possible

There are saver flights in economy on AA (and also through BA) for 9/6 from
PHL. Was not able to find anything in business/first. It's going to be tough to find availability during a peak travel season like this.
Formula for success: rise early, work hard, strike oil. –J. Paul Getty

Offline chayankkim

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Non-stop thank you

Offline solls108

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Looking to go NYC-MIA/FLL Aug 12-16. Have aa/avios/amex/united

Offline flyboy

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From: nyc
To: ffl  or mia
Departure dates: july 28
Return dates: july 31
Class: coach
Seats: 4
Alliance/Airline oneworld
non stop
have 98k  avios
 

Offline yochiek93

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Looking to go NYC-MIA/FLL Aug 12-16. Have aa/avios/amex/united
found the way there on aa for 12.5k but on the way back for 25k on business/first with those dates united has no availability so far

Offline solls108

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found the way there on aa for 12.5k but on the way back for 25k on business/first with those dates united has no availability so far
Exactly my issue

Offline Tzadik Nistar

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TLV-NYC
July 26 at night or 27
Economy
Prefer non stop

Offline Sam Finkelstein

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Exactly my issue

Lock in the way there for now with BA, and hope the way back opens up.
Formula for success: rise early, work hard, strike oil. –J. Paul Getty

Offline landz124

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  • Location: LKWD
One Way
NON STOP
From: LAS
To: EWR
Departure dates: 8/23 from midnight till midday
Class: coach
Seats: 3
Alliance/Airline: Have plenty UA and amex points

Offline Love 2 Travel

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  • Location: The capital of the world
One Way
Non Stop
From: HKG
To: NYC
Departure dates: Aug 31/Sep 1
Class: any
Seats: 1-2

130k Amex
100k United
250k Chase
65k Delta
100k Spg
« Last Edit: July 16, 2015, 08:41:37 PM by Love 2 Travel »

Offline Tom Brady

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One Way
Non Stop
From: HKG
To: NYC
Departure dates: Aug 31/Sep 1
Class: any
Seats: 1-2

130k Amex
100k United
250k Chase
65k Delta
100k Spg
There's nothing now, but a ton of flights open up closer to the flight, it's almost guaranteed that you'll get something the week of the flight.

Offline Tom Brady

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One Way
NON STOP
From: LAS
To: EWR
Departure dates: 8/23 from midnight till midday
Class: coach
Seats: 3
Alliance/Airline: Have plenty UA and amex points
There isn't a single saver seat on the flight you want for the next seven Sundays. You might not be able to do better than the 25k UA per person for a standard award, or 20k Amex per person transferred to DL if you don't mind flying to JFK.

Offline landz124

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There isn't a single saver seat on the flight you want for the next seven Sundays. You might not be able to do better than the 25k UA per person for a standard award, or 20k Amex per person transferred to DL if you don't mind flying to JFK.
Do you think saver will open up or no chance

Offline htg123

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Im looking for tickets from MEL-PIT around December time, redeeming UA miles. Tough on availability so, we're going to travel via asia. Many of the flights stop in JFK and have another flight from JFK-PIT. I wanted to do a less than 24hr stopover in JFK but when I try to do that online, it prices higher or I get an error message that I need to look at the routing rules. If flights from ASIA to PIT would need to transit in a different major US airport like JFK, is it against the routing rules to do a stopover there?

Offline Tom Brady

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Do you think saver will open up or no chance
There's always a possibility, it just looks unlikely, and 3 seats is very unlikely.