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Act Fast: Wide Open Award Availability in Polaris Between SFO and Tel Aviv

Jan. 22, 2018
2 min read
United 777-300ER 77W Polaris Business Class Preview
Act Fast: Wide Open Award Availability in Polaris Between SFO and Tel Aviv
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On Sunday, United announced that it was adding its new Polaris business-class seat on its San Francisco (SFO) to Tel Aviv (TLV) route, taking over for its Dreamliner. While the carrier isn't set to launch the 777-300ER aircraft until May 23, 2018, we're seeing wide open award availability on the route.

If you're looking to try out United's new Polaris product and get a great redemption in the process, this is a great opportunity. A one-way ticket from SFO to Tel Aviv will cost you 75,000 United MileagePlus miles plus taxes and fees. On any of the TLV-bound flights we've found, taxes and fees in both Polaris and economy don't show to be any higher than $5.60 one-way.

We're seeing the most availability in July and August, while it's more scattered in September. Many days even have four or more seats available, which makes it a great chance to book a trip for the whole family, but note that these levels of open seats likely won't last long. This is what the availability looks like for four people between July and August:

On quite a few of the flights checked, almost the entire Polaris cabin is available. For example, this flight on August 17 from SFO to TLV, where every single seat in Polaris is open.

United's Polaris cabin is arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration and is a great way to travel comfortably — especially on this 14-hour flight. Check out TPG's thoughts on his first flight in Polaris, where to sit in the 777-300ER Polaris cabin and a review in the cabin on a long-haul flight from Hong Kong (HKG) to San Francisco (SFO).

Keep in mind that even if you don't have that many United miles in your MileagePlus account, you can transfer them. Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer instantly to the MileagePlus program at a 1:1 ratio. So if you're looking to book a one-way ticket, it'll cost you 75,000 Ultimate Rewards points once they're transferred to United.

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