Fly the world's best business class to Africa, Europe and more from just $1,620 round-trip
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
I'm a big fan of Qatar Airways' Qsuite, named the Best International Business-Class Product at the TPG Awards. Award availability can be plentiful from time to time, but you'll still need to redeem at least 70,000 American AAdvantage miles each way for an international business-class flight from the U.S.
At the moment, however, there's another fantastic opportunity to book. As reported by One Mile at a Time, Qatar Airways is currently offering $550 off a round-trip flight or $275 off a one-way flight booked in business class.
Flights need to be booked directly through the airline's website by July 11, 2021, using the code MPMEMBERS for travel through July 11, 2022. That means you won't be able to redeem points to book through a travel portal, unfortunately.
Flights from all U.S. gateways are eligible, including Atlanta (ATL), Boston (BOS), Chicago (ORD), Dallas/Ft. Worth (DFW), Houston (IAH), Los Angeles (LAX), Miami (MIA), New York (JFK), Philadelphia (PHL), San Francisco (SFO), Seattle (SEA) and Washington, D.C. (IAD).
In theory, you can book discounted flights to all 100+ Qatar Airways international destinations, but I wasn't able to trigger the discount on some of the airline's lowest "classic" fares.
Airline: Qatar Airways
Routes: From ATL, BOS, DFW, IAD, IAH, LAS, MIA, JFK, ORD, PHL, SEA, SFO to international destinations via DOH
Cost: From $1,623 round-trip
Dates: Travel by July 11, 2022
Pay With: The Platinum Card® from American Express (5x on airfare booked directly with the airline or through American Express Travel; earn 5x points on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year), Citi Prestige® Card (5x on airfare), Citi Premier® Card (see rates and fees), Chase Sapphire Reserve (3x on air travel), American Express® Gold Card (3x on airfare when booked directly with the airline or on amextravel.com) or Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2x on travel)
The information for the Citi Prestige Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
The lowest fares I found are for flights between Houston and Delhi (DEL) — while I wouldn't book a leisure trip there now, given India's ongoing battle with an out-of-control COVID-19 outbreak, you could use this sale to book a trip in 2022.
If you're looking to travel this summer, Seattle to Athens (ATH) could be a great option — you can book your trip for less than $2,000 all-in, which is phenomenal.
One of my favorite destinations in the world is on sale, too. You can book round-trip flights between Philadelphia and Cape Town (CPT) for less than $2,600 round-trip, which is a very good fare for South Africa.
Note that the lowest-cost tickets book into the "classic" fare bucket and do not include seat assignments or lounge access.
In some cases, you can pay a slight premium for a "comfort" fare, which does include seat selection and access to the airline's top-notch Al Mourjan lounge in Doha. Certain American Airlines and Alaska Airlines elites may also be able to access select business or first-class lounges on classic fares.
Maximize your purchase
Don't forget to use a card that earns additional points on airfare purchases, such as The Platinum Card® from American Express (5x on flights booked directly with airlines or American Express Travel - up to 500,00 on these purchases per calendar year), Chase Sapphire Reserve, American Express® Gold Card, Citi Premier® Card, Citi Prestige® Card (5x on airfare) or the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2x on all travel purchases). Check out this guide for more on maximizing airfare purchases.