Book now: Open business-class award availability to New Zealand this spring
If you've ever dreamed of traveling to New Zealand, with its spectacular landscapes, stunning national parks and natural wonders like Milford Sound, there is excellent award availability using Star Alliance miles in April. Best of all, you can travel nonstop in business class from the West Coast.
Air New Zealand is currently showing generous nonstop availability from both Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and San Francisco International Airport (SFO) to Auckland Airport (AKL) on many dates in April.
Related: I flew 14 hours on a 'couch' — here's whether Air New Zealand's Skycouch was worth it
You can easily view the availability by month on the United Airlines MileagePlus website, where you can book one-way flights for 110,000 miles plus $43.30 in fees and taxes each way.
There are also limited seats on the nonstop service from Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) in April and May.
An even better deal is booking the same flights with Air Canada Aeroplan points, where you will be charged just 75,000 points each way in business class. Keep in mind, though, that there's a slightly higher charge of $95 for fees and taxes.
There is some availability for return flights to the U.S. in April at the same price, though your options are far more plentiful when traveling to the Land of the Long White Cloud.
It's worth noting that Air New Zealand offers lie-flat seats with direct aisle access and a decent soft product, but the seats lack privacy and storage. The airline will introduce an all-new and much-improved business-class seat in 2024, though this will not be in place for these April dates.
Related: Aboard Air New Zealand's inaugural flight from NYC to Auckland, the world's fourth-longest
How to earn Star Alliance miles
This offer once again illustrates the value of earning transferable points. If you only collect United miles, you would need to pay 110,000 miles each way for these flights. However, if you have transferable points, you could choose to transfer them to Aeroplan at a 1:1 ratio from the following programs:
The following cards all currently offer strong welcome bonuses with points and miles that you can transfer to your Aeroplan account:
- The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
- The Platinum Card® from American Express
- American Express® Gold Card
- Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
- Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
- Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (see rates and fees)
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees)
Related: Credit card transfer partners: Guide to transferring points and miles to airlines and hotels
Bottom line
Finding a 13-hour nonstop business-class flight in a lie-flat seat for just 75,000 credit card points plus minimal fees and taxes is an excellent deal. If you have ever considered visiting the spectacular country of New Zealand, consider jumping on this award availability.
While Air New Zealand does not have the most cutting-edge business-class seats, for this price, you can sleep all the way to the South Pacific.
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