Deal Alert: Fly Roundtrip to Korea for 70,000 SkyMiles in Premium Economy
Quick summary
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
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Another day, another Delta SkyMiles deal — this time to Korea! You can fly from across the US to Seoul (ICN) for just 50,000 miles round-trip in economy or 70,000 miles roundtrip in premium economy.
Like other SkyMiles deals, Delta only advertises a handful of departures, but it appears to be available from just about every city the airline flies from. So, head over to Delta.com and enter your preferred departure city and destination as Seoul (ICN). For reference, both American and United charge 70,000 miles for a roundtrip economy award between the US and Korea. Although Delta doesn't publish an award chart, economy awards usually don't fall below 80,000 miles round-trip.
If you want to try Delta's new Premium Select product that's featured on the A350, you can fly that for just 70,000 miles roundtrip. You won't find this deal on as many routes, but it did appear on a handful I searched for including the nonstop from Atlanta to Seoul. This is a fantastic redemption of SkyMiles because an Atlanta - Seoul ticket is going for ~$2000, meaning you're getting about 2.8 cents per mile — a lot higher than TPG's valuation of 1.2 cents apiece.
If you're short on miles, remember that you can instantly transfer American Express Membership Rewards points into your SkyMiles account at a 1:1 ratio.
Airline: Delta
Routes: US Cities (ATL/JAX/JFK/LGA/MEM/BNA/MSY/RDU/SLC/DTW/MIA and likely others) to ICN
Cost: 50,000+ SkyMiles and $47+ round-trip in economy or 70,000 SkyMiles and $47+ round-trip in Premium Economy
Dates: September 13 through December 2
Booking Link: Directly with Delta
Purchase by: September 12
Pay Taxes/Fees With: The Platinum Card® from American Express (5x on airfare), Citi Premier® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve, Citi Prestige (3x on airfare plus excellent trip delay insurance) or Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2x on travel)
Here are a few examples of what you can book:
Atlanta (ATL) to Seoul (ICN) for 50,000 SkyMiles + $47 in taxes and fees round-trip in October:
New York (LGA) to Seoul (ICN) for 50,000 SkyMiles + $53 in taxes and fees round-trip in October:
Nashville (BNA) to Seoul (ICN) for 50,000 SkyMiles + $53 in taxes and fees round-trip in November:
Atlanta (ATL) to Seoul (ICN) for 70,000 SkyMiles + $47 in taxes and fees round-trip in Premium Economy October:
Salt Lake City (SLC) to Seoul (ICN) for 70,000 SkyMiles + $53 in taxes and fees round-trip in October:
Maximize Your Purchase
Don't forget to use a credit card that earns additional points on airfare purchases to pay the taxes and fees, such as the Platinum Card® from American Express (5x on flights booked directly with airlines or American Express Travel), Citi Premier® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve, Citi Prestige (3x on airfare) or the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2x on all travel purchases). Check out this post for more on maximizing airfare purchases.
If you don't have enough SkyMiles in your account, consider signing up for one of the Delta credit cards to ensure you're able to take advantage of a deal next time one pops up. For example, the Gold Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card from American Express currently comes with a bonus of 30,000 bonus miles after you use your new Card to make $1,000 in purchases within your first 3 months and a $50 Statement Credit after you make a Delta purchase with your new Card within your first 3 months. Terms Apply.
Google flights is a great way to book and compare flight costs- read more about Google Flights.