Deal alert (Friday only): Fly to Thailand or Vietnam for as few as 30K United miles
Editor's Note
United Airlines is running a week of award flight sales. MileagePlus members can score savings on redemptions to a new destination each day, and United credit card holders can save even more. You'll have to act fast, though, because these deals only last 24 hours.
On Friday, United members can book award flights to Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City via Hong Kong for 35,000 miles one-way, or just 30,000 miles if you hold a United Chase credit card. That price is for economy class, but it's still not a bad deal if you can endure the long journey.
Related: United credit cards add statement credits and higher annual fees — is it worth keeping your card?
Deal basics
Airline: United
Routes: Between airports on the U.S. mainland and Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) and Ho Chi Minh City's Tan Son Nhat International Airport (SGN)
Fare classes: Economy
How to book: Directly with United
Travel dates: Oct. 26 to Dec. 10
Book by: Aug. 8
Sample flights
On Friday only, you can book one-way tickets between mainland U.S. cities and Bangkok or Ho Chi Minh City for only 35,000 miles in economy — or 30,000 miles if you have a United Chase credit card. For your planning purposes, keep in mind that you must fly through Hong Kong to reach either of these destinations on United, and United only serves Hong Kong from Los Angeles and San Francisco.
One of the many reasons to get a United credit card is that cardholders get access to lower award rates. In this case, you can save 5,000 miles per one-way ticket, which could add up quickly. For a two-person, round-trip booking, that shaves off 20,000 miles from your total cost.
These are some of the dates this 30,000-mile cardholder deal is available on the routing from Los Angeles to Ho Chi Minh City via Hong Kong:
You'll still have to pay the taxes and fees on your award ticket(s), but these tend to be quite reasonable on United. For Friday's destinations, United advertised they start at $80.61 round-trip, but we found them for as low as $74.81 round-trip on some dates, even for non-cardholders. (Don't forget to pay the taxes and fees with your United card in order to take advantage of perks like free checked bags.)
This promotional pricing applies only to primary cardmembers (i.e., not authorized users). However, there's no limit to the number of award tickets a cardholder can book. If you're considering jumping on this deal, be sure to have the United Chase cardmember in your family book the tickets.
If you're short United miles, you can transfer them from Chase Ultimate Rewards and Bilt Rewards at a 1:1 ratio. You can also pool United miles with family and friends to redeem for United-operated award flights. However, since pools take at least 72 hours to set up, you won't be able to use this feature for Friday's deal unless you have already set up a pool.
Related: How to get maximum value from the United MileagePlus program
Bottom line
On Friday only, United's final deal of the week is offering award flights to Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City for only 35,000 miles each way in economy, or 30,000 miles for cardholders. If you haven't finalized your fall travel plans, this could be your sign to plan a trip to Thailand or Vietnam. However, be sure to also check paid rates before redeeming your miles, as I found round-trip United fares from Los Angeles to Ho Chi Minh City for just $645 in basic economy or $805 in economy this fall.
Related reading:
- The best credit cards for airport lounge access
- How to get United Club lounge access: From credit cards to paid memberships
- The do's and don'ts of visiting an airport lounge
- The best credit cards to reach elite status
- 9 domestic lounges that are worth going out of your way for
- The best credit cards for United Airlines flyers
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The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)Pros
- The Capital One Venture X business card has a very lucrative welcome offer.
- In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
- Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.
Cons
- The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
- Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
- With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
- Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month