Using AlaskaAir.com to Find Award Seat Availability
To an infrequent traveler, Alaska Airlines and its Mileage Plan loyalty program might not seem to be great assets for award travel. While Alaska isn't a member of the any of the big three alliances, the Mileage Plan program's partnerships and the very user-friendly award search engine on Alaskaair.com mean all of us should be familiar with and collect Alaska miles. Today, I'll focus specifically on AlaskaAir.com and show you not only how easy it is find award seats bookable with Alaska miles, but also some of the site features you should be familiar with.
AlaskaAir.com Basics
You can search for award flights on both Alaska Airlines and partners directly from the home screen, even without logging in to your Mileage Plan account. Simply enter your origin and destination and ensure the "Use Miles" box is checked before clicking "Find Flights."
The default search results page on AlaskaAir.com is outstanding. It automatically gives you a week's worth of results for your route, and each date is pre-filled with the cheapest available award, giving you a quick idea of which dates have only premium-cabin redemptions.
As you'll notice in the above search results, when you're looking for availability from JFK, the engine automatically searches Newark and LaGuardia as well. To the left of the results, there are efficient filters that let you quickly narrow down acceptable itineraries. You can filter by the number of stops or do something none of the legacy carriers can even accomplish: filter results to only a specific airline. If the carrier is grayed out, it either doesn't fly the route or has no availability for the given week of displayed search results.
My favorite feature of this engine is brought up by clicking the calendar radio button at the top left of the original search results. This will display an entire month's worth of availability on your requested route.
From the this view, you can then even tell the calendar to only show economy, business or first-class availability. This immediately lets you know how flexible you need to be with your travel dates if you're looking to fly a specific class or use a certain amount of miles. This route from New York to South Africa, for instance, only has a few dates with first-class availability:
My final basic overview tip may seem inconsequential, but if you use award search engines often you'll understand the convenience. Rather than having to hit your browser's back button one or more times to start a new search, you can simply click the "Change Your Search" link at the top of the results and move on to your next search.
Precautions
There are a couple idiosyncrasies and options to be aware of when using this engine, which can both hurt and help you. Let's review them:
Phantom Availability — While it's not nearly as prevalent as phantom availability on United.com or BA.com, this does happen from time to time on AlaskaAir.com when you're trying to book partner airlines. If you're going to transfer Starpoints to Alaska or are relying on space you see to make larger plans, make sure to click all the way through to the checkout page or call Alaska to have an agent confirm that the availability you see is actually bookable. If you try to check out and get an "error code 1620," that most likely means you've found phantom availability.
Mixed-Cabin Awards — If you're flying an itinerary with two or more segments and your requested class of service isn't available for the entire trip, the website does a pretty good job of telling you that you're booking a mixed-cabin itinerary. However, people still miss both warnings and are upset when they find out they've paid the same price as a ticket with premium cabins the whole way. Look for the airline seat icon with a stick figure that indicates the ticket is mixed-cabin. Clicking the details of the flight will then show you your class of service segment by segment:
Refundable Award Tickets — Alaska gives you the unique option to pay a premium in miles on Alaska-operated flights for the ability to book a refundable award ticket. A button on the search results will give you the available refundable options, and the terms and conditions for the refundable ticket are stated on the checkout page. If you need the flexibility, this is actually not a bad deal, as the premium in miles is reasonable. The below Alaska-operated flights would cost 20,000 miles (vs. 30,000) as nonrefundable.
Phone Bookable Only Partners — You can book award tickets online for all Mileage Plan partners except Cathay Pacific and LATAM. To book award flights on these airlines, you need to call 1-800-252-7522. The good news is these airlines are Oneworld alliance partners, meaning you can find availability on BritishAirways.com or Qantas.com, and the vast majority of the time the seats you find will also be bookable with Alaska miles.
Book Multi-City and Stopover Itineraries Online — One of the most unique and valuable benefits of the Mileage Plan program is the ability to book stopovers on one-way awards. Seattle - San Diego - Narita - Hong Kong on Japan Airlines one-way in economy costs 40,000 miles.
For the same price and by using the multi-city online search function, you can book Seattle - San Diego - Narita (enjoy Tokyo for four days) Narita - Hong Kong for the same 40,000 miles.
Bottom Line
Even for beginners, searching for awards with AlaskaAir.com should be rather easy. Given the wide array of partners (with more still being added) and the user-friendly site, Alaska miles can be incredibly valuable. Remember to do your due diligence in checking phantom availability before transferring in Starpoints, and remember to take advantage of stopovers on one-way awards.
What's your favorite aspect of the Mileage Plan search engine?
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| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
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Recommended Credit
Why We Chose It
There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)Pros
- 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
- 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
- Solid welcome bonus
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
- Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.
Rewards Rate
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Intro Offer
You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after spending $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.As High As 100,000 points. Find Out Your Offer.Annual Fee
$325Recommended Credit
Credit ranges are a variation of FICO® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.Excellent to Good
Why We Chose It
There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)Pros
- 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
- 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
- Solid welcome bonus
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
- Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.