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Sweet Spot Sunday: Fly Brussels Airlines business class to Europe for just 44,000 miles
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don't cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Editorial note: On March 10, 2023, Etihad Guest implemented new partner award charts. The awards below start at 80,000 miles in business class, subject to availability.
Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
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Quick summary
Etihad Guest miles can unlock significant savings on business-class flights to Europe, especially for travel between New York or Washington, D.C. and Brussels.
Booking a round-trip lie-flat seat to Belgium can cost as few as 88,000 miles, offering a value far above typical redemption rates.
Etihad miles are accessible through transfers from several major transferable points programs at a 1:1 ratio, and sometimes with transfer bonuses.
Award seats must be located via a partner airline's website and booked by calling Etihad directly.
What to consider
This sweet spot is only available for nonstop Brussels Airlines flights between New York (JFK) or Washington, D.C. (IAD) and Brussels (BRU).
Award space can be limited, and booking requires calling Etihad, as online reservations are not possible for these partner flights.
Etihad miles are valued at 1.4 cents each as of June 2024 per TPG's valuations, but this redemption can yield much higher value.
What you'll miss from the article
Step-by-step instructions for searching and booking these partner flights, plus tips for maximizing your Etihad miles.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
Etihad Guest miles are less commonly used in the U.S. than miles with domestic airlines like American Airlines. However, in a handful of cases they can save you tens of thousands of miles during a single trip -- like, more miles than are offered with most credit card sign-up bonuses.
There exists an exceptionally syrupy sweet spot for anyone wanting to travel to Europe in a lie-flat business-class seat. You could save $6,000 by dropping just 88,000 miles for a round trip to Belgium.
Here’s the best part: You probably already have a load of Etihad miles, whether you know it or not. That’s because Etihad is a transfer partner of the following transferable points programs:
You can instantly convert these rewards to Etihad miles at a 1:1 ratio.
If you’ve earned any of the enormous sign-up bonuses that have been floating around lately, there’s a great chance you already have enough Etihad miles to book a lie-flat seat to Europe.
If you’re paying 60,000-plus miles for a one-way business-class flight to Europe, you’re not getting ripped off. That’s the going rate for a fancy lie-flat seat across the Atlantic.
(Photo courtesy of Brussels Airlines)
However, with Etihad miles you can fly on partner Brussels Airlines and score seven-plus hours in a seat like this for 44,000 miles one way. This seat regularly sells for more than $3,000 -- giving you a value of 6.8 cents per mile. TPG valuations peg Etihad miles at 1.4 cents each, on average -- meaning this sweet spot offers a value nearly 5 times higher than usual!
The same exact seat when using other airline currencies would cost:
You’ll save between 16,000 and 31,000 rewards each way (between 32,000 and 62,000 miles round-trip) over common Star Alliance airline programs by booking with non-Star Alliance partner Etihad (yes, there are a few exceptions).
Here’s the caveat, though: You can only find this price for flights to Brussels Airport (BRU) from either New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) or Washington, D.C.'s Dulles International Airport (IAD). In other words, this is a cheap way to cross the ocean in style, but you’ll likely have to take another flight to your actual destination once you reach the European continent. Intra-Europe flights are usually inexpensive, so this shouldn’t be an issue.
You cannot book these seats online with Etihad -- nor can you locate available seats on the Etihad website. The best way to find seats is through the United Airlines website.
Step 1: Enter your travel information
Head to the United Airlines website and enter your desired dates and airports. Remember, the only flights that qualify for this deal are the following nonstop routes on Brussels Airlines:
New York (JFK) to Brussels (BRU).
Washington (IAD) to Brussels (BRU).
In the below example, I’ve stipulated that I want to see business-class flights only.
(Screenshot from united.com)
Step 2: Open the 30-day calendar
Your desired date may not have Brussels Airlines availability. Seats aren’t impossible to find, but they’re less common than some other United partners.
On the results page, select the 30-day calendar. You’ll now see the lowest business-class awards for each day in a digestible format.
(Screenshot from united.com)
Step 3: Uncheck the “With stops” box below the calendar
Brussels Airlines flies nonstop between Brussels and Washington. We can therefore eliminate all flights that have a connection, because we know those aren’t Brussels Airlines.
To do this, locate the tiny box under the calendar that reads “With stops” and uncheck it.
(Screenshot from united.com)
Step 4: Click on dates that show 75,000 miles
The calendar now shows only nonstop business-class flights between Washington and Brussels. To find available business-class flights on Brussels, look for dates pricing out at 75,000 miles.
By clicking on one of these dates, you can see in the search results at the bottom of the page that there are business-class seats available, “Operated By Brussels Airlines.”
(Screenshot from united.com)
Step 5: Call Etihad to reserve your flight
Note the flight details such as date, departure/arrival time and number of the flight you found on United. Then, call Etihad at 877-690-0767 and relay the flight information carefully to them.
Etihad phone agents are a bit notorious for not being very good at booking partner award flights. If the agent can’t see the flights you’ve found, respectfully end the call and call back to get another agent.
There are sometimes even transfer bonuses to Etihad, which would make this already cheap sweet deal even cheaper.
If this trip sounds like something you’d consider in the future, you can earn the miles you need quickly by opening cards such as:
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
The Platinum Card® from American Express: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases within the first six months of card membership.
Citi Premier® Card: (see rates and fees)Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening.
There are plenty more cards that earn these types of points. Read our guide to the best travel credit cards for more inspiration.
You can also transfer Marriott points to Etihad at a 3:1 ratio. Also, for every 60,000-point increment you transfer, you’ll get a 5,000-mile bonus. For example, if you transfer 60,000 Marriott points, you’ll receive a deposit of 25,000 miles into your Etihad account.
The ability to book a multi-thousand dollar lie-flat seat to Europe for just 44,000 miles is one of the best airline sweet spots in the points and miles world. And you can book it with points you might already have.
The only problem is that your flight must be from either JFK or IAD. If you don’t live near one of these airports, you’ll have to fly there first to catch your dirt-cheap business-class flight.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
