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March/April Flying Blue Promo Award Cities Announced
Brian Kelly
Founder + "The Points Guy"
Since launching TPG in 2010, founder Brian Kelly has expanded the team to include a distinguished editorial staff and an extensive network of freelancer contacts from around the globe. Today, TPG reaches 11 million unique monthly visitors and more than 3 million followers across social media platforms and has offices in New York City, Charlotte and the U.K.
Feb. 15, 2012
•
2 min read
March/April Flying Blue Promo Award Cities Announced
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Every two months Flying Blue, the frequent flyer program of Air France and KLM, announces a list of cities that only require 50% of the normal miles. For example, US to Europe flights in coach are normally 50,000 miles, but promo awards are only 25,000 miles roundtrip. Flying Blue is a 1:1 transfer partner of American Express and there's currently a 25% transfer bonus until February 29, 2012, so you can get roundtrips to Europe for 20,000 Amex points in economy or 40,000 points in business class.
So what's the catch? Flying Blue has steep fuel surcharges on their award tickets, so that 20,000 point roundtrip ticket to Europe can have over $900 in fees! Yikes. I priced out a coach award from Atlanta to Paris on Air France and fees were $615. Atlanta to Amsterdam on KLM came to $898! However, 40,000 American Express points and $898 for a roundtrip business class award to Europe (including Tel Aviv) is still a pretty good deal - especially if you were going to pay for business class.
Note: You cannot book these awards using Delta miles. There is no way around these fees and Delta flights are not eligible, so you need to start in one of these cities and take the Air France/KLM flight transatlantic to get the discounted award price.
The March/April awards will be bookable starting February 28, 2012 and will be good for travel March 1 - April 30, 2012. Target cities: KLM awards to Europe via Amsterdam from Chicago and Atlanta. Air France awards via Paris from Houston and Toronto.
Check out this post for more information on booking promo awards. They aren't for everyone, but can be a huge value - especially for last minute travel, which is when Flying Blue opens up a ton of award space.
[card card-name='Gold Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card from American Express' card-id='22034414' type='javascript' bullet-id='1']
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Apply for Capital One Venture X Business
at Capital One's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees
Best for businesses with high spending
TPG Editor‘s Rating
Go to reviewCard Rating is based on the opinion of TPG‘s editors and is not influenced by the card issuer.
Rewards Rate
| 2X miles | 2 miles per dollar on every purchase |
| 5X miles | 5 miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel |
| 10X miles | 10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Business Travel |
Intro Offer
Earn 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200K miles when you spend $150K in the first 6 monthsLIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus milesAnnual Fee
$395Recommended 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.740-850Excellent
Why We Chose It
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