You can now redeem JetBlue points for TAP Air Portugal flights — and there's a new sweet spot
You can now redeem JetBlue TrueBlue points for TAP Air Portugal flights, and there are some great deals to be found in both economy and business class. @findflightsforme first reported this news.
Here's how you can book your next TAP flight with TrueBlue points, some of the best routes we've seen and why this sweet spot is worth considering.
Related: TAP Air Portugal adds 3 new interesting transatlantic routes to Portugal
How to book TAP Air Portugal flights with TrueBlue points
The best way to redeem TrueBlue points on TAP is on nonstop flights from North America to TAP's hub cities. We've seen plentiful economy-class availability between Lisbon Airport (LIS) in Portugal and various U.S. and Canadian airports for only 19,000 TrueBlue points each way plus taxes and fees.
These deals aren't limited to East Coast hubs like New York and Boston. We've seen the same prices from Midwest and West Coast airports, too, including San Francisco International Airport (SFO), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD).
Business-class seats are more elusive, but using an award redemption search tool like seats.aero, you can find them on select dates for only 59,000 points each way.
We've seen similar prices from select cities to PortoAirport (OPO) in Portugal as well.
Taxes and fees cost $5.60 for flights out of the U.S. For return flights, you'll typically pay around $50 to $70.
That means you could book a round-trip ticket to Portugal for under 40,000 points and $100 total in economy or under 120,000 points and $100 in business class. That's a great deal, especially for a nonstop flight to Europe from the West Coast.
Related: Best times to book business-class award flights
How to earn more TrueBlue points
You don't have to collect JetBlue TrueBlue points to take advantage of the program's new sweet spot.
Capital One miles and Citi ThankYou Rewards points both transfer to TrueBlue at a 1:1 ratio. American Express Membership Rewards points transfer at a less desirable ratio of 1.25:1.
JetBlue also offers several cobranded credit cards — including the carrier's first premium card — each with a welcome bonus to help boost your TrueBlue points balance.
Related: JetBlue TrueBlue program: How to easily earn points
Bottom line
JetBlue's new partnership with TAP Air Portugal is great news for points and miles enthusiasts. There are other ways to book TAP flights on points, such as Air Canada Aeroplan and Avianca LifeMiles, but these typically cost more. For instance, the ORD-LIS example above costs 37,000 LifeMiles in economy and 69,000 LifeMiles in business — compared to 19,000 TrueBlue points in economy and 59,000 TrueBlue points in business.
This means JetBlue TrueBlue's new sweet spot could be the cheapest way to fly TAP Air Portugal with points.
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