Get Incredible Value From United Miles on Intra-Japan Flights
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
Last week, I flew from Nagoya, Japan (NGO) to Nagasaki, Japan (NGS) to visit the world's first "robot-staffed hotel." That review is coming soon. For now, I wanted to share how a short round-trip flight would've cost more than four nights at the robot hotel (after the Citi Prestige Card's 4th Night Free credit) if I'd paid for the flight rather than using United MileagePlus miles.
Japan has an incredible train system, which makes the demand for domestic flights low — leading to a rather limited route network. That said, for traveling between some cities, flying definitely makes sense. According to Rome2Rio, the route from Nagoya to where we were headed in Nagasaki would've taken over 6 hours and cost up to $227 per person each way by train. Or, there was a 1:25-hour flight from NGO-NGS. Even after factoring in transfers to/from the airport, we'd be saving time.
The downside? Due to ANA's monopoly on this nonstop route, the round-trip flight would cost $697 per person! The upside? There was award availability on the flight. And, with the United MileagePlus program, it'd only cost 10,000 miles round-trip. There are no taxes/fees passed along, but we had to pay $75 for the close-in booking fee since it was booked within 21 days of departure, and we don't have United status. Still, even paying that fee, we were getting 6.22 cents per mile from this economy redemption. That's well ahead of the 1.5-cents-per-mile TPG valuation for United miles.
Even better, a round-trip isn't required to get this excellent rate. All intra-Japan flights under 800 miles cost just 5,000 United miles in economy. Longer flights are going to cost 8,000 miles each way.
While you could splurge for first class, I wouldn't recommend it for the sub-800 mile flights. The seats are nice, but these flights are too short to justify the price difference. However, the 4,000-mile premium each way would make a lot more sense for flights longer than 800 miles.
Let's take a look at some routes where this could make sense. Here's a selection of just a few of the domestic routes where you might want to redeem United miles for on ANA:
| Route | Min one-way (economy) | Max one-way (economy) | Cents per mile | Min one-way (first) | Max one-way (first) | Cents per mile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nagoya-Nagasaki (NGO-NGS) | $97 | $348 | 1.9 - 7.0 | $161 | $392 | 1.3 - 3.3 |
Toyko-Nagasaki (HND-NGS) | $96 | $345 | 1.9 - 6.9 | $210 | $477 | 1.8 - 4.0 |
Tokyo-Sapporo (HND-CTS) | $98 | $363 | 2.0 - 7.3 | $157 | $444 | 1.3 - 3.7 |
Osaka-Sapporo (KIX-CTS) | $81 | $440 | 1.6 - 8.8 | $174 | $509 | 1.5 - 4.2 |
Tokyo-Okinawa (HND-OKA)* | $81 | $437 | 1.0 - 5.5 | $226 | $518 | 1.9 - 4.3 |
Osaka-Ishigaki (KIX-ISG)* | $170 | $512 | 2.1 - 6.4 | $250 | $566 | 2.1 - 4.7 |
*Flights are over 800 miles, so economy costs 8,000 miles each way.
As you can see, virtually all of the options provide a higher value than TPG's valuation of United miles. You'll have to book a cheap date well in advance in order to not get more than 1.5 cents per mile.
This award sweet spot makes a trip to Japan a lot easier and cheaper. For example, there have been a few recent flight deals from the US to Nagoya (NGO). While a perfectly lovely city (from which I'm writing this article) it's not the best city for tourists. With a combination of a flight deal here and these United awards, you can easily hop around Japan for cheap.
If you need more United miles, United MileagePlus Explorer Business Card which is currently offering a 50,000-mile sign-up bonus for spending $3,000 in the first three months.
United is a transfer partner of Chase Ultimate Rewards (1:1, instantaneous) and Starwood Preferred Guest (2:1). While the SPG transfer rate is terrible, you can transfer Starpoints to Marriott (1:3) and use the Marriott Hotel + Air Packages to get a load of United miles. 90,000 Starpoints transferred to 270,000 Marriott points would convert into 132,000 United miles plus a seven-night stay at a Marriott Category 1-5 hotel.
You can earn Ultimate Rewards points through sign-up bonuses for the Ink Business Preferred Credit Card (80,000 points for $5,000 spend), Chase Sapphire Reserve (50,000 points for $4,000 spend) and Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (50,000 points for $4,000 spend).
No matter how you get the United miles, make sure to remember to see how you can put them to use on your next trip to Japan.
TPG featured card
Rewards
| 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
Annual Fee
Recommended Credit
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
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