Most Valuable Amex Points Redemptions for Flights

At Chatflights, we often get requests from people with a ton of Amex points sitting in the bank who wish to spend them in the most valuable way. 200,000 Amex points typically only gives you about $2,000 in value when shopping for flights in the Amex travel portal but we seek out more valuable solutions that can sometimes include First or Business Class flights — that normally cost over $10,000 — for 200k points, or less, when transferring points to frequent flyer programs. Here are some of our top picks.

Delta One to Europe for 100k Points Round-Trip, Per Person

Delta charges a pretty penny to fly its lie-flat Business Class product, which it calls Delta One, when redeeming its own Delta SkyMiles. However, there is still a way around Delta’s high mileage prices which allows you to fly its convenient route network from across the US to Europe for just 50K points each way, per person, in Business Class.

Enter Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. By transferring American Express Membership Rewards points to Virgin’s frequent flyer program, you can take advantage of one of the few remaining sweet spots to fly Delta using points. If you have 200K Amex points, this means you can fly yourself and a friend, spouse, or child round-trip to Europe in style.

• Recommended transfer partner: Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• Points needed for Business Class: 100,000 per person (200k for 2)
• Operating airline: Delta

First Class to Tokyo for 110k Points Round-Trip, Per Person

While All Nippon Airways (ANA) has a great frequent flyer program, it is also a great airline for actual flight redemption. ANA is a partner of Virgin Atlantic, which means that you can use your Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points for ANA flights. The award chart for ANA flights using Virgin points is very reasonably priced and arguably the best value is for First Class redemptions from New York, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, and Los Angeles to Tokyo for just 110,000 (from West Coast) – 120,000 points round-trip, per person. Transfer Amex Membership Rewards to Virgin to book nonstop flights on ANA.

• Recommended transfer partner: Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• Points needed for First Class: 110,000 – 120,000 per person
• Operating airline: ANA

Business Class to Bali With a Stopover in Singapore for 190K Points Round-Trip

If getting your photo taken swinging above the rice terraces of Bali is on your bucket list, why not add to it a picture of you enjoying the luxurious Business Class cabin of Singapore Airlines. Often cited as one of — if not the — best airline in the world, Singapore’s Business Class is on par with First Class service on some airlines.

Flying Singapore Airlines doesn’t just give you one of the most direct routes to Bali, it also allows you the opportunity to stop over for a few days in Southeast Asia’s business hub on your way to/from paradise. Since the airline is very strict on releasing award seats to partner airlines, you’ll need to transfer points to Singapore’s KrisFlyer program to book these flights. From the West Coast, it’s 190k points, and from the East Coast, it’ll be 198 points, round-trip.

• Recommended transfer partner: Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• Points needed for Business Class: 190,000 – 198,000
• Operating airline: Singapore Airlines

Business Class to Europe for 88k Amex Points, Per Person

All Nippon Airways Mileage Club offers some of the cheapest redemptions out there if you have Amex points. A round-trip in Business Class to Europe will cost you just 88,000 points, which also includes the option to add a free stopover. Air Canada, United Airlines, TAP Portugal, and SAS don’t impose any high fuel surcharges, so you only need to pay for the airport taxes, which are around $100-150 per person.

• Recommended transfer partner: ANA Mileage Club
• Points needed for Business Class: 88,000 (176k for 2)
• Operating airline: Several; Air Canada, United, SAS, and TAP recommended to avoid fuel surcharges.

These examples are just a drop in the bucket of the many superb redemption possibilities available with your Amex points. Seeking out these high-value redemption opportunities can be time consuming — especially when it comes to finding availability. The key to finding the best deals is to be fairly flexible with travel dates and even departure cities or destinations. At Chatflights, we’d be glad to take the burden off your shoulders and find the best flights for your trip. Read the full story from Chatflights here.

About Chatflights

Chatflights is a mobile, human-powered digital concierge and award-flight travel agency focused on helping travelers redeem their hard-earned points and miles for flights. For up to 8x fewer points and miles, Chatflights will search for hard-to-find award redemptions and complex routes, diligently working to make sure the best possible travel outcome is found.

Taking the stress and insecurity out of flight booking, Chatflights invites its users to communicate one-on-one with human experts via a chat-based service located right in the app, and then remains available to help if anything is needed leading up to, and throughout the course of the trip. It’s as simple as sending a text. Mention “Ageist” in the chat to receive a 10% discount with Chatflights.