Enjoy Flat Bed Flights Between U.S. And Israel For Just 45,000 Points….

Mazel Tov, it’s business class…

Israel is a must visit destination, blending the richest of histories with the most emerging tech trends in the world. There’s beaches, cafes, mountains, temples and a sense of place you’d struggle to feel elsewhere. Getting there from the U.S. can pose quite a challenge, with long flight times, tricky routings and the potential for more than an entire day in economy. But thanks to a brilliant use of points, you can enjoy fully flat beds for the entire duration at a mere 45,000 points and a few bucks!

The Flights

As highlighted by Running With Miles, Aegean Airlines offers the very best rates for business class travel between the U.S. and Tel Aviv. At just 45,000 round trip, it’s a complete steal, rivaling what many airlines charge for economy. But why fly economy when you can lock in fully flat beds, even including United’s New Polaris business class seat? Using Aegean miles allows you to fly on all their Star Alliance partners, and if you choose wisely, you’ll avoid surcharges, paying less than €5 out of pocket for many flights. The key: you’re only allowed one connection on the trip, so you’ll either need a U.S. connection to a direct flight to Israel, or a direct flight to Europe, connecting onto Israel.

The Points

Wondering how on earth you come across Aegean Points, in the fair chance that you’ve never flown Aegean? Well, first – you should consider crediting Star Alliance airline flights to Aegean, because they offer one of the most favorable routes to acquire Star Alliance Gold status. But second, fear not, you can convert Starwood (SPG) Points to Aegean, and if you go that route, you’ll only need 40,000 Points, since you get 5,000 bonus points for every 20,000 you transfer. Everyone who opens an Aegean account gets 1,000 miles, and up to 5 accounts can be merged onto a family account if you’re an elite, which offers the potential to acquire 5,000 miles to get started. If you’re in a pinch, you can buy up to 30,000 SPG Points in their flash sale, which will get you 35,000 Aegean Miles.

A Few Tips

United offers their real, official, “new” Polaris Business Class on the New York to Tel Aviv flight. They also fly direct to Tel Aviv from San Francisco. You can fly from either coast of the US, and if you stick with airlines such as United, LOT, Air Canada or Turkish, you’ll avoid fuel surcharges entirely. If you’d prefer to fly Lufthansa, Swiss or Austrian, you can expect to pay a few hundred Euros in “fuel” surcharges. As noted, you can only have one connection, so if you’re not flying from New York or San Francisco, you’ll need to get to a city which offers direct flights to Europe, like a Los Angeles, Chicago and so forth. A connection from St. Louis to Chicago would count as your one and only allowed connection, and therefore you’d then need a direct flight from Chicago to Tel Aviv or it’s all bust.

How To Book

United offers the easiest way to search for seats you’ll be able to book using Aegean. Simply search on United.com for “Saver” business class seats by selecting “My Dates are Flexible” and “Search For Award Travel” on the United homepage. If you see flights with “Saver” availability, ignore the rates, and then login to your Aegean account online (or create one first), plug in the same dates and book the flights with Aegean. Doing so will save you a cool 30,000 points each way, versus booking with anyone else!

Are you booking this amazing points deal?

HT: Running With Miles.