The Ultimate Guide to American Express Membership Rewards Points: Part 1 – All the Ways to Get to Europe

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American Express Membership Rewards points are 1 of the most flexible types of points.  That’s because you can transfer them to certain airlines to get Big Travel with Small Money on flights to Europe.

Starwood points, Chase Ultimate Rewards points, and Citi ThankYou points are also transferable.  American Express Membership Rewards points aren’t the easiest to use compared to Chase Ultimate Rewards points, but there are a few good uses which I’ll describe in this post.

The Ultimate Guide to American Express Membership Rewards Points:

• Part 1 – All the Ways to Get to Europe
• Part 2 – All the Ways to Get to India
• Part 3 – How to Use AMEX Membership Rewards Points for United Airlines Award Tickets

Introduction to American Express Membership Rewards Points

Link:   American Express Membership Rewards

Link:   American Express Membership Rewards transfer partners

You can transfer your American Express Membership Rewards points to certain airlines and hotels.

But you must have a card that is part of the American Express Membership Rewards First Program.  I’ve listed eligible cards below. 

You can earn transferrable American Express Membership Rewards points from the:

• Platinum Card from American Express
• The Business Platinum Card from American Express OPEN
• American Express Mercedes-Benz Platinum Card 
• Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express
• The Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN
• Amex EveryDay Preferred Credit Card
• American Express Everyday

You can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points to these airlines:

• Aeromexico (1:1 ratio)
• Air Canada Aeroplan (1:1 ratio)
• Air France/KLM Flying Blue (1:1 ratio)
• Alitalia MilleMiglia (1:1 ratio)
• ANA (1:1 ratio)
• British Airways Avios (250 American Express Membership Rewards points: 200 British Airways Avios points)
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (1:1 ratio)
• Delta Skymiles (1:1 ratio + $6 fee per 10,000 points)
• El Al (1,000 American Express Membership Rewards points: 20 El Al)
• Emirates (1:1)
• Hawaiian Airlines (1:1 + $6 fee per 10,000 points)
• Iberia Avios (250 American Express Membership Rewards points: 200 Iberia Avios points)
• JetBlue (250 American Express Membership Rewards points: 200 JetBlue + $6 fee per 10,000 points)
• Singapore Airlines (1:1 ratio)
• Virgin America Elevate (200 American Express Membership Rewards points: 100 Elevate + $6 fee per 10,000 points)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Red (1:1 ratio)

Transfers of American Express Membership Rewards points usually take ~2 days, but depending on the airline it can take longer.

Note: You’ll pay a fee of 0.06 cents per mile up to a maximum of $99 when you transfer points to US airlines.  So you’ll pay 60 cents per 1,000 American Express Membership Rewards points you transfer (or $6 per 10,000 American Express Membership Rewards points). On the other hand, you can transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points and Starwood Preferred Guest points to US airlines for free.

Using American Express Membership Rewards Points to Get to Europe

Here are some programs that are great for flights to Europe!

If you don’t have the time or don’t want to book your own award tickets, you can use an award booking service.

1.   Air Canada

Link:   Air Canada award chart

You can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points to Air Canada Aeroplan miles at a 1:1 ratio.  And you can use these miles for flights on Star Alliance carriers (such as United Airlines) to Europe!  Booking through Aeroplan from the US to Europe depends on which region of Europe you’re visiting: Europe 1 or Europe 2.

Air Canada Aeroplan Europe 1 includes:

• Austria
• Belgium
• Denmark
• France
• Germany
• Ireland
• Italy
• Netherlands
• Norway
• Poland
• Portugal
• Spain (including Balearic Islands; excluding Canary Islands)
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• United Kingdom

Flying from the US or Canada to Europe 1, you’ll pay:

• 30,000 Aeroplan miles 1-way in coach
• 45,000 Aeroplan miles 1-way in Business Class
• 62,500 Aeroplan miles 1-way in First Class

Air Canada Aeroplan Europe 2 includes:

• Albania
• Armenia
• Azerbaijan
• Belarus
• Bosnia
• Bulgaria
• Croatia
• Cyprus
• Czech Republic
• Estonia
• Finland
• Georgia
• Greece
• Greenland
• Hungary
• Iceland
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Luxembourg
• Macedonia
• Malta
• Moldova
• Romania
• Russia (Western)
• Serbia and Montenegro
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Turkey
• Ukraine

From the US or Canada to Europe 2, it costs:

• 37,500 Aeroplan miles 1-way in coach
• 52,500 Aeroplan miles 1-way in Business Class
• 72,500 Aeroplan miles 1-way in First Class

Fuel Surcharges

You pay fuel surcharges when you use Aeroplan miles on some airlines, but you do NOT pay fuel surcharges on the following airlines:

• Air China
• Air India
• Brussels Airlines
• EgyptAir
• Ethiopian Airlines
• EVA Air
• Scandinavian Airlines (SAS)
• Singapore Airlines
• SWISS Air
• Turkish Airlines
• United Airlines

You pay low fuel surcharges (~$60 per segment) on LOT Airlines.

However, you pay hefty fuel surcharges if you book flights on Air Canada or Lufthansa.

Best Star Alliance Airlines to Use Aeroplan Miles for Flights to Europe

For flights to Europe, you should look for flights on the following airlines:

• Brussels Airlines (flights to Brussels)
• LOT Airlines (flights to Warsaw – with low fuel surcharges)
• Scandinavian Airlines (flights to Stockholm and Copenhagen)
• Singapore Airlines (coach from New York to Frankfurt)
• SWISS Air (flights to Zurich and Geneva)
• Turkish Airlines (flights to Istanbul)
• United Airlines

However, Aeroplan’s award engine won’t find every flight connection.  If you have several connections or want a stopover on an award, call Aeroplan at 800-361-5373.

2.   United Airlines

United Airlines has the most flights between the US and Europe.  United Airlines is a Star Alliance partner.  So you can use your Aeroplan miles on United Airlines.

You can fly from Newark to:

• Amsterdam
• Barcelona
• Belfast
• Berlin
• Birmingham
• Brussels
• Dublin
• Edinburgh
• Frankfurt
• Geneva
• Glasgow
• Hamburg
• Istanbul
• Lisbon (not shown on map)
• London
• Madrid
• Manchester
• Milan
• Munich
• Oslo
• Paris
• Rome
• Shannon
• Stockholm
• Stuttgart
• Zurich

You can fly on United Airlines from Washington, DC (Dulles) to:

• Amsterdam
• Brussels
• Dublin
• Frankfurt
• Geneva
• London
• Manchester
• Munich
• Paris
• Rome
• Zurich

You can fly from Chicago to:

• Amsterdam
• Brussels
• Frankfurt
• London
• Munich
• Paris

United Airlines flies from Houston (IAH) to:

• Amsterdam
• Frankfurt
• London

United Airlines flies from San Francisco (SFO) to:

• Frankfurt
• London
• Paris

From Los Angeles, you can fly to:

• London

3.   Swiss

Swiss isn’t a direct transfer partner of American Express Membership Rewards points.  So you have to transfer your American Express Membership Rewards points to Aeroplan miles, then you can use them on Swiss.

You can fly on Swiss to Zurich from:

• Boston
• Chicago
• Los Angeles
• Miami
• Montreal
• Newark
• New York (JFK)
• San Francisco

You can fly to Geneva from:

• Montreal
• Newark
• New York
• Toronto
• Washington, DC

4.   Turkish

You can use Aeroplan miles transferred from American Express Membership Rewards points to fly to Istanbul from:

• Boston
• Chicago
• Houston
• Los Angeles
• Montreal
• New York (JFK)
• Toronto
• Washington, DC

5.   SAS

You can use your Aeroplan miles to fly coach and Business Class on Scandinavian Air Systems (SAS).  Scandinavian Air Systems flies to a number of Nordic cities from several US cities.

A.   Copenhagen

You can fly to Copenhagen from:

• Chicago O’Hare
• Newark
• San Francisco
• Washington, DC

B.  Stockholm

You can fly to Stockholm from:

• Chicago O’Hare
• Newark

C.   Oslo

You can fly to Oslo from:

• Newark

6.   LOT

You can also use Aeroplan miles to fly on LOT Polish Airlines in coach and Business Class to Warsaw from:

• Chicago
• New York (JFK)
• Toronto
• Washington

You will pay some fuel surcharges of ~$60 per segment on LOT.

7.   Brussels Airlines

After transferring your American Express Membership Rewards points to Aeroplan miles, you can use them on Brussels Airlines.

You can fly in coach and Business Class to Brussels from:

• New York (JFK)
• Washington, DC

8.   Singapore Airlines

You can use Aeroplan miles to fly on Singapore Airlines on the following routes:

• New York (JFK) to Frankfurt
• Houston to Moscow (DME)

However, you can only redeem for flights in coach, because Business Class and First/Suites Class are unavailable to Aeroplan members.

9.   ANA

Link:   ANA award chart

ANA is a direct transfer partner of American Express Membership Rewards points.

ANA has a distance-based award chart, similar to British Airways Avios points.  This means you pay for an award based on the distance you fly.

ANA is also a Star Alliance member, so you can redeem for flights on partners like United Airlines, Air Canada, and Lufthansa.

The ANA award chart is very useful for flights between the East Coast and western Europe.

A round-trip journey between 4,001 to 7,000 flown miles costs:

• 38,000 ANA miles in coach
• 63,000 ANA miles in Business Class
• 90,000 ANA miles in First Class

A flight between Newark and London is 3,465 miles each way or 6,930 miles round-trip.  So you could fly round-trip coach for 38,000 ANA miles + taxes!

Meanwhile, a round-trip journey between 7,001 to 9,000 miles flown costs:

• 43,000 ANA miles in coach
• 68,000 ANA miles in Business Class
• 100,000 ANA miles in First Class

A flight from Chicago to Frankfurt is 4,343 miles 1-way or 8,686 miles round-trip.  So you’d pay 43,000 miles in coach or 68,000 miles in Business Class!

However, ANA charges fuel surcharges on some Star Alliance airlines.  So if you want to fly to Europe with minimal fuel surcharges, you should look for flights on:

• United Airlines
• Air Canada

A.   Using ANA Miles on United Airlines

ANA allows 3 stopovers in addition to the destination.  However, you must book a round-trip flight, but you can return to any city in the country you departed.  So you could fly from Newark and return to Washington, DC.

From the East Coast, you can redeem 1-way flights to Europe for fairly cheap using United Airlines miles.  You should book with Aeroplan miles from the West Coast because you gain more flexibility with different airline partners.

1.   Newark

You can fly from Newark to:

• Amsterdam – 3,656 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Barcelona – 3,848 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Belfast – 3,177 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Berlin – 3,980 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Birmingham – 3,392 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Brussels – 3,681 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Dublin – 3,193 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Edinburgh – 3,268 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Frankfurt – 3,869 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Geneva – 3,878 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Glasgow – 3,228 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Hamburg – 3,824 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Istanbul – 5,029 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Lisbon (not shown on map) – 3,384 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• London – 3,465 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Madrid – 3,606 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Manchester – 3,354 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Milan – 4,010 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Munich – 4,052 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Oslo – 3,697 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Paris – 3,649 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Rome – 4,293 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Shannon – 3,095 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Stockholm – 3,930 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Stuttgart – 3,936 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Zurich – 3,945 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles

2.   Washington, DC

United Airlines flies from Washington, DC (IAD) to:

• Amsterdam – 3,867 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Brussels – 3,892 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Dublin – 3,404 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Frankfurt – 4,080 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Geneva – 4,091 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• London – 3,677 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Manchester – 3,565 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Munich – 4,263 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Paris – 3,861 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Rome – 4,505 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Zurich – 4,157 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles

3.   Chicago

You can fly from Chicago to:

• Amsterdam – 4,120 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Brussels – 4,159 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Frankfurt – 4,343 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• London – 3,953 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Munich – 4,530 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Paris – 4,152 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles

If you don’t live in Newark, Chicago, or Washington, DC, you can book connecting United Airlines flights to these cities.  But those flights will count against the total distance on your journey.

B.   Using ANA miles on Air Canada

Air Canada has many flights from Canada to Europe.  You can find award seats in coach and Business Class.

Air Canada is a Star Alliance partner, and many Star Alliance partners fly to the US and Canada.  So, you can fly from the US to Canada and then to Europe!

1.  Toronto

You can fly from Toronto to:

• Athens – 5,063 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Barcelona – 3,998 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Copenhagen – 3,907 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Dublin – 3,278 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Edinburgh – 3,330 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Frankfurt – 3,952 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Geneva – 3,990 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• London – 3,556 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Madrid – 3,774 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Munich – 4,138 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Paris – 3,751 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Rome – 4,415 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Venice – 4,270 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Zurich – 4,044 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles

2.  Montreal

You can fly from Montreal to:

• Athens – 4,754 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Brussels – 3,461 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Frankfurt – 3,648 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Geneva – 3,680 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• London – 3,249 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Paris – 3,442 flown miles 1-way (22,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles
• Rome – 4,103 flown miles 1-way (38,000 Aeroplan miles) or 30,000 United Airlines miles

You have to book a connecting flight on Air Canada or United Airlines to Toronto or Montreal to fly these flights.  And those connecting flights would count towards the total distance traveled.

But you can NOT have an open-jaw flight between the US and Canada.  So you can NOT begin your trip in Newark and end your trip in Toronto because that would be an open-jaw between 2 countries.  But you can have a stopover in Canada on your way to Europe!

10.   Delta Airlines

Link:   Delta award charts

Delta Airlines is a direct transfer partner of American Express Membership Rewards points.  Delta Airlines is known for not having many saver award flights, but you may be able to find a seat.

From the US or Canada to Europe, you will pay:

• 60,000 Delta miles round-trip in coach
• 125,000 Delta miles round-trip in Business Class
• 162,500 Delta miles round-trip in First Class

You are allowed 1 stopover and 1 open-jaw on an award ticket!

A.   Atlanta

You can use Delta Airlines miles to fly from Atlanta to:

• Amsterdam
• Brussels
• Düsseldorf
• Frankfurt
• London
• Madrid
• Manchester
• Munich
• Paris
• Stuttgart

B.   New York

From New York, you can fly to:

• Amsterdam
• Barcelona
• Brussels
• Dublin
• Frankfurt
• London
• Milan
• Paris
• Zurich

C.   Newark

You can fly from Newark to:

• Amsterdam
• Paris

D.   Detroit

You can use Delta Airlines miles to fly from Detroit to:

• Amsterdam
• Frankfurt
• London
• Paris

E.   Minneapolis

From Minneapolis, you can fly to:

• Amsterdam
• London
• Paris

F.   Boston

You can fly from Boston to:

• Amsterdam
• London
• Paris (seasonal)

G.   Los Angeles

You can use Delta Airlines miles to fly from Los Angeles to:

• London (begins October 26, 2014)

H.   Salt Lake City

From Salt Lake City, you can fly to:

• Amsterdam (begins May 1, 2015)
• Paris

I.   Portland

You can fly from Portland to:

• Amsterdam

J.   Seattle

Using Delta Airlines, you can fly from Seattle to:

• Amsterdam
• London
• Paris (CDG)

K.   Seasonal routes to Paris

Delta also flies to Paris on a seasonal basis from:

• Cincinnati
• Chicago
• Philadelphia
• Pittsburgh

Note:  Alaska Airlines is a partner of Delta Airlines, so you can use them to connect to gateways like Seattle, Portland, and Los Angeles.

11.   Air France

You can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points to Air France.

You can fly on Air France to Paris (CDG) airport from:

• Atlanta
• Boston
• Chicago (ORD)
• Detroit
• Houston
• Los Angeles
• Miami
• Minneapolis
• New York (JFK)
• San Francisco
• Washington (IAD)

You should search for Air France flights on the Delta Airlines website, because Delta Airlines shows more Air France flights.

12.   KLM

You can fly on KLM from Amsterdam to:

• Atlanta
• Chicago (ORD)
• Dallas (seasonal)
• Houston
• Los Angeles
• New York (JFK)
• San Francisco
• Washington DC (IAD)

13.   Virgin Atlantic

Virgin Atlantic flies to London from:

• Atlanta (October 27, 2014)
• Boston
• Las Vegas (to London-Gatwick)
• Los Angeles
• Miami
• Newark
• New York (JFK)
• Orlando (to London-Gatwick)
• San Francisco
• Washington DC (IAD)

Tip:  If you use Delta Airlines miles, you do NOT pay fuel surcharges for flights on Virgin Atlantic.

14.   British Airways

You can transfer your American Express Membership Rewards points to British Airways Avios points.  But you do NOT have to use your British Airways Avios points on British Airways!  You can use them on British Airways partner airlines like Aer Lingus, Air Berlin and Iberia and pay lower fuel surcharges.

A.   Aer Lingus to Ireland and the rest of Europe

Aer Lingus flights have very low surcharges and because Ireland is closer to the United States than most of Europe, you can pay fewer British Airways Avios points for a flight.

You can book 1-way coach flights from the US to Ireland from:

• Boston to Dublin or Shannon – 12,500 British Airways Avios points + $30 taxes
• New York (JFK) to Dublin or Shannon – 20,000 British Airways Avios points + $30 taxes
• Chicago to Dublin – 20,000 British Airways Avios points + $30 taxes
• Orlando to Dublin – 25,000 British Airways Avios points + $30 taxes
• San Francisco to Dublin – 25,000 British Airways Avios points + $30 tax

You’ll pay 2X the amount of British Airways Avios points for Business Class.

You’ll pay slightly higher taxes for your return flight because of Ireland airport taxes:

• Dublin or Shannon to Boston – 12,500 British Airways Avios points + $90
• Dublin or Shannon to New York (JFK) – 20,000 British Airways Avios points +$91
• Dublin to Chicago – 20,000 British Airways Avios points + $90
• Dublin to Orlando – 25,000 British Airways Avios points + $90
• Dublin to San Francisco – 25,000 British Airways Avios points + $90

So you’ll pay 25,000 British Airways Avios points for a round-trip coach flight from Boston to Ireland, or 50,000 British Airways Avios points round-trip in Business Class + ~$150 in taxes/fees.

B.   Air Berlin to Germany

You pay NO fuel surcharges on Air Berlin.

You can fly 1-way coach from the US to Germany from:

• New York (JFK) to Berlin or Düsseldorf – 20,000 British Airways Avios points + $5.60
• Miami to Berlin or Düsseldorf – 25,000 British Airways Avios points + $5.60
• Chicago to Berlin – 25,000 British Airways Avios points + $5.60
• Fort Myers, FL to Düsseldorf  – 25,000 British Airways Avios points + $5.60
• Los Angeles to Düsseldorf – 30,000 British Airways Avios points + $5.60

A Business Class ticket costs double the amount of British Airways Avios points as coach.

Because of airport taxes in Germany, the return flight will cost more in fees, but they are still reasonable:

• Berlin or Düsseldorf to New York (JFK) – 20,000 Avios + ~$100
• Berlin or Düsseldorf to Miami – 25,000 Avios + ~$100
• Berlin to Chicago – 25,000 Avios + ~$100
• Düsseldorf to Fort Myers, FL  – 25,000 Avios + ~$100
• Düsseldorf to Los Angeles – 30,000 Avios + ~$100

A round-trip ticket between New York and Germany would cost only 40,000 Avios + ~$105 round-trip in economy class, or 80,000 Avios + ~$105 round-trip in business class.

C.   Iberia to Spain and the rest of Europe

You can fly on Iberia to Madrid from:

• Boston
• Chicago (ORD)
• Los Angeles
• Miami
• New York (JFK)

Note:  You will pay some fuel surcharges when redeeming through Iberia Avios.  But it’s cheaper than redeeming through British Airways Avios.

For example, booking through Iberia, taxes and fees for a flight from New York to Madrid costs ~$75.  However, booking through British Airways costs more than $250!

Bottom Line

American Express Membership Rewards points are very flexible and can help you get to Europe when you transfer them to certain airlines.

You have to pay a fee of 0.06 cents per mile up to $99 to transfer American Express Membership Rewards points to US airlines.  But you do NOT pay a fee when you transfer to international airlines like Air Canada, ANA, and British Airways.

You can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points to Air Canada and use them on Air Canada or Star Alliance partners like United Airlines, Turkish Airlines, and Singapore Airlines.