Flying Blue Discounted Awards Released Early! 9 Cities to Europe for 25% Off

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The January 2017 Flying Blue Promo Awards are out!  But they aren’t bookable for a few more days.

Via View From the Wing, Flying Blue has revealed their new Promo Awards early.  And lots more cities are participating than last month!

Starting January 1, 2017, you can book Promo Awards for travel this winter and early spring (depending on the destination).  You will get discounts on award flights between Europe and cities like Houston, Washington, DC, and Vancouver, British Columbia.

Even if you’ve never flown KLM or Air France, you may have points that transfer to the program.  Because you can transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points, AMEX Membership Rewards points, Citi ThankYou points, and Starwood points to Flying Blue, at a ratio of 1:1!

I’ll tell you what you need to know about these discounted award tickets.

Flying Blue Promo Awards for January 2017

Link:   Flying Blue Promo Awards

Link:   Flying Blue Frequent Flyer Program

Flying Blue is the loyalty program of Air France and KLM.  Each month, they offer discounted award tickets to Europe from certain North American cities.

And Flying Blue considers several countries a part of Europe that other airlines do not, like Israel, Libya, and Tunisia!  So you can get discounted fares to places you might not have expected.

Starting January 1, 2017, you can save 25% on award flights to Europe from these cities:

• Calgary – 46,875 miles one-way in Business Class (10,625 miles less than United Airlines, 23,125 miles less than Delta)
• Chicago – 46,875 miles one-way in Business Class (10,625 miles less than United Airlines, 23,125 miles less than Delta)
• Houston – 18,750 miles one-way in coach (11,250 miles less than Delta and United Airlines charge)
• Mexico City – 46,875 miles one-way in Business Class (10,625 miles less than United Airlines, 15,625 miles less than Delta)
• Miami – 18,750 miles one-way in coach (11,125 miles less than Delta and United Airlines charge)
• New York (JFK) – 18,750 miles one-way in coach (11,250 miles less than Delta and United Airlines charge)
• San Francisco – 18,750 miles one-way in coach (11,250 miles less than Delta and United Airlines charge)
• Washington, DC – 18,750 miles one-way in coach (11,250 miles less than Delta and United Airlines charge)
• Vancouver – 18,750 miles one-way in coach (11,250 miles less than Delta and United Airlines charge) OR 46,875 miles one-way in Business Class (10,625 miles less than United Airlines, 23,125 miles less than Delta)

And because Flying Blue considers countries like Israel and Morocco to be part of Europe, you can save even MORE miles.  Because most airlines charge more for those areas when flying from the US.  For example:

• You can fly from Houston to Tel Aviv in coach for 18,750 Flying Blue miles.  But it would take 42,500 United Airlines miles for the same coach flight
• You can fly from Chicago to Marrakech in Business Class for 46,875 Flying Blue miles.  But you’ll pay 75,000 American Airlines miles for the same Business Class flight

You can book these flights starting January 1, 2017, for travel between February 1, 2017, and March 1, 2017, or March 1, 2017, and April 30, 2017.  Travel dates vary with each city.

You can fly from Houston to Dublin for cheap.  And understand how St. Patrick’s Day is meant to be celebrated!

There’s NO discount on the taxes and fees, which vary depending on the route.  The fees are usually ~$200 at most for a one-way Business Class flight (so $400 for a round-trip).  You’ll have to decide if the miles you save will be worth the taxes that come with your particular flight!

And you’ll need to click through the Flying Blue Promo Awards site to get the deal.

You can only book flights on Air France or KLM to get the discount with Flying Blue miles.  You can NOT fly on other SkyTeam partners like Delta or Korean Air.  And you must use Flying Blue miles to book your ticket!

To get this deal you’ll have to book your flights by January 31, 2017.

Not Enough Flying Blue Miles?

Link:   The Business Platinum® Card from American Express

Link:   Citi Prestige Card

Link:   Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express

Link:   Chase Sapphire Reserve

Link:   Chase Sapphire Preferred Card

Link:   Chase Ink Preferred

There are lots of ways to earn Flying Blue miles!  The 4 major flexible points programs transfer to Flying Blue at a ratio of 1:1.  You can:

• Transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points – You must have either the Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred, Chase Ink Business Preferred, Chase Ink Plus (no longer available), or Chase Ink Bold (no longer available)

• Transfer Citi ThankYou Points – You’ll need the Citi Prestige or Citi ThankYou Premier Card
• Transfer AMEX Membership Rewards points –  You’ll need cards like the AMEX Platinum, Premier Rewards Gold Card from American Express, or AMEX EveryDay Preferred
• Transfer Starwood points – If you transfer 20,000 Starwood points at a time, you’ll get a 5,000 mile bonus!

Bottom Line

Flying Blue has revealed their upcoming Promo Awards!  You can book these new Promo Awards starting January 1, 2017, from 9 North American cities, including:

• Calgary – 46,875 miles one-way in Business Class plus taxes & fees
• Chicago – 46,875 miles one-way in Business Class plus taxes & fees
• San Francisco – 18,750 miles one-way in coach plus taxes & fees

These award prices are much less than you’d pay for similar flights on Delta or United Airlines.  But taxes & fees can also be higher.  So take a look and decide if the award discount is worth the extra fees.

Do you plan to use this month’s promotions?