Travel in style! Air Berlin has new premium coach and Business Class seats as part of a refresh of their long-haul flights. That means a more comfortable flight to Europe!
You can book the new Business Class seat with miles & points. And you can pay a fee to upgrade to a premium coach seat on paid OR award bookings.
I’ll share the details. And how you can book a seat!
Air Berlin Has New Seats!
Link: Air Berlin Economy XL Seat Details
Link: Air Berlin New Business Class Seat Details
Air Berlin has been working to expand their network within the US. They’ve recently added new routes to Germany from Boston, San Francisco, and Fort Myers, which joins their existing routes from:
- New York (JFK) to Berlin or Dusseldorf
- Chicago to Berlin
- Miami to Berlin or Dusseldorf
- Los Angeles to Dusseldorf
And now, they’ve refreshed their premium coach and Business Class seats so you can enjoy these routes comfortably!
New Business Class Seat
The new Business Class seat features:
- Aisle access from every seat
- Ability to turn the seat into a fully flat bed
- Individually-prepared meals
- Massage controls
- 200+ hours of in-flight entertainment like movies & TV shows
There are 19 Business Class seats on long-haul routes.
You can redeem American Airlines miles for an award seat on these flights. A round-trip Business Class ticket from anywhere in the mainland US costs 115,000 American Airlines miles.
You can also book the new Business Class seat with British Airways Avios points or transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to British Airways. The price you’ll pay varies because British Airways has a distance-based award program.
For example, a 1-way flight between New York and Berlin or Dusseldorf costs 60,000 British Airways Avios points. But a Business Class flight from Miami to Dusseldorf would cost 75,000 British Airways Avios points.
That said, I was able to find lots of new Business Class seats available to book with miles & points. You can always use the British Airways Rewards Flight Calculator to see how many British Airways Avios points you’ll need for a flight.
If you have lots of British Airways Avios points, or Chase Ultimate Rewards points, you might decide to treat yourself to a flight in 1 of the new Business Class seats!
New Premium Coach Seat
Air Berlin added 40 premium coach seats to their long-haul flights over 6 hours, too.
The new premium coach seat features 6 extra inches of leg room, in addition to the usual amenity kit on overnight flights and in-flight entertainment. Because these seats are near the front of the plane, you can get on and off faster.
You can access the new premium coach seat for a fee, which starts at 79 Euros (~$88). For paid flights, you can upgrade when you book.
And for award flights, you can pay the fee to upgrade to the premium coach seat after you book online or by calling Air Berlin. You cannot book a premium coach seat with miles. But you can book a regular coach seat, and then pay to upgrade.
It could be worth it if:
- You want or need more leg room
- You’re traveling with kids
- Want to be near the front to exit earlier
- You want to splurge on a nicer seat
You can book a regular award seat with American Airlines miles. A 1-way coach award ticket from the US costs 30,000 American Airlines miles.
Again, you can also book an award seat with British Airways Avios points. From New York to Berlin or Dusseldorf in coach, you’ll pay 20,000 British Airways Avios points each way. And you’ll pay very reasonable fuel surcharges. That’s fewer points than American Airlines charges for the same flight!
As always, run the numbers before you book to see what makes for sense for your situation. If you’re able to get a good deal with miles or points, you might decide to treat yourself to a roomier seat!
Keep Exploring Europe!
Link: Air Berlin Destinations
Link: Wandering Aramean’s Avios Award Map
You don’t have to make Berlin or Dusseldorf your last stop in Europe!
When you use American Airlines miles for an award seat on Air Berlin, you can continue on to anywhere else in Europe for NO additional miles. Air Berlin flies to lots of European cities, like Budapest, Madrid, and Prague.
From Berlin or Dusseldorf, that covers many European cities, including London, Milan, and Paris. You can use Wandering Aramean’s Avios calculator or map to check where you can fly with British Airways Avios points.
Europe also has lots of budget airlines that make it easy to visit more places cheaply.So you have lots of options. And of course, there’s plenty to do in Dusseldorf and Berlin, too!
Bottom Line
Air Berlin has new premium coach and Business Class seats on their long-haul flights. And, you can use American Airlines miles or British Airways Avios points to book an award seat.
But to access the premium coach seat, you’ll need to book a regular coach paid or award ticket. And then pay a fee, starting at ~$88, to upgrade online or by phone.
This opens up lots of possibilities for European travel! Because you can travel to many other cities in Europe with Berlin or Dusseldorf as your jumping-off point.
Air Berlin has been steadily growing their US network, so I like that they’re improving the in-flight experience, too!