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United Airlines just launched a new flash award sale for Cyber Week— but only for those who've got a MileagePlus credit card. If you've got miles sitting around, you can snag international flights from the U.S. to over 30 global destinations starting at 12,000 miles per way through December 5, 2025.
Here are all the details on United's newest flash award sale.
Overview of the United Airlines Flash Sale
United's cardmember-only flash award sale means there will be discounted award flights on offer through December 5, 2025. You can travel to places like Mexico, Australia, Vietnam, and more for up to 28% off. Here's a snapshot of the places you can travel to, plus the starting at rates:
- Barbados (BGI) — 12,000 miles one way
- Adelaide, Australia (ADL) — 45,000 miles one way
- Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (SGN) — 30,000 miles one way
- Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (PVR) — 15,000 miles one way
- Geneva, Switzerland (GVA) — 30,000 miles one way
At first glance, award availability is pretty good. That's usually the case with economy-only award sales, and the same is true here. However, it's not uncommon to see the cheapest awards tack on an extra layover, or a greatly extended one.
Key terms of the United flash award sale
This award sale is extremely straightforward. You can book one-way or round-trip tickets with MileagePlus miles — at up to a 28% discount — provided you act by December 5 and complete your travels between January 12 and May 6, 2025. Some destinations do have slightly longer windows, such as Adelaide (March 26) and Tokyo (March 14).
The only catch here is that this sale is uniquely for those with a United Airlines credit card. If you don't have one of these cards in your wallet, you can't take advantage of these discounted rates.
How to Earn United MileagePlus Miles
United's flash award sale won't be around for very long. That means you'll likely be out of luck if you don't currently have a United credit card and MileagePlus miles in your account (or credit card points that you can quickly convert to United miles). As a refresher, here are all the currencies that transfer to United:
If you're a few miles shy of a redemption, you could consider buying United miles outright. However, this is only a practical solution if you need a small amount of miles. That's because the cost of purchasing MileagePlus miles can likely eclipse the cash cost of an economy flight itself if you need a considerable amount of them.
Long term, it may be worth applying for a United credit card and collecting a sign-up bonus. This can help you fund future redemptions and/or prepare you for the next award sale.
$0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $150Rates & Fees
- Earn at least 9X total miles on eligible United flights (excluding Basic Economy and other base fares)*
- 3X miles on all other eligible United purchases
- 2X miles on dining and direct hotel stays
- 1X on all other purchases
- 6x miles on the primary cardmember’s fare from United as a MileagePlus member
- 3x miles on United purchases with the United℠ Explorer Card
$350Rates & Fees
- Earn at least 10X total miles on eligible United flights (excluding Basic Economy and other base fares)*
- 5X miles on hotel stays at Renowned Hotels and Resorts
- 4X miles on eligible United purchases
- 2X miles on all other travel, select streaming services and dining
- 1X on all other purchases
- 6X miles on the primary cardmember’s fare from United as a MileagePlus member
- 4X miles on entire United purchases with the United Quest℠ Card
$150Rates & Fees
- Earn at least 8X total miles on eligible United flights (excluding Basic Economy and other base fares)*
- 2X miles on eligible United purchases
- 2X miles on dining and all other travel
- 1X on all other purchases
- 6X miles on the primary cardmember’s fare from United as a MileagePlus member
- 2X miles on entire United purchases with the United℠ Business Card
Related: From No Annual Fee to Club Lounge Access: Find the United Credit Card for You
Bottom Line
It's not exactly a secret that United has increased award prices over the past few years. Award inflation has been pretty constant since United scrapped its award chart in 2019. Flash award sales like this offer MileagePlus cardholders (sorry, non-cardholders) to book travel at what resembles award rates of old — give or take a bit on the margins.
If this sale piques your interest, you'll need to act soon. The last day you can take advantage of these discounted rates is December 5, 2025.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: United℠ Explorer Card (Rates & Fees), United Quest℠ Card (Rates & Fees), and United℠ Business Card (Rates & Fees)
