Let's look at how to book Emirates First Class award travel in 2026.<\/p>\n
Page Contents<\/p>
- Which Routes Have Emirates First Class<\/a><\/li>
- Book First Class Through Emirates Skywards<\/a>
- Book an Emirates First Class award ticket using Skywards miles<\/a><\/li>
- Upgrade to Emirates First Class using Skywards miles<\/a><\/li>
- Earning Emirates Skywards miles<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- Book Through Air Canada Aeroplan<\/a>
- Emirates First Class availability through Aeroplan<\/a><\/li>
- What it costs to book Emirates First Class with Aeroplan points<\/a><\/li>
- Earning Air Canada Aeroplan points<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- Book Through Qantas Frequent Flyer<\/a>
- Earning Qantas Frequent Flyer points<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- Final Thoughts<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n
Which Routes Have Emirates First Class<\/span><\/h2>\n
Emirates operates an entirely wide-body fleet, and most planes feature its First Class cabins. At present, you'll find these luxurious cabins on the following routes. Just note that the airline could swap in a plane with a different cabin at any time.<\/p>\n
![\"route](\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\")
Routes with Emirates First Class. Credit: FlightConnections.com<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n Book First Class Through Emirates Skywards<\/span><\/h2>\n
Naturally, you can use Emirates Skywards<\/a> to book yourself into First Class luxury. There are two primary methods to do so. The first is more traditional, but comes at a higher price tag and requires Emirates status. The second requires some strategy and luck.<\/p>\n
Let's break down both options.<\/p>\n
The “New” Emirates First Class Suite Credit: Emirates<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n Book an Emirates First Class award ticket using Skywards miles<\/span><\/h3>\n
A sensible first place to look for booking Emirates First Class is the airline's Skywards program. You can search for availability on the Emirates website and secure it with your Skywards miles, but you'll need Silver, Gold, or Platinum elite status<\/a> to actually book.<\/p>\n
How to get Emirates elite status<\/h4>\n
Thankfully, you can secure Emirates Silver status without flying by holding the Emirates Skywards Rewards World Elite Mastercard\u00ae<\/sup><\/strong>. The card includes Silver status for your first year. After that, you\u2019ll need to spend $20,000 each cardmember year to maintain it.<\/p>\n
Or, if you want higher status, you can secure Gold in your first year with the Emirates Skywards Premium World Elite Mastercard\u00ae<\/sup><\/strong>. After that, you'll need to spend $40,000 in a cardmember year to retain the status.<\/p>\n
What it costs<\/h4>\n
Emirates uses route-based pricing, though award availability can vary by route and travel date. Whether booking is easy or difficult will depend largely on your flexibility.<\/p>\n
Here's what you can expect to pay on various one-way routes operated by First Class-equipped planes. We've seen rates increase across the board over the last year:<\/p>\n
- \n
- New York-Kennedy (JFK) to Milan (MXP):<\/strong> 108,000 Skywards miles<\/li>\n
- Newark (EWR) to Athens (ATH):<\/strong> 108,000 Skywards miles<\/li>\n
- Toronto (YYZ) to Dubai (DXB):<\/strong> 174,000 Skywards miles<\/li>\n
- Washington, D.C. (IAD) to Dubai (DXB):<\/strong> 174,000 Skywards miles<\/li>\n
- Los Angeles (LAX) to Dubai (DXB):<\/strong> 198,000 Skywards miles<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
But it's worth noting that the award taxes and fees are substantial.<\/p>\n
Related: Our Complete Guide to Seats.aero<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n
Upgrade to Emirates First Class using Skywards miles<\/span><\/h3>\n
An even easier (and potentially cheaper) way to First Class is by upgrading to Emirates First Class using miles<\/a>, especially given the latest changes for booking the premier cabin outright. Emirates allows upgrades on tickets booked with cash or miles by one class of service. That means you can upgrade to business on an economy or premium economy ticket \u2014 or upgrade to First Class if you book a Business Class ticket.<\/p>\n
Beware that you'll need to book directly through Emirates to upgrade. If you book your Emirates award ticket through Air Canada's Aeroplan program<\/a>, for example, it's unlikely you'll be able to upgrade your flight.<\/p>\n
When you book a Business Class award directly with Emirates Skywards, the fare is usually treated as the most flexible award fare \u2014 meaning mileage upgrade pricing is based on the lowest published cost shown in Emirates\u2019 upgrade calculator<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Even better, there are no cash copays to upgrade with miles.<\/p>\n
Credit: Emirates<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n What it costs to upgrade to Emirates First Class with Skywards miles<\/h4>\n
Here's what it costs to upgrade from Business Class to First Class on the same selection of routes shown above:<\/p>\n
- \n
- New York-Kennedy (JFK) to Milan (MXP):<\/strong> 39,000 Skywards miles<\/li>\n
- Newark (EWR) to Athens (ATH):<\/strong> 39,000 Skywards miles<\/li>\n
- Toronto (YYZ) to Dubai (DXB):<\/strong> 70,200 Skywards miles<\/li>\n
- Washington, D.C. (IAD) to Dubai (DXB):<\/strong> 70,200 Skywards miles<\/li>\n
- Los Angeles (LAX) to Dubai (DXB):<\/strong> 81,900 Skywards miles<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The process to upgrade to Emirates First Class<\/a> is simple and easy to accomplish, requiring just a few steps and a bit of luck.<\/p>\n
Earning Emirates Skywards miles<\/span><\/h3>\n
Emirates Skywards was once a transfer partner of every major transferable point currency<\/a> — and generally at a 1:1 rate. Sadly, that's no longer the case. Over the last year, most major transferable currencies have reduced or even eliminated transfers to Emirates:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Citi reduced its Emirates transfer ratio<\/a> effective July 27, 2025<\/li>\n
- Amex devalued its transfer ratio to Emirates Skywards<\/a> effective September 16, 2025<\/li>\n
- Chase eliminated Emirates as a transfer partner<\/a> effective October 16, 2025<\/li>\n
- Capital One devalued its Emirates transfer ratio<\/a> effective January 13, 2026<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The lone remaining major program that transfers to Emirates at a 1:1 ratio is Bilt Rewards.<\/p>\n
From<\/div>To<\/div>Transfer Ratio<\/div>Min.Transfer<\/div>Average Time<\/div><\/div>Amex (Membership Rewards)<\/a>Germany<\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span>Emirates (Skywards & Business Rewards)<\/div><\/div><\/div>2:1<\/div>1,000<\/div>Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div>Amex (Membership Rewards)<\/a>United States<\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span>Emirates (Skywards & Business Rewards)<\/div><\/div><\/div>1,000:800Amex-Emirates transfer rate dropped to 5:4 on September 16, 2025<\/a>.<\/div><\/div>-<\/div>Immediate<\/div><\/div><\/div>Amex (Membership Rewards)<\/a>United Kingdom<\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span>Emirates (Skywards & Business Rewards)<\/div><\/div><\/div>500:250Transfer ratio devalued effective February 1, 2026<\/a>.<\/div><\/div>1,000<\/div>Unknown<\/div><\/div><\/div>Capital One<\/a>United States<\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span>Emirates (Skywards & Business Rewards)<\/div><\/div><\/div>100:75Transfer ratio devalued effective January 13, 2026<\/a>.<\/div><\/div>1,000<\/div>Immediate<\/div><\/div><\/div>Chase (Ultimate Rewards)<\/a><\/div>\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span>Emirates (Skywards & Business Rewards)<\/div><\/div><\/div>Emirates dropped as a Chase transfer partner on October 16, 2025<\/a>.<\/div><\/div>-<\/div>Immediate<\/div><\/div><\/div>Citibank (ThankYou Rewards)<\/a>United States<\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span><\/div><\/div>\u2794<\/span>Emirates (Skywards & Business Rewards)<\/div><\/div><\/div>1,000:800<\/div>-<\/div> - Amex devalued its transfer ratio to Emirates Skywards<\/a> effective September 16, 2025<\/li>\n
- Newark (EWR) to Athens (ATH):<\/strong> 39,000 Skywards miles<\/li>\n
- Newark (EWR) to Athens (ATH):<\/strong> 108,000 Skywards miles<\/li>\n
- Final Thoughts<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n
- What it costs to book Emirates First Class with Aeroplan points<\/a><\/li>
- Upgrade to Emirates First Class using Skywards miles<\/a><\/li>
- Book First Class Through Emirates Skywards<\/a>
![\"route](\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Emirates-first-class-routes-November-2024-1024x452.png\")
![\"New](\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/woman-relaxing-in-b777-first-class-suite-w768x480.avif\")
![\"Upgrade](\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screenshot-2024-01-05-at-5.03.52\u202fPM.png\")