Related: Guide to Amex Membership Rewards Transfer Partners<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Page Contents<\/p> Air France and KLM share a loyalty program called Flying Blue, and the deals here can be tremendous if you know where to look. Between the two airlines, you'll find service between Europe and around two dozen destinations in the U.S. and Canada, making finding a deal easier than you might think. And because Air France and KLM are part of SkyTeam, you can often also redeem Flying Blue miles on partner airlines throughout the alliance.<\/p>\n We've previously covered some of Flying Blue's sweet spots,<\/a> but here are a few highlights.<\/p>\n If you are looking to fly between the continental U.S. and Hawaii<\/a>, Flying Blue partner Delta can get you there for as low as 35,000 miles round-trip in economy.<\/p>\n SAS, which serves most of Scandinavia, is a newer member of SkyTeam. Many of its flights require far fewer miles than comparable itineraries on Air France or KLM. Some economy flights between Copenhagen and the rest of Europe are as few as 5,600 miles.<\/p>\n Kenya Airways offers flights throughout Africa as well as some destinations in Europe and Asia. Bounce around safaris and snag a flight between Johannesburg (JNB) and Nairobi (NBO) for only 34,000 miles in business or 14,000 miles in economy.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re in Asia and looking to head Down Under, Vietnam Airlines offers flights from Hanoi to Melbourne — an over nine-hour journey — for only 57,000 miles in business class. For a flight this length, I\u2019d consider that to be an amazing use of points.<\/p>\n A quick honorable mention goes to Flying Blue's own nonstop flights in economy or premium economy. You can find some amazing low prices between the U.S. and Europe. One-way economy tickets can price as few as 25,000 miles, and premium economy can come in at 40,000 miles \u2014 a real value for the length of the flight.<\/p>\n Lastly, Flying Blue publishes a rotating monthly list of Promo Rewards<\/a> with discounts up to 50% and provides some of the best award rates of any airline program in the world. The Promo Rewards list is a fantastic way of discovering new destinations; simply browse the list each month and see what catches your eye.<\/p>\n London-based Virgin Atlantic operates flights to the United States and parts of the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia. While the airline offers plenty of award availability on its own flights, the real value of Flying Club comes from its partner redemptions. Virgin Atlantic Flying Club<\/a> is a phenomenal transfer partner.<\/p>\n Virgin\u2019s partner Delta Air Lines doesn\u2019t release much award space to partners, especially in premium cabins. But when it does, the deals are a steal. Delta awards start at just 7,500 Virgin points each way<\/a>. Or fly a bit further for 11k points — such as Atlanta (ATL) to Nassau (NAS):<\/p>\n Or, you can fly from the United States to Europe for only 47,500 miles each direction — albeit with steep taxes and fees.<\/p>\n A majority of the flights leave from Delta's East Coast hubs like New York City (JFK), Detroit (DTW), Boston (BOS), and Atlanta (ATL), but every now and again, a deal sneaks in on a longer flight like Seattle or Los Angeles.<\/p>\n While the taxes and fees can be substantial, the low mileage cost can still make these awards worthwhile in the right circumstances.<\/p>\n Flights within Europe on partners like Air France, KLM, and SAS can also be great deals. Short-haul flights start at just 4,000 points in economy or 8,000 points in business class. Given how expensive business-class tickets within Europe can be, these awards can provide excellent value.<\/p>\n Iberia is part of the Avios ecosystem shared by Aer Lingus, British Airways, Qatar Airways, and Finnair. Avios can be combined across all the programs<\/a>, so if you earn on one, you can redeem on any of them. Many people focus solely on British Airways because it's the largest program in the group, but you'd be missing out on some of the best premium-cabin deals available through Iberia.<\/p>\n For the low, low price of 40,500 Avios, you can fly from the East Coast of the U.S. to Madrid in Iberia\u2019s business class. With flights from New York (JFK), Boston (BOS), Washington, D.C. (IAD), and even Chicago (ORD) — yes, Chicago is considered part of the East Coast — you\u2019ll be flying in style to Spain.<\/p>\n I love Iberia\u2019s business class. The food is always good, and the wine\/drinks selection showcases the flavors of Spain. If you fly this in the reverse, from Spain back to the U.S., make sure to give yourself extra time to enjoy the lounge in Madrid\u2019s Barajas airport. My husband and I will always arrive early and spend time there.<\/p>\n One of my favorite sweet spots (shh, don\u2019t tell anyone) is the route between Madrid and Mexico City. At roughly 5,400 miles in length, you\u2019re going to snag that 12-hour flight for only 50,500 Avios in business class. Because not many people are looking for seats between those two capitals, availability is often better than on Iberia's U.S. routes, for only a modest increase in Avios.<\/p>\n Related: How To Search and Book British Airways Avios Award Flights<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n While Choice Hotels might be best known in the United States for its budget brands like Comfort Inn & Suites and Sleep Inn, it also has a unique partnership with luxury hotel brand Preferred Hotels & Resorts<\/a>. But first, you'll need to transfer your points to Choice Privileges<\/a>.<\/p>\n You can use your Choice points to book a stay at more than 300 Preferred Hotels & Resorts worldwide, including some absolutely epic redemptions at once-in-a-lifetime hotels.<\/p>\n Some hotels start out at a mere 20,000 Choice points per night and go up from there, while others can cost more than 100,000 points. That said, the sweet spot for many properties seems to fall in the 40,000-60,000-point range.<\/p>\n Another unique aspect of Choice Hotels is its award availability at many U.S. properties. Most times, if a room is available for cash, it\u2019s bookable via points. That means your points may be able to book a standard king room or even a king suite for little or no additional cost.<\/p>\n Choice is adding new hotels to its portfolio constantly, and not everything is a two-star property on the side of the highway. Choice partners with Radisson and Radisson Blu, Cambria Hotels, and the Ascend Collection, offering elevated stays at hundreds of hotels throughout the United States and beyond.<\/p>\n Related:\u00a0Do American Express Membership Rewards Points Expire?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n The biggest strength of Air Canada Aeroplan<\/a> isn't flying Air Canada. It's about the 50+ partner airlines you can book using Aeroplan points<\/a>. Because Air Canada is a Star Alliance member, you can use Aeroplan points to fly partner members like ANA, Lufthansa, Swiss, Turkish, Singapore Airlines, EVA Air, and dozens of others, often at better rates or with better availability than those airlines' own programs offer.<\/p>\n The fixed award chart remains intact for all major Star Alliance partners like ANA, Lufthansa, Singapore, and Swiss, which is hard to find in most award charts. Most programs have shifted to fully dynamic pricing, where award costs fluctuate with cash fares. Aeroplan has kept that stability mostly intact, meaning you can actually plan a trip looking at the number of points you\u2019ve got or you know you\u2019ve got coming up.<\/p>\n Award flights booked through Aeroplan don\u2019t come with huge fuel surcharges. While you may pay a modest partner booking fee, it's often far less than the hundreds of dollars in carrier-imposed fees that other loyalty programs charge.<\/p>\n One of Aeroplan's most underrated features is its stopover policy. When you book a one-way award ticket, you can add a stopover of up to 45 days for just 5,000 additional points. For example, you could fly from New York to Delhi in business class and spend a few days in Amsterdam along the way.<\/p>\n Before you can redeem Amex Membership Rewards, you'll need to earn them. Here's a quick recap of our favorite rewards cards that earn Amex Membership Rewards points<\/a>:<\/p>\n $895Rates & Fees<\/a> Excellent, Good<\/p><\/div><\/div> $325Rates & Fees<\/a> Excellent, Good<\/p><\/div><\/div> And three small business cards that earn Amex Membership Rewards points:<\/p>\nAir France\u2013KLM Flying Blue<\/span><\/h2>\n
![\"Best](\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/AF-SK-Economy-900x399.png\")
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Virgin Atlantic Flying Club<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Iberia Club<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Choice Hotels<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Air Canada Aeroplan<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Rewards Credit Cards That Earn Membership Rewards<\/span><\/h2>\n
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(Terms apply)<\/span><\/p><\/div>\r\n
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(Terms apply)<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n
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![\"American](\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/CardArt-AmericanExpressBusinessGoldCard.png\")
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