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Dreaming of visiting the City of Light? You're not alone. Paris is consistently among the top tourist destinations in the world. And as a savvy frequent flier, you may be wondering what are the best points and miles for free flights to Paris.
Glad you asked. We'll cover all the best award currencies for booking flights to Paris and then detail the ways you can accrue them. Let's jump in.
Best Points and Miles for Free Flights to Paris
Paris is served by many airlines, including a diverse set of options from every major airline alliance. This means you can use essentially any miles to book flights to Paris. However, there are a handful of stand-out award programs we want to highlight as the best points booking flight awards to Paris.
Keep in mind that Paris has two major airports: Charles de Gaulle (CDG) and Orly (ORY). Charles de Gaulle receives the overwhelming majority of long-haul flights, to the point that you could essentially only search for flights to CDG. Just note that there are some options into ORY, including some nonstop options from the U.S. on boutique airlines, such as La Compagnie.
Now let's jump into an obvious choice of program for booking free flights to Paris.
Air France-KLM Flying Blue
Not surprisingly, one of the best miles for booking flights to Paris comes from Air France's own loyalty program — Flying Blue. Not only are the award prices attractive, at least at the saver level, but Air France offers an excellent number of U.S. gateways for nonstop flights to the French capital — the most of any carrier.
Air France is part of the SkyTeam alliance. That means Flying Blue miles can also be used to book Delta Air Lines flights. However, space can be limited at times, and nearly nonexistent in Delta One business class. The majority of options you'll see will be for Air France's own flights.
Award prices
Air France-KLM Flying Blue offers the following prices as the lowest fare you can book in economy, premium economy, and business class between the U.S. and Europe:
Economy: 25,000 miles
Premium economy: 45,000 miles
Business: 60,000 miles
However, since Flying Blue now uses dynamic award pricing, seats often cost far more on many dates — especially in business class. On some routes, it can be extremely difficult to find saver business class seats. That being said, there are some routes where low-cost business awards are somewhat easier to come by (e.g., Vancouver-Paris, in my experience).
The other downside is the surcharges that Flying Blue levies on tickets for most carriers. For a business award, you'll be paying over $300 one-way.
Air France also offers their exquisite La Première first-class product on some routes. However, tickets cost at least 200,000 Flying Blue miles one-way, and you must have at least Flying Blue Platinum elite status. So, even though Flying Blue miles are among the easiest to collect, the status requirement weeds out a lot of people who would burn their miles to fly the product. Still, I mention it since it is essentially the only first-class option directly to Paris.
Routes
Air France operates the following nonstop routes between the U.S. and the French capital:
Atlanta (ATL)
Boston (BOS)
Chicago (ORD)
Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW)
Detroit (DTW)
Houston (IAH)
Los Angeles (LAX)
Miami (MIA)
Minneapolis (MSP)
New York (JFK)
New York – Newark (EWR)
Orlando (MCO)
Phoenix (PHX)
Raleigh/Durham (RDU)
San Francisco (SFO)
Seattle (SEA)
Washington D.C. (IAD)
Ways to grow your Flying Blue account balance
Here's the great news: Flying Blue is a transfer partner of all major bank programs, plus a handful of hotel loyalty programs. This makes it easy to amass the Flying Blue miles you need for booking free flights to Paris.
Finally, you could consider opening an Air France KLM Visa Signature® credit card issued by Bank of America. The card earns 3 miles per dollar spent on Air France or KLM flight and on dining. It earns 1.5 miles per dollar on all other purchases, plus a couple other perks, such as bonus points and bonus XP (which can help you earn Flying Blue elite status) on your account anniversary.
The Air France KLM Visa Signature® credit card is a low-cost way to earn both Flying Blue miles and elite status, which makes it a strong pick for anyone who flies Air France, KLM or their SkyTeam partners. Cardholders earn 3X miles per $1 on eligible Air France, KLM and SkyTeam purchases and on dining, and 1.5X miles on all other purchases. The card also adds 5,000 miles on each account anniversary (after $50 in purchases that year) and 20 XP toward elite status each year. That rises to 80 XP (100 total), enough for Flying Blue Silver, when you spend $15,000 in a card year, and an additional 60 XP (160 total) at $25,000. Other perks include no foreign transaction fees and miles you can redeem on any SkyTeam airline to more than 1,000 destinations, all for an $89 annual fee.
Limited Time Online Offer! Earn 70,000 Bonus Miles + 100 Experience Points (XP) after you make $3,000 or more in purchases within the first 90 days of your account opening.
Low $89 annual fee and no foreign transaction fees.
Earn 3 Miles for every $1 spent on eligible Air France, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and SkyTeam member airline purchases. Earn 3 Miles for every $1 spent on eligible dining purchases. And, earn 1.5 Miles for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
5,000 Miles every year on your account anniversary after you spend $50 or more on purchases within the anniversary year.
Redeem Miles toward flights with any SkyTeam member airline to over 1,000 destinations worldwide.
Receive 20 XP every year on your account anniversary. Earn an additional 80 XP (totaling 100 XP) on the account anniversary after you spend $15,000 or more on purchases within the anniversary year. Plus, earn an additional 60 XP (totaling 160 XP) on the account anniversary after you spend $25,000 or more on purchases within the anniversary year.
This offer may not be available elsewhere if you leave this page. You can take advantage of this offer when you apply now.
Earn 3 Miles for every $1 spent on eligible Air France, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and SkyTeam member airline purchases
Earn 3 Miles for every $1 spent on eligible dining purchases
Earn 1.5 Miles for every $1 spent on all other purchases
Taking eveything together, Air France-KLM Flying Blue is easily among the best miles for booking flights to Paris.
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
If you're looking for another way book SkyTeam alliance airlines, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is great award program to consider for free flights to Paris from the U.S. You can use their miles to book Air France flights, among other SkyTeam partners such as KLM and SAS.
Virgin Atlantic has a zone-based award chart for Air France flights. The U.S. falls into two different zones — Zone 6 (Eastern North America & Caribbean) and Zone 7 (West & Central North America and Central America). Below are the award rates to western Europe from both.
Award Zone
Economy
Premium
Business
Between Zone 6 (U.S. East) and Zone 1 (Western Europe)
12,000
24,000
48,500
Between Zone 7 (Central & Western U.S.) and Zone 1 (Western Europe)
15,000
39,000
77,500
A couple things stand out. First, notice that the economy prices are extremely attractive. There's often solid amount of economy cabin availability as well. For the other cabins, the pricing is far better from the eastern U.S. than it is from the central or western U.S. And business class is a better deal using Air France's own program. Remember, seats will only be available to Virgin Atlantic at the lowest award level, which means you'll be able to book these for just 60,000 Flying Blue Miles. That said, Virgin does not appear to even have access to all the saver-level seats on Air France.
You can often find attractive prices and a lot of economy availability on Air France.
How to earn Virgin Atlantic Flying Club miles
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is accessible via all major transfer partners just like Flying Blue. So there is a plethora of cards you can consider for building your account balance.
A final note: both Air France and Virgin Atlantic are currently the best options for booking SkyTeam flights to Paris. Korean Air SKYPASS used to be a standout program due to the fact that it offers the hands-down best mileage price for flights to Europe from the U.S. However, the exorbitant carrier-imposed surcharges (which can reach into the $1,000s) make the program unattractive.
American AAdvantage
American AAdvantage is your best Oneworld option for booking free flights to Paris, given their generally attractive award prices and the number of hubs that operate nonstop flights to Paris. American AAdvantage has operated a dynamic pricing model for some years now, but you'll often be able to find some solid deals, even in the business cabin. Plus, American doesn't levy fuel surcharges on its flights, unlike Iberia and British Airways, its Oneworld partners that also fly across the pond. Here are the typical lowest AAdvantage prices you'll see for one-way flights between the U.S. and Paris:
Economy: 22,500 miles (sometimes you can find seats even cheaper)
Premium economy: 40,000 miles
Business: 57,500 miles (typically not on AA metal, however)
Most of the cheapest award availability that you'll see will be operated by British Airways, a key partner of American Airlines. However, British Airways is notorious for charging high carrier-imposed surcharges, making them a less attractive option. However, even the occasional American business class award including the transatlantic segment on their own metal will often require a connection.
Screenshot of American Airlines
The more typical lowest prices I could find for American Airlines flights, especially nonstop ones, started at just over 70,000 miles one-way.
Screenshot of American Airlines
If you're struggling to find business class award seats, consider utilizing a tool such as Seats.aero. It can come in handy. However, I find I can do well by utilizing the month view on AA's website, which also allows you to filter to the prices of your preferred cabin class.
Nonstop routes
Here are the American Airlines hubs operating nonstop service between the U.S. and Paris:
Charlotte (CLT)
Chicago O'Hare (ORD)
Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW)
New York – JFK
Philadelphia (PHL)
Here's one gotcha to be aware of: American often prices their own nonstop itineraries higher than connecting itineraries. Take this flight from Chicago to Paris, for example. The cheapest itinerary connects through Charlotte.
Screenshot of American Airlines
But when I search the same flight departing Charlotte, the prices jump significantly. This is one of the frustrations of the dynamic pricing model that American Airlines uses.
Screenshot of American Airlines
Adding to your AAdvantage balance
When it comes to banking some AAdvantage miles for a trip to Paris, you have several co-branded card options. With a few of the cards, you'll be able to earn enough miles for a round-trip economy class ticket to Paris or most, if not all, the miles needed for a one-way business class seat from the sign-up bonus alone.
If you have Marriott Bonvoy points, you can also transfer these to American AAdvantage miles at a 3:1 ratio. However, transfers to American don'f offer the 5,000-mile bonus for transfers of 60,000 miles offered when you transfer Bonvoy points to some other airline programs.
Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®
The AA Platinum Select card is a great choice for anyone who travels at least a few times per year with American Airlines. Cardholders get a free checked bag on domestic itineraries, priority boarding and a 25% discount on in-flight purchases.
With these perks, it's easy to justify the annual fee of $99, waived for first 12 months.
Free checked bags for you and up to 4 companions on domestic itineraries
Priority boarding to help you win the race for overhead bin space
A 25% discount on inflight food, beverage, and Wi-Fi purchases
Earn 2X miles for every $1 spent at restaurants
Earn 2X miles for every $1 spent at gas stations
Earn 2X miles for every $1 spent on eligible American Airlines purchases
Earn 1X mile for every $1 spent on all other purchases
Air Canada Aeroplan
Aeroplan is a solid choice of airline program for booking free flights between the U.S. and Paris. They're a Star Alliance member, which means you can book United tickets using Aeroplan points, plus you can use them on any of the number of European Star Alliance partners.
Air Canada Aeroplan uses a zone-and-distance-based award chart. The program breaks the world into four regions. Flights within a region or between two regions each have their own award chart, which then has distance-based pricing. Flights between the U.S. and Paris fall in the award chart for flights between the North America and Atlantic zones:
Screenshot of Air Canada
With business class pricing starting at 60,000 points, Aeroplan points are some of the best points and miles for free flights to Paris. That said, the program suffers from very hit-and-miss award availability at its lowest rates and otherwise inflated pricing.
Nonstop routes
Including the flights from Air Canada's hubs, here are your options for flying nonstop between the U.S./Canada and Paris:
Chicago O'Hare (ORD)
New York – Newark (EWR)
Montreal (YUL)
San Francisco (SFO)
Toronto (YYZ)
Washington D.C. (IAD)
Four of the above cities are less than 4,000 miles from Paris, which means that business class prices start at 60,000 miles for all airports aside from San Francisco and Chicago; these two fall into the 4,001-6,000-mile band, which means you'll see prices starting at 75,000 miles. Know that if you add connections, these add to the total mileage, which could potentially bump your flight cost into the next zone.
One final cool thing worth mentioning: Air Canada Aeroplan allows stopovers on award tickets for just 5,000 additional points. This means that you could visit another city in Europe for only a hair more. While you used to have to call to book a stopover, you can now book some Aeroplan stopover itineraries online.
Ways to grow your Air Canada Aeroplan points balance
Given the number of transfer partners that Aeroplan has, building your points balance is relatively easy. You can transfer American Express Membership Rewards, Capital One miles, and Chase Ultimate Rewards all to Air Canada Aeroplan, among other options. You can also transfer points from a number of hotel loyalty programs, although these are generally a poor value.
You could also consider the Chase Air Canada Aeroplan® Credit Card. The card currently offers up to 115,000 bonus points points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. Plus, 40,000 bonus points after you spend $20,000 in the first 12 months your account is open. It also earns 2X points on groceries and dining out.
Welcome Bonus Our Best Offer Ever: Earn up to 115,000 bonus points. Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. Plus, 40,000 bonus points after you spend $20,000 in the first 12 months your account is open.
Chase Air Canada Aeroplan® Credit Card
Welcome Bonus Our Best Offer Ever: Earn up to 115,000 bonus points. Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. Plus, 40,000 bonus points after you spend $20,000 in the first 12 months your account is open.
The Chase Air Canada Aeroplan® Credit Card earns up to 5x points on Air Canada direct purchases. Cardholders receive 500 bonus points for every $2,000 you spend in a calendar month (up to 1,500 points per month), and earn a 10% bonus on Chase Ultimate Rewards point transfers to Aeroplan, both through December 31, 2026, enhancing point value. The card includes a free first checked bag for up to eight people on the same reservation, no foreign transaction fees, and a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck®/NEXUS fee credit.
Earn up to 115,000 bonus points
Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. Plus, 40,000 bonus points after you spend $20,000 in the first 12 months.
$195 Annual Fee
Enjoy automatic 25K Aeroplan Status with benefits such as Priority Check-In, Priority Boarding (Zone 2), Additional Baggage Allowance, Star Alliance Recognition and eUpgrade Credits.
Earn up to 5X total points for each dollar spent on Air Canada. Earn 3X points on travel purchases.
Earn 2X points for each dollar spent at grocery stores, on dining at restaurants, and at gas stations. Earn 1X point for each dollar spent on all other purchases.
Up to $100 in Air Canada statement credits (delivered as up to two $50 credits semi-annually).
Save 15% on eligible Air Canada flight redemptions as a cardmember.
Member FDIC
Up to 5x points directly with Air Canada*
3x points on travel purchases
2x points on dining, including takeout and eligible delivery services
2x points at grocery stores
2x points at gas stations
1x point on all other purchases
*3x points on Air Canada purchases plus an additional 2x points from Air Canada on eligible flights when traveling as an Aeroplan 25K member
ANA Mileage Club
I've saved one of the cheapest options for last. ANA Mileage Club is one of the best points and miles for free flights to Paris if you want to fly with the Star Alliance. More specifically, it is a great option for booking United flights, as you'll often be stuck paying extremely high carrier-imposed surcharges passed along from other Star Alliance airlines. Here are the award prices for one-way tickets between the U.S. and Paris:
Economy: 27,500 miles
Business: 50,000 miles
First: 82,500 miles
These award prices are an absolute steal. Economy availability is generally good. However, finding business class availability (at least on United) can be more difficult. However, it could be worth the time and flexibility in planning, given the savings involved. You can search and book awards on United and other Star Alliance partners online using ANA's website. If you're looking for nonstop awards, see the Aeroplan section above for the nonstop U.S. gateways to Paris.
If you're looking for a card to earn Membership Rewards points for transferring to ANA Mileage Club, consider the American Express® Gold Card. Currently, the card has a welcome offer of as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases in the first 6 months (apply and find out your offer, welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer). The card also earns 4X points on groceries and at restaurants, among other earning rates, and it offers a number of annual or monthly credits.
Welcome Offer
Find Out Your Offer. You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after spending $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.
American Express® Gold Card
Welcome Offer
Find Out Your Offer. You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after spending $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.
The American Express® Gold Card stands out for its robust rewards, especially for food enthusiasts. It offers 4X points on dining worldwide (up to $50,000 per year, then 1X) and U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 per year, then 1X), and 3X points on flights booked directly with airlines or through American Express Travel®. Cardholders can take advantage of multiple annual dining credits at select locations and up to $120 in Uber Cash credits for U.S. rides and Uber Eats (received as $10 monthly credits), just add your American Express® Gold Card to your account in the Uber app and select it as the payment method. Enrollment required for select American Express benefits.
You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you're approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount - all with no credit score impact. If you're approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App™.
Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App™, or purchased directly from airlines.
Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App™ and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com.
Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
Pay It® lets you tap in the American Express® App to quickly pay for small purchase amounts throughout the month and still earn rewards the way you usually do. Plan It® gives you the option to split up big purchases into equal monthly payments with a fixed fee. You'll know upfront exactly how much you'll pay.
$120 Dining Credit: Earn up to a total of $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the Gold Card at Grubhub (including Seamless), Buffalo Wild Wings, Five Guys, The Cheesecake Factory, and Wonder. This can be an annual savings of up to $120. Enrollment required.
$100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year at over 10,000 qualifying U.S. Resy restaurants after you pay for eligible purchases with the American Express® Gold Card. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
$84 Dunkin' Credit: Earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment required.
$120 Uber Cash on Gold: Enjoy up to $120 in Uber Cash annually with your Gold Card. Just add your Card to your Uber account and you'll get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an Amex Card for your transaction.
Enjoy complimentary Hertz Five Star® Status benefits like skipping the counter at select locations, adding an additional driver at no additional cost*, and vehicle upgrades**. Benefit enrollment and Hertz Gold+ registration are required. *Additional drivers must meet standard rental qualifications and must be a spouse or domestic partner to qualify as complimentary. Other additional drivers subject to fees. **Benefits are subject to availability and vary by location. Additional Hertz program Terms and Conditions including age restrictions apply.
Book two nights or more with The Hotel Collection through AmexTravel.com and receive a $100* credit towards eligible charges at over 1,300 upscale hotels worldwide.§ *Eligible charges vary by property.
Book your travel through the Amex Travel App™ with added peace of mind - backed by American Express® service and support. Only for American Express® Card Members.
Whenever you need us, we're here. Our Member Services team will ensure you are taken care of. From lost Card replacement to statement questions, we are available to help 24/7.
No Foreign Transaction Fees.
Annual Fee is $325.
Terms Apply.
4X Membership Rewards® points at restaurants worldwide, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S. (on up to $50,000 per year in purchases, then 1X)
4X Membership Rewards® points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per year in purchases, then 1X)
5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotels booked on amextravel.com
3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com
2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through amextravel.com
2X Membership Rewards® points on cruises booked and paid through amextravel.com
1X on other eligible purchases
Final Thoughts
With so many airlines flying to Paris and so many alliance partnerships, you have plenty of programs to book flights to Paris with points and miles. You might think that a major U.S. airline program like Delta SkyMiles would be a fine option. But aside from the occasional economy deal, it's a poor choice, given its sky-high prices for premium-cabin awards. Instead, consider either Virgin Atlantic Flying Club or Air France-KLM Flying Blue for booking SkyTeam airline flights. We've highlighted these as some of the best points and miles programs for free flights to Paris.
We've also highlighted some more obscure programs, such as ANA Mileage Club, that offer an excellent deal. It may take a bit of extra legwork to find and book your ticket, but I find it well worth the trouble, given the savings.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Chase Air Canada Aeroplan® Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
Tip of The Day
Did you know you can see the transaction history for most of your loyalty program accounts in AwardWallet? In your AwardWallet account dashboard, click the + sign next to the account you want to view. Then, click the History tab to see your individual transaction history.
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