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Air France KLM Flying Blue has been increasing successful prominence successful North America implicit the past fewer years.
At a clip erstwhile galore programs are stripping distant worth and removing features, Flying Blue has been making itself felt connected assorted fronts, warranting greater attraction from Miles & Points enthusiasts.
Here are 6 reasons wherefore we emotion Air France KLM Flying Blue, arsenic good arsenic a fewer notes astir what we deliberation could marque the programme adjacent better.
1. Ease of Earning
It’s easier than ever to gain Flying Blue miles successful North America these days, acknowledgment mostly to transferable points currencies and co-branded recognition cards.
In Canada, Brim Financial offers the Air France KLM World Elite Mastercard®, which has been rotating invited offers betwixt miles and Experience Points (XP).
Furthermore, the paper provides the pursuing mundane earning rates, which helps you boost your equilibrium connected regular spending:
- Up to 30 Flying Blue miles per dollar (CAD) spent with prime Brim Financial merchant partners†
- 5 bonus Flying Blue miles per euro spent connected Air France and KLM flights†
- 2 Flying Blue miles per dollar (CAD) spent astatine restaurants and bars†
- 1 Flying Blue mile per dollar (CAD) spent connected each different eligible purchases†
In summation to earning miles with Brim’s co-branded card, you tin besides accumulate Flying Blue miles by transferring from American Express Membership Rewards (MR) points astatine a complaint of 1 MR constituent = 0.75 Flying Blue miles.
|
10,000 MR points | $242 | Apply Now |
|
15,000 MR points | $372 | Apply Now |
100,000 MR points
$799 yearly interest
|
100,000 MR points | $1,361 | Apply Now |
120,000 MR points
$799 yearly interest
|
120,000 MR points | $1,574 | Apply Now |
75,000 MR points
$199 yearly interest
|
75,000 MR points | $1,561 | Apply Now |
70,000 MR points
$250 yearly interest
|
70,000 MR points | $1,676 | Apply Now |
Up to 77,000 MR points
$99 yearly interest
|
Up to 77,000 MR points | $1,419 | Apply Now |
Meanwhile, successful the United States, Bank of America has its ain mentation of the Air France KLM World Elite Mastercard. Like its Canadian counterpart, this paper usually offers a invited bonus of up to 50,000 miles.
The US-issued paper besides comes with the pursuing earning rates connected regular spending:
- 3 Flying Blue miles per dollar (USD) spent connected eligible Air France and KLM flights
- 1.5 Flying Blue miles per dollar (USD) spent connected different eligible purchases
In the US, Flying Blue has acold much transportation partners than it does successful Canada, and much favourable transportation ratios to boot:
- American Express US Membership Rewards: 1 MR constituent = 1 Flying Blue mile
- Capital One Miles: 1 Capital One mile = 1 Flying Blue mile
- Chase Ultimate Rewards: 1 Ultimate Rewards constituent = 1 Flying Blue mile
- Citi ThankYou Rewards: 1 ThankYou Rewards constituent = 1 Flying Blue mile
- Marriott Bonvoy: 60,000 points = 25,000 Flying Blue miles
Of course, you tin besides gain Flying Blue miles connected paid flights with Air France, KLM, Transavia, TAROM, Aircalin, and SkyTeam carriers, careless of which recognition paper you usage to pay.
Additionally, holding elite presumption with the Flying Blue program enhances your earning rates connected paid flights. With Platinum status, for instance, you tin gain arsenic galore arsenic 8 Flying Blue miles per euro spent connected Air France and KLM flights.
2. Competitive Award Pricing
Air France KLM Flying Blue arguably offers the champion wide transatlantic grant pricing amongst its competitors. This is mostly owed to the programme harmonizing its North American grant pricing successful Fall 2023.
KLM concern people awards are mostly cheaper with Flying Blue harmonizing North America pricingRegardless of full region flown, Air France and KLM awards betwixt North America and immoderate metropolis successful Europe person the pursuing “starting at” prices:
- 20,000 Flying Blue miles successful economy
- 35,000 Flying Blue miles successful premium economy
- 50,000 Flying Blue miles successful concern class
The pricing supra adjacent extends to grant flights from North America to prime countries successful North Africa, arsenic good arsenic Turkey.
In comparison, Aeroplan grant flights with distances of up to 4,000 miles commencement astatine 35,000 Aeroplan points successful system and 60,000 Aeroplan points successful concern class. Transatlantic grant flights that measurement much than 4,000 miles outgo adjacent more.
Unlike Aeroplan, Flying Blue adds carrier-imposed surcharges connected grant tickets. Although not ideal, these costs are comparatively tenable compared to awards booked with British Airways Executive Club oregon Emirates Skywards.
The taxes and fees summation arsenic you alert successful higher classes of service. For a one-way transatlantic concern people flight, you tin expect to wage astir $300 (CAD) oregon so, depending connected the route.
Unfortunately, Flying Blue’s competitory harmonized grant pricing doesn’t widen to spouse airlines. In the future, it would beryllium bully to spot Flying Blue use accordant grant pricing for routes operated by spouse airlines, too.
3. Excellent Route Network
Air France and KLM unneurotic run a web that spans 5 continents.
In the US, the 2 airlines alert to 19 destinations, including large cities from seashore to coast, arsenic good arsenic secondary hub cities similar Minneapolis (MSP) and Raleigh (RDU).
In Canada, KLM flies to Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal, portion Air France flies to Vancouver, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City.
It’s worthy noting that Air France and KLM run uncommon transatlantic flights retired of Edmonton, Ottawa, and Quebec City. Neither Air Canada nor WestJet alert to Europe retired of these airports, forcing passengers to link done 1 of their hubs instead.
If you unrecorded successful Ottawa, Quebec City, oregon Edmonton, you shouldn’t person a hard clip redeeming Flying Blue miles for nonstop transatlantic flights, which apt costs less miles than done different programs and besides removes the request for positioning flights.
Plus, erstwhile you get successful Europe, you tin link to a multitude of destinations, arsenic Air France and KLM alert not lone to gateway cities, but besides to destinations that you mightiness not person adjacent heard of.
4. Free Stopovers
In 2023, Air France KLM Flying Blue added the enactment to adhd free stopovers connected grant tickets. The stopovers are allowed to beryllium betwixt 24 hours and up to a twelvemonth successful length.
This means that you tin bask aggregate destinations connected a azygous grant ticket, with the accustomed stopover points being Air France’s and KLM’s hub cities of Paris and Amsterdam, respectively.
Stopovers successful France are imaginable with Air France KLM Flying BlueHowever, stopover tickets tin lone beryllium booked implicit the phone, and according to immoderate feedback from the Miles & Points community, grant pricing tin beryllium inconsistent erstwhile you adhd a stopover.
That said, hopefully Flying Blue is moving to marque stopover pricing accordant crossed bookings. It’d besides beryllium doing the assemblage a immense favour if it makes booking stopovers imaginable online, arsenic is the lawsuit with Aeroplan.
5. Promo Rewards
Promo Rewards is 1 of Air France KLM Flying Blue’s astir charismatic features.
With Promo Rewards, the programme releases a database of discounted flights successful assorted classes of work each month.
The discount is usually 25%, but sometimes goes arsenic precocious arsenic 50%, and it applies connected circumstantial routes for question successful the adjacent fewer months.
With a 25% discount, you mightiness spot transatlantic awards for arsenic fewer arsenic 15,000 miles successful economy, 26,250 miles successful premium economy, and 37,500 miles successful concern class.
Promo Rewards discount Flying Blue’s already competitory pricing, allowing you to alert concern people for what galore programs complaint for economy.
However, the availability of flights with Promo Rewards pricing tin beryllium rather limited, and it’d beryllium bully to spot much availability and possibly adjacent a guaranteed allotment of discounted awards to amended this feature.
6. Partner Awards
Air France and KLM are some members of SkyTeam, which means that you tin besides usage Flying Blue miles to publication grant flights connected SkyTeam-member airlines, specified arsenic China Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and Virgin Atlantic.
However, you tin besides publication grant flights with Flying Blue’s increasing roster of spouse airlines who don’t beryllium to an alliance, specified arsenic Air Mauritius and Etihad Airways.
Air France KLM Flying Blue lets you publication Air Mauritius awardsHaving these options expands your horizons, truthful to speak, and you’ll find these partners adjuvant for getting to destinations oregon regions not served by Air France oregon KLM.
For example, you tin alert from Vancouver to Taipei successful China Airlines concern people for 83,500 Flying Blue miles, positive $136 (CAD) successful taxes and fees.
Getting premium compartment grant flights crossed the Pacific is much hard than ever before, truthful you should ever retrieve to cheque availability done Flying Blue if you can’t find what you’re looking for with different programs.
That said, spouse grant pricing with Flying Blue isn’t ever arsenic favourable erstwhile compared to different loyalty programs. To amended the programme adjacent more, we’d emotion to spot amended spouse grant pricing to marque it much competitory with different programs.
Conclusion
Air France KLM Flying Blue has been making its beingness felt successful Canada and the US successful the past fewer years.
After harmonizing its grant pricing betwixt North America and Europe, Flying Blue members tin bask mostly affordable transatlantic grant flights, with one-way concern people seats going for arsenic debased arsenic 50,000 miles.
Additionally, the program’s monthly Promo Rewards supply discounts connected its already competitory rates by 25–50%, often featuring destinations crossed North America.
The supra are conscionable immoderate of the galore reasons wherefore we emotion Air France KLM Flying Blue, and we anticipation that it further takes clasp successful North America to foster contention with different programs.
The station 6 Reasons Why We Love Air France KLM Flying Blue appeared archetypal connected Prince of Travel by Vittorio Salac.
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