Guide to Booking ANA Business Class Award Flights to Japan

[@duanes2000]

Thanks so much for an example from IAD! I just found 75,000 redemption through Air Canada!

[@marg2397]

Great video, clean and to the point! Keep up the great work, thank you.

[@SpencerJohnsonOfficial]

Before I got into the credit card game, this was the one redemption that I knew about which goes to show how popular it is. This is by far the best video I've personally seen on this redemption, so great work on this one man! To answer your question, whether I'd rather book with more points or more cash out of pocket would really depend on whether I had a points surplus or not. Plus, if I had some other big bookings coming up where I knew I could really use the extra points over the cash, then I'd pay more in taxes and fees, but that's just me!

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Thanks, Spencer! Thanks for watching!

[@mc3legend]

Can you talk about backup cash flights and how you book hotels and tours without confirming your flights first?

[@chrisv4920]

Top notch content my bro!! Love watching your content full of gems!

[@tommyofrichmond]

great video, saw this too late and spent 110k miles for business in December. With your video I would had gotten a round trip ticket. Thanks for the tips

[@warren7838]

Thanks for update and detailed instructions. It's been quite difficult to find award bookings. Glad to know they're becoming a little more available.

[@kcsnew]

Excellent video, liked and subscribed. Usually I follow the points guy website. Cheers 👍

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Thanks for the sub!

[@MrMaLiK-jm1oc]

Thank you for the detailed videos. I booked Qatar qsuites. Turkish biz and a trip to Switzerland by watching your videos. U r awesome, Max.🎉

[@kristineddie]

Great video, I learned so much! I am much more confident now about finding business class seats. Thanks!

[@kellybutler7440]

Awesome, detailed, helpful and clearly presented video, thank you so much for your great content!

[@karleenw1516]

This is a good option if you had a different flight booked that is cancellable and then the close in space becomes available

[@TonyP9226]

This is exactly what I was thinking. Book refundable seats and then search for availability in the weeks leading up to your trip and cancel the tickets if you find these deals

[@mrabia182]

This channel is a godsend

[@RexZShadow]

Thanks for the updated video, was watching your older video and was so confused by I could not find anything. Didn't realize it was just hard to find any ana flight. Just sucks with my work I kinda need to book over 1 month in advance =\

[@The_Turd_Ferguson]

booked a BC ticket on SQ from LAX to BKK via HND for 73k aeropoints. used the chase UR 20% bonus. Getting over 5 cpp i think.

[@ihabalamar8397]

You are the best! We booked 4 flights of Business class on Virgin Atlantic! THANK YOU

[@CesarJoel]

Great video and information bro! Will send this to my cousin, he is planning to to transfer points to flight ANA to Japan. 👍

[@sams7438]

It looks like today they removed all saver reward space accessible to Aeroplan. Hopefully it returns, just yesterday everything was bookable via aeroplan and I was seeing J seats 21 days out.

[@OanhNguyen-zq6ud]

Great video! You’re right, flexibility is key! Thank you!

[@MaxMilesPoints]

💯 the best way to maximize miles/points is flexibility!

[@paulfairchild8942]

Very helpful tips! Thanks Max!

[@todayu]

I'd rather use fewer points and pay more in taxes & fees. For me it's easier to earn cash than it is to earn points. Great vid, btw!

[@itsehsanh]

Great video Max. I flew ANA F (the suite) last year via Virgin before the horrific devaluation. Gunna book it in J this time around

[@mannygathers2114]

Great info Bro😮

[@chessstremer1090]

Nice video!

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Thanks for watching!

[@leslie535]

Alpha Dawg!!😂🙏👍🏻

[@thaisasilva6537]

Great tips! 🤩👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@ijesus_]

Great video 😮

[@jsbatra]

Nice. so helpful

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Glad to hear it was helpful!

[@morgan36352]

Do you also wait to book your hotels and other reservations since you don't have your flight dates until 14-30 days out? Have you had any issues with that? Very helpful video!

[@markkaroo]

So when is your trip to Japan with the family?

[@bluecrystaltearz]

How do you get the date to show a month instead of having to select a specific date?

[@JustVideoUploads]

Hi Max! Thank you for sharing this. Question for you, if I find award space (I) on United, but cannot find the same flight on Air Canada, does it mean it's a phantom availability?

[@notNaB2024]

All great but I notice that all of the "maximize your CC miles" channels talk about searching for one way flights. Do you really book one way flights, what did you do about the return flight, pay full price for a basic economy seat?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Yes One ways are easier to search, it keep it flexible so if you can’t find award availability for the same award program you can book with another program or maybe from a different departing airport. One ways also makes it easy to cancel an individual flight leg too if you need to. Very few loyalty programs reward you for booking round trip. For the return flight reverse the route and it’s the same search and booking process.

[@roelr25]

what about the return flight?

[@Timtimzi]

Trying to book my trip to Japan right now for Halloween and first class is out of the question . Still trying to figure out business class for cheap using United and virgin Atlantic . From what I understood from this video , United is just a workaround for their UI.

[@comtamtinhyeu]

Max do you know what is going on with Aeroplan cannot call them at all. How do you change anything if you need to?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

I've heard it's been tough to get them on the phone 😭. Sorry I don't have a solution to get around it

[@cliffdeguzman827]

Thanks for the informative video. One question…. How do you go about booking the return flight? Since availability is usually only shown for the next 1-2 weeks? I was able to find an outbound flight but wondering what I should do for the return? Thanks in advance.

[@nirajpatel2466]

Very informative but did not mention the high airline surcharge for Air Canada and Virgin aside from the taxes/fees.

[@JimmyC-p3d]

This video is helpful but I don't see any direct flights out of SFO for this month.

[@Swordyfiish]

This is such a well done video, thank you so much! I had a question, how does the award availability for The Room and The Suite look?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

You’d have to check some of the routing but SFO to HND is still operated by an aircraft that has the room. Business class is tough to find first class is even tougher so finding award availability for first class and operated by an air craft that has The Suite chances are slim

[@sfrealtortim]

Hey Max, Big fan here! Any suggestions for ways/platforms for checking availability for booking China Airlines SFO to Taipei Business Class with Flying Blue points? I thought you mentioned something about Delta website; I couldn't find any dates that indicated China Airlines as the operating carrier.

[@danamalol1123]

Have been seeing ANA flights on United but not on Air Canada anymore🥲 did they changed their system?

[@devinlauderdale9635]

air canada doesn't get the saver fees anymore for codeshare ana flights

[@rannegalang]

Do you have to do the same thing to book the flight back?

[@TheAndyzilla]

Ive been looking for flights. Saw it on united as a (I) flight but aerocanada shows nothinf with ANA at all. Is this common to happen?

[@seadee8442]

Any chance to have a video about award flight to China?

[@karengong8309]

Thanks for the video. This is the exact route I am looking for but with kids in school, we are not flexible so it is hard to even find 4 economy seats on ANA. Mostly shown waitlisted.

[@justologintoutube198]

Oh ny god, you are a life saver, i fly my mom from Singapore and i really needed to figure these thjngs out and had no clue where to even start!

[@ksbma]

Awesome video! Thank you for the information. Do award flights typically cost more points if you book them closer to the departure date versus booking the award flight months in advance? Or are they usually the same amount of points?

[@MaYoung-nd1rq]

same amount of pts

[@Enthusiast_Plus]

I gave the united award calendar search a try for dates further out. I see the "110k points" but when you select it, it does not show up. So guess the space is not 'released' yet? Who knows, Ill honestly be checking almost daily for our potential trip in 2024. FYI I am seeing 75k RT (!) via ANA website/points but with the dreaded waitlist.

[@kelvinwong4804]

With the BILT 100% transfer bonus last month, it only costs 22500 bilt points! Wish I would have transferred more BILT points to VA last month....

[@davidmcconnell8005]

Great info, thank you. Question: My plan is to transfer Amex points to one of the carriers you mention to book a rt flight to Bangkok from Chicago. Do I have to JOIN Air Canadas, Virgin Atlantics, or ANAs mileage clubs BEFORE I start looking for flights on United's website in order to transfer the points?

[@wanderrhea]

Max, great video… Thanks so much. Question here, how would you know how many are business class available in Virgin Atlantic before calling/transfering. Thanks so much, appreciate ♥️

[@Exojjang808]

Is there an easy way to get notified of when transfer bonus becomes available?

[@ThinhNguyen-uj9nv]

Awesome Video, what's the best way to search for Business class from DFW to Ho Chi Minh City? Thank you so much in advance

[@EdwinRodriguez-zt5fx]

I'm always curious with these type of videos. What to you do to come back?😂

[@ryanshannon6963]

#ScumClass Premium Economy one-way is about $1200 to $1500, depending upon destination.

[@christopherhefty1155]

Does it have to be a one-way trip or does this still work with round-trips(?). And when doing one-way bookings are you also booking one-way trips back on your desired [but flexible] return date/s as well?

[@specter1001]

Why are there zero non-stop flights from honolulu to tokyo when searching on Air Canada?

[@kennybang6252]

How do u know which airline shows which airline’s award or mileage ticket😬???

[@qianglin6245]

Basically we are trading cash with points for tax. If the points worth less in this case, it's definitely better to pay cash.

[@j_n_l7187]

Does ANA also operate out of Hawaii? I believe they go from HNL to TYO but it wasn’t listed in the video.

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Yes they do! I often forget about that route 😅 sorry!

[@chocoHD88]

Newbie, here. Thank you for the content. When booking these biz class award flights to Japan, can you explain whether it is best to fly out of other major cities as oppose to your hometown? Is it better to fly out of major hub like Houston, Dallas, LAX, SFO, DC, etc? Thank you

[@MaYoung-nd1rq]

yes as those city have availability for business class seats so there is a term they call repositioning where u fly out of those major hubs then fly there from your home airport

[@johnhernried2401]

I have this video saved. Thanks! I see award space for business on Aeroplan (75K). However, when I called Virgin Atlantic, they did not see any award space. Any reason why?

[@WHOSTHEREYO]

Very very helpful. I have 200K ANA miles been stuck at ANA for 4yrs since/prior Covid. Any advice how to use them?

[@tuna1416]

Hey Max, thanks for the guide. What about the returning flight?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

You're welcome. For the return flight do the same thing in reverse

[@brandongreen8895]

I traveled to Japan earlier in the year using this method. Recently, I have been trying to go back and i have seen avalbility on united website but for some reason when I call all the dates are rejcted. This included business, first, and economy seats. Is there a better way to look now?

[@mao-hsinshen9384]

This DID HAPPEN to me and my wife back in April 2023! 😊

[@MaxMilesPoints]

🙌🏼🙌🏼 yup when it rolled into May 2023 the award space stopped being released 🥲 but now it’s back!

[@mao-hsinshen9384]

@@MaxMilesPoints I want to THANK YOU SO MUCH for your videos that helped me and my wife flew to Japan in Nov-2022 from LAX to HND via ANA Biz then 1st Class back from NRT to LAX using Virgin-miles redeemed with 30% bonus! 😄 In April we flew ANA Biz from SFO to HND then back via JAL originally Biz but changed to another 1st Class from HND to LAX using the AA Miles! 😁 We indeed were rather flexible and don’t mind paying Virgin some fees changing flights. I also have tons of Avios hopefully can be used for Qatar Q-Suite!

[@milanbui168]

What's the best way to search for award availability and book through ANA ( if you have points stuck in ANA)?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Search on Air Canada or United and you have to find round-trip award availability when booking through ANA

[@MoneyMovesWithRoss]

I wonder how many points it is for an economy flight with virgin

[@JustVideoUploads]

How in the world did you make it so easy to find 4 business class flights on ANA! I can barely find economy

[@Ashhur]

I only see united polaris business (JN) flights only, nothing with ANA or business class I. does this mean all ANA award flights are sold out at this time? any other ways around searching for these deals? It seems like everyone is doing this so I'm sure it's that much trickier..

[@paulinekv885]

May we book ANA award flight from any US city, example, Phoenix, Houston, Dallas, Austin..?

[@jaynolasco6739]

Can you a connecting flight with less points to redeem?

[@kelvinwong4804]

So Max, just want to ask why you would call the Virgin instead of looking it up online? does it mean the Virgin Alantic do not show all the reward space on their website?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Yup correct ANA award space is not shown on Virgin’s website

[@kelvinwong4804]

​@@MaxMilesPoints Thanks. Based on your experience, how comparable between Virgin and Air Canada reward space availability? I found it is quite easy to find ANA business flight on Air Canada webpage when it is available

[@MaxMilesPoints]

@@kelvinwong4804 since the award space you find in Air Canada for ANA operated flights is considered saver award space , virgin Atlantic should be able to see the same saver award space

[@kelvinwong4804]

@@MaxMilesPoints Thank you so much!!

[@ArturoBeltran-b9k]

@@MaxMilesPointswhat if I see business class (I) on United but nothing on air Canada ? Any idea what that means ?

[@wdchen0110]

Hi Max, Thank you very much for this informative video. I did a dry run for 09/26/2023 (SFO->TYO) and indeed found award seats for ANA business (I), but couldn't find the same seats in Air Canada's Aeroplan website. Any clue?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Hey! I just have this a run and saw the same thing you saw. Then I ran the search over on avianca lifemiles (another star alliance partner) and saw the flight over there. That leads me to believe that Air Canada is having issues seeing ANA the award space at the moment or for that particular flight. Sometimes this happens from time to time

[@wdchen0110]

@@MaxMilesPoints Thank you so very much for the quick response . Yes, Avianca is another good option since they require less points than Aeroplan (sometimes) and they offer purchase bonus quite often.😃

[@tonyzheng3869]

Hey Max, I see there are business class seasts going to Tokyo for about 75kpts. I don't see any return flight from Tokyo cooking back the the states for anything less than 170k pts in either united or Air Canada. Also, there are no ANA return flight, only air canada or united.

[@kev2491]

Is there an easy way to find ANA first class award availability?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

For paid options one of the best ways is use a tool like seats.aero (seats.aero/r/7wb3pfpn) Or expert flyer The best free way to search would be to use United.com the same way I walkthrough in the video

[@YingcredibleTips]

hey Max, thanks for the video! I found the saver award space on United but nothing showed up on aircanada why is that?

[@MaYoung-nd1rq]

Aeroplan have issues right now so you have to call Aeroplan for booking ANA flights

[@pjyothi6533]

How does one find out when a transfer bonus event is happening?

[@Tewtummy]

So what about getting back?

[@travel.life.dreams]

Every time I book a flight normally, I get emails about upgrading. If I book with points, will I be able to upgrade later??

[@doritallon9738]

Hi, I have quite a few United points, but buying a United flight as you said become impossible. Since Turkish airline and air Canada are part of star alliance, can I buy through their website a ticket with United points if I don’t have Turkish or air Canada points?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Yes! That works

[@xudongsun6443]

How about Avianca Life Miles? It's usually the cheapest.

[@ryanshannon6963]

VA is cheaper, but direct flights only. LM is great if you need connections built into the itinerary. I, personally, use LM quite often since I'm not in a major hub.

[@sonalipatange5281]

superb

[@blakinsideandout]

Love your channel. Can u show some premium economy redemptions?? I'm planning on going to London on either British Airways or Virgin

[@juellaalberty4742]

Can we have two Aeroplan Credit card?

[@8twc]

Where do you see transfer bonus?

[@ryanboyd8961]

It seems like this may not be doable anymore on Air Canada, I haven't been able to match up the award availability from United & Aeroplan.

[@NotJonYeo]

Does it need to be round trip? I remember reading about some rule about how it has to be round trip in a certain case

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Booking via Air Canada or Virgin Atlantic does not require round trip! Round trip is required only if booking through ANA

[@staceytran9768]

Hi Max, have you booked your return flight? I checked and there was nothing that is decent in points even in economy. Any tips?

[@andressahughesfloridarealt3701]

Same question. No idea what to do to book business for the return flight.

[@websitesbyali5383]

if the flight appears on United and it has the (I) saver award availability, but it doesn't appear on Aeroplan, does that mean Aeroplan doesn't have the seat available?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

As of recent ANA business class flights haven't been showing on Aeroplan's website. Either ANA is not releasing them to Aeroplan or Aeroplan is blocking the award space. Not sure what is going on but hopefully it gets resolved soon

[@websitesbyali5383]

@@MaxMilesPoints thank you for the reply and explanation, boss. I will call up Virgin Atlantic to see if they have anything within the 30-60 day range. I was able to book JAL SkySuites III via British Airways Avios from HNL following your advice but wanted to see if I can use my Amex points instead to book it and refund my Avios to use for something else. By the way, I am curious to know, what are your thoughts on the Virgin Atlantic 40% transfer bonus?

[@LilRonBoi]

Is it harder to find a way back to the states? What is your thought process on finding trips back to the states?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Right now there’s no award space coming back to the US 🥲. When they had close-in award space in the past they had outbound and inbound award space. Maybe they’ll open up those later on or maybe there’s high demand right now not sure hopefully inbound award space opens up soon

[@FINs_TAVERN]

So did you fly back in gen pop? Did you use cash or more miles?

[@Dannyl711]

Hi max, I see the flight on ua from sfo to Tokyo but there are no flights s available in both virgin or air Canada websites. 7/3 one way. Do you know why? Thanks

[@jinkohanson3762]

Thank you so much for this really helpful, easy to understand tentorium video!! One question! How to book the return flight bossiness class seat? I am thinking to go to Japan for about 6 weeks, but do I need to book return flight as a one way trip as well when I book the flight to Japan? Since it's the last minutes booking with credit card points, Probably I can't find a good deal on return flight, I wonder. Can I book a return flight while I stay in Japan, when it gets closer to go back to Amerima?

[@poolsidepapi]

question, do your parents earn their own set of points as well?

[@FabianKim-z9u]

What if booking directly through the ANA website ?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Must book round trip so you have to find award availability for outbound and inbound , Amex points transfers to ANA but transfer times are 2-3 business days. Higher level of difficulty

[@sherulh4587]

Wait, can I transfer my united points to aeroplan?

[@jasonsergott5823]

Hey Max, did you find return flights available? I have seen many flights to Tokyo but no award flights returning to the US.

[@stinkyshark8648]

What's the best strategy for non-direct flights?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Positioning flights: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a5qvmpSKa9WEhcUsi=Uy061L70bKKPvch-

[@christophergreenidge4774]

Any clue why Business class space (I) would show on United but not on AirCanada ?

[@MaxMilesPoints]

Good question I’ve been looking into it and seems like it’s happening to some ANA flights and some Asiana flights not sure what’s going on hopefully it gets resolved soon

[@cnx5134]

I wish Point transfers were instant for German amex cards as well…