Guide on redeeming Flying Blue miles (and sweet spots)

Europe’s three major airline groups: IAG (BA & Iberia), Lufthansa Group and Air France-KLM should all be very familiar to readers of this blog. British Airways (Avios) used to be the most versatile and popular of the three, especially for its short-haul redemptions, but after repeated devaluations that reputation is no longer really deserved. By contrast, Lufthansa and Flying Blue (Air France-KLM) have gained quite a few highlights since moving to dynamic pricing. I covered Lufthansa last time, and today let’s chat about Flying Blue.

Earning Miles

Like most airlines, the most straightforward way to earn Flying Blue miles is through the official Buy Miles offers. The standard price is 2.73 euro cent per point (prices vary slightly if paying in USD or GBP). In recent years there have often been 45% off sales or 80% bonus offers, but even the previous 100% bonus (effectively half price) was still not particularly cheap.

Another official option is a monthly subscription. The top tier gives you 17,000 miles per month, at a cost of 1.10 euro cent per point This pricing is much more reasonable, and worth considering if you have a long-term need for Flying Blue miles.

Of course, Flying Blue also has many transfer partners, one of the most prominent being American Express. A notable highlight in China is Ping An Wallet, which runs 20% bonus promotions every year, bringing the effective cost down to under 1 euro cent per point.

Note: Unless you hold elite status, Flying Blue miles have a rolling 24-month validity. The main ways to extend validity are flying (any partner airline counts) and spending on a co-branded credit card. Other types of account activity only extend the validity of miles earned through that specific category. For example, if you transfer miles from Marriott Bonvoy, only miles earned via hotel partners will be extended.

Airline Partners

The core airlines behind Flying Blue are Air France, KLM, TAROM and Transavia. Thanks to their Skyteam membership, Flying Blue miles can be redeemed on many SkyTeam airlines, including but not limited to Atlantic, SAS, Air Europa, Delta, Saudia, Middle East Airlines, China Eastern, Xiamen Airlines, China Airlines, Korean Air, Vietnam Airlines and Garuda Indonesia, among others.

Notably, Flying Blue also has many non-SkyTeam airline partners, such as:

• Japan Airlines
• Bangkok Airways
• Malaysia Airlines
• Qantas
• Oman Air
• Etihad Airways
• Air Mauritius
• Air Tahiti Nui
• GOL
• WestJet

The breadth of coverage is almost comparable to Air Canada’s Aeroplan.

Redemption Chart

When dynamic pricing was first introduced, Flying Blue still published award charts showcasing the minimum miles required between zones. These have since been withdrawn, but they remain a useful reference.

There is also a calculator on the official website, though many routes fail to return results. However, one very useful feature is that if you search without selecting specific dates, the site will display a price calendar (though it may not always be perfectly accurate).

Intra-Europe

For intra-European flights, economy awards on Air France and KLM start from 10k miles (Virgin points are actually cheaper for these). However, when redeeming SAS and Air Europa flights, prices can be as low as 5k, perfect for Spanish and Scandinavian trips.

Asia Pacific

Surprisingly, Flying Blue’s strongest-hold is in Asia, thanks to its very extensive partner-network in the region. Likewise one-way economy awards start from just 5,000 miles. And here are some example routes (economy one-way):

• Qingdao – Seoul, 5k, China Eastern / Korean Air
• Shanghai – Taipei, 5k, China Eastern / China Airlines
• Shanghai – Seoul, 5.5k, China Eastern / Korean Air
• Shanghai – Fukuoka, 6k, China Eastern
• Shanghai – Osaka, 9k, China Eastern / Japan Airlines
• Shanghai – Tokyo, 12.5k, China Eastern / Japan Airlines
• Kunming – Hanoi, 5k, China Eastern
• Xiamen – Taipei, 5k, Xiamen Airlines / China Airlines
• Beijing – Seoul, 6k, China Eastern / Korean Air
• Beijing – Osaka, 12k, China Eastern / Japan Airlines
• Guangzhou – Bangkok, 11k, Kenya Airways / China Eastern
• Guangzhou – Ho Chi Minh City, 12k, Vietnam Airlines
• Seoul – Jeju, 5k, Korean Air
• Seoul – Tokyo, 8.5k, Korean Air
• Hanoi – Bangkok, 7k, Vietnam Airlines
• Hanoi – Taipei, 12k, Vietnam Airlines
• Kuala Lumpur – Singapore, 5k, Malaysia Airlines
• Kuala Lumpur – Bali, 11.5k, Malaysia Airlines
• Melbourne – Sydney, 5k, Qantas
• Brisbane – Perth, 16.5k, Qantas

Many of these redemptions are extremely good value, and surcharges on short-haul Asian routes are generally low.

Other Short-hauls

Flying Blue has four airlinespartners in the Middle East: Saudia (SV), Middle East Airlines (ME), Etihad (EY), and Oman Air (WY). Short-haul awards also start from 5k miles, e.g.:

• Abu Dhabi – Doha 5k
• Abu Dhabi – Riyadh 7k
• Riyadh – Jeddah 7k
• Muscat – Dubai 5k

Similar pricing applies to North America (Delta and WestJet) and Africa (Kenya Airways).

Long-hauls

For business-class redemptions on the Europe – America and Asia – America routes, minimum prices are typically in the 60k – 70k range, which is just regular.

The range for Asia – Europe tends to be 70k – 85k. A standout sweet spot is China Airlines, with prices as low as 59.5k.

Vietnam Airlines isn’t bad either.

Promo Rewards

Similar to Lufthansa’s Mileage Bargains, Flying Blue runs a monthly discounted award program called Promo Rewards, where selected routes are discounted by up to 50%. The rules are the same as standard awards: one-way or return bookings are allowed, and changes or cancellations are possible (with a fee).

Free Stopver

Finally, Flying Blue’s stopover policy is also worth highlighting:

• Bookings must be made via the call centre
• Only applies to itineraries fully operated by Air France and/or KLM
• Unlimited free stopovers

While stopovers are technically unlimited, the scope is fairly limited due to the carrier restriction, with the exception of certain fifth-freedom routes. In practice, this mainly allows you to add a free visit to Amsterdam or Paris.

The terms also explicitly allow “opposite-direction” or so-called “boomerang” itineraries within Europe. For example, if you live in Scotland, you could redeem Edinburgh – Amsterdam – Glasgow and effectively getting a round trip for 10,000 miles. Or if you live in Amsterdam or Paris, you could book something like Madrid – Paris – Athens and transform them into multiple trips (with a maximum stopover of one year).

Even with these tricks aside, Flying Blue already offers outstanding value for short-haul redemptions across multiple regions worldwide. It has truly replaced British Airways in the domain, and is well worth keeping an eye on going forward.