The avianca lifemiles program is one of my favorite frequent flyer programs, thanks to the solid redemption rates on Star Alliance partners, plus all the ways there are to earn miles with the program. Not only does lifemiles often have promotions on purchased miles, but the program also partners with major transferable points currencies.
We’ve just seen a new transfer bonus introduced for lifemiles, and it has the potential to be a good deal.
In this post:
Amex to lifemiles 15% transfer bonus details
Through Saturday, November 30, 2024, the Amex Membership Rewards program in the United States is offering a 15% bonus on points transfers to avianca lifemiles.
The transfer ratio is usually 1:1, so through this promotion you can transfer points at a 1,000:1,150 ratio. This bonus is hardcoded into the transfer ratio, so you can take advantage of the bonus as often as you’d like. Transfers from Amex to lifemiles are generally instant.
We see bonuses from various transferable points currencies to lifemiles every so often. While this isn’t the biggest percentage transfer bonus we’ve ever seen, it is the first bonus from Amex to lifemiles in several months, so it could be worth considering.
Is earning lifemiles worth it?
Latin American mega carrier avianca is in the Star Alliance, which means you can redeem lifemiles on all Star Alliance airlines (which is what makes the program so great). Premium cabin redemptions are often quite attractively priced, with some transatlantic business class awards starting at 45,000 miles one-way. While lifemiles recently had a devaluation, there’s still lots of value to be had.
Sometimes there are promotions on redemptions, which can offer even more value. There’s also plenty of value for redeeming on United Airlines for domestic flights, which might just be the most practical use of lifemiles.
Personally I wouldn’t speculatively transfer points, but with a specific use in mind this could be a great value, whether you’re looking at traveling in first class on All Nippon Airways or Lufthansa, or are looking at traveling in business class on a countless number of airlines.
The lifemiles program doesn’t always have access to the same award availability as Star Alliance partners, for better or worse. In some cases the program doesn’t have access to partner awards that other airlines do have access to, and in other cases the inverse is true.
That’s why I always recommend doing some “dummy” award searches before acquiring miles in a program, so you can get a sense of how award availability lines up with your needs.
Bottom line
Through November 30, 2024, you can receive a 15% bonus when you transfer points from Amex Membership Rewards to avianca lifemiles. You should see the bonus reflected at the time that you transfer points.
This has the potential to be a good deal for Star Alliance redemptions, given all of the airline partners that lifemiles has. Personally I use lifemiles all the time for premium cabin Star Alliance redemptions, and find the program consistently offers great value. Just remember that lifemiles also sells miles directly, often at a reasonable cost, so I know some prefer to save their points for other uses, and just buy miles directly.
Do you plan on converting Amex points into lifemiles with this bonus?
Hey Ben, there's a 15% transfer bonus from Amex to Asia Miles as well