Redeeming Alaska Miles On American: Underrated Sweet Spot

While there’s nothing earth shattering here, I wanted to share how I’ve increasingly been redeeming Alaska Mileage Plan miles for domestic and short haul international itineraries on American. In many ways, I think this has become a real sweet spot of the program, so let me explain…

I’m increasingly redeeming miles for domestic flights

I’m not some weekly domestic road warrior. Quite to the contrary, I avoid domestic travel as much as possible, since nothing is as comfortable as my bed at home. However, I still end up flying a fair bit domestically.

What has changed over the years is that I’m increasingly just redeeming miles for domestic and short haul international flights, including in first class. Why? Well, a lot has changed over the years. Back in the day, I’d almost exclusively pay cash for economy tickets when traveling domestically:

• As an American AAdvantage Executive Platinum member, I’d almost always get upgraded to first class, so it ended up being quite a good value
• Years ago, the only way to earn elite status was through actually flying, so that was my pathway to qualifying

However, times sure have changed. First class upgrades are really tough to come by nowadays, so more often than not, I end up finding a way to confirm myself into first class, assuming it represents a decent value. Sometimes that’s by outright redeeming miles for first class, and other times it’s by purchasing reasonably priced upgrades.

Furthermore, nowadays you can earn elite status through credit card spending, but it’s even questionable whether that’s worth it, given that it’s not as valuable as it used to be.

I also plan a lot of my domestic travel last minute, when costs for a ticket in cash might be really high, while award costs are often reasonable. So long story short, I find that miles just get me the best value and most comfortable domestic flying in a majority of situations.

Alaska Mileage Plan is the new domestic sweet spot program

In many cases, redeeming American AAdvantage miles for domestic travel can be a solid value. American no longer has an award chart for these flights, though pricing can be attractive. The catch is that American almost always penalizes you if you want to fly nonstop, as connections are typically priced lower.

Back in the day, redeeming British Airways Executive Club Avios for short haul travel on American was an incredible value. It was one of the best sweet spots of the program. Unfortunately we’ve seen devaluation after devaluation, to the point that these kinds of short haul redemptions just aren’t a good deal anymore, in a vast majority of situations.

We recently saw major changes to the Alaska Mileage Plan program, which have created new program sweet spots. While ultra long haul redemptions are no longer the amazing value that they once were, redeeming Alaska Mileage Plan miles for short haul travel within the Americas is now an incredible value, and I’m finding that I’m frequently redeeming Mileage Plan miles this way.

Below is Mileage Plan’s award chart for travel within the Americas. Assuming there’s saver level award space on American, pricing is as follows:

• A flight of under 700 miles will cost 4,500 miles in economy, 9,000 miles in business class
• A flight of 701-1,400 miles will cost 7,500 miles in economy, 15,000 miles in business class
• A flight of 1,401-2,100 miles will cost 12,500 miles in economy, 25,000 miles in business class

A vast majority of my nonstop domestic travel covers distances of under 1,400 miles, so that’s where I get the most value.

For example, my single most frequently flown route is between Miami and Tampa, and last minute fares can be pretty expensive with cash. If I redeem American AAdvantage miles for this flight, pricing is often 7,000 miles in economy, or 15,000 miles in first class.

Meanwhile if I redeem Alaska Mileage Plan miles, pricing is only 4,500 miles in economy, or 9,000 miles in first class.

Just to be thorough and point out how bad British Airways Executive Club has become, that award now costs 12,000 Avios in economy, or 24,000 Avios in first class.

My next most frequent route is between Miami and New York. If I redeem American AAdvantage miles for this flight, pricing is often 14,000 miles in economy, or 30,000 miles in first class.

Meanwhile if I redeem Alaska Mileage Plan miles, pricing is only 7,500 miles in economy, or 15,000 miles in first class.

To include British Airways Executive Club, that award now costs 16,000 Avios in economy, or 32,000 Avios in first class.

Now, let me just mention that Alaska Mileage Plan does charge a $12.50 partner award booking fee, so you’ll pay that in addition to the taxes. That’s not a huge deal, but it’s worth mentioning. Beyond that non-refundable fee, you can change or cancel awards on American at no cost.

Furthermore, if you’re looking to take advantage of elite perks, note that you often can’t add another frequent flyer program number to a reservation booked with Mileage Plan miles. This isn’t consistently enforced, and also probably isn’t much of an issue if you’re booking first class, since there’s not much incremental value to status. But still, it’s worth pointing out.

Given the reasonable acquisition cost of Alaska Mileage Plan miles — for example, you can frequently buy them for well under two cents each — I’d consider this to be a very attractive way to secure domestic awards on American, assuming you can find availability.

Bottom line

There’s no denying that Alaska Mileage Plan award sweet spots have changed over the years. Nowadays I consider it to be an excellent value to redeem Alaska Mileage Plan miles on American flights, where I find the pricing is consistently lower than through American AAdvantage or British Airways Executive Club.

The catch is that there needs to be saver level award availability, but for situations in which it’s available, the value is pretty unbeatable, in my opinion.

Anyone else appreciate the value of redeeming Alaska Mileage Plan miles on American?