Booking Guides Using Points

BY 

Spencer Howard

- Last updated: May 4, 2017June 5, 2017

Best Ways To Book American Airlines Business Class Using Points [Step-by-Step]

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With long-haul routes to cities like London, Paris, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Sydney, you can visit some amazing cities by flying American Airlines’ business class product.

Unlike some carriers, American Airlines does not have a consistent business class product. On some flights, you won’t have Wi-Fi, and others lack a lie-flat seat.

Before you decide to book a business class flight with American Airlines, make sure you check which aircraft is operating on your selected route and what that model includes.

Which Version of American Airlines Business Class Are You Flying?

Usually, we’d dive right into what to expect from a business class flight. However, American Airlines flies several aircraft (and multiple versions of said aircraft) with international business class. Long story short: not all American Airlines business class flights are created equal.

Let’s start with American’s Airbus jets; they fly the Airbus A330-200 and A330-300. Both business class products include a lie-flat seat with direct aisle access. However, neither aircraft provides Wi-Fi access.

When we look at their Boeing aircraft it starts to get really confusing. There are several aircraft types including the Boeing 757-200, 767-300, 777-200ER, 777-300ER, 787-8, and 787-9.

We’ll consider these in order. One version of the 757 has lie-flat seats, while the other has seats that only recline. The one with lie-flats is used on international routes, but it does not have direct aisle access. Both versions also have Wi-Fi.

The 767 has lie-flat seats and direct aisle access…but not all 767s have Wi-Fi yet.

There are 3 versions of the 777-200ER. One version also has a first class cabin; this one is significantly different from the other 2 versions. The seat is not lie-flat, nor do all seats have aisle access. In fact, the middle section is 3 seats across! It also doesn’t have wi-fi.

The other 2 versions of the 777-200ER are significantly better. They have lie-flat seats (all with direct aisle access), and both aircraft provide Wi-Fi.

American’s Boeing 787s (also known as Dreamliners) have different cabin layouts, but all seats still have direct aisle access and are lie-flat. Additionally, all Dreamliners are outfitted with Wi-Fi.

Finally, we have the 777-300ER, which is American Airlines’ flagship product. All business class seats are lie-flat with direct aisle access. The cabin layout is very similar to the Dreamliner 787-9.

Since it is the flagship product, we’re going to focus on this 777-300ER when discussing American Airlines business class.

A Look Inside American Airlines Business Class

As we mentioned above, all business class seats on the American Airlines 777-300ER are lie-flat and have direct aisle access. These are both required to meet our standards of a quality business class product.

Upon arrival at the airport, you will have access to priority privileges. This will provide an expedited check-in, security, and boarding process. Even if you arrive at your gate after boarding has started, you can still breeze through the priority boarding lane!

While waiting for your flight, you can enjoy your time in the Admirals Club. Rather than wait in the crowded space by the gate, you can enjoy a glass of wine or a beer while munching on something to eat.

If you have the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite™ Mastercard®, you can access Admirals Club lounges even when you are flying in economy class.

Business class passengers will also have premium in-flight dining options. You can even reserve your meal choice between 30 days and 24 hours prior to your flight. To top it off, pair your meal with a nice glass of wine.

While business class on American Airlines isn’t on the same level as what you’ll receive when flying Cathay Pacific business class, it is still a solid way to fly internationally.

How To Book American Airlines Business Class

There’s a reason people love to fly business class on American, so let’s dive into how you can book this great experience using points.

American Airlines AAdvantage

One of the easiest ways to book American Airlines business class is through their own AAdvantage program. You can complete the entire booking process online; here are the steps:

Go to the American Airlines website

1. Log in to your AAdvantage account
2. Select “Redeem Miles”
3. Enter your departure and destination cities
4. Enter your travel dates
5. Select your class of service to see the mileage cost
   • Make sure you choose SAAver level so you get the cheapest award price
6. Confirm your travel date
7. Select your flight and hit “Continue”
8. Enter the passenger details
9. Enter your payment information

Fortunately, American Airlines will allow you to hold your award reservation up to 5 days (if you book at least 15 days in advance), so you will have time to transfer SPG Starpoints.

Keep in mind that American’s AAdvantage program does not allow stopovers on award tickets, but you can book one-way awards.

If you need more American AAdvantage miles, you can transfer SPG Starpoints. The transfer takes about 2 days, and for every 20,000 SPG Starpoints you transfer, you will receive an additional 5,000 miles.

Our Transfer Partner Calculator will easily help you calculate the amount of points you need to transfer for your awards.

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank

Unlike American Airlines and many other frequent flyer programs, Japan Airlines’ Mileage Bank program uses a distance-based award chart. Their award chart is broken into tiers based on how many actual miles you’re flying.

If you fly multiple segments, you’ll need to account for the distance between each airport as well.

Unfortunately, Japan Airlines requires you to call to book award flights with partner airlines, but this is easy following the steps below:

1. Go to the Japan Airlines website
2. Log in to your JAL Mileage Bank account
3. Select “JMB Partner Airlines Award Ticket Reservation”
4. Select American Airlines under “Partner Airlines”
5. Select your class, your travel dates, and your departure and destination airports
6. Select your flights and hit “Next”
7. Confirm the Mileage Bank miles and taxes/fees required

Japan Airlines allows stopovers, so you can see multiple destinations on your trip.

If you need more Japan Airlines Mileage Bank miles, you can transfer SPG Starpoints. Before you decide to transfer SPG Starpoints, keep in mind that this takes around 7 days and Japan Airlines does not hold award tickets.

For other ways to use your Japan Airlines miles, give our best ways article a read.

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan

One of the best ways to book American Airlines business class is through Alaska Airlines’ Mileage Plan program.

While American Airlines devalued their award chart in early 2016, their award prices through Alaska’s program remained the same.

To book American Airlines business class, follow these simple steps:

1. Go to Alaska’s website
2. Sign in to your account
3. Search for your desired route (make sure you select “Use Miles”)
4. Select your desired flight and choose “Add To Cart”
5. Pay the necessary taxes/fees and complete your booking

Not only are Alaska’s award prices better than American’s own, but you can also book a stopover. Make sure you consider using Alaska miles when booking American Airlines business class!

For some other ideas on how to use your Alaska miles, check out our best ways to redeem Alaska miles.

Other Options for Booking American Airlines

American Airlines has several other partners that can be useful when booking award flights. Cathay Pacific and British Airways (Oneworld partners) both have distance-based award charts that contain some sweet spots, but watch out for high surcharges.

Additionally, American Airlines also has a partnership with Etihad Airways, which has some great redemption rates. However, they do not allow you to book online.

Great American Airlines Business Class Redemptions

Let’s take a look at some of the best routes for trying business class on American Airlines. Often, you will use the fewest miles and points if you book using the Japan Airlines Mileage Bank program.

Alaska Airlines’ Mileage Plan miles might be more accessible, though, which can make it a solid choice as well.

How To Earn Enough Miles for American Airlines Business Class

You can use a Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express to earn SPG Starpoints that are easily transferred to each of the programs mentioned above. In addition, you can also use the business version of the card to earn SPG Starpoints.

American Airlines and Alaska Airlines both have credit card partnerships you can utilize to earn more miles as well. Learn more about the Citi and Barclaycard co-branded American Airlines credit cards to see how you can use them to earn AAdvantage miles directly.

If you’d like to learn more about earning Alaska Mileage Plan miles, check out your options with their co-branded Bank of America cards.

When Should You Search For Award Space?

American Airlines is notoriously bad about releasing business class award space at the SAAver level. You can pay their AAnytime award rates, but it requires an unreasonable amount of miles.

Your best bet for finding American Airlines business class award space is to start searching as soon as you have an idea of your travel dates and keep checking regularly. Unfortunately, they are not predictable in how they release space, so this can be a time-intensive process.

What Do You Get With American Airlines Business Class?

Let’s talk a bit more about what you get from the American Airlines business class experience.

Admirals Club

One of the best perks of flying business class is access to the Admirals Club. Spending long layovers with complimentary drinks and food really helps pass the time!

Thanks to the size of Admirals Clubs, you can find both quiet spaces if you need to work or rest, and a bar area where you can mingle with other passengers.

If you’re traveling during football season, you’ll often find a group of passengers enjoying a game on one of the TVs.

Business Class Seat

American Airlines provides a business class seat very similar to the one provided by Cathay Pacific. Its lie-flat function makes sleeping much easier, which can be especially important when you have a meeting or other plans first thing upon arrival.

Don’t forget the direct aisle access! On international long-haul flights, you’ll likely want to get out of your seat at least once. With direct aisle access, you won’t have to climb over someone (or have anyone climbing over you!)

Final Thoughts

While American Airlines isn’t known for having world-class business class service, they do provide a solid product when you want a comfortable international flight.

With a few programs that provide good redemption rates, you shouldn’t have any trouble earning the necessary miles to fly American Airlines business class.

Featured image courtesy of theluxurytravelexpert.com.