Which Credit Card Welcome Offer Is Best for Flying Business Class to Japan Right Now?

Everyone seems to want to go to Japan these days. It’s easily the first destination my family and friends ask me about, and they usually want to know the same thing: How can you get there in business class using points and miles?

I get it. It’s a long flight, and having a comfortable seat where you can actually get some sleep makes a big difference. I’ve been to Japan 3 times, flying Japan Airlines (JAL) in both business and first class, all using points and miles.

On my latest trip, I flew JAL’s A350 first class from New York City (JFK) to Tokyo Haneda (HND) for 125,000 miles, using a mix of Capital One miles and Bilt Rewards points. That got me thinking: If I were planning another trip to Japan today, which credit card welcome offer would I go after?

There are pretty big credit card welcome offers available right now, but not all of them are equally useful for booking flights to Japan. Here are the current offers that stand out to me and why I’d consider them.

Earning the Points Is Only Half the Battle

I wish booking business class to Japan were as easy as earning a big welcome offer and picking a flight. Unfortunately, it’s not.

Japan is one of the toughest destinations to find business-class award seats, and even with hundreds of thousands of points, availability can be a challenge. Sometimes airlines release only 1 business-class seat to partner airlines, which doesn’t help much if you’re traveling with someone else. That’s why I always recommend starting your search as early as possible, ideally 11 months or more before your trip, when the schedule opens.

Japan Airlines opens its award calendar 360 days before departure, giving its own Mileage Bank members a head start. Its partners like Alaska Airlines and American Airlines only let you book JAL awards 330 and 331 days out, respectively. That’s nearly a month later, and on popular routes, some of the best business-class seats are usually gone by then. Even when those booking windows open, JAL doesn’t guarantee it will release award seats to partners, so flexibility is key.

That’s why I prefer earning points that I can transfer to different airlines. I’ve learned that the more options I have when searching for flights to Japan, the better my chances of actually finding a business-class seat I can book.

Amex Membership Rewards Give Me More Ways to Book ANA

I’ve flown Japan Airlines several times, but one airline that’s still on my bucket list is All Nippon Airways (ANA). I’ve been searching for award seats to try its highly regarded The Room business class for a while now, but finding availability far enough in advance has always been the problem. So far, I’ve had much better luck booking JAL.

That hasn’t stopped me from looking, though. And this is one reason I like earning American Express Membership Rewards points. They transfer 1:1 to ANA Mileage Club, Air Canada Aeroplan, and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, giving me a few different ways to book ANA business class.

Virgin’s award pricing is especially appealing: 52,500 points one-way for ANA business class from the Western U.S., or 60,000 from the Central and Eastern U.S., plus taxes and surcharges. You need to call Virgin to book, and finding an available seat is the tricky part. I’d also check Aeroplan, which prices awards based on distance.

If I were looking to earn Amex points and boost my balance for a future ANA flight, these are the welcome offers I’d consider:

Just remember that “as high as” doesn’t mean everyone gets the biggest bonus, so check what Amex is offering you before applying.

If I were targeted for the Amex Business Platinum card’s offer of as high as 300,000 points and had $20,000 in business expenses coming up anyway, I’d seriously consider it. That’s a lot of points I could transfer to ANA, Aeroplan, or Virgin for a future trip to Japan. Of course, I wouldn’t spend money I wasn’t already planning to spend just to earn the offer bonus.

Chase Ultimate Rewards: Another Way to Book ANA

Amex isn’t the only way to earn points for an ANA flight. Chase Ultimate Rewards points are another option I’d consider, especially given some of Chase’s current welcome offers.

Chase points transfer 1:1 to Air Canada Aeroplan and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, both of which can book ANA business-class awards when partner seats are available. Unlike Amex, Chase doesn’t transfer directly to ANA Mileage Club, but that wouldn’t stop me from using Chase points if I found a seat through either partner.

And don’t overlook United. Chase also transfers directly to United MileagePlus at 1:1, giving you another way to book business-class flights to Japan.

Here are the Chase welcome offers I’d look at:

These are all pretty generous welcome offers, and I’d be happy earning any of them toward a future trip to Japan. Which card I’d choose would really come down to the annual fee, benefits, and how much I’d need to spend to earn the bonus.

Bilt and Capital One: How I’d Book Japan Airlines Business Class

While I’m still hoping to finally fly ANA, I’ve had much better luck finding award seats on JAL. And when it comes to booking JAL flights, Bilt Rewards and Capital One Miles are 2 currencies I’ve personally used and would happily use again.

Bilt transfers to JAL Mileage Bank at 1:1, while Capital One transfers at 4:3. In other words, 100,000 Bilt Points get you 100,000 JAL miles, but the same number of Capital One miles gets you just 75,000.

On my most recent trip to Japan, I booked JAL’s A350 first class from New York (JFK) to Tokyo – Haneda (HND) for 125,000 Mileage Bank miles using a combination of Bilt and Capital One points. It wasn’t the cheapest redemption possible, but I found the coveted first-class seat I wanted and booked it.

I’ve even found JAL business-class awards from the U.S. to Tokyo for as low as 55,000 miles one-way, with availability for more than 1 passenger when booking directly through Mileage Bank. That’s a pretty great deal, especially considering how tough it can be to find multiple business-class seats to Japan.

So, if I were looking to build up my JAL Mileage Bank balance for another trip to Japan, these are the Bilt and Capital One welcome offers I’d consider:

I’ve had better luck finding award seats directly through JAL, so I try to earn both Bilt Points and Capital One miles for future trips to Japan. Bilt gives me a better 1:1 transfer ratio to JAL, while Capital One gives me another way to earn miles toward the same goal. I like having both balances to work with so that when I see hard-to-find award seats available, I can snatch them up quickly.

More Ways I’d Earn Miles to Fly Business Class to Japan

American Airlines AAdvantage and Alaska Airlines Atmos Rewards are usually two of the first programs I check when booking flights to Japan. Both let me book JAL business class, often at excellent rates. Plus, American operates its own flights to Japan, and Alaska offers service between Seattle (SEA) and Tokyo – Narita (NRT).

American charges 60,000 miles one-way for JAL business class between the contiguous U.S. and Japan, when partner award space is available. You can also book American’s own business-class flights to Japan using AAdvantage miles, although pricing is dynamic. Alaska uses a distance-based award chart for partner flights.

Personally, I’d rather book JAL through American or Alaska whenever possible. But when award availability is limited or the dates don’t work for me, I usually turn to JAL Mileage Bank.

Fortunately, there are several credit cards that can help you earn these miles.

The Citi Strata Elite card and Citi Strata Premier card earn Citi ThankYou Points that you can move to American AAdvantage, while the Citi^® / AAdvantage^® Platinum Select^® World Elite Mastercard^® earns American miles directly.

There’s also the Atmos™ Rewards Summit Visa Infinite^® card, which earns Atmos Rewards points. I personally consider these among the most valuable airline miles because of the great redemption opportunities with Oneworld partners like JAL.

All 4 cards have welcome offers that could help you build up enough miles for a business-class flight to Japan.

Final Thoughts

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from booking 3 trips to Japan using points and miles, it’s that there’s no single credit card or airline program that’s always going to get you the best deal.

I love earning flexible points because they give me options, but I’ve also gotten tremendous value from airline miles, especially when booking Japan Airlines business and first class. That’s why I don’t put all my eggs in one basket.

Finding business-class award seats to Japan takes patience and strategy, but when you’re settling into a lie-flat seat for that 13-hour flight to Tokyo, you’ll know it was worth the effort.