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Whether you’re flying Singapore Airlines first class or Cathay Pacific first class, many Asian carriers have developed a reputation for world-class service. When you fly ANA, you will enjoy the privacy and comfort of your first class suite and experience unbelievable service.
With several routes to the U.S., a competitive award chart, and plenty of partner booking options, let’s dive into ANA first class.
ANA is widely considered to be one of the best airlines in the world, and its first class experience really drives that point home.
When you fly ANA’s first class out of Tokyo, you’ll be treated like a VIP from the moment you walk into the airport. This is because the airline has a private ANA Suite Check-In in Terminal 1 for its most exclusive customers.
ANA’s concierge staff will help make the check-in process a quick and painless process. You can either check in at the counter or wait comfortably on one of the check-in area sofas.
Once you’re finished checking in, you’ll be off to security. While this is probably one of the least enjoyable experiences for most travelers, you’ll be whisked through priority security in no time.
At this point, you might rush to your gate — but hopefully, you’ve left enough time to relax in the ANA Suite Lounge, which is available at both Narita and Haneda.
It’s here where ANA’s amazing service starts to shine. During your stay, you can enjoy a great meal and refresh in one of the fully-stocked shower rooms. ANA really makes an effort to ensure the wait, as well as the flight, is an experience to remember!
Once onboard the ANA Boeing 777-300ER, you’ll see a large rectangular first class suite waiting for you. Unlike some first class suites, these seats do not have doors that close you off from the rest of the cabin. But they provide more than enough privacy (especially the window seats).
Another difference you’ll notice is that the 2 middle seats also have tons of privacy. Even if you lower the divider, you still have to lean forward to talk to the person next to you.
No first class experience wouldn’t be complete without pajamas and an amenity kit. ANA first class amenity kits are provided by Samsonite (departing from Tokyo) or Rimowa (departing to Tokyo) and have everything you need to refresh on a long flight.
ANA is moving forward with its epic refurbishment of its 777-300ERs. Known for offering its “flagship” premium products, the new ANA 777-300ER will arguably solidify its place among the best international first class products in the world.
ANA’s new first class will consist of enclosed suites in a 1-2-1 configuration, each complete with sliding doors. Also, the seats are ridiculously sleek yet minimalist. The in-flight monitor will measure an astonishing 43 inches, which would make it the largest personal television on a commercial airline in the world. Also, it will be a 4K monitor, the first of its kind on an airline.
Arranged in 2 rows with a 1-2-1 configuration, the 8-suite cabin will present an epic “East Meets West” collaboration between architect Kengo Kuma and British design firm Acumen Design Associates. The biggest gripe of ANA’s first class “The Square” had long been the closed-off nature of the hard product, which can make talking to your seatmate difficult if you’re traveling together.
ANA’s response to this is one of the most epic in the history of commercial aviation, and this will undoubtedly catapult the first class experience to a whole new level (not that it wasn’t already a top-tier product).
You can find the new ANA 777 first class on:
ANA is a member of Star Alliance, which is the world’s largest airline alliance — so you’ll have plenty of options for booking ANA first class.
The most straightforward way to book first class is through ANA’s own Mileage Club program. The entire booking process can be taken care of online. This might be the best way to book ANA business and first class, because ANA keeps a decent amount of award availability reserved for ANA Mileage Club members only.
| Departure Point | Class of Service | Destination | ||||||||
| Hawaii (Zone 5) | North America (Zone 6) | Europe (Zone 7) | ||||||||
| L | R | H | L | R | H | L | R | H | ||
| Japan (Zone 1) | Y | 35,000 | 40,000 | 43,000 | 40,000 | 50,000 | 55,000 | 45,000 | 55,000 | 60,000 |
| PY | 53,000 | 58,000 | 61,000 | 62,000 | 72,000 | 77,000 | 67,000 | 77,000 | 82,000 | |
| C | 60,000 | 65,000 | 68,000 | 75,000 | 85,000 | 90,000 | 80,000 | 90,000 | 95,000 | |
| F | 120,000 | 120,000 | 129,000 | 150,000 | 150,000 | 165,000 | 165,000 | 165,000 | 180,000 | |
Here are the steps to booking ANA first class:
Hot Tip: Use our Transfer Partner Calculator to quickly determine how many miles you’ll get for transferring between programs.
There are a few important caveats to remember when booking with ANA Mileage Club. First, you can only book awards for yourself and your family members.
Second, ANA has low, regular, and high seasons for awards. Stick to the low and regular seasons for your award bookings to get the most bang for your buck.
The mileage cost of first class awards is actually the same for the low and regular seasons, so there are plenty of travel dates from which to choose.
Third, ANA allows you to waitlist award bookings. This can be a nice feature, but there’s no guarantee you will move off the waitlist (especially on popular travel dates). For this reason, it’s important to check whether your selection is actually putting you on the waitlist.
Fortunately, it’s clear when you are waitlisting for an award. Just make sure you confirm before moving forward!
Speaking of the waitlisted flight pictured above, you’ll notice the route is from Chicago to Sydney, Australia connecting in Tokyo.
ANA not only allows you to transit a third region on your way to a destination, but they allow you to book a stopover. This means you could visit Tokyo for a bit before continuing to Australia.
If you need some more miles in your Mileage Club account, you can transfer American Express Membership Rewards.
Membership Rewards generally take about 2 to 3 days to transfer. Keep this in mind before transferring, as award space isn’t guaranteed to be available if you wait.
Hot Tip: Check out other great ways to redeem ANA miles with ANA Mileage Club.
In today’s age, it’s extremely difficult to find sweet spot awards to Asia. Luckily, Virgin Atlantic is an amazing transfer partner of all major flexible award points.
This is crucial for Virgin Atlantic Flying Club because they offer unbeatable first class award redemption rates on ANA to Japan.
The following chart is the ANA Award Chart using Virgin Points:
| Route | Economy Class* | Business Class* | First Class* |
| Domestic Japan | 15,000 | – | – |
| Japan – South Korea | 18,000 | 35,000 | 50,000 |
| Japan – China / Guam / Hong Kong / Philippines / Taiwan | 23,000 | 45,000 | 60,000 |
| Japan – Malaysia / Myanmar / Singapore / Thailand / Vietnam | 40,000 | 65,000 | 105,000 |
| Japan – Hawaii / India / Indonesia | 45,000 | 70,000 | 115,000 |
| Japan – Australia / Canada / Western USA | 60,000 | 90,000 | 145,000 |
| Japan – Europe / Central & Eastern USA / Mexico | 65,000 | 95,000 | 170,000 |
* or equivalent class
The above chart shows the round-trip cost in Virgin Points, though one-way trips are now allowed at half of the round-trip cost.
Here are some great example flights you can take:
To make things even better, Citi and American Express often run huge transfer bonuses of 25% to 30% to top off your miles even more! If you line everything up correctly, you can fly from the West Coast to Japan in ANA first class round-trip for 112,000 points!
One significant drawback of Virgin Atlantic vs. ANA is that Virgin Atlantic will only be able to reserve award seats that are released to partners. Since ANA has access to much more award inventory, you’ll need to plan further in advance or be more flexible.
Here’s how to book ANA first class with Virgin Atlantic (do not transfer your points yet):
The last thing you need to know is about transfer times: Chase and Citi transfer instantly, Amex takes 2 to 3 business days, and Marriott Bonvoy can take as long as Amex. Make sure you know this when you’re planning award holds! If your award hold is lost, there’s no guarantee the seats will still be there if you try again.
You can also book ANA flights through Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, a Star Alliance partner.
Here’s what you need to know to book.
Booking through Singapore KrisFlyer allows you to book a one-way first class award on ANA if that’s all you need.
A big benefit to booking this way is that it allows you to leverage Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou Points since Singapore Airlines is a partner. Transfers to the KrisFlyer program generally take up to 24 hours; transfers from Citi generally take 1-2 days.
Hot Tip: Check out other great ways to redeem with Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer.
Asiana Club miles provide another great option for booking flights on ANA. Like Singapore Airlines, it also allows one-way bookings.
| Origin | Destination | Economy | Business | First |
|
North America
| Northeast Asia | 80,000 | 120,000 | 160,000 |
| Southeast Asia | 90,000 | 135,000 | 180,000 | |
| Southwest Asia | 100,000 | 150,000 | 210,000 | |
| South Pacific | 110,000 | 165,000 | 240,000 | |
| North America | 25,000 | 45,000 | 65,000 | |
| Mexico, Hawaii, Central America | 35,000 | 55,000 | 75,000 | |
| South America 1 | 35,000 | 55,000 | 75,000 | |
| South America 2 | 50,000 | 70,000 | 90,000 | |
| Europe | 50,000 | 80,000 | 100,000 | |
| Middle East | 80,000 | 120,000 | 160,000 | |
| Africa | 80,000 | 120,000 | 160,000 |
You must reserve and have your ticket issued 3 days prior to departure, which prevents snagging last-minute awards.
You can also book through one of ANA’s other Star Alliance partners including Avianca LifeMiles, United MileagePlus, or Air Canada Aeroplan.
Each program we discussed above has its sweet spots:
Here’s a quick comparison of some round-trip award redemptions with each program.
| Departure | Destination | ANA Mileage Club | Virgin Atlantic Flying Club* | Asiana Club | Singapore KrisFlyer |
| Chicago (ORD) | Sydney | 210,000 miles | N/A | 240,000 miles | 255,000 miles |
| New York (JFK) | Tokyo | 150,000 miles | 170,000 miles | 160,000 miles | 200,000 miles |
| Washington, D.C. (IAD) | Bangkok | 195,000 miles | N/A | 180,000 miles | 225,000 miles |
* Virgin Atlantic is really only worth it to fly to Japan. It’s possible to book to places like Australia and Thailand, but you don’t get anywhere near the same value.
When booking with Asiana Club, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, or Singapore KrisFlyer, a one-way ticket will cost half the miles of the round-trip award.
Since ANA is an Amex transfer partner, you can transfer miles at a rate of 1:1.
Singapore Airlines and Virgin Points are also a Chase transfer partner, American Express Membership Rewards, and Citi ThankYou Rewards (all at a rate of 1:1).
In addition, Capital One miles can be transferred to Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club at a 1:1 ratio. Also, if you have Bilt Rewards points, you can transfer them to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club at the same 1:1 ratio.
You can even transfer Brex Rewards points to Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer at a 1,670:1,000 ratio.
You can also earn Marriott Bonvoy points and transfer those to ANA, Asiana, Virgin Atlantic, or Singapore Airlines at a transfer rate of 3:1. For every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points that you transfer, you’ll receive an extra 5,000-mile bonus.
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You can search and book ANA flights between 355 days and 96 hours from departure. Start your search early to give yourself the best chance of finding award space, and check regularly if you don’t see space initially.
ANA is one of the premier carriers operating out of Asia, so you’ll want to give its first class a try. Here are some of the aspects of this experience you would enjoy.
If you’re accustomed to the service of U.S. carriers, you might be a bit overwhelmed. Don’t worry, there’s no trick here — ANA’s cabin crews really are that great!
From the moment you set foot onboard, they are ready to help you have a wonderful first class experience.
Once you’re in the ANA Suite Lounge, staff will be there to offer you a hot (or cold) towel and a drink — Champagne is a great choice. If that’s not a great way to start off a lounge visit, we don’t know what is!
If you need a shower after a long flight or a long day visiting Tokyo, you can enjoy a relaxing one here. There’s plenty of seating even during busy times, so you can stretch out. If you need a quiet place to work, grab one of the workstations that include noise-canceling headphones.
Whether you’re enjoying a nice vacation or visiting the lounge for work, the ANA Suite Lounge will be a great experience.
Go ahead and add ANA first class to your list of flights you must try. If you need a one-way flight, Asiana Club and Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer can get you what you need. If you need a round-trip, you’ll often find your best booking options are ANA’s own Mileage Club and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
Additionally, ANA’s new first class is about to be added to its portfolio, so be sure to consider flying that product as it is sensational.
What are you waiting for? From the moment you arrive at the airport, the service will be amazing. Enjoy some Champagne and before you know it, the journey will be as much fun as the destination!
For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, click here.
Often, ANA’s Mileage Club program requires the fewest miles to book first class flights on ANA, but it requires round-trip bookings.
Asiana Club, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, and other Star Alliance partners can also provide some great redemption options.
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer and ANA Mileage Club are partners with American Express Membership Rewards.
You can also earn KrisFlyer miles through Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, Capital One Miles, or Brex Rewards.
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is transfer partners with Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, Bilt Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy. It’s also indirect transfer partners with Capital One Miles through Virgin Red.
First and foremost, world-class service. ANA is renowned for its amazing inflight service! Additionally, you can expect some great Champagne and food in the ANA Suite Lounge and during your flight.
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Always a fan of flying, it was only natural that Spencer was drawn to finding a way to improve the travel experience.
Like many, he started this journey searching for cheap flights to take him around the world. This was fun for a while, but Spencer was intrigued by the idea of flying in business and first class!
Throwing himself into what became an extensive research project, Spencer spent 3-4 hours per night learning everything he could about frequent flyer miles over the course of several months (he thinks this is normal). He runs Straight to the Points, an award-seat alert platform.
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