The 9 Best Ways To Redeem 60,000 United Airlines Miles

Key Takeaways

• With 60,000 United miles, you can book a round-trip business class flight to the Caribbean and Central America or a one-way business class flight to northern South America.
• One-way business class flights or economy round-trip award tickets to Europe start at 60,000 miles.
• Another option is to fly business class within central and southern Africa.

United Airlines is one of the major U.S. airlines. MileagePlus, the United Airlines loyalty program, has several advantages over other airline rewards programs that can make it especially valuable for redeeming airline miles. These include no fuel surcharges on reward flights and a wealth of partner airlines.

In this post, we’ll cover the best ways to redeem 60,000 United Airlines miles and what you need to know to maximize the MileagePlus program.

The Best Way To Earn United Airlines Miles

Both Bilt Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards have multiple airline partners, including United Airlines. Earning transferable points with either program is an ideal strategy to maximize the high-value redemptions in the MileagePlus program.

Hot Tip: We love collecting Ultimate Rewards because they’re easy to earn, and when you’re ready to transfer them to United Airlines, you can do so instantaneously at a 1:1 ratio.

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The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the ins and outs of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.

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Chase Ultimate Rewards

Business owner? See our list of the best Chase business credit cards.

The most popular United credit card is The New United℠ Explorer Card, which is a solid option for frequent United travelers. You’ll get a generous welcome offer bonus, your first bag checked for free, priority boarding privileges, and more.

Bottom Line: Earning transferable points with Chase Ultimate Rewards provides flexibility in award travel. With Chase Ultimate Rewards, you can not only use the MileagePlus program to book flights, but also leverage Chase’s 9 other airline partners.

The 9 Best Ways To Redeem 60,000 United Airlines Miles

United Airlines is a member of the Star Alliance, so United miles can be redeemed on United Airlines flights, partner airline flights, and non-alliance partner flights. With many Star Alliance members based in Europe, you will have plenty of options booking award travel to Europe.

One important thing to note is that in 2019, United eliminated its fixed-price award chart and moved to dynamic pricing, so while the rates in this list are average, you may find higher or lower costs depending on your dates of travel.

Hot Tip: United does not impose fuel surcharges on award tickets, which can significantly reduce your out-of-pocket spend.

1. Take Advantage of the Excursionist Perk

The Excursionist Perk is a free one-way flight, not in the region of your departure, when booking a round-trip or open-jaw multi-city itinerary.

The following criteria must be met to receive the Excursionist Perk:

• Travel must end in the same region that your travel began (i.e., the first flight departs Newark, the last flight arrives in Houston).
• The free one-way flight must be within the same region (i.e., the first flight is from Newark to Frankfurt, the second flight is from Frankfurt to Zürich, the third flight is from Zürich to Chicago — the second flight is free).
• The cabin of the free one-way flight must be the same or lower than the cabin of the flight it succeeds (i.e., the first flight from North America to Europe in economy class, and the second flight intra-Europe is in economy class).
• Only the first one-way award qualifies (i.e., the first flight is from Chicago to Munich, the second flight is from Munich to Istanbul, the third flight is from Istanbul to Copenhagen, and the fourth flight is from Copenhagen to Newark — the third flight is not free).

Hot Tip: The United Excursionist Perk is competitive with the Southwest Companion Pass as one of the best perks in any award program. A free intra-region flight in Star Alliance partner-rich regions such as Europe provides incredible value.

2. Fly to the Caribbean

The entire Caribbean is a region in the United Airlines award chart. A United business class flight from North America to the Caribbean is as low as 70,000 miles round-trip. If economy class is more your style, United prices round-trip flights from North America to the Caribbean around 40,000 miles.

United’s network of U.S. hubs provides excellent coverage throughout this region. United Airlines flights between the following cities will set you back from 70,000 miles round-trip in business class and start at 40,000 round-trip in economy class, among other options:

• Chicago (ORD) and Aruba (AUA)
• Houston (IAH) and Grand Cayman (GCM)
• Newark (EWR) and Turks and Caicos (PLS)

Need help booking? Follow our step-by-step guide to booking United business class award flights!

3. Fly to Central America in Business Class

Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama are all within United’s Central America region. Business class flights start at 70,000 miles round-trip.

If you want to maximize your United Airlines miles even more, consider economy class flights. Flights to Central America are as low as 40,000 miles round-trip in economy class.

There is good Star Alliance coverage in the Central America region. Both United and Avianca provide non-stop flights from several U.S. destinations.

Flights between the following city pairs all require at least 70,000 miles round-trip in business class and 40,000 miles round-trip in economy class on United, or a minimum of 66,000 miles round-trip in business class and 38,600 round-trip in economy class on Avianca:

• Chicago (ORD) and Belize (BZE)
• Newark (EWR) and Costa Rica (SJO)
• Houston (IAH) and San Salvador (SAL)
• Los Angeles (LAX) and Guatemala City (GUA)
• Houston (IAH) and Honduras (TGU)
• Miami (MIA) and Nicaragua (MGA)
• New Orleans (MSY) and Panama City (PTY)

4. Fly to Northern South America in Business Class

United breaks South America into 2 regions. The northern region includes Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela. You can get a one-way business class ticket to northern South America from 60,000 miles, while a round-trip economy class ticket starts at 40,000 miles.

Star Alliance partner Avianca (which is an Amex transfer partner, Citi transfer partner, and Capital One transfer partner), along with United Airlines, covers Northern South America with non-stop flights.

United flights between the following cities can be found from 60,000 miles one-way in business class and 40,000 miles round-trip in economy class:

• Newark (EWR) and Bogotá (BOG)
• Houston (IAH) and Quito (UIO)
• Newark (EWR) and Lima (LIM)

5. Fly to Europe in Business Class

Europe is considered a single region with United Airlines and includes countries you would expect, including England, France, and Germany. The region also includes Turkey, which is not always the case in other award programs.

Business class flights to Europe on United Airlines start at 80,000 miles one-way, while you need at least 88,000 miles one-way for a Star Alliance partner such as Lufthansa.

Another option to consider is economy class flights. From 40,000 miles round-trip, you can fly economy class to Europe on United, while you can choose any partner in the Star Alliance from 66,000 miles round-trip.

Coverage of the region is incredible due to the number of Star Alliance partners headquartered in Europe. Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, SWISS, TAP Air Portugal, and Turkish Airlines all operate out of the Europe region.

Examples of non-stop business class flights that can be booked from the U.S. to Europe from 80,000 miles one-way include:

• Chicago (ORD) and Brussels (BRU)
• Houston (IAH) and Amsterdam (AMS)
• Newark (EWR) and Berlin (BER)
• Washington, D.C. (IAD) and Frankfurt (FRA)

6. Fly Business Class Between Australia, New Zealand, and South Asia

United requires at least 90,000 miles one-way in business class on Star Alliance partner flights in Australia, New Zealand, and South Asia. Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways, and Air New Zealand are the 3 Star Alliance partners providing coverage in this region. Additionally, United now also has a partnership with Virgin Australia.

The South Asia region includes Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Laos, Macau, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The Australia and New Zealand region includes Australia, New Zealand, and Norfolk Island.

Examples of flights on Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways include:

• Singapore (SIN) or Bangkok (BKK) to Sydney (SYD)
• Melbourne (MEL) or Brisbane (BNE) to Auckland (AKL)

7. Fly Business Class Within Central and Southern Africa

United divides Africa into 2 regions: Northern Africa and Central and Southern Africa. The Central and Southern Africa region includes every country in Africa except Algeria, the Canary Islands, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia.

Notable destinations included in this region are Mauritius, Reunion Island, and Seychelles.

Business class flights within the Central and Southern Africa region begin at 45,000 miles one-way. Economy class flights should also be considered, as flights shorter than 800 miles only require 8,000 reward miles. Flights longer than 800 miles require a minimum of 19,300 reward miles.

An example of a non-stop business class flight you can book from 45,000 miles one-way is between Addis Ababa (ADD) and Mahé (SEZ). Star Alliance partners South African Airways and Ethiopian Airways provide good coverage for this region.

Hot Tip: Did you know there are a handful of other ways to fly to the Seychelles on points if you want to save those hard-earned United miles? Also, check out these other ways to fly to South Africa on points.

8. Fly Economy Intra-Oceania

The Oceania region includes many of the hard-to-reach islands in the South Pacific. Economy class flights shorter than 800 miles (most of the intra-Oceania flights) start at 8,000 reward miles one-way, while flights longer than 800 miles are at least 12,500 reward miles one-way. Business class flights require 20,000 miles one-way.

Hot Tip: A bucket-list item for many AvGeeks is the United Island Hopper. The route starts in Honolulu (HNL) traveling through the Marshall Islands (MAJ), Kwajalein Atoll (KWA), Kosrae (KSA), Pohnpei Island (PNI), Weno (TKK), and Guam (GUM). If you fly the entire route, the mileage prices out to 35,000 miles in economy class.

9. Fly Business Class Intra-Europe

The Europe region stretches from the U.K. to Russia and from the Nordic countries to Turkey. Business class flights intra-Europe require a minimum of 30,000 miles one-way. Economy class flights shorter than 800 miles start from 8,800 United miles while one-way flights longer than 800 miles start at 16,500 United miles one-way.

Focusing on the longer and more expensive routes will maximize your redemption. Turkish Airlines flies non-stop between Istanbul (IST) and Copenhagen (CPH), Stockholm (ARN), Helsinki (HEL), and Dublin (DUB).

United Airlines Partners

Star Alliance Partners List

Non-Alliance Partners List

Final Thoughts

United Airlines has many exciting options for making the best use of your MileagePlus rewards. With business class flights to the Caribbean and northern South America, United’s region lists allow you to book premium cabins in a variety of ways. Finding United partner airlines with low fuel surcharges for flights in their premium cabins is critical.

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