Along with the Scandinavian countries of Denmark and Norway, Sweden is a country with many islands, lakes, forests, and mountains.
The northern lights, fishing, hiking, and skiing are what Sweden is known for, in addition to its capital city of Stockholm.
The major airport in Sweden is Stockholm Arlanda Airport (ARN).
This airport offers nonstop flights between the U.S. and Sweden, as well as connecting flights from the U.S. through other European countries.
Nonstop Flights Between the U.S. and Sweden
At the moment, there are 3 airlines that offer nonstop flights between the U.S. and Sweden, and you probably aren’t expecting one of them!
All of the nonstop flights are through Stockholm Arlanda Airport (ARN). Unfortunately, just 1 of these airlines has good award availability.
But if you’re flexible enough, you are bound to find a date with availability for at least 2 travelers in business class.
Here are the airlines with nonstop flights between the U.S. and Stockholm (ARN) in Sweden, along with their routes:
Finnair (Fifth Freedom Flights)
- Los Angeles (LAX) – Stockholm (ARN)
- Miami (MIA) – Stockholm (ARN)
- New York (JFK) – Stockholm (ARN)
SAS
- Chicago (ORD) – Stockholm (ARN)
- Miami (MIA) – Stockholm (ARN)
- Newark (EWR) – Stockholm (ARN)
- New York (JFK) – Stockholm (ARN)
United Airlines
- Newark (EWR) – Stockholm (ARN)
Best Programs To Use To Book Flights
The major airline alliances in Oneworld, SkyTeam, and the Star Alliance will come in handy when booking the various ways for you to fly to Sweden from the U.S.
As you’re reading through this list, it’s important to note that the award prices shown are round-trip prices.
Except for ANA partner airline flights, you can book one-way flights with any of the programs on the list.
But in order to book a nonstop flight on Finnair or SAS, you’ll most likely need to redeem points from a Oneworld or Star Alliance frequent flyer program, respectively.
Now that we have that covered, let’s jump into how best to book flights to Sweden!
ANA Mileage Club
SAS business class. Image Credit: SAS
Japan-based ANA’s Mileage Club is a program you should check out when booking flights to Sweden.
One of the most well-known sweet spots with the Mileage Club program is booking Star Alliance business class flights to Europe.
The lack of flexibility when booking partner airline award flights and fuel surcharges are by far the biggest downsides to keep in mind when using ANA miles.
ANA also requires you to book round-trip partner flights, which limits the flexibility of your flights.
With respect to fuel surcharges, ANA passes them on to you. This means that if you book airlines like Austrian Airlines or Lufthansa with ANA miles, you’ll pay a ton in taxes and fees.
Luckily, if you happen to find award availability on SAS, you’ll pay as little as $70 in round-trip taxes and fees in business class!
Here’s the award redemption chart:
| Cabin Class |
Star Alliance Miles Cost |
Taxes and Fees |
| Economy |
55,000 |
$71+ |
| Business |
88,000 |
$71+ |
Hot Tip: A way to get around high fuel surcharges on Austrian Airlines and Lufthansa is to use Avianca LifeMiles or United MileagePlus. Both of these programs don’t impose fuel surcharges, so you’ll save a lot of money in the process.
Flights to Sweden that you can book with ANA Mileage Club miles include:
- Chicago (ORD) – Stockholm (ARN) for 55,000 ANA miles in SAS economy class
- Newark (EWR) – Stockholm (ARN) for 88,000 ANA miles in SAS business class
You’ll want to use the steps below to book your next award flight with ANA:
- Search for flights on United’s website.
- Confirm the same availability on ANA’s website.
- Book the flight online.
- Pay the taxes and fees.
Earning ANA Mileage Club Miles
ANA has transfer partnerships with both American Express and Marriott Bonvoy, making it super easy to earn ANA Mileage Club miles.
Points earned in both programs can be transferred directly to ANA.
ANA offers a co-branded credit card, but unfortunately, its bonus categories are paltry compared to Amex’s.
If you have the choice, you’ll want to earn American Express points first (the reason being that American Express points transfer at a 1:1 ratio in 2 to 3 days).
In the case of Marriott Bonvoy, point transfers take 7 days at a 3:1 ratio. With Marriott Bonvoy transfers, you’ll want to transfer 60,000 points at a time to earn the 5,000-mile bonus.
In short, these are the American Express credit cards to keep your eye on:
Recommended American Express Cards (Personal)
Recommended American Express Cards (Business)
Bottom Line: ANA offers the second-cheapest business class award option to Sweden, right behind Asiana Airlines.
American Airlines AAdvantage
Finnair Airbus A350 business class. Image Credit: Greg Stone
One of the things to consider when earning American Airlines AAdvantage miles is that the award program doesn’t have a ton of sweet spots.
Compared to other Oneworld airline award programs, you’ll pay a premium on many routes when redeeming AAdvantage miles.
Hot Tip: Booking off-peak award flights is the way to go with the American Airlines AAdvantage program. Off-peak dates on American Airlines and partner airline flights to Europe are from January 10 to March 14 and November 1 to December 14.
Here’s the AAdvantage award chart for nonstop Finnair flights to Sweden:
| Cabin Class |
Oneworld Miles Cost |
Taxes and Fees |
| Economy Off-Peak |
45,000 |
~$6 to $65 |
| Economy |
60,000 |
~$6 to $65 |
| Business |
115,000 |
~$6 to $65 |
Hot Tip: Booking Finnair flights nonstop is an excellent way to minimize those pesky fuel surcharges on European flights!
With the required number of AAdvantage miles in your account, you can book flights like these to Sweden:
- Los Angeles (LAX) – Stockholm (ARN) for 115,000 American Airlines miles in Finnair business class
- New York (JFK) – Stockholm (ARN) for 45,000 American Airlines miles in Finnair economy class
The American Airlines award booking process is as follows:
- Search for flights on American Airlines’ website.
- Book the flight online.
- Pay the taxes and fees.
Earning American Airlines AAdvantage Miles
Earning AAdvantage miles should not take much effort.
American Airlines has both a transferable program partner in Marriott Bonvoy and also offers several co-branded credit cards.
The transfer time from Marriott is Bonvoy 2 days at a ratio of 3:1. You’ll also receive a 5,000-mile bonus with every 60,000 points that you transfer. Below are the Marriott Bonvoy credit cards we recommend:
Recommended Marriott Bonvoy Cards
Asiana Club
SAS business class. Image Credit: SAS
Asiana Club is another Star Alliance program to keep in mind when booking flights to Sweden.
Asiana Airlines receives the most coverage for the ability to book business and first class Star Alliance flights to Europe at low rates.
The catch with Asiana Airlines is that you’re on the hook for the fuel surcharges. Fuel surcharges and the online booking process are what frustrate many travelers about the Asiana Club program.
Here’s the award chart for flights between the U.S. and Sweden:
| Cabin Class |
Star Alliance Miles Cost |
Taxes and Fees |
| Economy |
50,000 |
$106+ |
| Business |
80,000 |
$106+ |
| First |
100,000 |
$1,776+ |
Example flights to Sweden that can be booked by redeeming Asiana Airlines miles include:
- Miami (MIA) – Stockholm (ARN) for 80,000 Asiana miles in SAS business class
- New York (JFK) – Stockholm (ARN) for 80,000 Asiana miles in SAS business class
Redeeming Asiana Airlines miles takes a bit of effort but is made easier if you use the process below:
- Search for Star Alliance partner flights on United.
- Call Asiana Airlines at 800-227-4262 between 8:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. PST Monday to Friday.
- Book the flight over the phone.
- Pay the taxes and fees.
Earning Asiana Airlines Miles
Marriott Bonvoy is the only partner of the Asiana Club program, making it difficult to earn Asiana Airlines miles.
The same 5,000-mile bonus can be earned when transferring 60,000 Marriotts Bonvoy points at a time. Before transferring any points, keep in mind Marriott Bonvoy point transfers take 4 days at a 3:1 ratio.
Bottom Line: Flying business class on airlines with low taxes and fees is the way to receive the most value with Asiana Airlines miles.
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
Use Asia Miles to fly British Airways business class. Image Credit: Alex Miller
Joining American Airlines is our second Oneworld member in Cathay Pacific.
One of the best ways to redeem Cathay Pacific Asia Miles is on British Airways business and first class flights between the U.S. and Europe. The reason is that you’ll pay lower taxes and fees.
The Asia Miles program is not known for having a competitive award chart, and many of its partner airlines can’t be booked online. Here’s the approximate award chart:
| Cabin Class |
Oneworld Airlines Cost |
Taxes and Fees |
| Economy |
54,000+ |
$164+ |
| Business |
100,000+ |
$164+ |
| First |
150,000+ |
$656+ |
Hot Tip: Cathay Pacific doesn’t have an award chart when you’re flying 1 Oneworld airline partner. Simply add 5,000 miles to the pricing shown in the Asia Miles Standard Award chart.
For those of you with Asia Miles, consider booking flights like these to Sweden:
- Boston (BOS) – London (LHR) – Stockholm (ARN) for 100,000 Asia Miles in British Airways business class
- Miami (MIA) – Stockholm (ARN) for 54,000 Asia Miles in Finnair economy class
You can book British Airways, Finnair, and Iberia flights to Sweden using these steps:
- Search for partner airline flights on Asia Miles’ website.
- Book the flight online.
- Pay the taxes and fees.
For other airline partners that fly to Sweden (i.e. American Airlines), the process is a little different:
- Search for American Airlines award availability on British Airways’ website.
- Call Cathay Pacific at 866-892-2598 to confirm award availability.
- Book the flight over the phone.
- Pay the taxes and fees.
Earning Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
Cathay Pacific has partnerships with American Express, Brex Rewards, Capital One, Citi, and Marriott Bonvoy, meaning it’ll be extremely easy to earn Cathay Pacific Asia Miles.
Cathay Pacific also offers a co-branded Synchrony Bank credit card, allowing you to earn Asia Miles directly from your spending.
If you find yourself with American Express, Brex, Capital One, Citi, and/or Marriott Bonvoy points, keep the transfer ratios and times in mind as they are different.
American Express points transfer in around a day at a 1:1 ratio, Capital One Miles transfers take 5 days at a 1:1 ratio, Citi point transfers take 24 hours at a 1:1 ratio, Brex points transfer at a 1:1 ratio in 1 business day, and Marriott Bonvoy point transfers take 5 days at a 3:1 ratio.
Marriott Bonvoy transfers come with a bonus of 5,000 Asia Miles when you transfer 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points at once.
If you’re looking to earn Citi ThankYou Points, we recommend checking out the cards below:
Recommended Citi Cards
Iberia Plus
Iberia business class. Image Credit: Iberia
Iberia is the third Oneworld airline partner to make this list.
For U.S. travelers, there are 2 things that you may be familiar with about the Iberia Plus program — the ability to book domestic American Airlines flights and the ability to redeem Iberia Avios (miles) for Iberia flights during off-peak dates between the U.S. and Europe.
Before you start earning Iberia Avios or transferring points to Iberia, you’ll want to keep in mind that some partners, like American Airlines, require you to book round-trip flights.
Many travelers see this as a drawback when using the Iberia Plus program.
Check out the award chart for off-peak flights booked using Iberia Avios:
| Cabin Class |
Iberia Avios Cost |
Taxes and Fees |
| Economy Off-Peak |
42,500 |
$164+ |
| Business Off-Peak |
85,000 |
$164+ |
Hot Tip: If you’re looking for an even cheaper flight option to Europe, consider redeeming Aer Lingus AerClub Avios. You’ll need to book an additional flight to Sweden, but you can fly to Europe in economy at extremely low prices using Aer Lingus Avios.
Award flights to Sweden that can be booked using Iberia Avios include:
- Boston (ORD) – Madrid (MAD) – Stockholm (ARN) for 85,000 Iberia Avios in Iberia business class off-peak
- New York (JFK) – Madrid (MAD) – Stockholm (ARN) for 42,500 Iberia Avios in Iberia economy class off-peak
Booking award flights to Sweden redeeming Iberia Avios is pretty simple. Use the process below to book:
- Search for Iberia flights on Iberia’s website.
- Book Iberia flights online.
- Pay the taxes and fees.
Earning Iberia Avios
Earning Iberia Avios won’t be too much of a challenge.
Iberia offers a co-branded Chase credit card that earns Iberia Avios and also has partnerships with American Express, Chase, and Marriott Bonvoy.
The transfer times and ratios are different among the transferable point programs. American Express and Chase have 1:1 transfer ratios while Marriott Bonvoy has a 3:1 transfer ratio. Chase transfers almost instantly, Amex takes 1 to 3 business days, and Marriott Bonvoy takes around 1 business day. With Marriott Bonvoy transfers, try to transfer 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points at a time to earn the 5,000-mile bonus.
We love earning Chase Ultimate Rewards points and recommend checking out these cards to earn your fair share:
Recommended Chase Cards (Personal)
Recommended Chase Cards (Business)
Bottom Line: The off-peak award calendar is the way to go with Iberia. You can save yourself a ton of Avios by simply traveling during these off-peak dates.
Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
Finnair Airbus A350 business class. Image Credit: Greg Stone
Japan Airlines’ Mileage Bank is an interesting program that doesn’t get much media coverage and is known for is offering low rates on Oneworld partner airline flights.
While Japan Airlines has competitive award prices, its miles can be tough to earn — one of the drawbacks of this program that you should keep in mind.
Hot Tip: Japan Airlines has a partnership with SkyTeam’s Air France outside of its partnership with the Oneworld alliance. This works in your favor as you can use Japan Airlines miles to book an Air France award flight.
Here’s the JAL Mileage Bank award chart for Oneworld flights:
| Cabin Class |
Oneworld Miles Cost |
Taxes and Fees |
| Economy |
50,000+ |
$89+ |
| Business |
85,000+ |
$89+ |
| First |
100,000+ |
$328+ |
If you have Japan Airlines miles, here are a couple of flights to Sweden that you can book:
- Boston (BOS) – Paris (CDG) – Stockholm (ARN) for 85,000 Japan Airlines miles in Air France business class
- New York (JFK) – Helsinki (HEL) – Stockholm (ARN) for 85,000 Japan Airlines miles in Finnair business class
Using the steps below will help you book a flight to Sweden with Japan Airlines miles:
- Search for Oneworld flights on British Airways’ website.
- Search for Saver-level Air France flights on Delta.
- Confirm the same availability on Japan Airlines.
- Book the flight online.
- Pay the taxes and fees.
Earning Japan Airlines Miles
Japan Airlines only partners with Marriott Bonvoy, so it may be challenging to earn Japan Airlines miles.
In addition to earning points via Marriott Bonvoy, Japan Airlines offers a co-branded First National Bank of Omaha credit card.
Due to the low welcome offer and earn rates, we’d recommend passing on it for now.
For those of you looking to transfer Marriott Bonvoy points, the transfer time takes 2 days at a 3:1 ratio.
Keep in mind that you’ll receive a 5,000-mile bonus with every 60,000 points that you transfer to Japan Airlines.
Bottom Line: For flights to Sweden, flights that travel the shortest distance require the fewest number of Japan Airlines miles.
Korean Air SKYPASS
Use Japan Airlines miles to fly Air France business class. Image Credit: Air France
South Korea-based Korean Air is the lone SkyTeam partner to make this list.
For U.S. travelers, the SKYPASS program is known for competitive business class award flights to Europe and competitive award flights on Air France between Los Angeles and Tahiti.
Fuel surcharges and its online booking process are 2 downsides that you should be aware of when redeeming Korean Air miles.
Particularly on this route, expect to pay several hundred dollars in fees.
Hot Tip: If you’re looking to fly SkyTeam airline partners to Stockholm, we also recommend checking the award prices on Air France, Delta, and KLM.
The following is the award chart for a SkyTeam award flight booked using Korean Air miles:
| Cabin Class |
SkyTeam Award Miles Cost |
Taxes and Fees |
| Economy |
50,000 |
$613+ |
| Business |
80,000 |
$613+ |
You can redeem Korean Air miles on flights like these to Sweden:
- Atlanta (ATL) – Paris (CDG) – Stockholm (ARN) for 80,000 Korean Air miles in Delta or Air France business class
- Detroit (DTW) – Amsterdam (AMS) – Stockholm (ARN) for 50,000 Korean Air miles in Delta or KLM economy class
Award flights to Stockholm can be booked much easier by following these steps:
- Search for SkyTeam flights on Air France, Delta, or KLM.
- Confirm the same availability on Korean Air or call Korean Air at 800-438-5000.
- Book the flight online or over the phone.
- Pay the taxes and fees.
Earning Korean Air SKYPASS Miles
Marriott Bonvoy is the only transferable point program that partners with Korean Air, and for this reason, you may have a tough time earning Korean Air SKYPASS miles.
For those of you holding Marriott Bonvoy points, the transfer time to Marriott Bonvoy takes 48 hours at a 3:1 ratio.
If you have at least 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, remember that you’ll receive a 5,000-mile bonus with every 60,000 points that you transfer.
Another way that you can earn Korean Air miles is by putting your spend on its co-branded U.S. Bank-issued credit card.
Bottom Line: Using Korean Air miles to fly SkyTeam business class can open up incredible value. The main thing to factor in with these flights is the fuel surcharges.
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
SAS Go economy class. Image Credit: SAS
Booking Singapore Airlines premium cabin flights and booking discounted flights during its Spontaneous Escapes are 2 things the KrisFlyer program is known for.
What you may not have considered is using KrisFlyer miles to book Star Alliance flights to Sweden.
Star Alliance business class award pricing is probably a pass for us, but if you have a lot of Singapore Airlines miles, you can get some good value from them.
Here is the award chart:
| Cabin Class |
Star Alliance Miles Cost |
Taxes and Fees |
| Economy |
61,000 |
$106+ |
| Business |
162,000 |
$106+ |
Hot Tip: If you don’t mind booking an additional flight to Stockholm, you can fly Singapore Airlines between the U.S. and Europe. The 2 routes are New York (JFK) – Frankfurt (FRA) and Houston (IAH) – Manchester (MAN).
Star Alliance flights to Sweden that you can book with KrisFlyer miles include:
- Chicago (ORD) – Stockholm (ARN) for 61,000 KrisFlyer miles in SAS economy class
- Miami (MIA) – Stockholm (ARN) for 61,000 KrisFlyer in SAS economy class
Singapore Airlines has a straightforward award booking process that looks like this:
- Search for Star Alliance flights on United.com.
- Confirm the same availability on Singapore Airlines.
- Book the flight online.
- Pay the taxes and fees.
Earning Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Miles
American Express, Chase, Citi, Capital One, Brex Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy all partner with Singapore Airlines.
This means that it’ll be easy to earn Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles. Unfortunately, Singapore Airlines doesn’t offer a co-branded credit card for the U.S. market, so transferable points will be the main way to earn miles without flying.
Amex, Chase, Citi, Capital One, and Brex all transfer at a 1:1 ratio. All of them may take 1 to 2 business days to transfer.
When transferring Marriott Bonvoy points, the transfer ratio is 3:1. Also, keep in mind that you’ll receive a 5,000-mile bonus when transferring 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points at a time to Singapore Airlines.
If you’re looking to earn Capital One miles, here are the cards we recommend:
Recommended Capital One Cards
Bottom Line: Booking Star Alliance economy flights to Europe is what we recommend. If business class is your jam, consider using ANA, Asiana, or Aeroplan to unlock more competitive award pricing.
United Airlines MileagePlus
United miles can help you fly to Sweden in business class for free! Image Credit: Chris Hassan
The last airline on this list is one that U.S. travelers likely have used in the past.
United Airlines’ MileagePlus program is known for its ability to book award flights without fuel surcharges, saving you a ton of cash when you’re flying Austrian Airlines and Lufthansa.
While you will not pay fuel surcharges with United, one of the downsides to redeeming MileagePlus miles to book award flights is that you will pay more in miles.
Hot Tip: Consider using United miles when you want to book partner airline flights that have high fuel surcharges.
Although the award chart isn’t published any longer, here’s how much Saver-level tickets generally cost:
| Cabin Class |
United Miles Cost |
Taxes and Fees |
| Economy |
60,000 |
$106+ |
| Business |
120,000 |
$106+ |
| Star Alliance Business |
140,000 |
$106+ |
| First |
220,000 |
$106+ |
With many Star Alliance airline partners based in Europe, you have tons of award flight options to Sweden like these:
United makes it easy to book award flights. You can also follow this process:
- Search for flights on United’s website.
- Book the flight on United.
- Pay the taxes and fees.
Earning United Airlines MileagePlus Miles
United Airlines has 2 transferable point program partnerships — Chase Ultimate Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy.
United also offers several co-branded credit cards. The spend that you put on these cards directly earns MileagePlus miles.
For those looking to transfer Chase points, the points transfer instantly at a 1:1 ratio.
In the case of Marriott Bonvoy, you have 2 transfer bonuses — Marriott Bonvoy points transfer within 2 days 3:1.1 (10% bonus) ratio, and with every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points that you transfer, you’ll receive a 5,500-mile bonus.
Recommended United Cards
Bottom Line: United doesn’t offer the lowest award prices to Sweden. However, United miles shield you from high fuel surcharges that you’ll typically see when booking Austrian Airlines and Lufthansa.
Final Thoughts
You have numerous airline programs to choose from when booking your next trip to Sweden.
With an array of economy, business, and first class options, the only thing holding you back is deciding what award flight makes the most sense for you.
When booking award flights to Sweden, we recommend earning transferable points.
These types of points allow you to book flights in any of the programs on this list.
You’ll have the most flexibility when you’re ready to book your next European vacation to this beautiful Scandinavian country.
The information regarding the Chase Freedom Unlimited®, Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card, and Capital One Venture X Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
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