LifeMiles is probably one of my most love/hated frequent flyer programs. Their redemptions are painful as hell at http://www.lifemiles.com, since you cannot book mixed-class redemptions (so if you’re trying to book business class, every single segment must be available), which can be a nightmare. The site is also buggy as hell – for instance, depending on the way you search, ORD-NRT might show up as UA (United) only, or it might show up as NH (All Nippon), which is a far, far better flight in business. So you have to be persistent, and creative.
But the amazing thing about LifeMiles is that a) they charge no fuel surcharges, and b) if you do your homework right, you can get some pretty good deals (i.e., not all their destinations are outrageously priced… they have some very, very interesting sweet spots on the award chart, to put it somewhat obscurely). For instance, my ticket for next spring to Japan was only $80 per person in business class in taxes – on the ANA “Inspiration of Japan” seating, one that I’ve been wanting to try ever since it came out in 2011, but was never willing to pay $300 per segment in fuel surcharges on. Sure, it’s a one-way price since I’m returning on another ticket over Europe, but still – that’s another benefit of LM, you can spend exactly half the points on one-ways, so you can stitch up tickets as necessary to maximise value.
All in all, only worth your time if you’re very serious about this whole mileage thing, but hey, other than that, why not.
You must log in to post a comment.