MileValue is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
Note: Some of the offers mentioned below may have changed or are no longer be available. You can view current offers here.
The 35,000 point bonuses on the SPG personal and business cards end Wednesday (April 5, 2017.) This is the highest sign up bonus we’ve ever seen on the cards, tied with the same bonus that was offered last year at this time.
Credit card links have been removed from posts and added to the menu bar at the top of every page of MileValue under the heading Top Travel Credit Cards.
Meet the spending requirements on both the personal and business SPG cards, and you’ll have 83,000 SPG points, which can be transferred to 249,000 Marriott points, which can be transferred to 110,000 United miles, just short of the 115,000 needed for a roundtrip in Business Class to Europe.
How to Get 110,000 United Miles
Marriott and Starwood merged in September 2016 and immediately announced that you the ability to status match between the two rewards programs and transfer Marriott points to Starpoints or vice versa.
Here is exactly how to link your SPG and Marriott accounts in order to make those transfers.
Both the personal and business SPG credit cards from American Express come with 35,000 bonus Starpoints for spending $5,000 and $8,000 respectively in the first six months of card membership.
The 83,000 SPG points for meeting both spending requirements can transfer to 249,000 Marriott points.
That’s enough for two 50,000 United mile packages plus one 10,000 mile package, which is 110,000 United miles total.
How to Spend Those 110,000 United Miles to Get to Europe This Summer
Once your SPG points hit your United account (by way of Marriott points), you can search on united.com or hire the MileValue Award Booking Service to book your award to Europe.
United charges:
- 30,000 miles each way in economy to Europe
- 57,500 miles each way in United Polaris to Europe
- 70,000 miles each way in partner Business Class to Europe
- 110,000 miles each way in partner First Class to Europe
Right now I am seeing very good award space between the United States and Europe in Business Class, particularly on partners.
For instance, this June Lufthansa flight has two award seats in Business Class.
That’s fairly typical, as all the days with dotted lines have Business Class award space between New York and Frankfurt for two people this June and July.
I chose Frankfurt for my first search not because it is a great destination, but because it is a great place to connect in Europe and a great point to search when searching segment-by-segment.
Award space is similar to other destinations in Europe because finding intra-Europe award space is usually a snap. Here is the award space picture from New York to Dubrovnik, for instance, a place I’m eyeing for this summer.
Bottom Line
You have two more days to get the elevated sign up bonuses on the Starwood personal and business cards. The 35,000 point offers expire Wednesday.
Get the cards quickly, especially if you’re interested in a Business Class trip to Europe this summer.
Credit card links have been removed from posts and added to the menu bar at the top of every page of MileValue under the heading Top Travel Credit Cards.
Just getting started in the world of points and miles? The Chase Sapphire Preferred is the best card for you to start with.
With a bonus of 60,000 points after $4,000 spend in the first 3 months, 5x points on travel booked through the Chase Travel Portal and 3x points on restaurants, streaming services, and online groceries (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs), this card truly cannot be beat for getting started!
Editorial Disclaimer: The editorial content is not provided or commissioned by the credit card issuers. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of the credit card issuers, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the credit card issuers.
The comments section below is not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser’s responsibility to ensure all questions are answered.