Last month I flew from Croatia to the United States in Lufthansa First Class for 40,000 Starpoints + $300. Here's how I booked the award.

Trip Report: Lufthansa First Class Lounge in Munich (this post)
Trip Report: Lufthansa First Class Terminal in Frankfurt (future post)
Trip Report: Lufthansa 747-8 First Class Frankfurt to Washington-Dulles (future post)

The award started with an early morning flight from Zagreb to Munich to meet my sister for a day at Oktoberfest.

Cathay Pacific frequently releases five Business Class and one First Class award seat on its flights between the United States and Hong Kong 11 months out. If you miss those, there are often up to two First Class and up to nine Business Class seats within a week of departure.

You can book these fantastically luxurious products with American Airlines miles and Alaska Airlines miles.

Malaysia Airlines has an incredible First Class product on its A380, on par with the best in the world. I flew Malaysia First Class from Paris to Kuala Lumpur in 2013 and loved the service, luxury touches, and satay cart.

You can fly the same product between London and Kuala Lumpur for 70,000 American Airlines miles with great award availability.

Japan Airlines First Class space is widely available for 1-3 people per flight between Tokyo and Sydney between October 2015 and March 2016.

Japan Airlines First Class space is widely available for 1-3 people per flight between Tokyo and Sydney between October 2015 and March 2016.

I booked myself a First Class award ticket from Cairo, Egypt to Washington DC with 15 hours on the brand new Etihad 787-9 Dreamliner for 90,000 American Airlines miles and a few dollars in taxes. Take a look at the suite:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlCS2ZZ7QVY
The Trip
I had already booked myself from the United States to Dubai to Bangkok on two flights in Emirates First Class on its A380. Read that Anatomy of an Award.

And from Bangkok to Luxor, Egypt in Business Class on a Qatar A380. Read that Anatomy of an Award.