Every couple months FlyingBlue releases a new list of promo awards for KLM and Air France routes. Those for January through April 2018 were just released, so I figured I’d take a peek to see what was on it this time.
On the whole, I am unimpressed. There are a total of two North America routes, both to the same Canadian province:
- Edmonton to Europe in business for 46,875 miles (25% off) on KLM
- Calgary to Europe in business for 46,875 miles (25% off) on KLM
So…unless you live in Alberta, you’re out of luck this time around. Here are some of the other interesting options:
- Europe to Antananarivo for 15,000 miles in economy or 30,000 miles in premium economy
- Europe to Ho Chi Minh City for 40,000 miles in premium economy
- Europe to Guadeloupe for 37,500 miles in business
- Europe to Suriname for 46,875 miles in business
In general, there aren’t any gems this time around, although if you’re willing to brave an 11 hour flight in economy to Madagascar, the promo price isn’t too bad.
FlyingBlue program in general
I’m not crazy about the value of FlyingBlue in general, but there are some sweet spots you can exploit (SEE: 5 obscure FlyingBlue awards you may have overlooked). The main gripes I have are the fairly high mileage requirements for some routes, and the hefty fuel surcharges levied on award tickets. Some carriers are better than others, but unfortunately both Air France and KLM have some of the worst.
If you’re looking to fly Delta business class, FlyingBlue offers better value to Europe at only 62,500 miles each way. You’ll only pay the $5.60 TSA fee on the outbound, but unfortunately Delta hits you with YQ as well leaving Europe.
Honestly, the best use of FlyingBlue miles are these promo awards, as they represent a significant discount on the typical price. All of a sudden $200 in fuel surcharges seems much more acceptable when business class is only 47,000 miles each way.
Conclusion
Unfortunately, there aren’t that many great promo awards for North America routes in winter and early spring 2018. There are a couple other options if you plan to fly from Europe to other locations, but overall it’s not a good list.
Will you be able to take advantage of any FlyingBlue promo awards in March or April 2018?
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Dan Miller travels with his wife and 6 (SIX!) children. He loves to help families travel for free / cheap, especially larger families. If you are looking for help, drop him an email at 
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