Half price Lufthansa Business Class using air miles

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I don’t think it is too controversial of me to submit that when it comes to miles redemptions, the Lufthansa Miles&More loyalty scheme is pretty much as bad as it gets.

Not only are the miles required for redemptions far from generous, the taxes are also eye-watering. Indeed having dutifully collected their Miles&More miles, I imagine endless Lufthansa customers have been staggered at the taxes they are also then expected to pay if they want to spend these miles on – God forbid – a flight with Lufthansa.

However, I still collect Miles&More miles fairly avidly… why?

The reason I still hoard Lufthansa Miles&More miles is actually Tip 1 (not that they were in any particular order) of our Top 10 Insider Travel Tips.

It’s a pretty well known fact that when taxes and fees on miles redemptions are high, Business Class flights are better value. The reason for this is pretty straightforward: if you’re paying £300 taxes (plus miles) on a flight that would cost you £500 in cash (as you may end up doing with an Economy redemption), you’re unlikely to be getting much value for your miles. However, if you’re paying £350 taxes (plus miles) on a flight that would cost you £2,000 in cash, that’s a different story.

So that’s rule part 1 to this tip: you’re generally better off redeeming your miles in Business Class. That’s hardly groundbreaking news, though.

The problem with Lufthansa Miles&More redemptions, however, is that:

the taxes are just so high that you will struggle to find any value, even with Business Class redemptions
the miles required for redemption flights are fairly rigidly structured, and not generous

But then there are the monthly Lufthansa Mileage Bargains!

In addition to the more restricted FlySmart redemptions, the monthly Mileage Bargains are, for me, the only obvious way of getting value from your Lufthansa Miles&More miles.

Every month, Lufthansa releases certain Business Class (and Economy, but see above) flights from the UK and other destinations that are available for booking at a hugely discounted mileage rate. The standard reductions on long haul Business Class are 135,000 miles to 70,000 miles, and 105,000 to 55,000 miles.

If a flight works for you in this monthly sale, even allowing for a fairly hefty tax hit, you will have got yourself a good deal.

To keep things topical, the July 2016 Lufthansa Mileage Bargain flights from the UK have just been released. While there is not the greatest range this month, there are still some value flights to interesting destinations.

The full range in long-haul Business Class is as follows:

Abuja for 55,000 miles instead of 105,000
Dallas/Fort Worth for 55,000 miles instead of 105,000
Delhi for 55,000 miles instead of 105,000
Lagos for 55,000 miles instead of 105,000
Luanda for 55,000 miles instead of 105,000
Malabo for 55,000 miles instead of 105,000
Mumbai for 55,000 miles instead of 105,000
Port Harcourt for 55,000 miles instead of 105,000
Washington Dulles for 55,000 miles instead of 105,000
Qingdao for 70,000 miles instead of 135,000
Seoul – Incheon for 70,000 miles instead of 135,000

Although it depends on the destination, you can also fly from a range of regional airports, including Birmingham, London City, London Heathrow and Manchester.

Need more information on how to book using Lufthansa Mileage Bargains?

We walk you through the process here.

Is Lufthansa Business Class any good?