Got a big stash of Chase Ultimate Rewards points? Here’s an easy way to get even more out of them: Chase just rolled out a new 20% transfer bonus when sending Ultimate Rewards points to Air France/KLM Flying Blue.
Best of all, you’ve got most of the month to take advantage: This bonus ends on May 27.
Unfortunately, if you had your sights set on using this bonus to fly Air France or KLM to Europe, both airlines recently raised fees on award tickets. From economy to business class, Flying Blue hiked fees by as much as 40% to combat rising fuel costs.
Even so, Flying Blue remains one of the best airline mileage programs for getting from the U.S. to Europe using fewer points … or booking Delta flights and saving SkyMiles in the process – and this transfer bonus is certainly worth your attention. Using transfer partners like Air France/KLM is one of the best ways to use Chase points for even more value.
Not sure where to start? Read our guide on Chase transfer partners and how to make it happen!
We typically see Chase roll out a big transfer bonus to Air France/KLM once or twice a year, but no matter how appealing this 20% bonus might be, it’s rarely a good idea to transfer credit card points without a plan to use them. This is a one-way street: Once you send your credit card points to an airline account, you can’t get them back.
Fortunately, there are some great ways to put this bonus to use …
Read more: All the Current Transfer Bonuses to Get More From Your Points & Miles
Best Ways to Use This Bonus
We’ll never turn down some free Flying Blue miles.
This is the combined mileage program for Air France and KLM, and it’s one of the best ways to book flights with SkyTeam airlines, including Delta, Korean Air, and Air France or KLM, of course.
This is just the start – read our full guide on the best ways to use Flying Blue miles!
Fly Air France or KLM to Europe for Less
Even after Flying Blue raised rates last year, you can still find flights flying business class to Europe for as low as 60,000 miles each way – a relatively mild increase from the previous, 50,000-mile price point. You’ll find this price whether you want to get to Paris-Charles de Gaulle (CDG), Amsterdam (AMS), or connect almost anywhere in Europe.
Factor in this transfer bonus, and you’d need just 50,000 Ultimate Rewards points to make it happen.
The big kicker here is the fees. Flying Blue now tacks on north of $300 for a one-way business class award to Europe – and about $600 or more for the way back. That’s certainly not nothing and makes these rock-bottom award rates tougher to stomach.
The other hiccup is that it’s gotten tough to find the availability to book at these ultra-low rates. With Flying Blue’s dynamic award pricing, you’re more likely to see rates of 200,000 miles or more – especially in business class. But if you’re flexible, you can find a deal like this, and it remains one of the best ways to book business class with miles. Luckily, Air France and KLM allow you to easily scroll through up to a month’s worth of flights to find the best deals.
Thrifty Tip: Leave your date(s) blank when searching for award tickets to pull up a monthly calendar – check out our full walkthrough on using Flying Blue miles!
Read our full Air France business class review!
You can also book economy awards to Europe using Air France and KLM miles, including one-way trips from most U.S. cities for 25,000 miles – just 21,000 Ultimate Rewards with this bonus … or less with the current list of promo rewards (more on that below).
But the cash surcharges Flying Blue passes on, even on economy award tickets, can make that less appealing. While it can easily be worth paying a couple of hundred bucks for a one-way business class ticket to Europe, that’s less competitive when it comes to economy class pricing.
Occasionally, though, the deals get even better.
Book Discounted Promo Rewards
Every month, Flying Blue unleashes a set of discounted routes it calls Promo Rewards. And the airlines’ latest monthly promo is a good one, offering deeply discounted economy rates to Europe from nearly a dozen U.S. cities.
Just beware: You’ll have to act fast, as availability at these rates tends to go fast. With fares as low as 37,500 miles roundtrip (32,000 Chase points with the transfer bonus!), it could – heavy emphasis on could – be worth paying nearly $400 in taxes and fees to pull off a roundtrip to Europe this summer or fall.
For travel through October 2026, you can book:
- Economy from Chicago (ORD) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
- Economy from Dallas (DFW) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
- Economy from Denver (DEN) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
- Economy from Las Vegas (LAS) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
- Economy from Los Angeles (LAX) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
- Economy from New York (JFK) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
- Economy from Orlando (MCO) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
- Economy from Phoenix (PHX) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
- Economy from Raleigh (RDU) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
- Economy from San Diego (SAN) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
- Economy from Washington, D.C.-Dulles (IAD) starting at 18,750 Flying Blue Miles
No matter which route you choose, this 20% bonus just makes these flights even cheaper. For instance, this 18,750-mile redemption flying Air France economy class between Chicago (ORD) and Europe could be yours by transferring just 16,000 Chase points with this 20% bonus.
Book Delta Flights for Less
If you fly Delta and have SkyMiles, you know just how frustrating it can be with constantly changing award rates. Flying Blue miles can be your solution, even after a recent scare.
Because they’re close partners in the SkyTeam alliance, you can use Air France/KLM Flying Blue miles to book Delta flights – often for a fraction of what Delta itself is charging. These days, booking through Flying Blue is almost always the best workaround to score Delta flights for less.
Here’s just one example: For a trip down to Mexico City (MEX), Delta is charging 40,000 SkyMiles for roundtrip flights from Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) … for a basic economy award ticket. For a main cabin fare with free seat selection, it’s even more.
But using Flying Blue miles, you can book those exact same flights for just 19,000 miles total – less than half the cost! Factor in this 20% transfer bonus, and you need just 16,000 Chase points to make it happen. While Flying Blue passes on a little more in taxes and fees, that’s well worth it when you can book for far fewer miles.
Along with Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, using Air France/KLM miles is one of the best workarounds to book Delta flights for less. And after Virgin raised many Delta award rates recently, Flying Blue might just be your best bet now, period.
Thrifty Tip: Use this workaround to easily pull of a calendar view of Delta awards bookable through Flying Blue.
Bottom Line
Transfer bonuses like this one are great – it means you need fewer points to book your next getaway. And a 20% bonus when transferring Chase points to Air France/KLM Flying Blue is a great one.
Just be sure to take advantage before it’s too late: This promotion ends May 27!
Lead photo courtesy of Chris Lundberg via Flickr
