Brussels Business Class booked with Etihad Guest miles is one of the best values for roundtrip travel to Europe from the U.S., at least if you can travel from New York JFK: it's just 36,620 miles roundtrip. Since I've gotten several reader questions about this award recently, here's a FAQ to help. And if you're a luxury traveler who prefers not to spend the time searching for awards yourself, TravelSort Clients making significant hotel or cruise bookings are eligible for our Award Booking Service.
FAQ
Can I Book One Way Awards on Brussels Airlines with Etihad Guest Miles?
No–Etihad Guest only permits roundtrip awards. Of course, if you can't find a return that works for your current trip, you can at least book an outbound that works and try to find a return that works for another trip, if you have a couple trips to Europe in a year and know both sets of dates. Or even if not, you can throw away the return and use other miles to book a return that works for you, since 36,620 miles is a great deal even for a one way to Europe in Brussels Airlines Business Class.
Which Points Can Transfer to Etihad Guest?
Both AMEX Membership Rewards points and Citi ThankYou points transfer to Etihad Guest. I recommend using AMEX Membership Rewards points, which usually transfer instantly, since unfortunately Citi ThankYou points transfers typically take over 1 week, and often closer to 2 weeks.
How Do I Check Award Availability? Does It Match What United Shows?
You'll need to phone Etihad directly to check, because Brussels Business Class award availability using Etihad Guest miles does NOT match what you see on United.com, using United MileagePlus miles. As an example, here's what United.com showed a day or so ago for New York JFK to Brussels; the days with dots indicate when Brussels Airlines Business Class saver awards are available (which are 70,000 United MileagePlus miles each way, per person). Generally just 2 award seats were available.
But when I phoned Etihad, the helpful agent noted that only these days offered Brussels Airlines business class award availability using Etihad Guest miles:
- July 3
- July 7
- July 22
- July 24
- July 26
- July 27
- July 28
- August 6
- August 11
- August 13
No other dates had business class award availability, although at the time of my call, all of those dates had 4 award seats, handy for two couples or a family of four or group of four friends.
Because of the very different award availability using Etihad Guest miles, you'll want to check award availability with Etihad before transferring points, and use AMEX Membership Rewards points for the transfer.
Have you redeemed Etihad Guest miles for Brussels Airlines Business Class to Europe?
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