Air Tahiti Nui Business Class To Paris (Fifth Freedom)
Finding award space to Tahiti can be tough so it's great to see a new non-stop route option from Seattle on Air Tahiti Nui (starting in early October). The flight only operates twice per week but there's a fair bit of space for 2.
The award space doesn't show when you search with American so we'll talk about how to find space and book it below.
A big thanks to everyone who joined for our first meetup of the year in New York! I'll have more details on two more meetups soon.
Now, let's get into the details.
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Straight To The Points:
Routes: SEA-PPT
Operating airline: Air Tahiti Nui
Class of service: Business class
Dates: October - March 2023
Seats available: 2
Cabin layout: 2-2-2
Book with (per person, one-way):
- *American AAdvantage: 80,000 miles
*No surcharges
Taxes/fees (per person):
- Outbound: $5.60
- Inbound: ~$70
Bank transfer partners:
Don't forget to let me know if you book and how you did it!
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DISCLAIMER: Please be aware that the COVID-19 situation and the resulting travel restrictions could prevent you from traveling. Additionally, please make sure you understand the cancellation/redeposit and change fees required before booking with a particular program.
Travel Restrictions and Requirements
Here's some info on Tahiti's current entry requirements.
Flight Experience
Let's be honest, a 2-2-2 cabin layout isn't exactly in the conversation for best business class layouts (Apex Suites are an exception). While only some seats will have direct aisle access, the seats are still lie-flat. Just skip the row 4 window seats which don't actually have a window.
The inflight food and beverage options get good marks and the crews are generally friendly.
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Bilt Card Now Available To Everyone, Earn Points on Rent
I try not to bug you too often with card stuff but I've had several members ask me to let them know when the Bilt Card was available. As of yesterday, there's no more need to get a skip the waitlist code. You can simply apply.
This is my link. If you have the card, you can now refer people as well.
If you came to our NYC Meetup on Sunday, you can get 5,000 Bilt points if you are approved for the Bilt Card by April 26, 2022.
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Available Dates
You can find seats for 2 people in business class on the following dates.
SEA-PPT
October: 5, 9, 12, 16, 19, 23, 26
November: 13, 16, 23, 27, 30
December: 4, 7, 11, 21
January: 8, 11, 15, 18, 23, 25, 29
February: 1, 5, 8, 12, 15, 19, 22
March: 1, 8, 15, 22
PPT-SEA
October: 8, 22, 29
November: 1, 5, 8, 15, 22, 26, 30
December: 6, 10, 13, 17, 20, 24
January: 3, 7, 10, 14, 21, 24, 28, 31
February: 4, 11, 14, 18, 21, 28
March: 14, 21
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Best Ways To Book
American miles are THE way to go with this one. At 80,000 miles one-way. The toughest part with American is that you can only transfer points from Bilt and Marriott. Otherwise, you have to earn miles by flying, earn miles via a co-branded card, or buy miles.
Please note that American can only book awards up to 331 days from departure. As of today, that means no later than February 23, 2021. If you want to book dates after that, just set a calendar reminder so you can book as soon as it's available.
Alaska and Air Tahiti Nui are launching a partnership in a few days but we don't know when redemptions will be available.
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How To Book
Unfortunately, American's site is not showing the award space yet. However, you can search with ExpertFlyer before calling American to book. To search with ExpertFlyer, follow these steps:
- Select Awards & Upgrades
- Select Departing Airport and Arriving Airport
- Select Depart Date - and Return Date)
- Choose to search for the exact date or +/- 1, 2, or 3 days
- Select Airline: Air Tahiti Nui - TN)
- Select Class: Business - Award (F)
- Select Connection Preference: Direct/Non-Stop Only
- Choose to Exclude Codeshares
- Call American: 800-882-8880
Don't forget, American will let you hold an award ticket for up to 5 days. That gives you time for a transfer from Marriott to post or earn the last few miles you need. While Bilt points transfer instantly, I would still put the space on hold.
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Final Thoughts
It can be tough to find business class space to Tahiti so it's great to see a nice chunk of space on Air Tahiti Nui's new route from Seattle. Since space is tough to find, I would book sooner rather than later.
Happy Booking!
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