United Business Class to Lagos, Up To 9 (Summer)
There are only two routes from the US with service to Nigeria so it's great to see one of them with a nice chunk of business class award space this year.
While the flight is to/from Washington Dulles, you can include connections within the US on United or from Canada on United or Air Canada.
Now, let's get into the award space!
|
|
|
Straight To The Points:
Routes: IAD-LOS
Operating airline: United
Class of service: Business class (Polaris)
Dates: March - August 2023
Seats available: Up to 9
Cabin layout: 1-2-1
Book with (per person, one-way):
- *Air Canada Aeroplan: 70,000 points
- *ANA Mileage Club: 104,000 miles (round-trip)
- *Asiana Club: 60,000 miles
- *Avianca LifeMiles: 78,000 miles
- *EVA Infinity MileageLands: 92,500 miles
- *Miles & More: 71,000 miles
- *Singapore KrisFlyer: 111,000 miles
- *Turkish Miles&Smiles: 72,500 miles
- *United MileagePlus: 70,000 miles
*No Surcharges
Taxes/fees without surcharges (per person, one-way):
- US to Istanbul: $5.60
- Lagos to US: ~$137
Partner booking fee: Air Canada, LifeMiles
Bank transfer partners:
- Air Canada: Amex, Bilt, Chase, Capital One, Marriott
- Asiana: Marriott
- ANA: Amex, Marriott
- Avianca: Amex, Capital One, Citi, Marriott
- EVA Air: Citi, Capital One
- Singapore: Amex, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Marriott
- Turkish: Bilt, Citi, Capital One, Marriott
- United: Bilt, Chase, Marriott
|
|
Flight Experience
This flight is operated by a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner with a 1-2-1 business class layout. Each seat is lie-flat and has direct aisle access. While the seat is nice enough, the catering leaves something to be desired.
I was impressed with the food and drink options as well as the staff at the Polaris Lounge at Washington Dulles, so get their early to have dinner then try to get some sleep once you're inflight.
|
|
Available Dates
IAD-LOS
April: 8, 27, 29
May: 2, 4, 6, 9, 11, 13 ,16, 18, 20, 25
June: 8
July: 6, 8,13, 15, 18, 20, 22, 27, 29
August: 1, 3, 5, 8, 10, 12, 17, 19, 22, 24, 29, 31
September: 21
LOS-IAD
March: 1, 3, 5, 10, 24
April: 2, 23
May: 5, 26, 28
June: 2, 4, 11, 16, 25
August: 3, 10 15
September: 17
October: 6
|
|
Best Ways To Book
ANA Mileage Club: Best Round-Trip Rate, Slow Amex Transfer
You can transfer Amex points to ANA Mileage Club and book with 104,000 miles round-trip. This is definitely the best option when booking round-trip but please keep in mind that transfers from Amex can take a few days to process.
United: Great One-way Rate, No Extra Miles For Domestic Connections
If you have Bilt or Chase points, 70,000 United miles is great one-way option. Plus, you can include domestic connections on United for no extra miles. Just keep in mind that United can be stingy with domestic saver level award space so you might have to connect in economy.
Aeroplan: Great For A Non-stop
Aeroplan's 70,000-point rate is great for the non-stop but you'll quickly jump to the 90,000-point rate if you include a connection that causes you to exceed 6,000 total flight miles. Still, for a non-stop, this is a great option if you have Amex, Bilt, Capital One, or Citi points.
Keep in mind that connections could increase the award rate. Use use GCmap to calculate your total flight distance and double-check Aeroplan's zone-based chart. Stopovers can be included for 5,000 miles on a one-way.
Turkish: Solid Option With Capital One & Citi Points
Since the Aeroplan rate will jump if you need a connection, Turkish is a solid option at 72,500 miles one-way if you have Capital One or Citi points.
LifeMiles: Solid Option With Amex Points
Similarly, if you need a connection and have Amex points, 78,000 LifeMiles is a solid alternative to Aeroplan for a one-way business class award ticket.
|
|
How To Book
If you don't know the exact dates you want to fly, keep things simple and use United's calendar search option.
- From United's homepage, select Advanced search
- Choose to show price in miles
- Enter the origin & destination
- Select Nonstop only
- Select your dates or choose Flexible dates and choose a month
- Select the number of passengers
- Select Business
- Show flights from All Star Alliance airlines
- Select Find flights
Once you know the exact dates you want, you can run the search with the program you'll be using to book. As always, I recommend confirming the program you're using sees the award space before you transfer points.
You can call Turkish Airlines at 800-874-8875 to hold award space while you transfer points.
|
|
Final Thoughts
This is one of only two non-stop routes between the US and Lagos which makes this award space particularly special as you can significantly reduce your travel time. Even better, there are plenty of dates with space for family and/or friends to travel together, especially on the outbound!
Happy booking!
|
|
|
|
