EVA Air Business Class For 2 People (March-April 2024)
Spring Break trip to Asia? Sounds good to me!
EVA Air has released business class for two people in March or April of net year. Yes, it's early to plan but that gives you a huge advantage over those who wait till a few months from departure.
Besides, EVA Air hasn't been releasing much award space closer to departure so this is a great opportunity to lock in the space before it's pulled.
Now, let's get into it!
|
|
Straight To The Points:
Routes: JFK/IAH/LAX/ORD/SEA/SFO-TPE
Operating airline: EVA Air
Class of service: Business class
Dates: March - April 2024
Seats available: 2
Cabin layout: 1-2-1
Book with (nonstop, per person, one-way):
- *Air Canada Aeroplan:
- LAX/ORD/SEA/SFO: 75,000 points
- IAH/JFK: 87,500 Points
- ANA Mileage Club: 95,000 miles (round-trip only)
- Asiana Club: 60,000 miles
- *Avianca LifeMiles: 85,000 miles
- EVA Infinity MileageLands:
- LAX/SEA/SFO: 75,000 miles
- IAH/JFK/ORD: 80,000 miles
- Miles & More: 71,000 miles
- Singapore KrisFlyer: 129,500 miles
- Turkish Miles&Smiles: 67,500 miles
- *United MileagePlus: 88,000 miles
Note: United won't be able to book these days until 337 days from departure.
*No Surcharges
Taxes/fees (per person):
- From US: $5.60
- From TPE: ~$35
- Surcharges: ~$205 round-trip
Bank transfer partners:
- Air Canada: Amex, Bilt, Chase, Capital One, Marriott
- ANA Mileage Club: Amex, Marriott
- Asiana Club: Marriott
- LifeMiles: Amex, Capital One, Citi, Marriott
- EVA: Capital One, Citi
- Singapore: Amex, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Marriott
- Turkish: Citi, Bilt, Capital One, Marriott
- United: Bilt, Chase, Marriott
Let me know if you book and how you did it!
|
|
Available Dates
SFO-TPE
March: 12-15, 17-19, 23-28, 30
April: 1-7
TPE-SFO
March: 14, 17, 18, 21, 25-28, 30
April: 1-6
IAH-TPE
March: 13, 18-20, 22, 26, 27, 31
April: 1, 2, 4-7
TPE-IAH
March: 10, 14, 20, 21, 25-28
April: 2-7
LAX-TPE
March: 17-20, 25-28, 30
April: 1-7
TPE-LAX
March: 13, 19, 21, 26, 27
April: 1-7
ORD-TPE
March: 26, 27, 29, 31
April: 1-7
TPE-ORD
March: 22-25
April: 5, 6
SEA-TPE
March: 30, 31
April: 4-6
TPE-SEA
March: 27-30
April: 1-7
JFK-TPE
March: 18, 30, 31
April: 2-7
TPE-JFK
April: 6, 7
|
|
Flight Experience
EVA Air does a really nice job with its business class. I've flown it twice - once on a long-haul and once on a 4.5-hour flight. I found the crew to be friendly and attentive on both flights.
The 1-2-1 reverse herringbone cabin layout provides decent privacy, especially for window seats. I was particularly impressed with the champagne as it matched what is sometimes offered in first class on other airlines.
The Seattle flight is on a Boeing 787-10 rather than a Boeing 777. The cabin layout is still 1-2-1 but it's staggered seating rather than reverse herringbone.
|
|
Best Ways To Book
Please keep in mind that the award rates mentioned are for the nonstop route. Connections to destinations in Southeast Asia could increase the award rate.
ANA Mileage Club: Fewest Miles For A Round-trip
ANA Mileage Club is a great option at 95,000 miles for a round-trip award. Please keep in mind that transfers from Amex can take a few days to process. You'll need to consider whether you feel comfortable risking that the award space will be booked by the time your transfer processes.
Turkish Miles&Smiles: Best One-way Option
Turkish is a great option at 67,500 miles one-way Bilt, Capital One, or Citi points. Turkish passes on carrier-imposed surcharges but EVA's surcharges are reasonable. The online booking platform struggles but you can call to hold award space before transferring points. I recommend this.
This is also the rate to SE Asia.
Aeroplan: Best Amex Option From The West Coast
A nonstop from the west coast will require 75,000 points. However, you'll need 87,500 points if you depart from IAH or JFK. Similarly, if you include a domestic connection or to another destination in Asia, you'll need 87,500 points in many cases. This is the best option with Chase points.
You can use GCmap to calculate your total flight distance and double-check Aeroplan's zone-based chart. You can also include a stopover for 5,000 additional miles.
LifeMiles: Solid Amex Option To SE Asia With 10% Transfer Bonus
LifeMiles requires 85,000 miles for a one-way award to Taipei from anywhere in the US. If you want to connect to SE Asia, you'll need 90,000 miles.
Transfer bonus: LifeMiles is running a 10% transfer bonus promo until April 22. Works for transfers from Amex, Capital One, or Citi points. The 10% bonus should post within 24 hours.
With the 10% transfer bonus, you'd only need to transfer 78,000 points for a nonstop to Taipei or 82,000 points for a trip to SE Asia.
If you have Amex points, Aeroplan is still a better option between the west coast and Taipei - even if you need a short connection on United from cities such as Denver, Phoenix, or Seattle. However, with the transfer bonus, LifeMiles has the advantage if you want to connect on your way to a destination in SE Asia.
Bonus Tip To Get A Third Award Seat
EVA Air's Infinity MileageLands program sometimes releases an extra business class award seat to its own members. Worth considering if you have Citi and maybe Capital One miles (transfer ratio is weak at 1:0.75).
|
|
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
- Select Roundtrip or One-way
- Enter the origin & destination
- Select Nonstop only (if you don't need a connection)
- Select the number of passengers
- Select your dates or choose Flexible dates and choose a month
- Select Business
- Run the search
- If booking with another Star Alliance partner, confirm space by searching with that program
- Transfer points (if necessary)
- Log into your account
- Run the search again
- Complete the booking
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.
If you want to use Turkish miles, you can call 800-874-8875 to put space on hold then pay the taxes/fees.
|
|
Bottom Line
If you've never been to Taipei, I strongly recommend it if you like food, nature, friendly people, etc. I'd also suggest using the high speed rail system to explore more of the island from Chiayi to Kaohsiung and more.
Remember, you might be able to get a third award seat if you book with EVA's Infinity MileageLands program.
Happy booking!
|
|
|
|
