Ethiopian Airlines Business Class, 2 Seats

It's rarely discussed, but Ethiopian Airlines is one of the best ways to fly to and within Africa. If you're interested in doing a safari in Kenya, Tanzania, or South Africa, this could help you lock in flights!


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Now, let’s get into it!

Ethiopian Airlines business class seats

Image courtesy of One Mile At A Time

Straight To The Points


Routes: ATL, EWR, JFK, IAD - ADD / JFK-ADD via ABJ
Operating airline: Ethiopian Airlines
Class of service: Business class
Dates: December 2024 - September 2025
Seats available: 2
Cabin layout: 1-2-1, 2-2-2
Book with (per person, one-way): 

  • *Air Canada Aeroplan: 90,000 points

    • ABJ: 70,000 points

    • ADD: 90,000 points

  • *ANA Mileage Club: 130,000 miles (round-trip only)

  • *Asiana Club: 60,000 miles

  • *EVA Infinity MileageLands: 92,500 miles

  • *Miles & More: 71,000 miles

  • *Singapore KrisFlyer: 111,000 miles

  • *Turkish Miles&Smiles: 125,000 miles

  • *United MileagePlus: 88,000 miles


Lifemiles is unable to book Ethiopian Airlines currently.


*No Surcharges


Taxes/fees (per person, one-way): 

  • From USA: $5.60

  • From Ethiopia: ~$52


Aeroplan has a partner booking fee.


Bank transfer partners: 

  • Air Canada: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Marriott

  • Asiana Club: Marriott

  • EVA: Capital One, Citi

  • Singapore: Amex, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Marriott

  • Turkish: Bilt, Capital One, Citi, Marriott

  • United: Bilt, Chase, Marriott


Current Airline Transfer Bonuses
Best Card Offers


Let me know if you book!

Image courtesy of Ethiopian Airlines

Available Dates


Before we get into the dates, please note that flights operated by one of Ethiopians Boeing 788s could have angled flat seats. Avoid those.

Book Your Hotel Or Safari With VIP Perks


If you’d like to book a safari with VIP perks, reply to this email. Please note: The minimum cost per person generally starts at $1,000 per night.


If you’re looking for a hotel with VIP perks, check out our self-serve booking portal.

Ethiopian Airlines business class cabin, Boeing 787-9

Image courtesy of ETWatch

Flight Experience


Ethiopian Airlines operates flights with five different business class cabin layouts. They key is finding a flight with lie-flat seats. If you’re lucky, you’ll get one of their newer cabins with 1-2-1 seating as well.


Here’s a quick rundown of the options by aircraft to make it easier to understand:


A FlyerTalker noted that “All B787-8 flights are loaded with the flat bed seatmap until between 48-72 hours prior to the flight. Check back within 48 hours when the actual aircraft is allocated and the seatmap may change. If row 11 shows seats ABC-DEF-JKL, then you have the old configuration. If it shows only seats JKL for row 11, then it is the new configuration.” The new configuration is the one you want.

Best Ways To Book


ANA: Great Round-trip Option, Slow Amex Transfers

At 130,000 miles round-trip, ANA Mileage Club is your best round-trip option for most routes. However, Amex is your only transfer option and transfers can take a few days.


Aeroplan: Great One-Way Option With Chase Transfer Bonus

Aeroplan isn’t the best one-way option at 90,000 points. However, if you have the Chase Aeroplan Card, you can get a 10% bonus when you transfer 50,000+ Ultimate Rewards points. That which means you’d only need to 82,000 Chase points.

If your total flight distance exceeds 8,000 miles, the Aeroplan rate will jump to 110,000 points. You can include a stopover for 5,000 additional miles. Use
GCmap to calculate your total flight distance and double-check Aeroplan's award chart.


United: Best Option With Bilt Points


If you have Bilt point, United has a small advantage over Aeroplan at 88,000 miles one-way. You can also use the Excursionist Perk - a free one-way flight (functionally, a stopover) - on a round-trip ticket.

How To Book


You can use United to search.

  1. From United's homepage, select Advanced search

  2. Choose to show price in miles

  3. Select Roundtrip or One-way

  4. Enter the origin & destination

  5. Select Nonstop only (if you don't need a connection)

  6. Select the number of passengers

  7. Select your dates or choose Flexible dates and choose a month

  8. Select Business

  9. Run the search


Once you know the exact dates you want, run a search with the program you'll use to book. As always, I recommend confirming the program you're using sees the award space before you transfer points.


Happy booking!