WAYS TO REDEEM
AMERICAN AADVANTAGE MILES

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I am in no means a loyalist to a certain airline carrier but earning & redeeming American Airlines is one of my favorite things in the Travel Hacking hobby!

Why do I say that? Besides having the option of cancelling any award tickets for FREE, American Airlines has some of the best airline partners out there (JAL, Qatar Aiways, to name a few).

In this post, I’ll share some of the best ways to redeem your Aadvantage miles for MAX value!

Since American Airlines is a member of the Oneworld alliance,
you can also have access to these member airlines:

  • Japan Airlines

  • Alaska Airlines

  • Malaysia Airlines

  • Qantas

  • British Airways

  • Cathay Pacific

  • Qatar Airways

  • Fiji Airways

  • Royal Air Maroc

  • Finnair

  • Royal Jordanian

  • Oman Air (joining in 2024)

  • Iberia

  • Japan Airlines

  • SriLankan Airlines

List of Non-Alliance American Airlines Partners:

  • Fiji Airways

  • Air Tahiti Nui

  • Hawaiian Airlines

  • Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air

  • Cape Air

  • China Southern

  • Etihad Airways

  • Interjet

  • Seaborne Airlines

  • Westjet

Best Ways To Redeem American Aadvantage Miles

Fly To Japan in Business Class

You can fly to Japan from the West Coast for 60,000 Aadvantage miles each way in business class.

Fly To Japan in First Class

You can fly to Japan from the West Coast for 80,000 Aadvantage miles each way in First class.

Fly in the world’s BEST business class with Qatar Airways Q Suites to the Middle East, Maldives and South Africa

For only 70,000 points, you can book the world’s best business class flight with Qatar Airways going to either the Middle East (Doha) or the Maldives!

One cool trick is to book middle seats so you can combine it into a full bed - this works perfectly if you’re traveling as a couple!

Another awesome thing is you can also book 4 seats and combine them into a four person suite that’s open up to one another! This totally works if you’re traveling as family.

Also, by redeeming 75,000 points, you can fly to South Africa and cross that Safari trip off of your bucket list!

Courtesy of Japan Airlines

Fly First Class from Abu Dhabi to Seoul (The Apartments)

For only 50,000 Aadvantage miles, you can fly in First class from the US to South Korea.

This is one of the easiest ways to experience flying in the Apartments since you don’t need a ton of miles to make it happen: )

Try to look for “Guest First” seat on Etihad’s website for award flights.

Sample route:
- Seoul-Incheon (ICN) – Abu Dhabi (AUH)

Off-peak American Airlines flight to Europe (Economy)

You can extend your AA miles and fly to Europe during off-peak times for 25,000 miles plus $5.60 in taxes/fees in economy.

Courtesy of American Airlines

Fly First Class from Abu Dhabi to New York (The Apartments)

For 110,000 Aadvantage miles, you can fly in First class from the US to Abu Dhabi.

The first thing you need to do is find an award availability on Etihad.com and call American Airlines to book.

Try to look for “Guest First” seat on Etihad’s website for award flights.

Sample route:
- New York City (JFK) – Abu Dhabi (AUH)

Courtesy of Etihad Airways

Courtesy of Etihad Airways

Visit French Polynesia on Air Tahiti Nui From the U.S.

For only 40,000 miles, you can book an economy flight to Bora Bora.

Also for a few more miles, you can fly in style (business class) to paradise for 80,000 miles!

There is only one route you can currently book:
- Los Angeles (LAX) - Tahiti (PPT)

Fly to the U.S to South America in Business Class

For 30,000 AA miles, you can fly to Columbia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, or even Manaus, Brazil!

For a few more miles, you can get to other destinations in South America as well. American will charge you 57,500 miles to fly to Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil (excluding Manaus), and Chile (excluding Easter Island).

Here are a few great example routes you can take:

  • New York City (JFK) – Lima (LIM) for 30,000 AAdvantage miles

  • Orlando (MCO) – Sao Paulo (GRU) for 57,500 AAdvantage miles

Courtesy of American Airlines

Courtesy of American Airlines

Short haul economy flights within the US

Redeem 7,500 AA miles + $5.60 on American Airlines when you fly short haul flights in economy.

Courtesy of Air Tahiti

How to Earn Aadvantage Miles

Signing up for a credit card is the fastest way to earn points/miles.

Thankfully, you have a couple of options to earn a ton of Aadvantage miles. Please keep in mind that there are business card options just in case you’re still below 5/24 with Chase. I would highly recommend maxing
your “5/24” slot first with Chase cards before getting personal cards with American Airlines. : )

American Airlines Credit Cards


Personal Cards
AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®
Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®
Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®
American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp®


Business Cards
CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard®
AAdvantage® Aviator® World Elite Business Mastercard® (sign up currently unavailable)



Marriott Bonvoy Cards
You can earn Marriott Bonvoy points and transfer those to American Airlines at a transfer rate of 3:1.
Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card
Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card
Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card
Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card
Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card

Check this video on how you can book an award flight using your
Aadvantage Miles:

Conclusion

By being a part of the Oneworld Alliance, you can utilize American Airlines and its other members to fly almost anywhere in the world!

Earning Aadvantage miles is relatively easy because of the available cards they have at the moment.

Hope this post give you an idea on where AA miles can take you. Cheers!!