Now is the time of year when “hobbyist” frequent flyers realize they may not make the cut for elite status on Alaska Airlines next year.
I say hobbyist because the pro-level mileage addict plans out their trips well in advance to attain MVP or MVP Gold for the year.
If you’re still shy a few thousand miles, there are a few things you can do between now and the end of the year. The closer you get to Thanksgiving and Christmas, though, the more it’s going to cost you.
There are lots of reasons why flying is nicer for an elite traveler. MVP travelers have access to better seats, more upgrades and bonus miles on every flight. There are dedicated reservation numbers, shorter security lines and more generous baggage allowances.
Almost any traveler who flies a few times each year can hit MVP, with a threshold of 20,000 elite qualifying miles. MVP Gold is more of a reach, at 40,000 EQMs.
If you’re short on miles and you have an Alaska Airlines Visa card, the airline will award 4,000 EQMs after you spend $10,000. This particular hack works for up to 20,000 EQMs (after charging $50,000). If you’re new to Alaska’s mileage program, it’s possible to just charge the money and reach MVP. Or, if you’re at MVP already, you could charge your way to MVP Gold.
The special charge-your-way-to-MVP miles are separate from the ongoing one-mile-per-dollar-spent that’s built into the credit card scheme. Also, any bonus miles you receive for getting a new card (currently as many as 65,000 miles) are non-EQM miles.
[Alaska Airlines is making big changes to its loyalty program. Here’s what travelers should know.]
The other way to get end-of-year miles to level up your MVP status is to take a trip. Or two. Or three. Not all “mileage run” destinations are created equal. Every destination is priced a little differently.
For travel in mid-November, flying between Anchorage and either Atlanta or Las Vegas appears to be the best bargain when considering the dollars spent and miles earned.
For example, flying from Anchorage to Atlanta on Nov. 19 will yield 3,620 EQMs in each direction. To maximize your mileage, upgrade from the Saver ticket to the main cabin. The cost on that day is $249 one-way. That works out to $0.068 per mile. The main cabin tickets (same seat) cost $50 more each way but yield 100% of the miles flown on the route for your account. The cheaper Saver tickets, at $199 each way, include just 30% of the miles flown (1,086 EQM for Anchorage-Atlanta).
Between Anchorage and Las Vegas, the main cabin fare is $157 one-way, yielding 2,306 miles in each direction. That works out to $0.068 per EQM.
The best long-haul itinerary I found was for travel on Nov. 18 between Anchorage and Fort Lauderdale, Florida. A main cabin ticket on that day costs $269 one-way, yielding 4,150 EQM. That works out to $0.064 per mile.
Several other destinations penciled out at around $0.07 per mile: Anchorage-Los Angeles ($0.078 per mile), Anchorage-Boston ($0.07 per mile) and Anchorage-Chicago ($0.07 per mile).
Just as fares to destinations from Alaska vary wildly, fares on specific dates go up and down. I picked mid-November because most fares have settled lower before the Thanksgiving rush. All fares are subject to change without notice.
If you’ve collected a bunch of miles and you’re ready to use them, you’ll notice that it takes more miles to get where you’re going. That’s especially true if you want the best schedule.
In mid-November, tickets to Seattle cost at least 12,500 miles each way (25,000 round-trip plus $12). On the day I checked (Wednesday, Nov. 13), the best deal was only available on the red-eye flights between 12:30 a.m. and 2:55 a.m. Fares for more convenient departures (9:40 a.m.-5:35 p.m.) cost more: 20,000-40,000 miles each way.
Between Nov. 16 and Nov. 19, fly nonstop from Anchorage to Los Angeles for 12,500 miles each way. Returning on Tuesday, Nov. 19, Alaska advertises a ticket for 12,500 one-way. But it’s a 16-hour, 31-minute journey, with a seven-hour layover in Reno and another 90-minute stop in Seattle. More convenient departures range from 20,000 to 50,000 one-way.
Hawaii is the No. 1 destination for mileage redemption. On Nov. 17, fly between Anchorage and Honolulu nonstop for 35,000 miles one-way. A less convenient red-eye departure via Seattle is available for 20,000 miles one-way. Instead of 6 hours, 14 minutes in the air via the nonstop, itineraries via Seattle take between 11 hours and 21 hours.
Returning Honolulu-Anchorage on Nov. 22, the nonstop is 40,000 miles one-way. There is an itinerary available via Seattle for 20,000 one-way. It takes almost 15 hours, including a five-hour overnight layover at Sea-Tac.
Headed to Orlando? There is one date in November with tickets for 12,500 one-way: Monday, Nov. 18. Fly from Anchorage to Seattle on flight 80 at 2:55 a.m. After arriving at 7:20 a.m., settle in for your long layover until your Seattle-Orlando flight at 11 p.m. The whole trip takes more than 24 hours. A more reasonable itinerary costs 30,000 one-way.
Return 10 days later for 20,000 miles one-way. It’s a 29-hour itinerary via Seattle with a 19-hour layover. The best itinerary on that date costs 40,000 miles one-way, with a one-hour connection in Seattle.
[Few crowds and cool weather: 8 destinations for ‘shoulder season’]
One takeaway from examining these earning rates and corresponding redemption rates is that Alaska Airlines is making it much easier to earn miles and attain elite status than ever before.
But the quest to get a bargain on the miles you’ve earned can be daunting. You have to work hard to get past the leader price while searching at alaskaair.com to find the best itinerary. Many of the itineraries presented are not practical, especially if you have kids in tow.
Still, if you use the award calendar function on Alaska’s website and you have some flexibility on dates, you might find a nice flight at a great price.
The dates I picked are just three weeks away. You might get better results searching now for travel in the first quarter of 2025. One trend is clear, though: As miles and points become easier to accrue, it now costs more than ever to redeem those miles.