Wide Open United Business Class Saver Award And Upgrade Space Nonstop Between The US And New Zealand Or Australia For The Whole Family From Just 60K Miles Each Way!

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Update: Available dates have been updated and dates for New Zealand have also been added.

Originally posted on 10/23:

Unicorn Award Space Availability:

Nonstop saver business class award space between North America and Australia has long been a unicorn.

However with United greatly expanding their flights to the South Pacific, there’s unprecedented business class saver award space available, with 9 or more seats available on many flights.

This is bookable on United.com or via partner airlines.

There may be availability from other US cities, or you can always book a separate ticket to get to the gateway city.

Here are currently available dates with business class saver award space.

Dates in bold can be booked by all United members and by partner airlines.

Dates in plain font are only bookable by United Platinum, 1K, or Global Services members with United miles.

San Francisco to Auckland:

United flights:

October 28, 29, 30
November 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 20, 24, 26
February 25
March 3, 24, 25
April 30
May 2, 4, 9, 14, 23, 25, 28
June 6, 8
July 2, 4, 6, 11, 13
August 3, 6, 10, 13, 15, 24, 27
September 7, 10

Air New Zealand flights:

November 11, 12, 19, 22

Auckland to San Francisco:

United flights:

October 26, 29, 31
November 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 20, 21, 22
December 5, 25, 26
February 9, 12
March 27
April 29
May 13, 23, 30
June 3, 6, 10, 13, 17, 20
July 4, 11, 18, 20, 22, 25, 27, 29
August 1, 8, 15, 19, 22, 26, 29
September 2, 5, 9, 12, 16

Air New Zealand flights:

November 2, 3, 7, 17, 19

Los Angeles to Auckland:

United flights:

October 30
November 2, 4, 6, 9, 11, 13, 20, 25, 27, 30
December 5
March 23, 26
April 30
May 2, 4, 9, 14, 23, 25, 28
June 6, 8
July 2, 4, 6, 11, 13
August 3, 6, 10, 13, 15, 24, 27
September 7, 10

Air New Zealand flights:

November 12, 22

Auckland to Los Angeles:

United flights:

October 30
November 1, 4, 6, 8, 11, 13, 15, 20, 22
December 7

Air New Zealand flights:

November 6, 7, 9, 22

San Francisco to Melbourne:

October 30, 31
November 1, 5, 6, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 26, 27, 28, 29
December 4, 5, 7, 30
February 24
March 9

Melbourne to San Francisco:

October 31
November 1, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 20, 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, 29, 30
December 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, 24, 25
February 4, 6, 7, 10, 13, 14, 20, 21
March 12

San Francisco to Sydney:

October 29, 30, 31
November 1, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
December 4, 5, 7, 30
February 20, 21, 27

Sydney to San Francisco:

October 30, 31
November 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 16, 21, 22, 23, 24, 28, 29, 30
December 4, 5, 6, 13, 20, 24, 26, 27
January 18, 23, 24
February 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 21, 22, 29
March 21

Los Angeles to Melbourne:

October 28, 29
November 8, 13, 23, 25, 29
December 4, 7
February 26

Melbourne to Los Angeles:

October 30, 31
November 1, 13, 14, 21, 24, 29
December 24, 25

Los Angeles to Sydney:

November 13, 23, 25, 27
December 4

Sydney to Los Angeles:

October 26, 31
November 7, 14, 21
December 13
January 24
February 6, 14

Houston to Sydney:

December 4, 5

Sydney to Houston:

October 31
November 3, 14, 21, 24, 28
December 26

San Francisco to Brisbane:

October 28, 29, 30, 31
November 7, 8, 13, 14, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 27, 28, 29, 30
December 4, 5, 6, 7
February 6, 20, 21, 26, 27, 29
March 5, 6, 12, 18, 19, 26
April 19
May 8

Brisbane to San Francisco:

October 30, 31
November 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13, 15, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30
December 2, 4, 5, 6, 12, 14, 23, 25
January 13, 16, 18, 23, 24, 25, 30, 31
February 1, 3, 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 21, 28
March 6, 7

United Polaris Seating:

United’s Polaris seating that have direct aisle access for every business class seat. You can choose from solo seats or seats for people traveling together.

Business class seats include United’s Polaris business class service with Saks Fifth Avenue bedding and pillows. Savvy travelers will also request a Saks Fifth Avenue mattress pad, slippers, and pajamas, as those are not proactively offered by flight attendants as there aren’t enough of them for everyone.

Upgrade Awards:

You can always waitlist for an upgrade award, but the dates above have flights that are confirmable now by calling United.

If you have a paid ticket, the cost of an upgrade varies based on your ticket’s fare class as follows:

In other words, it will cost 30K United miles plus $600 for a one-way upgrade from most discounted coach tickets to business class.

Alternatively, United elites can use PlusPoints for the upgrade.

Mileage Award Booking Options:

Business saver class award booking options:

• United charges 100K one-way in business class for United flights or 110K for Air New Zealand flights. United never collects fuel surcharges. Awards can be canceled for free up to the time of departure! Points transfer instantly (1:1 ratio) from Chase. Transfers from Marriott (60K:30K ratio) can take 2-20 days.
• Air Canada Aeroplan charges 75K in business class one-way on United or Air New Zealand. Air Canada never collects fuel surcharges. Points transfer instantly (1:1 ratio) from AMEX, Capital One, or Chase. Transfers from Marriott (60K:25K ratio) can take 2-20 days.
• Avianca Lifemiles charges 80K in business class one-way. Lifemiles never collects fuel surcharges. Points transfer instantly (1:1 ratio) from AMEX, Capital One, or Citi. Transfers from Marriott (60K:20K ratio) can take 2-20 days. You can currently get a 25% transfer bonus from Citi, so 64K miles will be enough to book a one-way business class award!
• ANA charges 120K miles in business class round-trip, one-way awards aren’t available, though open-jaws are allowed, so you can book a flight to New Zealand and back from Australia for example. There are no fuel surcharges for United awards. It can take 1-2 days to transfer points from AMEX to ANA (1:1 ratio) and transfers from Marriott to ANA (60K:25K ratio) can take 2-20 days.

AMEX cards with transferable Membership Rewards points include:

• AMEX Blue Business Plus
• AMEX Platinum Business
• AMEX Gold Business Card
• The Platinum Card® from American Express
• American Express® Gold Card
• AMEX Green Consumer Card
• AMEX Everyday Preferred Consumer Card
• AMEX Everyday Consumer Card

If you, a member in your household, or an authorized user has one of the following Chase cards, you can transfer points into miles:

• Chase Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card® Card has a 60K signup bonus, earns 2.1 points per dollar on travel, 3.1 points per dollar on dining, streaming, and online groceries, has a $50 hotel credit, can transfer all Chase points into miles, and points are worth at least 1.3 cents each for paid travel or pay yourself back categories ($95 annual fee). Read more here.
• Chase Sapphire Reserve® has a 60K signup bonus, earns 3 points per dollar on dining/travel, has a $300 travel credit, can transfer all Chase points into miles, and points are worth at least 1.5 cents each for paid travel or pay yourself back categories ($550 annual fee with $300 travel credit). Read more here.
• Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card  earns 3 points per dollar on shipping, advertising, and travel, can transfer all Chase points into miles, and points are worth at least 1.25 cents each for paid travel or pay yourself back categories ($95 annual fee). Read more here.

Chase no-annual fee cards that are fantastic for earning points, but require one of the cards above for points transfers include:

• Ink Business Cash® Credit Card has a limited time 90K signup bonus and earns 5 points per dollar on cable, TV, telecom, cellular, office supply stores, and gift cards from office supply stores, plus 2 points per dollar on dining and gas ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
• Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card has a limited time 90K signup bonus and earns 1.5 points per dollar everywhere ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
• Chase Freedom Flex has a 20K signup bonus, plus 5 points on rotating categories, 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, and 3 points per dollar on dining and drugstores ($0 annual fee). Read more here.
• Chase Freedom Unlimited® has a signup bonus offering 3 points per dollar on up to $20K of spending in your first 12 month, afterwards earn at least 1.5 points per dollar everywhere, 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, and 3 points per dollar on dining and drugstores ($0 annual fee). Read more here.

If you or a friend has one of the following Citi cards, you can transfer points into miles:

• Citi Premier® Card has a 60,000 point bonus for spending $4,000 in 3 months, 3 points per dollar on airfare, hotels, travel agents, groceries, gas, and dining. $95 annual fee. Read more here.

Citi no-annual fee cards that are fantastic for earning points, but require one of the cards above for points transfers include:

• The Citi Double Cash® Card offers 2% cash back or 2 points per dollar spent everywhere that can be transferred into ThankYou points. If you also have a Citi Premier® Card Card you can transfer points into miles. No annual fee. Read more here.
• The Citi Custom Cash® Card offers 5 points per dollar on up to $500 in purchases in your top eligible spending category each billing cycle. This is marketed as 5% cash back, but will actually come in the form of 5 ThankYou points per dollar spent! Eligible categories include Restaurants, Gas Stations, Grocery Stores, Select Travel, Select Transit, Select Streaming Services, Drugstores, Home Improvement Stores, Fitness Clubs, and Live Entertainment. You will also get 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months. No annual fee. Read more here.
• The Citi Rewards+® Card offering 25,000 points for spending $1,500 in 3 months. This card can’t transfer points on its own, but can transfer points if you have one of the Citi cards above. This card automatically rounds up rewards earned on every purchase to the nearest 10 points, meaning you earn 10 points on a $0.50 Amazon balance reload. Earn 2 points on $6K in annual spending at supermarkets, and a 10% points rebate when you redeem points, up to a 10K points rebate per year. If you also have a Citi Premier® Card Card you can transfer points into miles and get a 10% points rebate on transferred or redeemed miles. No annual fee. Read more here.

Capital One cards with transferable points include:

• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card X Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles for spending $4,000 in 3 months, plus earn 2 miles per dollar spent, $300 annual travel credit, 10K anniversary bonus miles, Global Entry/Pre-Check, Capital One lounge access, Priority Pass Lounge membership, and more. Read more here.
• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card X Business Card: Earn 150,000 bonus miles for spending $30,000 in 3 months, plus earn 2 miles per dollar spent, $300 annual travel credit, 10K anniversary bonus miles, Global Entry/Pre-Check, Capital One lounge access, enhanced Priority Pass Lounge membership, and more. Read more here.
• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles for spending $4,000 in 3 months, plus 2 miles per dollar spent. Read more here.
• Capital One Spark Miles for Business: Earn 50,000 bonus miles, plus 2 miles per dollar spent.
• Capital One Spark Cash Plus: Earn up to 100,000 bonus miles, plus 2 miles per dollar spent, convertible into transferrable miles with any of the 3 cards above. Read more here.

Marriott cards with transferable points include:

• Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Consumer Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^™ American Express^®Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Bold Card

HT: donedeal12, via DDF