A month ago I wrote about various options for redeeming miles between Cleveland and NYC, a route that I frequent often, and one of the best uses of miles domestically.
I asked which other routes readers wanted to see, and unsurprisingly one of the most common requests was NYC-Southeast Florida. These flights don’t cost as much as NYC-Cleveland in cash, but they cost more in miles, making them a lower value redemption, but value can certainly be had.
Plus, some airlines like AA fly widebody planes on routes like JFK-Miami. Those have international premium economy seats (which are better than typical domestic first class seats) available at no additional upcharge from coach for elites, as they’re just labeled part of Main Cabin Extra domestically. There are also lie-flat seats in business class.
JJ even flew last month on AA’s flagship 777-300ER in international first class with its famous swivel chair for the cost of business class, using just 16.5K Qatar Avios! The front 2 rows of the 777-300ER are sold as first class internationally, but are available to business class passengers domestically.
Routes and airlines serving this region include:
- JFK-Miami (MIA): American, Delta, JetBlue
- JFK-Fort Lauderdale (FLL): Delta, JetBlue
- JFK-West Palm Beach (PBI): Delta, JetBlue
- LaGuardia (LGA)-Miami: American, Delta, Frontier, Spirit
- LaGuardia-Fort Lauderdale: Delta, JetBlue, Spirit
- LaGuardia-West Palm Beach: Delta, JetBlue, Spirit
- Newark (EWR)-Miami: American, Spirit, United
- Newark-Fort Lauderdale: JetBlue, Spirit, United
- Newark-West Palm Beach: JetBlue, United
- Islip (ISP)-Fort Lauderdale: Frontier, Southwest
- Islip-West Palm Beach: Frontier, Southwest
- Trenton (TTN)-Fort Lauderdale: Frontier
- Trenton-West Palm Beach: Frontier
- Westchester County (HPN)-Miami: American
- Westchester County-Fort Lauderdale: JetBlue
- Westchester County-West Palm Beach: Delta, JetBlue
The point of a mileage ticket is to try to get outsized value compared to paid rates. That’s a lot more difficult on a route like NYC-South Florida, which has plenty of ultra low-cost carrier competition, versus a route like NYC-Cleveland, where is always makes sense to redeem miles. You’ll have to compare the paid rates versus the mileage rates to determine if you’re getting a good value for your miles.
Before you book an award ticket, you should always compare the rates that partner airlines charge. Frontier, Spirit, and Southwest have no partner airlines, so this chart doesn’t include them.
- A few notes on the charts below:
- Pricing is one-way, unless it says round-trip required, in which case the pricing is for the round-trip.
- American, Delta, and United all have variable pricing for their own awards, but partner airlines have fixed pricing for awards on those airlines.
- United cardholders have expanded availability to book saver awards, when logged into their account and redeeming United miles. This can’t be booked with partner airlines.
- American, Delta, and United all have “everyday” awards priced higher than these levels, which can only be booked with their own miles. Partner airlines do not have the ability to book these “everyday” awards, so you’ll have to search on the partner airline website for availability.
- For an apples-to-apples comparison, Delta pricing excludes basic economy awards, which no other airlines offer. Note that if you do choose Delta basic economy, awards officially can’t be changed or canceled, though some readers have reported success canceling them. Delta partner awards always book into main cabin.
- Delta blocks partner award availability on many domestic routes within 3 weeks of departure.
- The Delta cardholders discount excludes the Delta Blue card.
- Changes and cancellations must be done more than 24 hours before flight time for many partner airlines. Fees listed have been converted into USD at current exchange rates.
- All airlines must charge the mandatory $5.60 per direction 9/11 fee. Booking fees on fees charged on top of that.
- Always check for transfer bonuses, which can change the math for which partner to use.
Fly on American between NYC and South Florida:
| Mileage program | Economy | First Class | Booking method | Mileage transfer options | Award fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American | 8.5K-16K variable (EWR/JFK/LGA-MIA) 5K-13.5K (HPN-MIA) | 26.5K-35K variable (EWR/JFK/LGA-MIA) 17.5K-25K (HPN-MIA) | Online | Marriott 60K:20K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $0 Cancel fee: $0 |
| Alaska | Currently 12.5K Will drop to 7.5K in late March (All routes) | Currently 25K Will drop to 15K in late March (All routes) | Online | Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $12.50 each way Change fee: $0 Cancel fee: $0 |
| British Airways | 11,000 (All routes) | 20,500 (All routes) | Online | AMEX, Chase, Capital One, or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $5.60 each way Cancel fee: $5.60 each way |
| Etihad | 15,000 (All routes) | 30,000 (All routes) | Online | AMEX, Capital One, or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $14-$24 each way Change fee: $27 Cancel fee: 25% >21 days, 50% 8-21 days, 75% 1-7 days before departure. |
| Iberia | 11,000 (All routes) | 20,500 (All routes) | Online | AMEX, Chase, Capital One, or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: Not allowed Cancel fee: Not allowed |
| JAL | 23,000 round-trip required (All routes) | 42,000 round-trip required (All routes) | Online | Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: Not allowed Cancel fee: $21 |
| Qatar | 9,000 (All routes) | 16,500 (All routes) | Online | AMEX, Chase, Capital One, or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $5 Change fee: $25 Cancel fee: $25 |
| Qantas | 12,000 (All routes) | 27,600 (All routes) | Online | AMEX, Capital One, or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: 5,000 points Cancel fee: 6,000 points |
Fly on Delta between NYC and South Florida:
| Mileage program | Economy | First Class | Booking method | Mileage transfer options | Award fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delta (Delta AMEX cardholders) | 9.7K-10.6K (NYC-PBI) 8K-13.1K variable (NYC-FLL) 9.7K variable (NYC-MIA) 11.4K variable (HPN-PBI) | 26.3K-44.2K variable (NYC-PBI) 25K-27.2K variable (NYC-FLL) 37.4K-34.8K variable (NYC-MIA) 25.5K-29.7K variable (HPN-PBI) | Online | AMEX 1:1 instantly Marriott 60K:20K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $0 Cancel fee: $0 |
| Delta (non-cardholders) | 11.5K-12.5K (NYC-PBI) 9.5K-15.5K variable (NYC-FLL) 11.5K variable (NYC-MIA) 13.5K variable (HPN-PBI) | 31K-52K variable (NYC-PBI) 29.5K-32K variable (NYC-FLL) 41K-50K variable (NYC-MIA) 30K-35K variable (HPN-PBI) | Online | AMEX 1:1 instantly Marriott 60K:20K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $0 Cancel fee: $0 |
| Air France/KLM | 14.5K (NYC-PBI) 15K (NYC-FLL) 15K (HPN-PBI) 15.5K (NYC-MIA) | 50K (All routes) | Online | AMEX, Chase, Capital One, or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $8-$18 Change fee: $75 Cancel fee: $75 |
| El Al | 23K (All routes) | 70K (All routes) | Phone | None | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: Unpublished Cancel fee: Unpublished |
| Virgin Atlantic | 16.5K (All routes) | 59.5K (All routes) | Online | AMEX, Chase, Capital One, or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $5.60 each way Cancel fee: $5.60 each way |
Fly on United between NYC and South Florida:
| Mileage program | Economy | First Class | Booking method | Mileage transfer options | Award fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United (Infinite cardholder) | 7.8K-13.5K variable (MIA) 7.8K-13.5K variable (FLL) 9.5K-15K variable (PBI) | 30K (All routes) | Online | Chase 1:1 instantly Marriott 60K:30K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $0 Cancel fee: $0 |
| United (non-cardholder) | 8.7K-15K variable (MIA) 8.7K-15K variable (FLL) 10.5K-15K variable (PBI) | 30K (All routes) | Online | Chase 1:1 instantly Marriott 60K:30K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $0 Cancel fee: $0 |
| ANA | 30K round-trip required (All routes) | 55K round-trip required (All routes) | Online | AMEX 1:1, 1-2 days Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $0 Cancel fee: 3,000 miles |
| Aegean | 12.5K (All routes) | 21K (All routes) | Online | Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $25 Cancel fee: $25 |
| Air Canada | 10K (All routes) | 20K (All routes) | Online | AMEX, Chase, or Capital One 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $29 for one-way or round-trip Change fee: $74 Cancel fee: $111 |
| Avianca Lifemiles | 10K (All routes) | 15K (All routes) | Online | AMEX, Capital One, or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:20K | Booking fee: $15 for one-way or round-trip Change fee: $150 Cancel fee: $50 |
| Singapore | 14K (All routes) | 26K (All routes) | Online | AMEX, Chase, Capital One, or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $50 Cancel fee: $75 |
| Turkish | 10K (All routes) | 15K (All routes) | Online | Capital One or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $70 Cancel fee: $70 |
Fly on JetBlue between NYC and South Florida:
| Mileage program | Economy | First Class | Booking method | Mileage transfer options | Award fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JetBlue | No saver awards/Fully variable pricing | - | Online | AMEX 1:0.8 instantly Chase 1:1 instantly Citi 1:1 instantly | Booking fee: $0 Change fee: $0 Cancel fee: $0 |
| Qatar | 8.5K (All routes) | - | Online | AMEX, Chase, Capital One, or Citi 1:1 instantly. Marriott 60K:25K | Booking fee: $5 Change fee: $25 Cancel fee: $25 |
Want to see a deep dive like this on other routes? Hit the comments with your suggestions!
Leave a Reply
66 Comments On "By Popular Demand: Master List Of The Best Ways To Book Award Flights Between NYC And Miami/South Florida!"
All opinions expressed below are user generated and the opinions aren’t provided, reviewed or endorsed by any advertiser or DansDeals.
Can you make a list about redeeming miles for NYC to LAX
Most programs are distance-based, which would make trans-continental flights typically not a good value.
This
please
Yes pleeeeease
Yes please!!
Just a note, with a JetBlue plus card, you get back 10% of the miles used after the flight is completed
If you don’t have qatar avios, how else can you check award availability?
You don’t need avios to search for award space.
NYC-west coast!!!!
This flagship first etc
Fantastic, thank you!
Would love this for transcontinental fights, NYC region to/from the western United States e.g. LA region/SF region, or SEA/LAS/PHX/DEN etc. though that may be too broad, so LAX region would probably make the most sense.
Great post! I find it hard to justify transferring points out of chase travel for this route. If the goal is the least points used (but still using points) it almost always lands on booking within the Chase travel portal with the Reserve. The only hold out is JetBlue which sometimes has flights for as low as 3500 miles each way.
Would love to see NYC to TLV. Such a difficult route.
I find the flexibility of award tickets to be very valuable, assuming its not a significantly more.
Fair point.
Do you have one of these for israel?
Note United also has a flies the 757-2 on a couple of routes to FLL & MIA with lie-flat
NYC -> TLV
+1
+1
Can someone explain how this works? You need to have a cc that can change into travel partner points like a chase sapphire preferred? Also do you have to have frequent flyer accounts for each of these airlines? Finally, do you then transfer points to the partner airline? Is there someplace where these things are spelled out a little more?
You need to have a cc that can change into travel partner points like a chase sapphire preferred?
Yes.
Also do you have to have frequent flyer accounts for each of these airlines?
Yes, you can signup for an account for free.
Finally, do you then transfer points to the partner airline?
Yes.
The answer to all your questions is, yes.
Thank you Dan. What about GOL for aa?
Never looked into them, is it worth checking out?
Definitely. Just booked J from ewr – Ord for 29k but value of miles is about .4-.45.
NYC – Orlando
Should be similar to South Florida
Love this!
Phl – south Florida should be pretty similar.
Phl – Lax
Which flight route has these seats?
Nyc to tlv updated pricing woukd be great.
+1
Is Qatar’s award chart still the same as BA’s before the recent devaluation?
Yes
How do you book AA award flights using Qatar Avios? I didn’t see it listed on their partner list on the booking page
Just search from the Qatar Airways homepage after logging in and click on redeem Avios.
Thanks!
I was literally booking a flight to Florida tonight, and this was my easy confirmation that miles weren’t worth it for the flight I needed. Saved me a lot of time from checking everywhere!
Spirit…spirit…spirit…
Dan, I thought we were friends?!?!
JSX also flys from HPN.
NYC TO TLV! PLEASE
+1
this is awesome – thank you! What can I transfer Delta points to? I use this route many times and traveling out of LGA or JFK is too far coming from NJ
You can’t transfer airline points.
NYC-TLV please
Nyc-ord
Does Qatar charge huge surcharges for AA flights trans Atlantic like BA does? It seems it does, but I wasn’t sure if it was just a mistake on the search engine, as I didn’t have points in the account to actually book and confirm.
Last I checked it was significantly lower than BA.
https://www.dansdeals.com/points-travel/milespoints/book-jetblue-flights-qatar-avios-including-transatlantic-business-class-just-29-8k-points-plus-save-big-aa-awards/#Booking_AA_flights_with_Avios
Hmm, still way too high for economy flights. I checked PHL-ZRH. Over $1k in fees on a RT. Basically no good way to book AA with partners except through Alaska, but you can’t transfer to Alaska with CC partners…
I usually book a first class on AA from Ewr or PHL to MIA for around 32k AA miles. Is there ever any reason to not go with Qatar for half the miles and a minimal cancellation fee?
Nope.
nyc -tlv
nyc-san diego
NYC – Tlv
NYC – London
Chicago NYC please!
+1
How do I search for flight heading out of LGA on Qantas site?
NYC-TLV
only jfk and Miami intl show up on a Qatar search, why’s that?
Can search anything from the homepage.
I don’t find Qatar as one of the partners to transfer point to in my chase account
Transfer to BA. You can transfer from BA to Qatar instantly.
Thanks
Incredible charts, both here and the Cleveland route. Really a bedrock for all awards flight’s!!!
Thank you for taking the time…
Does economy AA booked thru Qatar include luggage?
Odd that there’s a suit case symbol. But not what that means.
In fact its NOT including any luggage, from my experience
when are you coming out with nyc-tlv?