Deal alert: Big discounts on business-class fares to Europe
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
How does a deal on business-class flights on Icelandair to Europe sound right about now?
You know you've come across a good deal when it's advertised on two of our favorite sites, Scott's Cheap Flights Elite membership and Thrifty Traveler Premium, both of which alert subscribers to business- and first-class deals like this one via email.
Just keep in mind this is not for traditional lie-flat business-class seats. It's more like premium economy, but still a good deal.
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Deal basics
Airline: Icelandair.
Routes: BOS/ORD/DEN/JFK/EWR/MCO/SEA/IAD to AMS/DUB/GLA/HEL/MAN/CDG/KEF/CPH/ARN/BER and others.
Cost: Less than $1,000 round-trip.
How to book: Search flights via Google Flights and then book directly at Icelandair.com.
Dates: January-May 2022.
Sample flights
This wide-reaching deal includes round-trip flights from several major U.S. cities, such as Boston (BOS), Chicago (ORD), Denver (DEN), New York (JFK), Newark (EWR) and Washington, D.C. (IAD), to various cities throughout Europe, including:
- London (LGW), starting at $986.
- Amsterdam (AMS) and Stockholm (ARN), starting at $993.
- Frankfurt (FRA), Germany; Paris (CDG); Helsinki (HEL); and Zurich (ZRH), starting at $994.
- Manchester, England (MAN), and Munich (MUN), starting at $995.
- Dublin (DUB), starting at $996.
- Berlin (BER); Copenhagen, Denmark (CPH); Glasgow, Scotland (GLA); and Oslo, Norway (OSL), starting at $997.
- Reykjavik, Iceland (KEF), starting at $998, nonstop.
Icelandair's business class is called "Saga Premium," so be sure to look for that fare type while booking, as illustrated below. For example, you could take the below flight in mid-January from Chicago to Dublin for $996 round-trip.
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As I mentioned above, Saga Premium is the carrier's business class, which means one free carry-on and two checked bags, priority check-in, lounge access, meals and alcoholic beverages.
Also, Icelandair is offering free changes on all international flights until further notice due to COVID-19, so rest assured you can book this deal and change your flight at a later date if need be. Just know a fare difference may apply.
That same week, you could take a similarly priced flight departing from New York's JFK to Copenhagen for $997 round-trip.
Most of the flights in this deal include a layover on both legs.
Maximize your purchase
Don't forget to use a card that earns bonus points on airfare purchases, such as The Platinum Card® from American Express (5x on airfare booked directly with the airline or through American Express Travel on up to $500,000 on purchases per calendar year), Citi Prestige® Card (5x on airfare), Citi Premier® Card (see rates and fees), Chase Sapphire Reserve (3x on airfare), American Express® Gold Card (3x on airfare booked directly with the airline or through Amex Travel) or the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2x on travel). Check out this post for more on maximizing airfare purchases.
The information for the Citi Prestige Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Bottom line
It's not every day that we see a deal for business-class fares, which are more than 30% their normal price of around $1,500. Travel restrictions related to COVID-19 are rapidly changing, so be sure to check the latest guidelines for any country you anticipate visiting. Consult our Europe reopening guide here.
Related: Reopening Europe: Where can you go? What are the rules? A country-by-country guide