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Look how easy it is to get a family of four to Europe this summer!

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For only 240k United miles total, there are ample options from the United States to many places in Europe. If 240k United miles sounds like a lot, it really isn’t. It’s within easy earning reach for two parents.

Why do you want to book with United miles? How good is the space? What city should you not return from?

I just performed simple searches for roundtrip awards from Chicago to Frankfurt and from Denver to London for four people this summer.

The results were encouraging with good economy award availability on United and partner flights at the Saver level of 30k miles per person each way.

Saver economy space is available for four people on all green and yellow days below.

Outbound Chicago to Frankfurt

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Return Frankfurt to Chicago

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All together the trip would cost 240k United miles and $526, which is 60k miles + $131 per person in government taxes.

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Denver to London had similar economy availability this summer for four people.

Outbound Denver to London

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The total cost for four Denver-to-London roundtrips would be 240k miles + $857 in government taxes–which works out to about $214 per person. The UK has the highest departure taxes of any country I know–and even higher in premium cabins. To avoid them, depart from any other country in Europe.

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Getting the Miles

I’m still bullish on United miles because they’re fantastic for economy awards like the United States to Europe this summer for large groups.

Getting 240k United miles is easier than you might think.

There are a lot of options to get United miles. There are United co-branded credit cards. There are also cards that earn Ultimate Rewards that allow 1:1 transfers of their Ultimate Rewards to United.

If two parents each got a personal and business card, they would have over 200k United miles/Ultimate Rewards after meeting the minimum spending requirements.

Recap

Now is a great time to book a family trip to Europe for this summer as space on the Star Alliance is wide open. You can use your United miles to book award space on its own flights or partner flights for 60k miles roundtrip plus government taxes.

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