Beat the Delta Devaluation: Travel to Asia, Australia, or Africa Before October 1

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Back in January I wrote about Delta’s devaluation of awards to Australia, Asia, Africa, and South America effective October 1, 2016.

To give a two sentence summary, a few regions in economy are going down in price, and three regions in Business Class are going up in price.

Awards for travel from October 1, 2016 on are going up in price to:

• North Asia in Business Class
• Southwest Pacific in Business Class
• Africa and South Africa in Business Class

(Did you notice that this is very different than American Airlines’ devaluation where the price is determined by the day you book your award? With the Delta devaluation, the award price is determined by the day you actually fly.)

If you have Delta miles to burn and prefer to fly in Business Class, spend them on these flights before October 1 to cash in on those better values:

Seattle to Tokyo

The current cost of this award in Business Class is 70,000 miles one way. As of October 1, that changes to 80,000 miles one way. The award space forecast for Seattle to Tokyo is stellar from mid May through the end of September…

Los Angeles to Sydney

The current cost of this award in Business Class is 80,000 miles one way. As of October 1, that changes to 95,000 miles one way. The award space forecast for this route is wide open from the beginning of July through the end of September…

Bottom Line

If you were thinking of traveling to Sydney, Tokyo, or anywhere else in Australia, New Zealand, North Asia, or Africa already, consider traveling before October 1, 2016 with your Delta miles. There is an impressive amount of award space in Business Class. Booking date is irrelevant.