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In the Spring, United is moving its internationally configured 777-200 onto one daily flight on these three domestic routes:
- Newark to San Francisco: April 5 – May 4
- San Francisco to Newark: April 6 – May 4
- Washington-Dulles to San Francisco: March 3 – May 4
- San Francisco to Washington-Dulles: March 3 – May 4
- Washington-Dulles to Los Angeles: April 5 – May 4
- Los Angeles to Washington-Dulles: April 6 – May 4
The 777-200 has eight beds per row in Business and 4 per row in First.
I reviewed United Business Class here and First Class here.
Search
Search as you normally would on united.com. Click “Details” on the results to find the daily flight operated by a 777.
Award space is fantastic on these routes. Here is the calendar for award space for four people from San Francisco to Newark in April.
If you have United Expert Mode turned on, you can get the exact number of First or Business Class seats available for awards on each flight by clicking “Details.” First is fare class O, Business is fare class I. For instance, this April 8 flight from San Francisco to Newark has 7 First Class award seats available.
Booking the Award
If you are booking with United miles, you can book right on united.com. However, I do not recommend using United miles. Here are the prices that three Star Alliance carriers charges for this award space:
- United: 25k/35k one way in Business/First
- Singapore: 20k/30k
- Lufthansa: 17k/25k
To book with Lufthansa or Singapore miles, call Lufthansa or Singapore after searching award space. They will have access to all Business Saver (I) and First Saver (O) space.
Lufthansa miles offer the cheapest awards in United domestic Business and First Class. Lufthansa is a 1:1 transfer partner of SPG Starpoints and issues a credit card to Americans with an occasional 50,000 mile sign up bonus.
Singapore miles offer awards that are cheaper than United. Singapore is a partner of every transferable points program, and points transfer in about 36 hours. Cards I like that earns points that transfer:
- Citi Prestige® Card: 50,000 bonus ThankYou Points after $3,000 in purchases made with your card in the first 3 months the account is open. The card also comes earns 3x points on airfare and hotels and has a host of benefits like lounge access and $250 in free airfare per year.
- Sapphire Preferred: 50,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first three months. 2x on dining and travel.
- Ink Plus (business card): 60,000 bonus points after spending $5,000 in the first three months. 5x on office supplies and telecom bills.
- Whichever Membership Rewards card (Platinum or Gold, personal or business) is offering a big 50,000, 75,000, or 100,000 point sign up bonus
Bottom Line
United is putting an internationally configured 777 onto three routes this Spring, which means there is extra award space on a fancier product. Book now with Lufthansa or Singapore miles.
Just getting started in the world of points and miles? The Chase Sapphire Preferred is the best card for you to start with.
With a bonus of 60,000 points after $4,000 spend in the first 3 months, 5x points on travel booked through the Chase Travel Portal and 3x points on restaurants, streaming services, and online groceries (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs), this card truly cannot be beat for getting started!
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Also SFO-ORD on a 747-400