Avianca LifeMiles is the quirky – but highly useful – mileage program run by the Colombian airline Avianca. Its website isn't the easiest to use and you'll pay dearly if your plans change, but it can be worth it for rock-bottom award rates. And if you've got Amex points, you might need even fewer of them.
LifeMiles is currently giving existing members a 15% bonus when transferring American Express Membership Rewards points to the airline program. But importantly, you won't see this 15% bonus when you log into your Amex account: LifeMiles is handling it on the backend when you transfer points from cards like the *amex gold* or *amex platinum*, kicking in a 15% bonus afterward.
LifeMiles confirmed this transfer bonus via email this week. It lasts all the way through Dec. 10.
Not sure how (or why) to transfer your miles? Read our full guide to Amex transfer partners!
Using transfer partners like LifeMiles is one of the best ways to put your Amex points to use for even more value. These transfer bonuses make it even better – think of it as a way to get some free airline miles.
But there's a possible hitch: The terms state that you must be previously registered as a LifeMiles member in order to be eligible for this promotion. If true, that'd mean you wouldn't be able to sign up for a LifeMiles account today and earn a 15% bonus on your transfer. Whether that's the case in practice is anyone's guess, but it's worth keeping in mind.
Just remember: These transfers are a one-way street – once you send points to Avianca, you can't get them back in your LifeMiles account. That's why we typically urge travelers to scope out award availability to ensure the flights you want are bookable – and not just make a speculative transfer to take advantage of a bonus – before transferring any points.
But with a mileage program as lucrative as LifeMiles, you've got plenty of options to put this transfer bonus to use.
Read more:Â Save Your Points When Booking Flights, Transfer Them to an Airline Partner
Best Ways to Use This LifeMiles Transfer Bonus
Even if you'll never fly Avianca and have no plans to visit Colombia, you should know about LifeMiles.
It's far from perfect, but LifeMiles can be one of the best mileage programs in the world for booking Star Alliance airlines like Lufthansa or SWISS to Europe, EVA Air to Asia, or United and Turkish Airlines all over the world. It combines low mileage rates with just $50 to $100 in award taxes and fees. That makes it a go-to for travelers looking to book business or first class seats with their points and miles.
Heading to Europe? You'll never pay more than 63,000 miles one-way for a business class award to Europe with Avianca LifeMiles. That's true whether you're flying to or from the East Coast – like this SWISS business class flight from Geneva (GVA) to New York City (JFK) – or even booking a connecting flight all the way from the West Coast to Europe.
With a 15% bonus, you'd only need to transfer 55,000 Amex points to make it a reality.Â
Using just 63,000 miles for a one-way business class ticket to Europe is tough to beat, but thanks to some of the quirks of LifeMiles, Avianca actually one-ups itself … by offering flights on TAP Air Portugal business class from New York City (JFK) to Lisbon (LIS) for just 35,000 miles one-way. This is one of the cheapest ways to fly international business class, period.
And with a 15% bonus, you can book this nearly seven hour flight in a lie-flat seat by transferring just 31,000 points and nominal fees.
Maybe Africa is more your style. While it may not win awards for the fanciest business class seats, Ethiopian Airlines is often the quickest way to fly to almost anywhere in Africa. For instance, you could fly from Toronto (YYZ) to Cape Town (CPT) with a stop in Addis Ababa (ADD) for 78,000 miles one-way in lie-flat business class. With a 15% bonus, your cost drops to just 68,000 points for flights all the way from North America to South Africa!
If you're not concerned with flying at the front of the plane and just want to get to your destination for even less, LifeMiles has something for you too. When flying from the Northeast U.S. to Northwestern Europe, economy awards start at 20,000 LifeMiles for a one-way economy ticket. All other economy awards are supposed to price at 30,000 one-way from the U.S. to Europe, but you'll find that's not always the case.
Take this one-way economy flight from Denver (DEN) to Brussels (BRU), for example. This flight should price out at 30,000 miles one-way, but in reality it only costs 23,000 LifeMiles one-way. With the current bonus, you'd only need 20,000 Membership Rewards plus ~$75 in taxes and fees for the one-way.
Need more guidance on putting your LifeMiles to use? Read our complete guide to booking the best LifeMiles Sweet Spots!
A Word of Caution
The LifeMiles program is full of sweet spots … but that comes at a cost. Have I mentioned the quirky nature of this mileage program?
With LifeMiles, you need to know what you're getting into. And there are plenty of pitfalls to be aware of when using this otherwise valuable mileage program.
- A buggy website & IT issues: You may encounter several errors while searching for flights. The website will often “time out,” forcing you to reload or sign out completely and sign back in. You'll need to pack your patience when booking with LifeMiles.
- LifeMiles may not see all award availability:Â It can be the best program for booking Star Alliance flights … but only if those awards are available. Avianca LifeMiles doesn't always get access to the same award space as other Star Alliance programs, so be sure to confirm the flights you want are bookable through LifeMiles itself before transferring any points.
- Poor customer service: If things go wrong or you want to make any changes to your trip, there is no way to do this online … and trying to work with an Avianca agent over the phone can be a painful experience.
- Hefty change and cancellation fees: All the big U.S. airlines and many foreign airlines have waived cancellation fees to scrap a ticket and get your miles back, but not Avianca. The airline charges as much as $150 for a date change on award tickets and $200 to cancel.
- Miles expire: One of the most important things to keep in mind is that your Avianca LifeMiles have an expiration date. You'll need to accrue some miles at least once every 12 months to keep those miles active.
Bottom Line
Got a trip in mind where LifeMiles could come in handy? Use this 15% bonus when moving Membership Rewards to Avianca LifeMiles to book flights for even fewer points.
Just remember: These transfers are a one-way street, so it's probably not worth taking advantage of this transfer bonus unless you've got a specific redemption in mind. But if you can make use of it, it can be a great way to stretch your points even further.
Don't wait too long, though. This Amex LifeMiles transfer bonus is available through Sunday, Dec. 10!
Do you know if you can recieve 5k bonus miles more then once? I did a 50k transfer haven’t got my bonus miles yet but its only been 12hours
Shouldn’t be an issue. I would just wait to ensure you get the bonus miles within 24ish hours before starting another transfer.
Just to let you know , no 5k bonus.