How to Find Cheap Delta SkyMiles Award Flights (Tips for Getting the Best Deals)
Guest Post By Jilene Brady @thetravelingdeals
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You have probably seen the jokes about Delta’s SkyMiles or “Sky Pesos” as many like to call them. I don’t live in a Delta hub, so for many years I didn’t give them even a second thought. But a couple years ago, my family made a list of potential destinations we wanted to visit. New Zealand was my top destination, and my daughter wanted to visit Australia. Taipei was on my husband’s list. I started keeping a closer eye on these destinations for deals and I found a common thread. Delta had amazing deals to all three!
There are a few important tips or tricks that I am going to share with you so you can take advantage of these SkyMiles deals.
Tip Number 1
First and most importantly, holding a Delta credit card gives you an extra 15% off reward flights and that discount is automatically applied. You do not even need to pay the taxes/fees using the Delta card to get that discount. In fact, I recommend using a card with travel protection when paying taxes and fees on award flights. That way you are covered in case of delays or cancelations.
One important rule that applies to the Delta personal credit cards is that you should start with the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card. You will be disqualified from earning a welcome offer on this card if you already have the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card or Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card.
Tip Number 2
This next tip doesn’t always apply, but sometimes booking roundtrip award flights with Delta will be a better deal than booking one way. I recommend searching both to see which option allows you to book with the least number of SkyMiles. I have seen this specifically on award bookings to Europe.
Tip Number 3
You may be wondering how to find these deals. Delta sends out email alerts when they have a flash sale, so I suggest signing up for their emails. Once you see there is a sale, the first step is to search on your desktop so you can see the entire month. When you get to the Delta site, hover over the SkyMiles tab at the top of the page and you will see “SkyMiles Award Deals” below.
Once you click on that, you will be able to search by your departure airport to see which deals are available from your home airport. I always select flexible dates so I can view the entire month. The Flexible Dates view automatically pops up, which is helpful for seeing roundtrip fares, but you can also change to Price Calendar and scroll over to see more months.
I share SkyMiles deals from airports out West to my Instagram stories @thetravelingdeals and have a weekly deals highlight bubble that I save them to, so check that out if you fly from Phoenix, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, San Diego, LAX, or Tucson.
Some examples of the SkyMiles deals available in recent weeks include Phoenix & Salt Lake City to Taipei from 28,800 miles round trip. Los Angeles to three cities in Australia—Sydney, Melbourne, & Brisbane, from 34,000 miles round trip. Phoenix to Amsterdam or Paris from 23,800 miles roundtrip. Seattle to Phoenix from 4,200 miles round trip. Phoenix to Puerto Vallarta from 10,200 miles round trip. And Seattle to Honolulu from 5,500 miles each way.
Tip Number 4
One final tip I will point out is in selecting which rate to book. Delta has made it a little confusing with their new main cabin fares. They have Main Basic and Main Classic.
Main Basic is the most restrictive. You board last in group 8, must pay a fee to change or cancel (if booked with miles, Delta will assess a fee in miles), and you aren’t able to choose a seat.
Main Classic allows you to select a seat at any time, cancel for a full refund of miles, or if booked with cash a full e-Credit, eligibility to purchase upgrades, and an earlier boarding zone.
For an upcoming flight, I used miles for the Main Classic fare and it now has an option in my app to pay $59 to upgrade to comfort. This wouldn’t have been available to me if I booked Main Basic. There may be times when I am flying on a short flight booked close in to the departure date that I would take advantage of basic fare, but for my family we usually need the flexibility that Main Classic offers. Just make sure you frequently check your Delta app to check those upgrade offers because they can be really affordable, even on longer flights.
Bottom Line
Delta has consistently earned high marks for customer service and reliability over the years. In fact, the first time I flew on an airplane was when I was in the fourth grade and it was with Delta. So to have a way to fly with them using points and miles for such good deals is really exciting! Hopefully this has given you inspiration for future travels you can take using SkyMiles.
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