Deal alert (Friday only): Fly to Thailand or Vietnam for as few as 30K United miles
Editor's Note
Quick summary
United Airlines is running a week of award flight sales. MileagePlus members can score savings on redemptions to a new destination each day, and United credit card holders can save even more. You'll have to act fast, though, because these deals only last 24 hours.
On Friday, United members can book award flights to Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City via Hong Kong for 35,000 miles one-way, or just 30,000 miles if you hold a United Chase credit card. That price is for economy class, but it's still not a bad deal if you can endure the long journey.
Related: United credit cards add statement credits and higher annual fees — is it worth keeping your card?
Deal basics
Airline: United
Routes: Between airports on the U.S. mainland and Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) and Ho Chi Minh City's Tan Son Nhat International Airport (SGN)
Fare classes: Economy
How to book: Directly with United
Travel dates: Oct. 26 to Dec. 10
Book by: Aug. 8
Sample flights
On Friday only, you can book one-way tickets between mainland U.S. cities and Bangkok or Ho Chi Minh City for only 35,000 miles in economy — or 30,000 miles if you have a United Chase credit card. For your planning purposes, keep in mind that you must fly through Hong Kong to reach either of these destinations on United, and United only serves Hong Kong from Los Angeles and San Francisco.
One of the many reasons to get a United credit card is that cardholders get access to lower award rates. In this case, you can save 5,000 miles per one-way ticket, which could add up quickly. For a two-person, round-trip booking, that shaves off 20,000 miles from your total cost.
These are some of the dates this 30,000-mile cardholder deal is available on the routing from Los Angeles to Ho Chi Minh City via Hong Kong:
You'll still have to pay the taxes and fees on your award ticket(s), but these tend to be quite reasonable on United. For Friday's destinations, United advertised they start at $80.61 round-trip, but we found them for as low as $74.81 round-trip on some dates, even for non-cardholders. (Don't forget to pay the taxes and fees with your United card in order to take advantage of perks like free checked bags.)
This promotional pricing applies only to primary cardmembers (i.e., not authorized users). However, there's no limit to the number of award tickets a cardholder can book. If you're considering jumping on this deal, be sure to have the United Chase cardmember in your family book the tickets.
If you're short United miles, you can transfer them from Chase Ultimate Rewards and Bilt Rewards at a 1:1 ratio. You can also pool United miles with family and friends to redeem for United-operated award flights. However, since pools take at least 72 hours to set up, you won't be able to use this feature for Friday's deal unless you have already set up a pool.
Related: How to get maximum value from the United MileagePlus program
Bottom line
On Friday only, United's final deal of the week is offering award flights to Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City for only 35,000 miles each way in economy, or 30,000 miles for cardholders. If you haven't finalized your fall travel plans, this could be your sign to plan a trip to Thailand or Vietnam. However, be sure to also check paid rates before redeeming your miles, as I found round-trip United fares from Los Angeles to Ho Chi Minh City for just $645 in basic economy or $805 in economy this fall.
Related reading:
- The best credit cards for airport lounge access
- How to get United Club lounge access: From credit cards to paid memberships
- The do's and don'ts of visiting an airport lounge
- The best credit cards to reach elite status
- 9 domestic lounges that are worth going out of your way for
- The best credit cards for United Airlines flyers