Airports
Germany has 3 main airports that have international flights to and from the US:
- Frankfurt (FRA)
- Munich (MUC)
- Berlin (BER)
BER serves the smallest amount of US traffic amongst the 3 so you will normally be flying into either FRA or MUC.
Main Airlines
Lufthansa is the main international airline of Germany, is part of Star Alliance, and uses both FRA and MUC as its home hubs.
Condor is a subsidiary of Lufthansa that uses Frankfurt as its home hub airport. It is sort of a “budget airline” since it’s generally cheaper than Lufthansa but it offers full service and meals, unlike most budget airlines.
Nonstop Flights
Lufthansa
Lufthansa will have the largest route network for business class flights to Germany since it’s the main airline of the country. However, their business class is comfy but nothing to get excited about.
Best Booking Program
The best way to book Lufthansa business class nonstop to Germany is via Avianca.
Alternate Booking Programs
The next best program to book Lufthansa business class is Air Canada Aeroplan.
How To Book
You can book online at lifemiles.com and at aircanada.com.
Cost
| Route | Cabin | Program | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| US and Frankfurt/Munich | Business | Avianca | 63,000 + <$200 in taxes |
| US and Frankfurt/Munich | First | Avianca | 87,000 + <$200 in taxes |
| US and Frankfurt/Munich | Business | Air Canada Aeroplan | 60,000 or 70,000 + <$200 in taxes |
| US and Frankfurt/Munich | First | Air Canada Aeroplan | 100,000 + <$200 in taxes |
Example Routes
| US West Coast | US East Coast |
|---|---|
| Los Angeles (LAX) <> Frankfurt (FRA) | LH 456/457 & LH 450/451 | Atlanta (ATL) <> Frankfurt (FRA) | LH 444/445 |
| Denver (DEN) <> Frankfurt (FRA) | LH 7582/7586 & LH 446/447 | New York (JFK) <> Frankfurt (FRA) | LH 400/401 & LH 404/405 |
| San Diego (SAN) <> Munich (MUC) | LH 466/467 | Washington DC (IAD) <> Munich (MUC) | LH 416/417 & LH 9290/9051 & LH 418/419 |
| San Francisco (SFO) <> Munich (MUC) | LH 7995/7996 & LH 458/459 | Boston (BOS) <> Munich (MUC) | LH 424/425 |
Credit Card Transfer Partners
Avianca is a 1:1 transfer partner with Amex MR, Citi TYP, and Capital One Miles.
Air Canada is a 1:1 transfer partner with Chase UR, Amex MR, Capital One Miles, and Bilt.
Notes
- Amex, Citi, and Capital One regularly have 15% transfer bonuses to Avianca (check history here)
- Chase and Amex occasionally have 20% transfer bonuses to Air Canada
- Air Canada is currently having issues with partner availability, double check your desired flight is available
- Avianca’s website is super buggy. I found using Safari to be the best option when searching for flights
- Avianca charges $25 booking fee in addition to the fees displayed on the website
- You can also book Lufthansa via United for 88k one way in business and 121k in first (both of which are not good deals)
Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines operates a fifth freedom route between New York (JFK) and Frankfurt and this is their only route between the US and Germany. Their product is excellent and I would argue that this is probably the best nonstop business class flight to Germany. If you’re able to take advantage of this route, I’d highly recommend it.
Best Booking Program
The best way to book Singapore Airlines business class nonstop to Germany is via Air Canada Aeroplan.
Alternate Booking Programs
You can book via Singapore Airline’s own program or via United but those will be more expensive
How To Book
You can book online at aircanada.com.
Cost
| Route | Cabin | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| New York (JFK) <> Frankfurt | Business | 60,000+ <$100 in taxes |
Example Routes
| US East Coast |
|---|
| New York (JFK) <> Frankfurt (FRA) | SQ 25/26 |
Credit Card Transfer Partners
Air Canada is a 1:1 transfer partner with Chase UR, Amex MR, Capital One Miles, and Bilt.
Notes
- You can actually book First Class for this route only via Singapore Airline’s own program for 97,000 miles at Saver price and 143,500 miles at Advantage price. First Class is just one row of 4 seats on their 777 aircraft.
Condor
Condor only flies to Frankfurt from the US so this limits its usefulness but for starting at 55,000 Alaska miles one way in business class, it’s a great option.
Best Booking Program
The best way to book Condor business class nonstop to Germany is via Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan.
Alternate Booking Programs
There are no alternate ways to book Condor.
How To Book
You can book online at alaskair.com.
Cost
| Route | Cabin | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| US East Coast to Frankfurt | Business | 55,000 + <$100 in taxes |
| US West Coast to Frankfurt | Business | 70,000 + <$100 in taxes |
Example Routes
| US West Coast | US East Coast |
|---|---|
| Las Vegas (LAS) <> Frankfurt (FRA) | DE 2062/2063 | New York (JFK) <> Frankfurt (FRA) | DE 2016/2017 |
| Los Angeles (LAX) <> Frankfurt (FRA) | DE 2086/2089 |
Credit Card Transfer Partners
Unfortunately no credit cards can transfer to Alaska Airlines. The only credit cards that earn Alaska miles are the Bank of America Alaska Visa personal card and business card.
Notes
- Alaska has dynamic pricing for Condor where the the 55k/70k are the saver rates
United
Best Booking Program
The best way to book United business class nonstop to Germany is via Air Canada if flying from Newark (EWR) and Avianca for all other cities. United is also the only airline on this list that flies nonstop to Berlin from the US (Washington D.C. only).
Alternate Booking Programs
You can book United business class with either Air Canada Aeroplan or Avianca. Air Canada will either show 60,000 or 70,000 depending on the route. I saw 60,000 between EWR and FRA but 70,000 for the other US cities.
How To Book
You can book online at lifemiles.com and at aircanada.com.
Cost
| Route | Cabin | Program | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| US <> Frankfurt/Munich/Berlin | Business | Air Canada Aeroplan | 60,000 or 70,000 + <$200 in taxes |
| US <> Frankfurt/Munich/Berlin | Business | Avianca | 63,000 + <$200 in taxes |
Example Routes
| US West Coast | US East Coast |
|---|---|
| Denver (DEN) <> Frankfurt (FRA) | UA 181/182 & UA 8878/8879 | New Jersey (EWR) <> Munich (MUC) | UA 30/31 & UA 9254/9255 |
| San Francisco (SFO) <> Munich (MUC) | UA 194/195 & UA 8882/8883 | Chicago (ORD) <> Frankfurt (FRA) | UA 944/945 & UA 8836/8837 & UA 906/907 |
Credit Card Transfer Partners
Avianca is a 1:1 transfer partner with Amex MR, Citi TYP, and Capital One Miles.
Air Canada is a 1:1 transfer partner with Chase UR, Amex MR, Capital One Miles, and Bilt.
Notes
- Amex, Citi, and Capital One regularly have 15% transfer bonuses to Avianca (check history here)
- Chase and Amex occasionally have 20% transfer bonuses to Air Canada
- Air Canada is currently having issues with partner availability, double check your desired flight is available
- Avianca’s website is super spotty. I found using Safari to be the best option when searching for flights
- Avianca charges a $25 booking fee in addition to the fees displayed on the website
- You can book United business class with United’s own program for 80k one way but Avianca and Air Canada are cheaper
Star Alliance via ANA
I’m throwing this in here last because while ANA is a great program to use, it still has its fair share of downsides that I personally feel make it an inferior option compared to the ones listed above.
ANA is actually one of the cheapest ways to book business class to Europe on Star Alliance members like Lufthansa and United. It will cost you 88,000 miles ROUND TRIP. That’s an incredible deal. But look at the taxes and fees…. $1100!!! That’s really not a good deal anymore.
How To Book
You can book online at ANA’s website.
Credit Card Transfer Partners
ANA is a 1:1 transfer partner with Amex MR.
Notes
These are the downsides of booking with ANA that prevent this from being a home run deal.
- High taxes and fuel surcharges. Expect to pay up to $1000+!
- Must book a round trip
- Amex MR does not transfer instantly to ANA (could take up to 3 days)
- Very hard to use website
It actually took me so long to find the above example. The availability that I saw on Avianca and Air Canada should’ve been able to be found by ANA but for whatever reason, not all of them were showing up.
I think you could call in and feed the agent the flight numbers to get your desired itinerary but that’s a pain to deal with and most people would prefer to just do it online. However, dealing with ANA’s website is a big headache and I’d recommend just paying the extra points and less in fees to book via Avianca or Air Canada.
Cheapest Flights
These flights are not nonstop and will include a layover but they can be much cheaper than the nonstop flight options. If you don’t mind a longer journey with a layover, these are great options to consider.
These flights also allow the possibility of maximizing your award ticket with a stopover, depending on the program.
Air France/KLM
Depending on which airline you fly, you’ll either have a layover in Paris (fly Air France) or Amsterdam (fly KLM). Flying Blue unfortunately uses dynamic pricing so it’s hard to give an accurate price for a given date and route combination. Just make sure to keep checking and find a price that is reasonably cheap.
Best Booking Program
The best way to book Air France and KLM business class is via their own Flying Blue program.
How To Book
You can book online at Air France’s website. Although Air France and KLM share the same program, book through Air France’s website! It’s much better and more reliable than KLM’s website.
Cost
| Route | Cabin | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| US East Coast <> Frankfurt/Munich | Business | As low as 41,000 + <$200 in taxes |
| US West Coast <> Frankfurt/Munich | Business | As low as 71,000 + <$200 in taxes |
Example Routes
| US West Coast | US East Coast |
|---|---|
| Seattle (SEA) <> Frankfurt (FRA) with a layover in Paris (CDG) | Atlanta <> Munich (MUC) with a layover in Paris (CDG) |
| San Francisco (SFO) <> Munich (MUC) with a layover in Amsterdam (AMS) | Chicago (ORD) <> Frankfurt (FRA) with a layover in Amsterdam (AMS) |
Credit Card Transfer Partners
Air France/KLM Flying Blue is a 1:1 transfer partner with Chase UR, Amex MR, Citi TYP, Capital One Miles, and Bilt.
Notes
- Amex regularly has a 25% transfer bonus to Flying Blue (check history here)
- Chase and Citi occasionally have 25% transfer bonuses to Flying Blue
- Capital One occasionally has a 20% transfer bonus to Flying Blue
- Air France uses dynamic pricing so award prices can be all over the place
- Allows a stopover on one way awards but you have to call Air France
Turkish Airlines
Best Booking Program
The best way to book Turkish Airlines business class to Germany is via its own Miles and Smiles program. If you can find saver level availability and don’t mind a longer journey, 45k one way in business class is a hard deal to beat.
How To Book
You can book online at turkishairlines.com.
Alternate Booking Programs
You can book Turkish Airlines business class to Germany with Air Canada Aeroplan for 70,000 (to/from US east coast) or 90,000 miles (to/from US west coast).
Cost
| Route | Fare Level | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| US <> Frankfurt/Munich | Saver | 45,000+ ~$200 in taxes |
| US <> Frankfurt/Munich | Standard | 105,000 + ~$200 in taxes |
Example Routes
| US West Coast | US East Coast |
|---|---|
| San Francisco (SFO) <> Frankfurt (FRA) with a layover in Istanbul (IST) | New York (JFK) <> Munich (MUC) with a layover in Istanbul (IST) |
| Seattle (SEA) <> Munich (MUC) with a layover in Istanbul (IST) | Chicago (ORD) <> Frankfurt (FRA) with a layover in Istanbul (IST) |
Credit Card Transfer Partners
Turkish Airlines Miles and Smiles is a 1:1 transfer partner with Citi TYP, Capital One Miles, and Bilt.
Notes
- Saver level availability is hard to find
- If your layover is long enough, you can go for a free city tour in Istanbul
Other Flight Options
British Airways
You can book British Airways business class from the US to Frankfurt via American Airlines for 57,500 AA miles and ~$700 in fees.
Other Star Alliance Airlines
You can also book Star Alliance offerings like Swiss Air and Brussels Airlines business class via Air Canada Aeroplan for 60k or 70k miles and <$100 in fees.
Conclusion
There are a good amount of solid flight options for crossing the Atlantic to and from Germany. The connecting flights will generally be cheaper than the nonstop flights but at the cost of a longer journey time. Let me know what your favorite way to fly between the US and Germany is!
