Icelandair stands out as a prime choice for travelers heading to Iceland, largely due to its hub at Keflavik Airport (KEF), conveniently located just 31 miles from Reykjavik. The airline is well-regarded for offering budget-friendly flights, making it a popular option for transatlantic journeys between North America and Europe, often enhanced by the appeal of an Iceland stopover.
For those savvy travelers looking to leverage points and miles for Icelandair flights, it’s important to understand the airline’s unique position in the aviation landscape. Unlike many major carriers, Icelandair is not part of a traditional airline alliance. While Icelandair has established interline and codeshare agreements with airlines like Emirates, Turkish Airlines, and JetBlue, these partnerships do not extend to reciprocal loyalty program benefits. Currently, you cannot redeem rewards points from these partner airlines’ loyalty programs for flights operated by Icelandair.
In essence, the typical avenues for redeeming points and miles within major airline alliances are not directly applicable to Icelandair. However, this doesn’t mean you’re without options. Let’s explore the ways you can still use points and miles to fly with Icelandair and make the most of your travel rewards.
Related: Watch us fly Icelandair 2 different ways: Business class versus economy
Utilizing Icelandair Saga Club Points
Icelandair operates its own loyalty program, known as Icelandair Saga Club. For travelers frequently flying with Icelandair, Saga Club offers a direct route to earning and redeeming points. However, for those based in the U.S. and who are not regular Icelandair flyers, accumulating a significant balance of Saga Points can be challenging. Notably, Saga Club does not partner with any of the major U.S. transferable points currencies. Although you can accrue Saga Points through various avenues such as Expedia bookings, JetBlue and Alaska Airlines flights, and Hertz car rentals, building up enough points for a full flight redemption might be difficult for many U.S.-based travelers.
One of the appealing features of Saga Club is its flexibility in redemption. You don’t need to amass enough points to cover the entire cost of your Icelandair flight. Saga Club allows you to use any amount of points you have to offset the cost of any available seat on any scheduled Icelandair flight. This extends to covering taxes and fees associated with your Icelandair flights, offering even greater flexibility.
For instance, consider a sample round-trip booking priced at $593.50. Icelandair provides a user-friendly slider tool on their website that allows you to experiment with different combinations of points and cash for payment.
ICELANDAIR.COMI could redeem 137,337 points to cover my entire booking, a redemption that would give me 0.43 cents per point in value.
Alt text: Daily Newsletter signup banner from Icelandair website
ICELANDAIR.COMI could redeem 57,781 points and pay $343.80 for the same $593.50 round-trip booking.
Alt text: Icelandair Saga Club points redemption example showing points plus cash payment option
While redeeming Saga Points might not yield exceptionally high value compared to some other redemption options, it presents a valuable opportunity to reduce out-of-pocket expenses, particularly if you have a modest balance of Saga Points and wish to use them in conjunction with cash for your Icelandair travel.
Related: How to get to Iceland on points and miles
Redeeming Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Miles
Another viable avenue for using points and miles for Icelandair flights is through Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan. Alaska Airlines has a partnership with Icelandair, allowing you to redeem Alaska miles for Icelandair operated flights. However, it’s important to note a current limitation: according to Alaska’s partner page for Icelandair, business-class award bookings on Icelandair flights are temporarily suspended due to booking issues. Given that Icelandair discontinued its premium economy class in 2018, economy class is currently the sole cabin option when redeeming Alaska miles for Icelandair flights.
While Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan maintains a partner award chart, it’s crucial to understand that the listed rates are starting rates specifically for nonstop award flights.
ALASKAAIR.COMHowever, in practice, award rates for nonstop Icelandair flights often align with these starting rates. For example, a one-way Icelandair flight from Seattle to Reykjavik could be booked for 27,500 miles plus $137 in taxes and fees. The distance between Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) and KEF is 3,622 miles.
Alt text: Alaska Airlines award chart example for Icelandair flights showing mileage cost from Seattle to Reykjavik
ALASKAAIR.COMIf you consider flying a few days earlier and connecting through Portland, Oregon, the redemption rate could drop to 22,500 miles, while still incurring the same $137 in taxes and fees.
Alt text: Alaska Airlines award booking example showing reduced mileage cost for Icelandair flight with Portland connection
ALASKAAIR.COMSimilarly, a flight covering the 2,413 miles from Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) to KEF would also cost 22,500 miles plus $137 in taxes and fees.
Alt text: Alaska Airlines award booking example for Icelandair flight from Boston to Reykjavik
ALASKAAIR.COMIntriguingly, adding a connecting flight onward to Dublin did not incur any additional mileage costs in this example. However, the taxes and fees would increase to $192 for this one-stop award.
Alt text: Alaska Airlines award booking example showing no extra miles for adding Dublin connection to Icelandair flight
ALASKAAIR.COMFurthermore, leveraging Mileage Plan’s flexible stopover policies, you could even incorporate a week-long stopover in Iceland for the same mileage cost. However, this would result in slightly higher taxes and fees.
Alt text: Alaska Airlines stopover policy example for Icelandair award booking with week-long Iceland stopover
ALASKAAIR.COMEarning Alaska miles can be somewhat restrictive, as the primary transferable currencies partnering with Mileage Plan are Marriott Bonvoy and Bilt Rewards. Nevertheless, attractive welcome offers occasionally surface on the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® credit card or the Alaska Airlines Visa® Business card, both of which provide opportunities to earn Alaska miles on everyday spending.
Related: These are the best times to visit Iceland
Booking Through Credit Card Travel Portals
An additional method to utilize points and miles for Icelandair flights is through the travel portals associated with most major transferable points currencies. However, it’s important to be aware that redeeming points or miles for flights through these portals typically yields a fixed value of around 1 cent per point or mile. There are exceptions where you might achieve slightly better value, notably:
If you hold the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card or the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, you might find it advantageous to purchase a paid Icelandair flight using your card. This strategy allows you to earn miles on your credit card purchase. Subsequently, within 90 days of the transaction, you can log in to your Capital One account and redeem points to cover the travel purchase. While the redemption rate remains at 1 cent per point when offsetting travel purchases, you effectively earn miles on your flight purchase, adding a layer of value.
Related: How to use hotel points in Iceland
Bottom Line
Despite Icelandair not being a member of a major airline alliance, you still have accessible pathways to redeem points and miles for flights. The most valuable redemption options for Icelandair flights generally involve utilizing Alaska miles or booking through the Chase Travel portal using cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Business Preferred.
Furthermore, as outlined, several alternative strategies exist for redeeming points and miles for Icelandair flights. Considering Icelandair’s frequently competitive fares, it may often be a practical decision to book a paid fare, conserving your valuable points and miles for hotel accommodations or future travel endeavors, maximizing your overall travel rewards strategy.
