As some of you know, all of my relatives live in Belarus. Ever since I moved to USA 26 years ago, trying to get together has been a challenge, to put it mildly. But it’s now 10X harder due to sanctions and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. No carrier can even fly to Belarus from Europe. US Embassy in Minsk is closed, and Poland has been threatening to close the last border crossing between the two countries. I can’t go to Belarus, and health challenges are making it harder for my parents to leave. But we keep on keeping on.
I now have another challenge on my hands. My daughter will be graduating high school next year, and we intend to throw her a big party to celebrate. My husband and I also plan to take her to Japan as a special gift. A few days ago, she asked me if there is any way I can bring my mom here for the party, as well as graduation ceremony. Even though my daughter doesn’t speak a lot of Russian (my failure), she has been communicating with her babushka with the help of Google Translate app. As a result, they grew close, and my daughter really wants her here for this special occasion. Bringing my dad is unfortunately no longer an option due to his poor health.
On top of it, my mom recently ended up in a hospital due to danger of having a stroke. She was put on heart meds and is doing better. Still, my first inclination was to shut the idea down, and I told my daughter as much. But the more I thought about it, the more it seemed fair to let mom decide. I’ve always regretted not bringing her here for my wedding. My mom’s health may be failing, but it’s up to her to determine whether she is up for this grueling journey. Well, she got excited by the idea and is determined to come next May. The problem with my mom being an optimist is that she grossly overestimates her abilities.
Of course, I had to run this idea by my husband first. After all, we have a ton of expenses coming our way next year, and this is the last thing our wallet needs. He just rolled his eyes, let out a long sigh, and said he would never say No to a family reunion. It’s only money, and we can always make more of it. He is a keeper. So, now we need to figure out the timing and logistics. First, my mom has to apply for a multi-entry visa to US and she will need to go to Poland to do that in person. Oh, and she also needs a visa for Poland. But, one step at a time…
Redeeming miles vs. paying cash
There is no question that redeeming miles on premium class to Europe will usually get you better value compared to economy. In fact, depending on the season and city pairs, doing the latter will often yield less than 1 CPM (cents per mile). As such, it’s good to at least consider paying cash or using points via a card like Chase Sapphire Reserve where you can get 1.5 CPP on travel.
It depends, of course, and I have used miles for economy seats on our last few trips to Europe. One of the reasons is flexibility, as with many programs you can now redeposit miles at no cost. I also had a stash of Lifemiles from canceled tickets during Covid pandemic, and was eager to unload them. I’m so happy I did, as this program is going from bad to worse I still have 7k miles left, and will try to use them up for a one-way ticket within the US.
I’m not currently sitting on huge mileage balances, and my AA/Alaska stash is set aside for Japan trip. I do have 73k Air France Flying Blue miles, but couldn’t find any award availability from Warsaw to Orlando. I also have 55k Lufthansa miles, which I could potentially put to good use. While Lufthansa adds steep fuel surcharges to most award tickets, that is not true for all partners. One notable exception is Lot Polish, the carrier best suited for our needs. They even fly from Warsaw to Miami nonstop.
One-way ticket in economy is 30k miles+$88 from Miami to Warsaw. Award availability isn’t great, but we should have some flexibility.
Lot Polish business-class award availability is basically non-existent for Miami, but looks decent for Chicago. Of course, saver availability on United would also need to be there for getting my mom to Florida.
Fuel surcharges and taxes are $125 total (519 PLN), which isn’t bad at all. Plus, Tampa is much closer to our house compared to Miami. Having connection isn’t ideal, but it would be cool to treat my mom to business class on a long-haul flight. I would only need an extra 1k miles for this redemption.
Of course, then I would have to buy her a one-way flight back to Poland, and those tend to be expensive. I do have 44k United miles, which at least in theory, is enough for an economy ticket. If I went that route, I would spend 110k miles total, plus around $150 in taxes. My mom would likely need to make a least one connection in each direction. On the positive side, she would fly in business class one-way, which is important considering her worsening health.
On the other hand, having a nonstop flight wold be ideal, even if she had to deal with economy seat. And prices to Miami from Warsaw aren’t that bad, at least for the moment:
I have 140k UR points parked in my Chase Freedom Flex account (personal referral link). I was thinking about converting it to Chase Sapphire Reserve at the end of the year anyway. Assuming the ticket costs $900, I would need to redeem 60K UR points to cover it completely. Of course, if Poland decided to close the border or my mom’s health went downhill, we would lose the points. I can’t even buy her a separate insurance policy with “cancel for any reason” option, since she is a resident of Belarus.
By comparison, Lufthansa miles can be redeposited for $55 fee, and United has a free cancellation. Despite higher overall cost, I am leaning towards using miles as long as I don’t have any other plans for them in a near future. There are a few reasons. First, as I’ve just mentioned, is a cheap cancellation fee. Also, Lufthansa miles expire 3 years after you’ve earned them, with no possibility of extending the validity. At this point, I have a bit over two years left to find a good use for them.
Last, but not least, I like the idea of booking a business-class seat for mom due to her not-so-great health and age. This is especially true if I can get her on the overnight flight from Chicago to Warsaw. Using Lufthansa miles for this purpose is just about ideal, and the best deal in the industry for this particular route. It would be a shame not to splurge if I get the chance. In 2020 my mom really enjoyed her $75 upgrade to United first-class from Orlando to Chicago when I was scrambling to get my parents back to Belarus due to Covid restrictions. We only spent a weekend together before something-something hit the fan.
Final thoughts
For now, it’s just a thought exercise. A lot needs to happen first, like my mom getting approved for US visa, not to mention, EU visa, so she can even apply for US visa in the first place. I’m not really sure this is all such a good idea given her health situation. But ultimately, it’s not for me to decide. I’m just here to provide the miles.
Author: Leana
Leana is the founder of Miles For Family. She enjoys beach vacations and visiting her family in Europe. Originally from Belarus, Leana resides in central Florida with her husband and two children.
@Tania Great tips! I will absolutely look into it.
Leana,
The wheelchair service is good to escort her at the airport. Most people that use the service are older but not necessarily wheelchair bound. It is just a good “crutch” so she doesn’t have to navigate the airport alone and they zip through immigration because they have priority. Most of the time they even let you use their cell phone. Just tell her to have some cash to tip the person ($20 is suficient).
@Tania That is so cool that your mom is still able to visit you! Good for her.
My mom doesn’t need wheelchair (yet), the problem is with her heart. Plus, she occasionally faints when she is exhausted. Come to think of it, maybe she DOES need a wheelchair! It’s hard for me to think of her that way, as she has always had a ton of energy. But that’s the reality of getting older.
@Christian Turkish is an option, but only from Istanbul to USA. I would have to purchase a separate roundtrip ticket from Minsk to Istanbul on Belavia, and it can not be booked with miles. Turkish currently doesn’t fly to Belarus due to proximity to Ukraine. Obviously, I hope this awful war ends for the sake of poor folks in Ukraine, but I’m not holding my breath. Last time I checked , Belavia’s tickets are something like $600 due to lack of completion. Plus, to be honest, I don’t feel comfortable with my mom flying in Russian airspace. It’s a country at war and too much can go wrong. If we can’t make Poland work, we will probably call it a day.
Leana,
My 83 year old mom comes frequently by herself from Brazil and I always book the wheelchair assistance for her. It is a good service for the elderly because expedited immigration, they help with the luggage and they make sure you don’t missing your connection.
Unfortunately most agents only speak English so she always has her cell phone on roaming so she can call me (I am not sure if it is an option for your mom).
I hope you can bring your mom so she can participate on your daughter’s graduation.
One thing you mentioned early but didn’t revisit is Belarus being shut out from the west, both for visa application purposes and what to do if the Polish border shuts down. I’m not looking to borrow trouble but might it be worth looking into Turkish since they seem to fly everywhere regardless of border disputes?
@sara Thanks! Honestly, I’m not doing anything exceptional here.
Really hope that all the lil duckies line up and she gets to come! <3 That's wonderful what you are doing for both generations!
@Lea You definitely make some very good points. My parents have flown here before and I agree, having to go through immigration and security is a pain during a connection. Weirdly, my mom always finds a random Russian speaker nearby to help her out. It’s like she has a sixth sense!
Ideally, I would want to redeem Lufthansa miles on her flight to Europe, so we don’t have to deal with this. Or I may just buy a direct economy flight to Miami and call it a day. But lots has to happen first.
LOT usually does have good availability to Chicago, as you noted, but be aware that the flight doesn’t arrive until the 7 PM hour so that’s often too late to catch a flight to many locations. I looked for ORD-TPA/MCO non-stops that would work on the same night and didn’t see any.
If she’s not going to fly directly into MCO/TPA from overseas, I would highly recommend either flying to her gateway airport yourself or having some sort of airport service meet her (especially if there’s a language barrier) because she’s going to have to come land-side and re-clear security. And that could mean taking a train to a different terminal. Having someone to escort her would make her life infinitely easier.
@Russ Thanks! And good luck to you as well with bringing your granddaughters in April. I totally agree that getting value on redeeming miles for economy tickets is getting tougher. You have to get creative or live in a city that has lots of options (like NYC). Avianca used to offer bargains, but that no longer appears to be the case. Flying Blue and Virgin Atlantic programs can be a good deal and worth checking. Of course, there is always an option of simply using flexible points (via CSR) to cover the cost. Most of the time, it would be your best bet, especially during off season.
@ArkansasTraveler I hope so too! I just couldn’t say no when my daughter asked. Ultimately, it’s my mom’s decision, and at least I can buy her medical insurance policy.
Leana, good luck! It’s getting harder to find value redemptions even in coach. I’m working on bringing the granddaughters over for their spring break in April and it’s not going well, but there is lots of time. One of the letters mentioned AC for LOT availability and I have noticed this when looking for flights from BER to ORD.
@Aleks That’s definitely my intention. Of course, award availability may be an issue. We would have some flexibility on dates, but the timing would need to coincide with graduation ceremony. My mom never expects business class, but it sure would help with the grueling flight.
Great plan! I sure hope your mom can make the trip. Family is worth it!
I’d go with LH miles business seat and request a wheelchair assistance all the way through. Had good experience with such service in WAW, MAD and USA for elderly relative who doesn’t speak English.
Long flight is harder with age so at least get Premium Economy for her.
@HML Not really competitive rate for economy, and I would need to transfer a bunch of points for business class. In general, I try to use up what I already have first. If I go the miles route, my priority will be to get rid of Lufthansa stash first, since it has a hard expiration. I could then top off United stash for business class or just burn it on economy seat.
Did you look at aeroplan? Aeroplan also has good availability on LOT.