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Originally Posted by tendi07
Well,
I'll be using the miles I build up to go to Germany to visit my parents. We go once a year, and it is PIT-FRA (usually just me and my daughter that go), we will also by flying economy.
Unfortunately, your best option for
accruing miles on a PIT-FRA-PIT paid ticket may not be the same as your best option for
redeeming miles for a PIT-FRA-PIT award flight.
If you're primarily going to redeem for PIT-FRA award travel in coach, and if you are going to accrue miles primarily by charging purchases to your SPG Amex card, I think that you would be best off redeeming through Star Alliance. You have so many more single-connection options between PIT and FRA with Star Alliance than with oneworld: PHL, EWR, ORD, IAD.
As for which Star Alliance program to transfer your SPG points to, you do not have to make that decision until you are ready to transfer. If US is offering a 50% bonus at the time, that will probably be the way to go. If not, consider transfering the SPG points into ANA's program: ANA's awards are distance based, so a coach roundtrip PIT-FRA-PIT will only cost 43,000 ANA miles year round for most routings; you can fly on one or more Star Alliance carriers, mixing and matching as necessary; and you get free stopovers en route, if desired. (I am not sure how ANA's award fees/surcharges compare to other carriers'. Perhaps someone else can weigh in on that.) A downside to ANA, however, is that when you fly a Star Alliance carrier on a paid ticket, discounted fares will not earn full mileage credit on ANA.
AA is a great program, and is my main FF program. But you would pretty much have to fly to ORD or DFW for a single-connection to FRA, and if the availability is not there, you're out of luck for a single connection. On the other hand, depending on when you would be traveling, an AA award to FRA could be had for as little as 40,000 miles roundtrip during low season.
Perhaps the best advice is to play it by ear. When you are ready to actually book an award, check award availability on AA and on the various Star Alliance carriers, and then transfer your SPG points accordingly.