The Avianca Lifemiles program has taken some serious hits over the past few years. Several rounds of devaluations have made many Star Alliance partner awards we loved more expensive, and some of the program’s best sweet spots aren’t nearly as sweet anymore.

But that doesn’t mean you should write off Lifemiles. Avianca’s own flights can offer excellent value, particularly between the U.S. and Latin America, and there are still some solid partner awards, if you know where to look. The ease of earning Lifemiles also adds to its value.

The key is knowing when Lifemiles makes sense and when another program will give you a better deal. Here’s what you need to know about earning and redeeming Avianca Lifemiles.

 

What Is Avianca Lifemiles?

Lifemiles is Avianca’s loyalty program. Avianca is a Colombia-based airline with an extensive network across Latin America, plus service to the U.S. and Europe.

It’s also a member of Star Alliance, giving Lifemiles a vast reach. You can use Lifemiles to book award flights with partners like United Airlines, Air Canada, Lufthansa, Turkish Airlines, and ANA, giving you access to just about every corner of the world.

 

How To Earn Avianca Lifemiles

You don’t even have to fly Avianca to build a Lifemiles balance. The program has several earning options, including some that make it particularly accessible to U.S. travelers.

Transfer Credit Card Points to Lifemiles

For most points and miles enthusiasts, transferable credit card rewards are the easiest way to earn Lifemiles.

Lifemiles partners with several major rewards programs, including:

• American Express Membership Rewards®
• Bilt Rewards
• Capital One miles
• Citi ThankYou Rewards
• Wells Fargo Rewards

Everyday credit card spending is an easy way to build the points you can eventually transfer. For example, the American Express® Gold Card earns four Membership Rewards® points per dollar at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (up to each category’s annual spending cap), while the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card earns two miles per dollar on everyday purchases.

Most points transfer at a 1:1 ratio, so if you convert 50,000 credit card points, they’ll become 50,000 Lifemiles. Transfers can get a lot sweeter, though, since transfer bonuses pop up fairly regularly and can reduce the number of points you need for an award.

Still, don’t transfer points just because there’s a good bonus. Transfers are irreversible, and Lifemiles can change award pricing without warning. Find the flight you want first, compare your options, and then transfer the points you need once you’ve found good availability.

Related: All About Transfer Bonuses: What They Are and How To Use Them To Get Even More Points

Earn Lifemiles by Flying

Naturally, you can also earn Lifemiles when you fly Avianca. How many miles you’ll earn depends on factors like your fare and elite status. You can also credit eligible flights on Star Alliance partners to Lifemiles rather than the operating airline’s loyalty program. Whether that’s worthwhile, however, depends on the airline and fare class, so check the earning rate before automatically adding your Lifemiles number to a partner reservation.

Use a Lifemiles Credit Card

U.S. travelers can also earn miles with the Avianca Lifemiles American Express® Card and the Avianca Lifemiles American Express® Elite Card.

The $99-annual-fee Lifemiles card earns two miles per dollar on Avianca and Lifemiles purchases, groceries and restaurants and one mile per dollar on everything else. Cardholders can enjoy perks like Lifemiles Silver elite status and a 5% discount on Avianca award redemptions booked through Lifemiles.

The $249-annual-fee Lifemiles Elite card offers stronger earning rates, with three miles per dollar on Avianca and Lifemiles purchases, two miles per dollar on travel and dining and one mile per dollar on other purchases. The card also automatically doubles the first 1,000 miles you earn each month, bringing those rates up to six, four, and two miles per dollar, respectively.

Buy Lifemiles

Finally, Lifemiles is famous for selling miles—often with substantial bonuses.

Buying miles at the regular price rarely makes sense. But during a strong promotion, buying Lifemiles can sometimes be cheaper than paying cash for an expensive ticket, especially for premium-cabin travel.

The same rule applies here as with transferring points: Plan before you buy. A giant bonus isn’t much of a deal if you’re left sitting on thousands of miles you can’t use.

 

How To Redeem Avianca Lifemiles

You can redeem Lifemiles for flights on Avianca, GOL, and Star Alliance partners. Most awards can be searched and booked directly through the Lifemiles website.

Avianca-operated awards use dynamic pricing, so the number of miles you’ll need varies by route and date. Partner pricing can be unpredictable, too. Lifemiles no longer publishes an award chart, and recent devaluations have made many partner awards more expensive.

Still, there are some excellent deals to be found. Here are a few examples of where Lifemiles can make sense.

Fly Avianca Between the U.S. and Latin America

You can find some great Lifemiles pricing on Avianca’s own flights. Economy awards between the U.S. and Central America can often be found for around 10,000 miles each way, while longer flights to South America can also offer attractive pricing. You may occasionally find even lower rates, but consider those a bonus rather than the norm.

For example, you can find Los Angeles (LAX) to San Salvador (SAL) for around 10,980 Lifemiles one way in economy. Because Avianca uses dynamic pricing, check several dates to find the best deal.

Book Short United Flights

Lifemiles can still be useful for some United-operated flights within the U.S. For most short-haul routes, expect to pay around 10,000 Lifemiles each way in economy.

You may occasionally stumble across an award for less, but consider that a nice surprise rather than the norm. And since United uses dynamic award pricing, it’s always worth comparing what MileagePlus charges before transferring points to Lifemiles.

Book Star Alliance Business Class

Premium-cabin partner awards have also gotten more expensive, but Lifemiles can still be useful for Star Alliance business-class seats . . . if you can actually find anything.

For example, flights between the U.S. and Europe can sometimes be booked for around 80,000 miles each way.

One advantage is that Lifemiles doesn’t pass along carrier-imposed surcharges on Star Alliance awards. That can be particularly valuable for airlines such as Lufthansa, where those surcharges can otherwise add hundreds of dollars to an award ticket.

Related: Tips for Finding Business-Class Availability

Look for Lifemiles Pricing Quirks

Lifemiles pricing doesn’t always make perfect sense, and sometimes that works in your favor. Certain routes price unusually low, and mixed-cabin itineraries can sometimes cost fewer miles than you’d expect.

So instead of memorizing a long list of sweet spots that could disappear tomorrow, think of Lifemiles as one of the programs you check when searching for an award. You never know when you’ll stumble across a surprisingly good deal.

All Other Ways To Redeem Lifemiles

Flights are almost always the best way to get value from your Lifemiles, but they aren’t your only option. You can also redeem miles for things like hotel stays, rental cars, experiences, and merchandise through Lifemiles partners.

These options may be convenient if you have miles you can’t otherwise use, but once again, you’ll typically get much better value by saving your Lifemiles for award flights.

 

What To Know Before Using Lifemiles

Lifemiles can offer excellent value, but like every frequent flyer program, it has its quirks.

For one, partner award availability can be headache-inducingly inconsistent, meaning a seat you find through another Star Alliance program won’t necessarily appear through Lifemiles. Partner awards may also come with booking fees, and additional fees can apply if you need to change or cancel your trip. Add in taxes, and the out-of-pocket cost is another reason to compare your options before booking.

While booking online is usually straightforward, Lifemiles customer service doesn’t have the best reputation when something goes wrong. Double-check your travel dates and passenger information before you book. This is especially important for partner awards, since Lifemiles doesn’t allow name corrections on partner award tickets.

 

Bottom Line

Avianca Lifemiles isn’t quite the award travel darling it once was. Devaluations have made many partner awards more expensive, and the program can be quirky enough to require a little patience.

But there’s still plenty of value to be found. Avianca-operated flights can offer excellent pricing, particularly between the U.S. and Latin America, and select Star Alliance awards remain worth checking. Add in five major transferable rewards partners and frequent transfer bonuses, and Lifemiles remains an easy program to access without committing to it long term.

That’s really the best way to approach Lifemiles: Keep it in your award travel toolbox, compare it with your other options and pull it out when the price is right.

 

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