I recently joined the team here at Roame (nice to meet you all!). Lucky for me, during my first week, the team is heading to Bangkok for a travel awards conference and I get to tag along. But there’s a catch…
I need to get myself there in business class, using as few points as possible. What a fun way to kick off a new job for a travel nerd like me!
With less than a week before the trip, I knew I had to act fast. To get a sense of what was available, I used Roame’s SkyView feature to quickly search possible business class flight options within my travel widow.
As you can see, there weren’t any great options available off the jump. Last-minute bookings aren’t always for the faint of heart, but I know airlines tend to release award space close to the travel date if they can't fill the seats. So, I set up a Roame alert and crossed my fingers.
Luckily, I didn’t have to wait long. Later that day, I received an alert from Roame that three seats had opened up on a route from San Francisco (SFO) to Bangkok (BKK) with a connection in Taipei (TPE).
To say I was excited is an understatement. Only 85,000 points and $35 in fees for business class on Starlux, one of Asia’s newest luxury airlines that I’ve been dying to try! When I checked the cash fare through Google Flights, it was listed at $9,000; that’s an over 10 cents per point value!
Here’s the kicker: Historically, I haven’t had an easy way to earn Alaska miles, which were required to book this flight. But with Alaska’s recent partnership with Hawaiian Airlines, I could now transfer my American Express Membership Rewards points 1:1 to Hawaiian, and then from Hawaiian to Alaska’s Mileage Plan also 1:1. Not sure how long this will last, but I took advantage of it while I could.
I quickly transferred 85,000 Amex points to Hawaiian Airlines, and then moved those over to Alaska Mileage Plan to book my seats.
Initially, my booking was for business class from SFO to TPE, but only economy from TPE to BKK. I wasn’t too upset—after all, the SFO-TPE leg is 13.5 hours while the TPE-BKK leg is only 4 hours. But just when I thought I was done, Roame sent me another alert for a fully business class itinerary, with a shorter layover.
At this point, though, it was less than 72 hours before my travel date, so the Alaska Airlines online portal wouldn’t allow me to make any changes. I had to call Alaska Airlines at 1am to make the switch. After a 25-minute wait, I spent another 20 minutes on the phone with two different agents. Thankfully, I managed to grab the last business class seat for the TPE-BKK leg. It wasn’t the smoothest process, but I was able to secure a full business class itinerary.
In the end, I was thrilled with the booking and am especially excited to try out the new Starlux Galactic Lounge in Terminal 2 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (TPE). Locking down a last-minute business class ticket to Bangkok on such a top-tier airline for just 85,000 points definitely helped me make a great first impression with my new bosses. Not bad for the first week on the job!
Roame’s SkyView tool and alerts were key to making this happen. By setting up alerts, I didn’t have to constantly refresh searches, hoping for a deal. Instead, the good news came straight to my inbox. These features make it easy for anyone to maximize their travel and save points—whether you're a seasoned traveler or just getting started.
Stay tuned for more of my travel adventures, and I’ll be sure to report back on my upcoming trip to Bangkok!
