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TAP Air Portugal’s Miles&Go program provides a practical way for travelers to earn and redeem miles, especially within Europe and on routes to the Americas and Africa. While the program has its limitations, such as relatively high redemption rates and limited availability, it can still offer value through some strategic use of miles and partner network. This guide will help you navigate the ins and outs of the Miles&Go program, including earning miles, redeeming them efficiently, and understanding the program’s policies and benefits.
This guide will explore how to earn Miles&Go miles, highlight the program’s most valuable redemption options, and discuss the nuances of earning elite status + change/cancellation policies.
How to Earn Miles&Go Miles
Flying On TAP Air Portugal
Earning Miles&Go miles is straightforward when flying with TAP Air Portugal. The miles earned are based on the fare class and distance flown.. Here’s a breakdown of the points earning structure:
For example, if you fly TAP Airlines Classic internationally, you’ll earn miles equivalent to 100% of the distance traveled.
Flying On Airline Partners
TAP Air Portugal is a member of the Star Alliance, allowing you to earn miles when flying with any of the 26 Star Alliance member airlines, including Lufthansa, United Airlines, and Singapore Airlines. Additionally, TAP has partnerships with several other airlines, such as Emirates and Azul Brazilian Airlines.
How many miles you’ll earn varies by the airline. The easiest way to figure out the exact calculations is by visiting TAP’s comprehensive page on partner airline earnings here.
Credit Card Transfer Partners
TAP only has a few credit card transfer partners, which can make it a little harder to get TAP Miles:
- Capital One (1:1)
- Citi (1:1)
- Ramp (1.5:1)
Here are some cards we think both provide good value and access to TAP Air miles:
Buy TAP Air Portugal Miles
TAP regularly sells its miles. Currently, you can buy miles at a ratio of 30 Euros/1000 miles. This is not a particularly fantastic rate, especially considering how weak TAP miles are (they’re not worth a lot).
However, TAP also tends to run promotions where you can get miles at a discount. This could be a good way to stock up on TAP miles, especially if you have a high value use case on mind.
Do TAP Air Portugal Miles Expire?
Miles&Go miles expire 3 years after they are earned. To keep your miles from expiring, you need to have some type of activity on your account, such as earning or redeeming miles, within this period. Activities that count towards keeping your account active include flying with TAP or its partners, using a Miles&Go credit card, and earning miles through other partners.
How To Earn TAP Miles&Go Elite Status
Miles&Go offers three elite status tiers, providing various benefits to frequent flyers. To qualify for elite status, you need to earn Status Miles by flying on TAP, Star Alliance member airlines, or other partner airlines. The qualification requirements are:
- Silver: 30,000 Status Miles or 25 TAP segments flown in a calendar year
- Gold: 70,000 Status Miles or 50 TAP segments flown in a calendar year
- Navigator: 125,000 Status Miles or 70 TAP segments flown in a calendar year
Elite status can get you free business class upgrades, free WiFi, accelerated mileage earning, lounge access, priority check-in/boarding, free checked bags, and so much more.
Who Are TAP’s Airline Partners?
TAP Air Portugal is a part of the Star Alliance, which establishes a strong network of airline partners to enhance the earning and redemption opportunities for TAP members. This partnership allows you to confer your TAP elite benefits onto other Star Alliance airlines, making for a more streamlined experience when traveling.
The Portuguese carrier also has some non Star Alliance partners where you can also earn and redeem miles. These include the likes of Emirates and GOL airlines.
How TAP Prices Its Award Flights
TAP utilizes a zone-based award chart, making it relatively straightforward to understand the cost in miles. Additionally, there are separate award charts for flights on TAP versus flights on partner airlines.
While TAP doesn’t publish its award chart, the prices are standardized. For example, when flying from North America, a one-way economy flight to Europe starts at 29,000 TAP miles.
The Star Alliance award chart is about 4 pages long, but helps outline how TAP sees the lay of the land for one-way partner flight pricing:
Based on this table, a partner Star Alliance economy booking going from the USA to the Middle East would run you 70,000 miles one-way.
TAP Air Portugal Sweet Spots 2024
TAP Miles&Go offers some sweet spot redemptions that can provide exceptional value for your miles. Here are a few notable examples:
Fly Emirates Business Class Dubai <> Asia For Just 50k Miles One Way
Redeeming Miles&Go miles on TAP partners for long-haul flights can provide significant value. One particularly exciting redemption is flying between Dubai and Asia via Emirates. Based on the award chart, this route runs just 50,000 TAP miles each direction, which is awesome for a near 10 hour flight.
Here are some exciting redemptions you could do for just 50k miles each direction:
- Dubai <> Tokyo
- Dubai <> Bali-Denpasar
- Dubai <> Seoul
Travel On TAP Air Business Class Via San Francisco <> Portugal For 100k Miles One Way
TAP Air Portugal doesn’t operate many flights to the West Coast, but flying to Europe on business class can be a particularly difficult find in general. Having the option to take TAP Air Business Class to/from Lisbon is a great way to start or end any Europe travel adventures.
Enjoy Singapore Airlines Business Class Within Asia For 50k Miles Each Way
Singapore Airlines tends to release a lot of intra-Asia partner award availability to its partners, which can make for some incredible use for your TAP Air miles. Since TAP considers Asia all one big region, all partner business class flights within Asia cost just 50,000 miles each way, no matter how short or long.
Here are some exciting Star Alliance partner redemptions you could do for just 50k miles each direction:
- Singapore <> Tokyo (NRT/HND)
- Singapore <> Seoul (ICN)
- Singapore <> Shanghai (PVG)
- Singapore <> Hong Kong (HKG)
TAP Air Portugal Award Cancellation & Change Policy
TAP charges a fee for canceling/reinstating your miles. The fee varies by your status.
Conclusion
The TAP Air Portugal Miles&Go program offers a range of opportunities for earning and redeeming miles, particularly for travelers who frequently fly within Europe or to TAP’s destinations in the Americas and Africa. While it may not be the most rewarding frequent flyer program in terms of points value, it does provide some useful benefits and flexibility, especially through its partnerships with Star Alliance and other airlines. By understanding the best ways to earn and redeem Miles&Go miles, you could still find value in this program when needed.
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