Spend Miles & More miles wisely
Miles have value only when a real redemption works for your route, dates and budget. Compare the award against the full cash fare, including taxes, carrier surcharges, positioning flights and cancellation terms before transferring or booking.
Start with partner-airline awards
Lufthansa Group awards use dynamic pricing. Star Alliance and other partner-airline awards can still offer more predictable mileage prices, but availability, taxes and surcharges must be checked for the exact flight.
The old Lufthansa Group Mileage Bargains have been replaced by Award Flight Highlights. Fixed-price partner offers may still exist for selected airlines, including Eurowings, LOT, Luxair and Croatia Airlines. They are time-sensitive, so confirm the destination, travel window, cabin, refund rules and total cash charge before booking.
A partner award can remain bookable close to departure when a cash fare is expensive. That does not make it a good redemption automatically: compare the full out-of-pocket cost and keep a cash or alternative-program option.
Confirm the destination, travel window, cabin, refund rules, taxes and surcharges in the live Miles & More inventory , then compare the complete cash fare before booking.
Carrier-imposed surcharges can exceed €800 on a return trip. Compare partner awards and alternative booking programmes before accepting a large cash payment alongside the miles.
Practical redemption checks
Compare the complete trip cost
An award is not free. Add taxes, surcharges, booking fees, positioning flights, baggage, seat selection and any extra hotel night caused by the itinerary. Compare that total with a ticket you would genuinely buy.
Protect a useful balance, not an abstract balance
Keeping a balance can be sensible when you have a realistic use in mind. It is not a reason to pay a fee, take on debt or make extra purchases without a concrete redemption.
If protecting a real Miles & More balance is the job, compare the Blue and Gold cards by their regular fee and insurance rather than a temporary offer.
Compare current Miles & More cards
Core spending rules
- Use miles primarily for flights, where the programme can provide a useful alternative to a high cash fare.
- Treat merchandise and statement-credit redemptions as benchmarks, not automatic value.
- Check the cash price every time. A cheap cash ticket can be better than spending miles and surcharges.
- Do not transfer flexible points until the award is available to book and the programme rules have been checked.