South Korea is one of the best countries in the world to visit using travel rewards, thanks to its many options for getting there using points and miles — especially from the U.S. Whether you’re looking to spend Korean Air Skypass miles or cash in on your Alaska Airlines miles, you have plenty of options for an amazing trip.
With phenomenal food and drinks, powerful art and pop-culture scenes, bustling modern cities, well-preserved traditional villages, and beautiful natural landscapes, this safe, welcoming destination has something special for travelers of all stripes.
Here’s exactly what you need to know to fly to South Korea with points and miles.
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How many miles or points do I need to fly to South Korea?
The amount of travel rewards you’ll need depends on several factors, such as your travel dates, preferred fare class, how many stops you’re willing to make, and what program you’re using to redeem miles. As a rough estimate, though, you can expect to pay 50,000 or more points one way in economy and 80,000 or more in business class.
When should I book flights to South Korea?
Generally, you should book flights to South Korea as soon as seats are released for ample award availability, especially if you’re hoping to fly business class — demand is extremely high to and from Asia, and Seoul-Incheon is a major hub in the region, so you’ll only find the better deals 355 to 360 days out.
Of course, our recommendations vary depending on your carrier of choice. For example, Delta typically has consistent award pricing throughout the year, which is good, but that pricing is astronomical — think: 300,000-plus SkyMiles one-way per person. Meanwhile, United is generally known for releasing seats at lower redemption rates closer to departure (although due to flight loads, this isn’t as reliable as it used to be).
To make sure you don’t miss out on the best fares, take a look at when airlines release their award seats, set an alert on your calendar, and be ready to jump when you see a deal you like.
Which airlines and alliances fly to South Korea?
You’ll find direct flights from the U.S. on carriers including:
- American Airlines
- Asiana Airlines
- Delta Air Lines
- Hawaiian Airlines
- Korean Air
- United Airlines
Most airlines that fly between the U.S. and South Korea are part of alliances that offer benefits to customers on either side of the world. These include partner airlines.
SkyTeam
Delta Air Lines and Korean Air are both members of SkyTeam, a joint venture that offers nonstop service between the U.S. and South Korea. The two airlines also operate together at Seoul’s Incheon International Airport (ICN).
Star Alliance
Asiana Airlines is a member of Star Alliance, which offers benefits such as lounge services, award upgrades, and mileage accrual. United is a founding member of Star Alliance, and the two airlines offer reciprocal benefits.
What are the best frequent flyer programs for travel to South Korea with points and miles?
Not all loyalty programs were created equal. These are our favorite ways to travel to South Korea on points and miles.
Delta SkyMiles
Although Delta’s loyalty program doesn’t use an award chart, searching for award availability with SkyMiles is pretty simple.
Award availability can vary widely depending on travel dates and cabin, but you’ll generally spend fewer miles when you book your ticket months in advance. For instance, a round-trip nonstop flight from Seattle to Seoul currently starts at just 120,000 SkyMiles for travel in spring 2025 (and it’s even cheaper if you have a Delta SkyMiles credit card).
Spending just 12,000 additional miles gets you into a Comfort+ seat — an excellent deal for international Comfort+, as you’ll get extra legroom, dedicated overhead bin space, complimentary beer, wine, spirits, premium snacks, and an amenity kit.
Delta SkyMiles is a fantastic option for booking economy-class or Comfort+ tickets to South Korea. However, we don’t recommend booking business class tickets to Asia using SkyMiles due to the high redemption rate, especially during peak season.
Still, earning Delta SkyMiles is pretty easy, especially for economy class and Comfort+ tickets. The program is a transfer partner of American Express Membership Rewards, and you can also open a Delta SkyMiles Amex card and earn a massive welcome bonus — aka a big chunk of points after you spend a minimum amount — that way.
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
We like the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club loyalty program due to its extremely affordable SkyTeam awards. Flying Korean Air in economy class, for instance, you can find a round-trip ticket from Los Angeles to Seoul for just 62,000 points.
That’s nearly half of what you’d pay if you booked with Delta SkyMiles.
Of all the travel rewards out there, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points are perhaps the easiest to earn. The loyalty program is a transfer partner of Chase Ultimate Rewards, Capital One Miles, American Express Membership Rewards, Marriott Bonvoy, Citi ThankYou Rewards, and Bilt Rewards.
ANA Mileage Club
All Nippon Airways (aka ANA) is another favorite way to book award flights to South Korea with points. That’s because ANA Mileage Club has a pretty simple partner award chart based on “zone” pricing, meaning you’ll pay a fixed price when traveling between zones.
For ANA Mileage Club miles, South Korea is in Zone 2, while North America is in Zone 6. That means you can score Star Alliance flights for just 60,000 miles round-trip in economy from U.S. cities like New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.
That said, the program underwent a devaluation in April, in which award prices for business- and first-class flights significantly increased. ANA also tends to pass on extremely steep surcharges (both taxes and fees) for award flights.
ANA Mileage Club has two transfer partners: American Express Membership Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy. Amex points transfer to ANA at a 1:1 ratio, while Marriott Bonvoy points transfer at a ratio of 3:1.
United MileagePlan
Our last program is United MileagePlan. Like Delta, United doesn’t utilize an award chart; instead, it opts for dynamic pricing. This means award tickets can be cheaper or more expensive depending on demand and other factors, though one-way flights in economy generally start around 55,000 MileagePlan miles.
A Polaris business class award is considerably more expensive — those can cost 200,000 miles each way.
United miles are easy to earn with United credit cards or by transferring your Chase Ultimate Rewards points.
Which Korean destinations are best for travel from the U.S. on points?
If you’re flying to South Korea with points or miles, you’re probably heading to Seoul. The South Korean capital has two major international airports, Incheon (ICN) and Gimpo (GMP).
Gimpo is closer to central Seoul, links to the city by train, and tends to be less crowded, but flights may be more expensive. Incheon has more options and often cheaper fares, but you’ll need to take a bus or cab into the city, so that’s an added cost, both time- and money-wise.
Busan and Jeju Island are also popular with travelers and serviced by international airports.
What are the best stopover destinations between the U.S. and Korea?
The best stopover destinations between the U.S. and South Korea are:
- Singapore: via Singapore Airlines
- Tokyo: via Delta or ANA
- Honolulu: via Hawaiian Airlines
- Taipei: via EVA Air
Additionally, you could look for award flights from a major U.S. gateway like Los Angeles, San Francisco, or Honolulu and then book a separate flight to one of those cities, building a few days in between.
Finding an award flight to South Korea with point.me
Don’t feel like clicking around on multiple platforms to sniff out the best deals? Our cutting-edge approach to points curation gathers them all in one place. Here’s how to find and book an award flight to South Korea using point.me.
First, head to our homepage and enter your details, including departure and arrival cities, travel dates, and preferred class of seat.
The next page will show your results. You can sort by our picks, the quickest flights, or from low points to high. You can also filter by airlines, times, and loyalty programs.
You’ll see how many points are required on the right-hand side of the screen. If there are any transfer bonuses, you’ll see those noted.
Select your outbound and return flight.
On the final page, you’ll see options to book your flight. You can either do it yourself, or we can handle it for you. And that’s that!
Frequently asked questions about flying to South Korea on points and miles
How do I get to South Korea using points or miles?
You can get to South Korea using points and miles in numerous ways. If you already have points with an airline, you can use those to book directly. If you have transferable credit card points, like Amex Membership Rewards or Chase Ultimate Rewards, you can either book through the credit card portal or transfer points to one of their airline partners and then book directly through the airline.
Can I transfer Chase points to Korean Air?
No, you can’t transfer Chase points to Korean Air. However, you can transfer Chase points to Marriott Bonvoy and then transfer them to Korean Air at a 3:1 ratio.
Can I use Delta SkyMiles for Korean Air flights?
Yes, you can use Delta SkyMiles for flights on Korean Air. Both airlines are partners in the SkyTeam alliance and have reciprocal benefits agreements.
What month is the cheapest to fly to South Korea?
It depends on the exact route you’re taking, among other factors, but you’ll typically find some of the cheapest fares to South Korea between January and April.
How many points or miles do I need for a free flight to South Korea?
The amount of miles or points you need for a free flight to South Korea depends on several factors. However, some programs, like ANA Mileage Club, offer one-way flights starting at 30,000 miles.
Which credit cards are best for travel to South Korea with points?
The best credit cards for travel to South Korea with points include the Amex Platinum, Chase Sapphire Reserve, and Capital One Venture X card. These cards are transferrable rewards cards, and points or miles earned on these cards can be transferred to major airline programs like Aeroplan, Delta, or United.
Do I still get miles if I book my flight to South Korea with points?
No, you won’t get miles if you book with points.
Getting started on point.me
Rather than sifting through 10 different websites and 20 different airline programs to figure out award travel, point.me does the work for you. All you need is your dates, your airports, and who’s traveling and where, and our real-time search and booking engine handles the rest.
Try it for free today.
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