SAS switched from Star Alliance to SkyTeam on September 1, 2024, and there were plenty of status match opportunities from both Oneworld and Star Alliance. SAS also offered one that I also participated in.
Then SAS launched an unprecedented promotion in early October (read more here) that allowed EuroBonus members to earn up to 1,000,000 bonus miles if they fly om 15 SkyTeam airlines by the end of the year.
You can access SAS here.
John’s Note:
Unfortunately, I couldn’t participate in this offer, as my travel was pretty much set in stone for the Q4 using the Oneworld RTW ticket that I had issued early last year (read more here).
I, however, met one close friend from Estonia, Krister, in Soul when we were both in the same city, I was on the RTW ticket and he on his journey to EuroBonus millionaire.
I asked him to write up about this EuroBonus millionaire experience, and below is his report:
Pretext:
When I read at the beginning of October that SAS Scandinavian Airlines had launched a rare promotion offering members of its Eurobonus program the opportunity to earn 1,000,000 bonus points for flights with 15 different Skyteam airlines, I knew almost immediately that this was a “trap” I was willingly rushing into. I felt like I couldn’t say no.
There were three reasons: firstly, the amazement that an airline is still willing to organize such a grandiose and creative campaign in an era where the excitement and beauty of the game are quickly disappearing from the frequent flyer landscape, and everything seems to boil dully down to the price of tickets.
Perhaps the last comparable campaign was the Star Alliance launch campaign back in 1997 when just five flights with Star Alliance founding members (SAS, Lufthansa, Thai Airways, Air Canada, and United Airlines) could give participants a complimentary round-the-world flight ticket as a prize. But back at that time, I was too young and economically challenged to book SAS, Lufthansa, Thai Airways, Air Canada, and United Airlines tickets within a campaign timeframe.
The second reason was, of course, the possible prize of a million Eurobonus points: an impressive amount, which, if I should indeed receive them in my account at some point sometime in January 2025, will be enough for many premium class award trips with relatives and friends — provided that SAS Eurobonus does not immediately devalue the points and massively increase rates required.
And thirdly, I needed some reason to do what I like to do the most: to fly, to move from one city to another, to be on the road.
The core rules of the SAS Eurobonus Millionaire campaign were quite simple: fly with 5, 10, or 15 flights Skyteam companies (notably, not all Skyteam airlines participated in Eurobonus and thus in the campaign) between October 8 and December 31, and bonus points shall be credited to SAS Eurobonus account.
Participating airlines were Aerolineas Argentinas, Aeromexico, Air Europa, Air France, China Airlines, China Eastern, Delta, Garuda Indonesia, Kenya Airways, KLM, Korean, TAROM, SAS, Saudia, Virgin Atlantic, Vietnam Airlines, and Xiamen Airlines.
10,000 bonus points were promised for earning points — and in some instances also for redeeming SAS Eurobonus points with participating companies — with 5 airlines, 100,000 bonus points were offered for 10 airlines, and the main prize for flying 15 carriers was becoming a SAS Eurobonus “millionaire”.
Knowing beforehand that with several airlines, it was going to be possible to take short fifth-freedom flights without necessarily making very long intercontinental trips (for example, with Kenya Airways, one can buy a ticket between Bangkok and Guangzhou, China Eastern and China Airlines operate some fifth-freedom routes between Australia and New Zealand, Virgin Atlantic has a couple of short hops between the Caribbean islands, etc.) seemed to make the implementation of an ambitious plan more feasible.
A day before the SAS Eurobonus Millionaire campaign was launched, I had purchased Turkish Airlines mixed class flights from Stockholm to Mexico City (with a return double open jaw flight from Sao Paulo to Tallinn). This was done mostly in order to collect the necessary miles to maintain my Miles&Smiles Gold level and to position to Mexico City to fly one yet unflown Aeromexico business class segment from MEX to Sao Paulo, which I wanted to credit to the Delta Skymiles program.
The Entire Itinerary with Positioning Flights:
SkyTeam Flights & Lenghts:
SAS Eurobonus Postings:
AeroMexico
I had planned to spend two relaxed days between IST-MEX and MEX-GRU flights in Mexico City, but now it seemed reasonable to use that time to fly quickly one flight segment with Aeromexico inside Mexico and credit it to the SAS Eurobonus. My goal was to find the cheapest local flight possible, and a good candidate seemed to be Veracruz, which, as an additional bonus, was located by the sea.
I booked the flight MEX-VER for 40.50 EUR on Mytrip.com, being quite sure that I scored class V, which was supposed to give me 10% Eurobonus points (later, as stakes rose, I grew more cautious and booked several other flights with Expedia, where the used booking class information is thankfully always very clearly stated). Since the return flight from VER to MEX was not as pleasantly priced as MEX to VER, I used 10,000 Delta Skymiles for my return from VER to MEX. When you consider that some award flights in the Skymiles program sometimes cost more than half a million miles, 10,000 miles seemed really like a dime.
When I arrived in Mexico City with Turkish Airlines on the morning of October 19, and had had a cup of hot coffee and a nourishing burger meal, I headed to the Aeromexico check-in. There, the cruel truth was revealed: news that SAS had been a member of Skyteam since September 1 had not reached Mexico yet.
Neither the check-in machine nor the drop-down menu of the Aeromexico website provided the possibility to add the SAS Eurobonus card number to the PNR. Interestingly, it would have been allowed to add the card number of the Aeroflot Bonus program of Aeroflot Russian Airlines, which was expelled from the Skyteam alliance in April 2022.
The first two Aeromexico employees at the ticketing desk also failed to add the SAS Eurobonus number to my reservation. They treated the situation with fatalistic apathy and indifference, which destroyed a significant amount of my remaining nerve cells. Of course, I could have opted for the retroactive crediting of points, but I definitely wanted to take advantage of the free baggage allowance that comes with SAS Eurobonus Gold (Skyteam Elite Plus) status and avoid the luggage fee, which would have been significantly more expensive than the Aeromexico one way ticket itself.
Fortunately, the third Aeromexico employee knew a secret technique unknown to the first two and could push the SAS Eurobonus card number into the reservation and onto the boarding pass. I was able to check my suitcase without a fee, but that was the end of the freebies: Skyteam Elite Plus does not usually grant access to the business class lounge on purely domestic flights and — unlike the Delta SkyMiles Platinum status did on my return flight –, SAS Eurobonus Gold was not enough for the upgrade to business class either. But all in all, the short flight was pleasant, the aircraft was clean, and the crew professional, and a few days later, 29 miles arrived in my Eurobonus account for the MEX-VER segment.
The destination was interestingly initially marked as “Undefined” in the Eurobonus statement, and in retrospect,t it can be said that Veracruz is a bit “undefined”; a city I probably am not too eager to return any time soon. Apart from looking at the gray-green and windy sea and eating tacos in a small family restaurant, I couldn’t really do anything there. But Veracruz wasn’t screamingly unpleasant either, although there might be reasons why it’s possible to travel there from Mexico City for only 40.50 EUR, while outbound flights are much more expensive.
TAROM, Air Europa, Delta & Virgin Atlantic
I started my next Skyteam flights on 21. November from Bucharest, from where I had bought a TAROM and Air Europa joint ticket via Madrid to Barcelona for 217.33 EUR, from where I had almost immediate turnaround with a separate dirt cheap Air Europa ticket to (price 43 EUR) to Madrid, from where I planned next morning to fly with American Airlines to New York and onward to Washington DC (mixed business and first class, 45000 Alaska Airlines miles), from where I planned to take Delta Airlines flight back to Laguardia (Comfort class, 153.10 USD), from where I was supposed to fly day later via Boston to London Heathrow with Delta and Virgin Atlantic (O class, 299 EUR).
TAROM
The RO flight from Bucharest to Madrid was operated instead of TAROM as a wet lease by an even lesser-known Romanian airline. Their cabin crew wore proud uniforms with fancy hats, while the plane looked old and possessed the joyless atmosphere of a decaying castle.
As an added disappointment, I discovered that according to TAROM’s service concept,, every product in their economy class was chargeable (even water!). If a person pays more than 200 euros for a one-way ticket inside Europe, is a glass of free water too much to ask for on a four-hour flight?
Turbulence shook the worn-out airframe for most of the way to Madrid, and the mood on the plane was very quiet and penitential, but I was more worried about how the points would be credited for this flight. It was, however, no big deal – they arrived in my account a few days later. Thank you for that, TAROM!
Air Europa
In Madrid, I transferred to an Air Europa (UX) flight to Barcelona, which was operated by a roomy Boeing 787, as Air Europa often does on the route between two big Spanish metropols. As I arrived from an international TAROM flight, it was also no problem to enter the Air Europa lounge before the MAD-BCN segment, where a selection of tasty tapas-style snacks and a large number of open alcohol bottles were waiting.
In fact, I managed to get into the even nicer Sala Pau Casals business class lounge later in Barcelona by presenting my morning TAROM “international” ticket, even though I flew back to Madrid with a separate Air Europa P-class economy class ticket.
The employee of Air Europa did not hide the opinion that such backtracking routing is quite crazy, which, of course, is in a sense true. However, points for Air Europa MAD-BCN-MAD flights were not automatically credited. It was possible to retroclaim points for a TAROM-issued ticket 8 days later, but for a ticket issued on Air Europa’s own ticket stock there were more fundamental errors, and the claim was only successful after Christmas. Eventually, however, I got my 2×45 points. Thank you for that, Air Europa!
Delta
As a long-time Delta Airlines elite, I was somehow pretty sure that I would also be able to get an upgrade to first class on the Delta´s DCA-LGA flight with the SAS Eurobonus Gold card, especially given that from DCA to LGA I had already purchased a highish Comfort Class ticket.
The Delta Airlines website states that the elites of the partner companies can be listed for an upgrade on the day of the flight: “Partner airline elite members will be eligible for day-of-departure upgrades only, with the exception of Aeromexico Club Premier members, whose upgrades can clear in advance or on the day-of-departure.”
In practice, I did, however, not get an upgrade with my SAS Eurobonus Gold card either on the DCA-LGA or LGA-BOS segments (the latter was booked as a feeder flight of Virgin Atlantic BOS-LHR segment): Delta´s website simply stated that I was ineligible for upgrade. Entering the Skyclub lounge of Delta Airlines at Laguardia airport also took about a quarter of an hour because the lounge staff did not seem to be familiar with Delta’s own rules: “SkyTeam Elite Plus customers (excluding Delta Medallion Members) traveling in any cabin on a SkyTeam international flight or a SkyTeam domestic flight connecting to/from a same-day international flight /—/ will receive Delta Sky Club access with up to one guest.”
It was definitely worth a little fight with the “lounge dragon” guarding the entrance, however, because the food in the Delta lounges — a wide selection of excellent hot and cold dishes — is surprisingly good, and the atmosphere is relaxed and spacious. I would say those new Delta Skyclubs are exceeding hub lounges of many European airlines these days.
There was no service on the Delta Connection LGA-BOS flight, and I don’t think anything was offered: the “short flight time” was to blame, of course.
Virgin Atlantic
After a very pleasant supper at the Delta Skyclub in Boston, it was time to board the Virgin Atlantic oldish Airbus 330, which was to take me from BOS to LHR. VS was one of the first airlines I flew transatlantic during the 90s and of which I have delightful memories, but I’m not sure if I am too much of a fan of the VS these days: the cabin had eye-straining reddish lighting and an upbeat energy and bloated atmosphere not unlike a hipster pub. I was very tired by then and luckily managed to sleep through most of the six-hour transatlantic crossing despite the economy class seat being very uncomfortable.
SAS
And I don’t even remember the SAS flights that followed immediately in the morning from London Heathrow to Stockholm and from there to Helsinki (137.91 EUR). However, the points were credited, and that was the main thing.
Air France
Three days later, I repositioned at Helsinki airport late at night and departed from there very early in the morning with Air France via CDG to Tunis (230.97 EUR), from where I had bought a really attractively priced Saudia business class ticket via Jeddah to Bangkok (847 EUR): a nice fare that has been available for many years.
I managed again to sleep off most of the Air France HEL-CDG-TUN flights thanks to the complimentary red wine Air France still kindly offered, even in economy. Overnighting in Tunis can also be seen as a pleasant affair (mild climate in winter, very reasonably priced hotels, andthe possibility to buy life´s worth of harissa paste and molokhia for just a few pennies) if the chaotic airport atmosphere, long lines, and somewhat predatory taxi drivers don’t become too much of a problem.
Saudia
I must admit that I truly love certain aspects of Saudia’s business customer service (Alfursan Lounge in Jeddah has a very modern feel, pre-departure date smoothies onboard are to my liking, Saudi coffee is excellent, seats quite comfortable also for plus size travelers, and meals tasty, albeit rather fatty and high-carb.
Those meals, unfortunately, also take forever to be served, and this eats up a lot of precious sleep time: on a JED-BKK segment, I got my dinner two hours after takeoff).
Kenya Airways
From Bangkok, after a break of less than 24 hours, I took off with Kenya Airways to Guangzhou (N class, 177.51 EUR): Air France lounge, a couple of hours delayed departure (for which no one apologized), rather inedible chicken pie snack and a grumpy older female flight attendant who seemed to hate with a passion every kilometer that took her away from Nairobi.
At the same time, I am grateful that the flight took place on the right day. If the Kenya Airways flight had been canceled, for example, it would have left me in a difficult situation because I needed one of their flights for the campaign, and secondly, I needed to continue my journey from Ho Chi Minh the very next day. Flight cancellations or flight delays could have easily started to collapse everything like a house of cards.
In Guangzhou, I had booked a stay at the lovely Kaiserdom Airport Hotel (CNY 141.10 or EUR 19), which somehow managed to include round-trip airport transfers with a private car into this miniature price and a complimentary breakfast.
Vietnam Airlines
The Vietnam Airlines flight CAN-SGN (K class, 289 USD with the SGN-SYD segment selected for a later date) was also enjoyable, largely thanks to being able to access the China Southern lounge, where I enjoyed a few glasses of tasty Great Wall (2015) red.
The situation with lounges was more complicated in Ho Chi Minh, where the lady handling China Airlines check-in issued me an invitation to the Lotus Lounge of Vietnam Airlines, but a few minutes ran after me across the airport like a greyhound chasing a rabbit and fervently asked to have a invitation back.
Allegedly someone had left some sort of contracts unsigned, which is why the SAS Eurobonus gold card holders flying with China Airlines could not use the Vietnam Airlines lounge. She was sorry about it, as was I.
China Airlines
The China Airlines flight from Ho Chi Minh to Taipei (N class, 161 USD) was quite on time, the cabin was clean, and the atmosphere was very orderly, even strict — I remembered numerous warnings about fines and prison sentences for various possible violations.
My main complaint is that, like Air Europa, the points for the CI flight were not credited to the Eurobonus account without a retroactive claim.
Korean Air
Korean Airlines segment from TPE to ICN just a few hours later (200.03 EUR) however was quite unusually pleasant. The purser made a surprise visit to Economy class to personally (and by name) greet me as a valuable SAS Gold Card holder, and the food was also way above the usual level. Essentially a five star flight!
Xiamen Airlines
I also enjoyed my Xiamen Airlines flights from Munich via Xiamen to Kuala Lumpur (Business Class, USD 445.70). Xiamen Airlines’ catering is impressive (dried mushrooms are used as a snack!), although Wi-Fi and entertainment are completely lacking.
Xiamen airport is also very old-fashioned, but at the same time, on a human scale, and a certain retro feel was a plus for me. And the MF lounge offered several exciting foods to discover.
Garuda Indonesia & KLM
After Batik Air’s positioning flight from Kuala Lumpur to Bali, I took the Garuda flight from DPS to CGK (124.45 EUR, Y class), from where I flew on with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines to Kuala Lumpur (37.93 EUR) just a few hours later. It felt somewhat unreal that this KLM ultracheap R-class ticket included, thanks to the Skyteam Elite Plus status, access to the Premium Plaza lounge at Jakarta airport, which would otherwise alone have cost nearly half a hundred euros.
Also, due to the flight being oversold, KLM upgraded me to Premium Comfort class at the gate, which was undoubtedly a pleasant start to pass the approximately one and a half hour long flight.
To be fair, it must be said that the hot fish dish offered in Premium Comfort felt too sea-smelling for me to enjoy. However, the appetizer was pleasant, the crew was energetic (as always with KLM) ,and you could have had more than one bottle of wine (as some fellow passengers demonstrated).
China Eastern
After a few hours of sleep, it was time to head back to Kuala Lumpur airport and fly Batik Air to Bangkok. I had booked a ticket in business class, which was only some euros more expensive than economy class, and I was very happy with my decision because the flight KUL-DMK turned out to be significantly delayed due to the captain’s sudden illness. The business class passengers were escorted to the lounge for the waiting period until the backup captain arrived, while the economy class seemed to be largely left exposed to fate.
Once in Bangkok, I rested and worked at the hotel for a few hours and then flew from Suvarnabhumi airport on a China Eastern night flight to Shanghai and from there to London Heathrow (270.72 EUR incl 30 kgs of luggage).
I was extremely tired by then, and memories are somewhat fleeting, but China Eastern’s business class lounge in the Shanghai satellite terminal felt very modern sparkling clean, and the steaming noodles offered there were tasty and nourishing. The PVG-LHR flight (directly over Russia) was uneventful and food (mainly pork with rice or beef with noodles or vice versa) made up in quantity what it lacked in taste. The plane landed in London almost on time. It was almost a joy to be almost back home.
Krister’s Summary:
I spent about 3635 euros on tickets on 16 different Skyteam airlines and 23 flight segments (four segments of them in medium or long-haul business class). In total, I flew with Skyteam more than 27000 actual miles.
Additionally, I spent about 2235 euros (45000 Alaska Airlines miles and 35000 Delta SkyMiles on three separate awards) (mostly economy, but 8 segments in business or first class).
The costs of positioning seem high, but I included the Turkish Airlines expensive flights Stockholm-Istanbul-Mexico City /—/ Sao Paulo-Istanbul- Tallinn in mixed cabins, which made it possible for me to requalify for the Turkish Miles&Smiles Gold — and also casually to fly one Aeromexico segment from Mexico City to Veracruz.
Together with the hotel costs (I admit that I spent extremely conservatively for day rooms and overnight stays), the total cost of the project and almost four weeks’ worth of nonstop traveling from Europe to South America, North America, and Asia was, therefore, around 7000 euros.
Was that reasonable?
The answer depends a bit on whether I will actually receive the million points in January (and how inflated are going to be amounts of points required for the award flights), but on December 19, I received a hopeful e-mail from SAS: ” It’s with great pleasure that we would like to inform that you have successfully completed our EuroBonus Millionaire challenge and will earn one million EuroBonus points! We’re thrilled to celebrate your incredible journey and this exciting milestone.”
What is the downside of the venture? Including positioning flights, I did fly over 53,691 actual miles (that´s about 86000 kilometers) in less than 2 months, much of it in economy class.
It somewhat affects the body, especially when you are about to turn 50 soon. I slept for over 12 hours after returning from my last trip to Asia, and my left knee, back, and my neck are still sore.
Still, I have no regrets. It was one of life’s great adventures, and if I can add a million points to it, I’ve made a return on my investment.
John’s Conclusion
What a journey and adventure! I am sure that the readers have somewhat similar experiences with this once-in-a-lifetime (ours or the airline’s) promotion.
I really looked hard at this offer to see if I could get it to work, but eventually decided not to because it would have meant entirely pushing the RTW to early 2025.
My cost estimate for the flights would have been roughly in the same range as Krister’s. I don’t see how you could do this for less than 6K to 10K euros when all positioning and other flights are factored in with some accommodation and other expenses thrown in.
I have previously declared that I refuse to do pure mileage or status runs anymore, but I am more than willing to book airlines, routes, and destinations when factoring and considering the elite miles/tier points, and award miles earned.
