A traveler uses a self-service kiosk at the Delta Airlines check-in area at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) on Thursday, July 2, 2026, in San Francisco, California, USA.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Airline ticket prices have skyrocketed this year, especially when traveling during holidays. Don’t expect too much of a bargain when using miles to book flights.
Tickets purchased with frequent flyer miles for flights between large U.S. airports during the Thanksgiving travel period cost 32% more than last year’s holiday, according to data from Seats.aero, a miles and points exchange search site. Despite higher fares this year, airline executives said last month that demand remains strong.
Airlines are largely doing away with static mileage redemption tables in favor of dynamic pricing, making it more difficult to budget for award tickets. Dynamic pricing means that redemption costs change depending on demand, route, and other factors.
Many of the most expensive routes this Thanksgiving are naturally long-haul, such as from Hawaii, but the list also includes nonstop flights from New York to Houston.
Here’s how holiday mileage redemptions stack up compared to last year, based on average one-way tickets as of early November.
Jet fuel prices have soared since the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, putting pressure on airline profits. Telecommunications carriers have sought to pass on costs to consumers as much as possible.
Some of the cheapest routes for award tickets have gone up in price since last year, including short-haul routes like Tulsa, Oklahoma, to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
Here’s a look at the cheapest routes on average for award travel and how they compare to last year’s Thanksgiving holiday.
