Star Alliance members Lufthansa and SWISS have come up with quite a good offer for business class flights between Milan and the USA during the 2021/2022 winter. With a stop in Frankfurt, Munich or Zurich, you can reach New York for as little as €1,365 and Los Angeles €1,457.
While touristic travel to the USA should be possible again from November 2021 onwards for fully vaccinated Europeans, we still want to notify you that these tickets are not refundable. All that Lufthansa and Swiss offer is a date change without a rebooking fee. You’d still have to pay the price difference.
Our availability calendar shows you all possible roundtrips at the lowest fare for trips up to 28 days. It will forward you to lufthansa.com, where you can buy the tickets.
Your itinerary typically consists of four flights – two short flights within Europe in a short haul business configuration and two long haul flights in the airlines’ best business class products:
Generally, Travel-Dealz writers and readers are not big fans of the Lufthansa business class, even though it is definitely not bad. One reason for that is that the service is too inconsistent: From extremely friendly and quick to unfriendly and slow – everything is possible with Lufthansa, even in business class. Regarding the seats, they are mostly fine, though not really on-par with the competition anymore. That’s why the airline is now slowly installing their new Allegris seats.
With SWISS, it very much depends on the specific seat, as SWISS has a throne seat in every row. While the double seats share a platform in the middle, the throne seat has its own platform on each side, which you won’t have to share with anyone. Those seats thus offer privacy and comfort to an extent that the other seats cannot compete with. Therefore, you may be disappointed if you don’t get one of the throne seats, even if the other seats obviously also have a very high standard. In the future, SWISS will have a new business class, called “Swiss Senses”, which is basically Lufthansa’s Allegris cabin, but in red.
Search & Book
Tickets are on sale until October 10, 2021 for travel between October 29, 2021, and April 9, 2022. The minimum stay requirement is 3 days (or a night from Saturday to Sunday). Furthermore, your stay cannot exceed 3 months.
Google Flights will show additional flight dates. While online travel agencies may offer cheaper tickets, we recommend booking directly with the airlines.
Why is booking with an airline better than with an online travel agency?
More often than not, online travel agencies offer lower fares than airlines do. We still recommend booking with the airlines directly. There are two main reasons for that:
Better Customer Service
In case any problems like delays, cancellations or missed connections arise, you can communicate directly with the airline. The airline has to take care of you because you have a contract with them.
If a travel agency issues your ticket, you may have to reach out to them first. You also depend on your OTA to forward information like flight changes instead of receiving them directly from the airline. In many cases, you may get a prime exhibition of responsibility shifting rather than problem-solving.
This especially applies to premium tickets. You don’t want to spend more than €1,000 to wind up with some budget OTA’s telephone hotline in case anything goes wrong.
Baggage and Other Fees
Economy fares not including hold luggage are industry standard by now. In most cases, travel agencies charge much higher baggage fees than the airlines themselves. If bags are not included in your fare, airlines are often the cheaper alternative.
This also applies to other things like food services, insurances or priority treatment. In almost all cases, you pay less for additional amenities when booking on the airlines’ website.
Mileage
Both carriers issue tickets for all flight segments in booking class P. A trip to Los Angeles with Lufthansa via Frankfurt leads to the following accrual:
- 15,480 Miles on ITA Volare
- 15,240 Miles on Singapore KrisFlyer
- 13,084 Award Miles + 480 Points on Miles&More
- 12,192 Award Miles + 2,438 PQP on United MileagePlus
- 12,192 Miles on Copa ConnectMiles
- 12,192 Miles on Thai Royal Orchid Plus
- 12,192 Award Miles on LATAM Pass
- 11,888 Miles on Air Canada Aeroplan
- 11,888 Points + 2,376 SQC on Air Canada Aeroplan 2026
- 8,534 Miles on ANA Mileage Club
- Customize Calculation
While a flight with SWISS and a stop in Zurich is credited like this:
- 15,810 Miles on ITA Volare
- 15,128 Miles on Singapore KrisFlyer
- 13,448 Miles on Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles
- 13,348 Award Miles + 480 Points on Miles&More
- 12,848 Miles on Aegean Miles+Bonus
- 12,102 Award Miles + 2,420 PQP on United MileagePlus
- 12,102 Miles on Asiana Club
- 12,102 Award Miles + 6,052 Tier Miles on Avianca LifeMiles
- 12,102 Miles on Copa ConnectMiles
- 12,102 Miles on Ethiopian ShebaMiles
- 12,102 Miles on EVA Infinity MileageLands
- 12,102 Miles on TAP Miles&Go
- 12,102 Miles on Thai Royal Orchid Plus
- 12,102 Miles on Egyptair Plus
- 11,976 Miles on Air Canada Aeroplan
- 11,976 Points + 2,396 SQC on Air Canada Aeroplan 2026
- 8,472 Miles on ANA Mileage Club
- 254 Award Miles on LATAM Pass
- Customize Calculation
Information & Tips for USA
The United States offers a wide range of tourist sights, from national parks like Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon to cities such as New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C. The currency is the U.S. dollar (USD), and card payments are widely accepted. Prices vary by region but can be high in major cities, especially for accommodation and dining. Weather differs greatly across the country—winters can be harsh in the north, while the south often stays mild; summers are generally hot and humid in many areas.
The U.S. transport infrastructure is highly car-dependent, especially outside major cities. Urban centres like New York, Chicago, and San Francisco have functional public transit, but many other cities have limited options. Between cities, domestic flights are common for long distances, while intercity buses and Amtrak trains cover some routes, though often with slower speeds and less frequency compared to other countries. Without a car, getting around can be inconvenient in many parts of the country.
We’ve compared various esim providers, such as Knowroaming and Ubigi. To see which plan is best for your travel needs and which network offers the best coverage, feel free to read our detailed guide:
The Best eSIM Plans for the USA 🇺🇸 Compared
→ All Dealz for USA