Overview of all Lufthansa First Class Routes in 2023 & 2024

While Swiss offers a first class in all of its long-haul planes, the luxury class at Lufthansa is becoming increasingly rare. The German airline now offers first class only in three types of aircraft, while numerous Airbus A350, Boeing 747-400, and many others only offer three travel classes.

Unfortunately, Lufthansa does not provide a comprehensive overview of all first class routes. Therefore, we went through the flight schedule for you and identified all the routes where first class is still offered.

Aircraft with First Class

Currently, there are only three types of aircraft in which Lufthansa has installed a first class cabin. There are 8 seats in the first class of each of these aircraft:

• Airbus A380-800
  8 first class seats in the nose on the upper deck
• Boeing 747-8I
  8 first class seats in the nose on the lower deck (unfortunately, no longer on the upper deck)
• Airbus A340-600
  8 first class seats behind the cockpit

In all other aircraft (including Airbus A350, Airbus A330, Boeing 787, Boeing 747-400, etc.), there is currently no first class. However, there are plans to reintroduce the first class in some Airbus A350s when the new Allegris cabin arrives.

Destinations from Frankfurt/Main

The largest first class fleet is currently being deployed from Frankfurt/Main. Primarily, Boeing 747-8Is are used, but there are also some A340-600s stationed at Frankfurt:

Destination	Plane	Season	Booking
Bogota BOG Colombia	Airbus A340-600	all year	Price Calendar
Chicago ORD USA	Airbus A340-600 Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
New York JFK USA	Airbus A340-600	until Oct. 2023 from Apr. 2024	Price Calendar
New York EWR USA	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
Washington D.C. IAD USA	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
Houston IAH USA	Boeing 747-8I	until Oct. 2023 from Apr. 2024	Price Calendar
Miami MIA USA	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
Los Angeles LAX USA	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
San Francisco SFO USA	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
Mexico CityMEX Mexico	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
Hong Kong HKG	Airbus A340-600	all year	Price Calendar
Shanghai PVG China	Boeing 747-8I	from Oct. 2023	Price Calendar
Bangalore BLR India	Boeing 747-8I	until Oct. 2023 from Apr. 2024	Price Calendar
Singapore SIN Singapore	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
Tokyo HND Japan	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
Buenos Aires EZE Argentina	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
Sao Paulo GRU Brazil	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar
Johannesburg JNB South Africa	Boeing 747-8I	all year	Price Calendar

Some destinations are served seasonally. We have abbreviated this in the table, e.g. the summer flight schedule usually starts on March 31, but the table states “from April”.

Destinations from Munich

Various North American destinations are served from Munich with the Airbus A340-600. Additionally, the Airbus A380 is increasingly being used:

Destination	Plane	Season	Booking
Boston BOS USA	Airbus A380 (until Oct. 23) Airbus A340-600 (Nov. – Mar. 23) Airbus A380 (from Apr. 24)	all year	Price Calendar
Charlotte CLT USA	Airbus A340-600	until Oct. 2023	Price Calendar
Chicago ORD USA	Airbus A340-600	until Oct. 2023	Price Calendar
Miami MIA USA	Airbus A340-600	Nov. 23 until Mar. 24	Price Calendar
New York JFK USA	Airbus A380 (until Oct. 23) Airbus A340-600 (Nov. – Mar. 23) Airbus A380 (from Apr. 24)	all year	Price Calendar
New York EWR USA	Airbus A340-600	until Oct. 2023 from Apr. 2024	Price Calendar
Washington D.C. IAD USA	Airbus A380 (from June 24) Airbus A340-600 (all other dates)	until Oct. 2023 from Apr. 2024	Price Calendar
Los Angeles LAX USA	Airbus A380	from Oct. 2023	Price Calendar
Bangkok BKK Thailand	Airbus A380	Nov. 23 until Mar. 24	Price Calendar
Delhi DEL India	Airbus A380	from Apr. 2024	Price Calendar

Award Flight from 91,000 Miles (+ Surcharges)

The cheapest way to access the first class is by redeeming Miles&More miles. If you don’t have enough miles, you can currently buy them for prices starting at 1.1 cents per mile.

The cost of an award flight in Lufthansa’s first class with Miles&More depends on the destination region. Starting from Europe, the following prices apply for a one-way flight (round-trip is double the miles):

• USA: 91,000 award miles
• South Africa: 91,000 award miles
• India: 91,000 award miles (currently not bookable)
• Mexico: 101,000 award miles
• South America: 111,000 award miles
• Rest of Asia: 111,000 award miles
  (Thailand, China, Japan, Singapore)

In addition to these miles, you will need to pay taxes and fees. Starting from Europe, these are usually between €200 and €400, including Lufthansa’s high fuel surcharge.

Save on Taxes & Fees

The First Flex Plus award may also be worthwhile. With this option, you pay no fuel surcharge, but you need more miles. For instance, for a flight from Europe to New York, you have the following options:

• First Flex: 91,000 miles + €378
• First Flex Plus: 115,000 miles + €109

Here, you are paying an additional 24,000 miles but saving €269. This is worthwhile for anyone who values a mile at less than 1.12 cents. Starting from North America, the savings are often even greater.

There is another option: for one-way flights from Brazil, no surcharges apply either. Such a one-way flight in first class costs only 111,000 miles + R$55 (~€10):

Conclusion

During the pandemic, there was a time when only one type of aircraft (Boeing 747-8I) had a first class in the Lufthansa fleet. Now it looks much better, with many Airbus A340-600s and some A380s being reactivated. Accordingly, availability for award flights is currently relatively good.

However, this is not likely to last long, as the introduction of the new Allegris cabin comes with a significant reduction in first class capacity. We expect that first class prices will be raised further.