With Japan being such a popular travel destination, there is no shortage of miles and points enthusiasts who are looking to book business class and first class flights to cross the Pacific. We’ve previously looked at how to book Japan Airlines business class using miles and points, so it is only logical to review another great option to get to/from Japan, All Nippon Airways (ANA) business class.
Let’s take a look at everything you need to know about ANA business class and how you can use your hard-earned miles and points to book this experience for your next Japan vacation.
The ANA Business Class Experience
The ANA business class experience differs depending on whether you are flying their classic ANA business class or their new “The Room” business class. Regardless of the configuration you are flying on, you can expect aisle access for all seats, a lie-flat bed, and excellent food and drink.
ANA Business Class Seat Map
If you are flying on the old ANA business class, there are 13 rows of business class seats spread amongst two cabins.
The seats are arranged in a 1-2-1 and 1-1-1 setup, alternating between rows. The best seats are either the A or K window seats or the F throne seats in the middle. Couples may enjoy the middle seats, but it would be tough to converse since the storage area separates the two seats. When flying with my significant other, we both select A/K window seats since it is optimal that the storage area separates your seat from the aisle, providing more room and privacy.
Alternatively, if you find yourself on a flight equipped with “The Room”, there are 16 rows of business class seats spread amongst three cabins.
“The Room” business class cabin is configured in a more standard 1-2-1 format, nearly identical to Qatar Airways QSuites. Couples may prefer seats E/F, but there isn’t a bad seat to be had in this configuration. Note that seats A/E/F/K all face backward, but this isn’t noticeable outside of takeoff and landing.
ANA Business Class Seat
ANA’s older business class has started to show its age compared to other business class products on the market, but it is still a comfortable option to cross the Pacific.
“The Room” business class is a major upgrade, complete with more modern furnishings, a significantly larger entertainment console, and other quality-of-life upgrades to make ANA’s business class product more competitive with other premium carriers. All seats also include a privacy door which is a feature I adore.
Food & Beverage
Food and beverage options are similar in both configurations, with business class passengers being offered either a Japanese or international option for their meal.
There is an extensive beverage list comprised of various spirits, beer, wine, and non-alcoholic choices. ANA also offers an anytime snack meal, so if you were craving ramen on an airplane, this is the menu you want to take advantage of.
Amenity Kit
All ANA long-haul business class passengers will receive an amenity kit with all the essentials, such as a sleeping mask, ear plugs, and other miscellaneous items to make your flight more comfortable.
ANA Business Class Routes
ANA mainly serves the United States, so you will most likely need to consider a positioning flight if you are interested in booking ANA business class. There is one route that departs from Vancouver, so that can be a good option if you are in Western Canada.
Outside of Vancouver, if you are flying from the West Coast, you can depart from San Francisco (SFO), Los Angeles (LAX), or Seattle (SEA). If you are flying from the East Coast, you can look to depart from Chicago (ORD), Washington (IAD), New York (JFK), or Houston (IAH).
If you are focused on online flying ANA’s “The Room”, they seem to be slightly inconsistent with what routes are serviced by that aircraft configuration but I have seen SFO and ORD departures with it quite often.
If you find availability and want to figure it out, look for routes that are serviced by a Boeing 777-300er aircraft. “The Room” also has business class from rows 5-20 and a total of 64 seats, so check the seat map as well to confirm. Note that equipment swaps can and do happen, so even if you book a flight with “The Room” configuration, changes can occur up until your flight.
Booking ANA Business Class with Points
When it comes to the best ways to book ANA business class with points for Canadians, I’ve focused on three main frequent flyer programs: Air Canada Aeroplan, ANA Mileage Club, and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
There are a few other frequent flyer programs that can be used to book ANA business class as well, including Singapore Airlines Krisflyer, Asiana Club, Avianca Lifemiles, and United MileagePlus. However, these programs are typically less accessible to Canadians, so I haven’t included them below.
Booking ANA Business Class with Air Canada Aeroplan
Air Canada Aeroplan is the most obvious and logical booking choice for Canadians who want to fly ANA business class. There is one caveat at the moment, which is that ANA award availability is not currently showing up within the Aeroplan search engine. This means that you will need to search for availability elsewhere, and then call Aeroplan (1-888-247-2262) to have an agent make the booking on your behalf.
The best options for searching for availability are another Star Alliance frequent flyer program search engine, such as United Airlines award search, or an award search tool, such as Seats.aero. Seats.aero does offer an ANA First Class finder tool that can also be used to quickly locate any ANA business class availability here.
When redeeming for ANA business class flights through Air Canada Aeroplan, members can expect to pay 75,000 points per person per direction from North America to Japan, and vice versa. If booking a round trip flight on ANA business class, the cost is doubled for 150,000 points per person.
The only exception to this pricing is that if you can find availability from Vancouver to Tokyo (or the return), it will price at 55,000 points per person as it falls within a shorter distance band.
The Best Way to Earn Air Canada Aeroplan Points
Air Canada Aeroplan points are one of the easiest currencies for Canadians to earn, thanks to the number of co-branded Aeroplan credit cards available, such as the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite card. CIBC and American Express also offer co-branded cards, and all three issuers have premium Aeroplan credit cards that come with perks such as complimentary Maple Leaf Lounge access.
The TD® Aeroplan® Visa Infinite* card earns Aeroplan points and offers cardholders various benefits including a free first checked bag on Air Canada and a $100 NEXUS membership credit.
40,000 Aeroplan
$12,000
$840+
$139 (FYF)
Yes
Jan 6, 2025
The other best way to earn Air Canada Aeroplan points is by transferring Membership Rewards points earned on American Express credit cards. These points transfer almost instantly and at a rate of 1:1, making it one of the best uses for your Membership Rewards points.
The Frugal Flyer team loves the American Express Cobalt card for this purpose as it earns 5x Membership Reward points on groceries and restaurants, meaning you are effectively earning 5 Aeroplan points per dollar spent on these categories.
The American Express Cobalt card earns Membership Rewards points and gives cardholders the opportunity to earn 5x Membership Rewards on eligible restaurant, food delivery, and grocery store purchases.
In 2024, we selected this card to receive the award Best Credit Card for Grocery Purchases.
Check out our American Express Cobalt card review for more details.
15,000 Membership Rewards
$9,000
$174+
$156
Yes
–
Booking ANA Business Class with ANA Mileage Club
While their miles are harder to earn, booking ANA business class with ANA Mileage Club Miles is the most straightforward process out of all frequent flyer programs on this list. Members can search online with ANA Mileage Club to find availability and are able to book their award tickets online with ease.
Award ticket prices do fluctuate based on high-season and low-season demand. Members can expect to pay a minimum of 75,000 miles per person for a round trip from anywhere in North America to Japan, and a maximum of 90,000 miles per person for the same routing, all depending on whether the date you are booking for is classified as high-season or low-season.
Note that when booking through ANA Mileage Club, you can only make a round-trip redemption. One way bookings are not permitted.
The Best Way to Earn ANA Mileage Club Miles
Earning ANA Mileage Club Miles might feel difficult for Canadians, as you will need to have access to US credit cards. American Express Membership Rewards earned on US-issued American Express cards can be transferred to ANA Mileage Club at a rate of 1:1.
Transferring American Express Membership Rewards (US) is the best way to earn these miles, as the only other option worth considering is transferring Marriott Bonvoy points at a rate of 3:1. Transferring Marriott Bonvoy points typically isn’t a strong value proposition, and I would only recommend doing this if you needed to top up your Mileage Club account to make a flight redemption possible.
If you can get approved for US credit cards, the American Express Business Gold card (US) and the American Express Business Platinum card (US) are the best options for earning a large amount of Membership Rewards points in short order.
The American Express Business Gold card (US) earns Membership Rewards and gives cardholders the opportunity to earn 4x Membership Rewards on the two top spending categories each billing period.
90,000 Membership Rewards
$10,000
$1,605+
$375
No
–
Booking ANA Business Class with Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is a great frequent flyer program option to use for booking ANA business class, as they offer frequent transfer bonuses making it easy to accrue their miles.
There are a few things to be aware of though. ANA business class cannot be searched for or booked online through the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club award search engine. You will need to find availability through other search tools, such as Seats.aero or United Airlines search, and then call Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1-800-365-9500) to have an agent book on your behalf.
If you don’t already have the required points in your Virgin Atlantic Flying Club account, you can request a ticket hold for 48 hours to save the award space while you convert and transfer in miles. This is a major plus for booking through this program, as you can find the space, lock it down, and then get the currency transferred as opposed to transferring points speculatively.
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club has a zone-based award chart for travel on ANA. The main piece of information you need to know is it costs 90,000 Virgin points per person for a roundtrip booking from Canada/Western USA, whereas it costs 95,000 Virgin points per person for a roundtrip booking from Eastern USA. The cost is halved if you are only booking a one-way flight.
The Best Way to Earn Virgin Atlantic Flying Club Points
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is another program that will require access to US credit cards to earn miles. Members can transfer points from Citi ThankYou Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, and American Express Membership Rewards (US) at a rate of 1:1 to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points.
Many of these programs also run transfer bonuses from time to time, meaning you might be able to receive up to 30% extra bonus points when transferring. These transfer bonuses are a major plus for utilizing the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club program, as they effectively make your next redemption cost fewer points.
There is no shortage of US credit cards that earn these transferable currencies, but for most, the focus will be on American Express US credit cards. As mentioned in the ANA Mileage Club American Express Business Gold card (US) and the American Express Business Platinum card (US) are the best options for earning a large amount of Membership Rewards points in short order, if you can meet the minimum spending requirements.
The American Express Business Platinum card (US) earns Membership Rewards and offers cardholders over $1000 in annual statement credits.
150,000 Membership Rewards
$15,000
$2,605+
$695
No
–
Conclusion
It’s always a plus when there are multiple good airline options to consider when making a flight redemption, and ANA is worth considering if there is a Japan trip in future travel plans. Air Canada Aeroplan will most likely be the preferred frequent flyer program to book with for most Canadians, so I am hoping we eventually see availability come back to the online search tool for an easier booking process.
Josh Bandura
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