Right now there’s a fantastic business class deal from Los Angeles to Beijing or Shanghai on SkyTeam member China Southern (which is part-owned by American Airlines). You can book one-stop roundtrip for less than $1510 to either destination. That’s an incredible fare.

China Southern Boeing 787 Business Class, Credit: China Southern

When fares are this low you don’t want to spend miles for an award ticket. It can be worth paying for travel to the international gateway city (a great use of Southwest points would be a flight to Los Angeles to position for this deal), or it could be worth using Beijing or Shanghai as a connecting point, buying another ticket from there.

Key details of LA – Beijing fare basis IPTUC:

• 3 month maximum stay
  
• Valid for departures December 25 – February 8 and February 20 – March 19
  
• Travel not permitted January 1 – January 10, January 23 – February 5
  
• Tickets must be issued by October 25 (though there’s no guarantee the fare will last this long)
  
• $100 for change or cancel/refund

These fares will earn between 12,000 and 22,000 miles depending on where you credit the flights.

(HT: Loyalty Lobby)