118. Jet-Set with JAL: Bilt’s Boldest Transfer Partner Yet

Point Me To First Class

Devon Gimbel MD

Finances, Education, How To, Travel, Credit, Expenses, Card, Cards, Society & Culture, Professionals, Tips, Personal, Places & Travel, Business, Points, Rewards

5 • 1K Ratings

🗓️ 2 June 2025

⏱️ 38 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Have you ever dreamed of flying to Japan in business class—without paying out of pocket? Bilt just made that a lot easier.

In this episode, I’m joined by award travel strategist Ben Komenkul to talk about the newest (and most exciting) Bilt Rewards transfer partner: Japan Airlines. This partnership opens the door to premium flights across Asia and around the world—and it’s not just for those planning a trip to Tokyo.

Ben and I walk through everything from low-cost regional flights and lie-flat business class options to more advanced redemptions like partner bookings with Emirates or Korean Air. We also share the biggest tips and pitfalls to know before transferring your Bilt points, including how to avoid JAL’s 60-day award booking delay and why their mileage expiration policy might not work for everyone.

If you’ve been curious about using Bilt points—or want to understand when this program can unlock premium cabin value—this is a must-listen.

Get full show notes and transcript: https://pointmetofirstclass.com/book-japan-airlines-with-bilt-rewards/

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Eager to learn the secrets of award travel so that you can turn your expenses into unforgettable experiences? Join the Points Made Easy course waitlist here: https://pointmetofirstclass.com/pointsmadeeasy

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Point Me to First Class, the only show for employed professionals, entrepreneurs, and business owners who are looking to optimize their higher than average expenses to travel the world.
0:10.7	I'm your host, Devin Gimble, and I believe that your expenses are your greatest untapped asset, if you know how to leverage them.
0:17.8	Ready to dive into the world of credit card points and miles so you can travel more, travel better, and travel often. Let's get started.
0:29.6	Hello, everyone, and welcome back to the podcast. If you're a points enthusiast who loves
0:34.8	new opportunities to book award flights, especially to coveted
0:38.6	locations like Japan, you're going to love today's episode. That's because Bill just made waves
0:44.2	in the points in Miles world by announcing Japan Airlines as one of their newest airline transfer
0:48.6	partners. And I've brought in one of my favorite points experts, Ben Combe and Cole, to break
0:53.3	down everything you need to know about this
0:55.3	powerful new transfer partnership. In this episode, we unpack why this new partnership is such a game
1:00.6	changer for points enthusiasts and how it opens up high value redemption opportunities, from Jal
1:06.3	business class flights to Tokyo for just 55,000 miles to budget-friendly domestic hops within Japan,
1:12.6	and even partner awards on Emirates and Korean Airlines. But it's not all sunshine and first-class
1:17.8	cabins. We also discuss the quirky limitations of the Jowel mileage bank program, like who you can
1:23.6	actually book award tickets for, and the extra hoops that built users can skip that others can't.
1:29.0	And of course, we tackle the big question. Should this news move the built card to the top of
1:33.5	your wallet? Get ready to dive in to one of the most exciting points developments of the year.
1:38.2	Hi, Ben. Welcome back to the podcast. And thank you so much for joining me today. I'm so excited
1:42.6	to have this conversation. I'm glad to be back. Amazing. Okay. So I asked for you to come and have this conversation with me
1:49.8	because Built recently made some really, really big news with the announcement that they added
1:55.7	their 20th transfer partner, Japan Airlines, as a new transfer partner. And I know that you are knowledgeable about so
2:03.9	many topics and points and miles, but specifically about this one. So I thought you would be a fantastic
	...

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