How To Redeem Points For JetBlue Mint

How To Redeem Points For JetBlue Mint

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JetBlue is quickly expanding their Mint product, which is their competitively priced fully flat bed business class product on a growing number of routes. While JetBlue started by offering Mint from New York to Los Angeles and San Francisco a couple of years back, they have expanded it nicely since then, and have even loftier expansion goals.

jetblue-mint

So, given JetBlue’s lack of frequent flyer program partnerships, what are the best ways to redeem points for JetBlue Mint?

Why I love JetBlue Mint

To start, I should probably explain what makes Mint special. I flew JetBlue Mint for the first time this August from New York to Los Angeles, and was blown away. The JetBlue Mint cabin has four “suites,” which can be reserved by Mint customers on a first come first serve basis.

JetBlue-Mint-A321 - 2

These are fully enclosed suites with a door.

JetBlue-Mint-A321 - 5

While the seats are great, what really sets JetBlue Mint apart is the service. The flight attendants that work Mint are specially trained, and couldn’t be prouder or more customer focused. On both of my Mint flights I had to pinch myself and make sure I was actually on a U.S. airline, since it’s rare you get service like that on a domestic flight.

Furthermore, the food in Mint is simple and delicious. I wish more airlines would take JetBlue’s approach, rather than over promising and under delivering. Each passenger gets to choose three “dishes,” from a variety of options.

JetBlue-Mint-A321 - 42

Then there’s dessert consisting of fresh fruit, ice cream, and cappuccinos.

JetBlue-Mint-A321 - 48

Simply put, JetBlue Mint is my favorite way to fly within the U.S.

Redeeming JetBlue TrueBlue points for Mint

JetBlue’s TrueBlue program is revenue based, meaning that the cost of a redemption is directly tied to the cost of a ticket. However, the amount of value you get per point varies by flight, typically ranging from ~1.3 to ~1.7 cents per point.

For example, on the below flight between Tampa and New York, you can redeem 6,300 points in lieu of ~$108 of airfare, which gets you ~1.71 cents per point of value.

jetblue-mint-points-1 jetblue-mint-points-2

Meanwhile taking a random JetBlue Mint flight, you’ll see that you can redeem 41,400 points in lieu of ~$543, which gets you ~1.31 cents of value.

jetblue-mint-points-3 jetblue-mint-points-4

The value isn’t totally consistent, but for what it’s worth I find that JetBlue Mint redemptions price on the lower end on the value scale when redeeming TrueBlue points. I don’t think I’ve ever seen TrueBlue redemptions for JetBlue Mint get you more than ~1.4 cents per point.

Regardless of which redemption option you choose, be sure you have JetBlue Plus Card, which gets you 10% of your points back every time you redeem. That can nicely increase the value of all your redemptions.

So you do have the option of redeeming TrueBlue points for JetBlue Mint, but it’s not an ideal redemption, since it typically doesn’t get you the maximum value per point.

jetblue-mint-points-6
jetblue-mint-points-5

Redeeming Amex Membership Rewards points for JetBlue Mint

As I recently wrote about, one of the fantastic new benefits of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express is that you get a 35% refund on “Pay With Points” redemptions when booking premium cabins on any airline. Typically the “Pay With Points” option gets you one cent per point of value, meaning you’re now getting about two cents of value per point.

So the $449 flight would cost you 44,810 points, but you’d get 22,405 of those points back, meaning a one-way redemption would cost you just 22,405 miles.

jetblue-mint-award-10

That’s incredible for a transcontinental business class flight with really good availability. On top of that, you’d even earn 3x TrueBlue points per dollar of base airfare. ~22,000 miles is less than airlines usually charge for a saver level one-way domestic first class award.

Flights from New York to Los Angeles are a bit more expensive, typically starting at $549 one-way, or 54,810 Membership Rewards points, or 27,405 Membership Rewards points after the refund. That’s still a great value!

b6-mint

Redeeming points earned on The Business Platinum Card® from American Express towards a JetBlue Mint ticket is a value that’s tough to beat.

Redeeming Chase Ultimate Rewards points for JetBlue Mint

While the value isn’t quite as good, if you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve® you can redeem points at the rate of 1.5 cents each towards the cost of an airline ticket. Best of all, if you have that card you can pool points earned on the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, so you can redeem all those points at that rate.

So for example, that one-way ticket from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles would cost you under 30,000 points each way, which is still a very good deal.

jetblue-mint-points

Consider outright paying for Mint

I know this isn’t useful in the context of explaining how to redeem points on JetBlue, but I think there’s some merit to outright paying for Mint. Consider a $449 flight between Fort Lauderdale and Los Angeles:

jetblue-mint-points-5

If you pay with The Platinum Card® from American Express you’d earn 5x points on airfare, or if you paid with JetBlue Plus Card you’d get 6x points on JetBlue airfare.

On top of that, for booking through JetBlue’s website you’d earn 6x TrueBlue points per dollar spent.

That means you’re earning either 12x TrueBlue points per dollar spent, or otherwise 5x Membership Rewards points and 6x TrueBlue points. The point is, that’s a return of almost 20% on your spend.

That brings the real “out of pocket” down to ~$350 one-way. For six hours in a flat bed with a door, that’s a great value…

Bottom line

JetBlue Mint is a phenomenal product, and one any airline enthusiast should try. Best of all, it isn’t at all unattainable if you’re looking to redeem points. As a matter of fact, it can be a better value than many other domestic premium cabin products.

So whether you’re redeeming TrueBlue points and getting the 10% refund with JetBlue Plus Card, redeeming point with a 35% refund through The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, or just making a revenue booking and maximizing the points you earn, there are plenty of affordable ways to try JetBlue Mint.

Conversations (15)
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  1. AL Guest

    "So the $449 flight would cost you 44,810 points, but you’d get 22,405 of those points back, meaning a one-way redemption would cost you just 22,405 miles."

    Isn't that 50% back?

  2. Mike Crawford Guest

    I flew JB Mint BOS-SFO in November 2016 using points one way and paying for the return. Totally worth it. My best flight experience in the US ever. Flight cost about $550 each way. Used about 45,000 pts. for the "free" flight. A lousy return on miles, but I wanted the Mint Experience. Great service, great food, great selections to drink. Used my JB Plus Card and got the refund as promised. Will definitely fly this way in the future for long flights.

  3. Jason Brandt Lewis Gold

    @Joe ---> In my experience, SeattleTodd is correct. I typically see $999 fares for Mint flights between SFO-JFK. In fact, I just did random search on JetBlue for 2 roundtrip, nonstop, non-refundable tickets:

    Outbound, 4/13, Thursday -- SFO-JFK:
    Flight 16, Mint: $649 (leaves @ 7AM; have to be at the airport by 5:30; only 1 seat left)
    Flight 416, Mint: $999
    Flight 616, Mint: $999
    Flight 916, Mint: $999
    Flight...

    @Joe ---> In my experience, SeattleTodd is correct. I typically see $999 fares for Mint flights between SFO-JFK. In fact, I just did random search on JetBlue for 2 roundtrip, nonstop, non-refundable tickets:

    Outbound, 4/13, Thursday -- SFO-JFK:
    Flight 16, Mint: $649 (leaves @ 7AM; have to be at the airport by 5:30; only 1 seat left)
    Flight 416, Mint: $999
    Flight 616, Mint: $999
    Flight 916, Mint: $999
    Flight 1516, Mint: $999
    Flight 1716, Mint: $999

    Inbound, 4/17, Monday -- JFK-SFO:
    Flight 15, Mint: $999
    Flight 415, Mint: $999
    Flight 615, Mint: $649 (only 1 seat left)
    Flight 915, Mint: $999
    Flight 1515, Mint: $649 (only 2 seats left; gets in at midnight)
    Flight 1715, Mint: $649 (only 2 seats left; gets in at 1:03 AM)

  4. Brian P Guest

    Very useful info. Need to take my first Mint flight soon.

  5. Joe Guest

    @todd, I've purchased mint between sfo and jfk many times. The prices have all been either $549 or $599. This coming Xmas eve I was able to get a $549 fare about 3 months ago.

    1. SeattleTodd Member

      @Joe Thanks for your message. Other than bad luck, any idea why midweek flights in late March are all so expensive and have been since they went on sale?

  6. Kathleen Guest

    I've only flown JetBlue once doing a quick mileage run to status match. Does status give upgrades?

  7. Jeepie New Member

    If I am not mistaken, Citi Thankyou cards can now transfer points to Jet Blue as well. Cheers.

  8. SeattleTodd Member

    @Lucky -- Almost every time you show JetBlue transcon Mint fares they are around $549. But I've been tracking JFK-->LAX flights since the schedule opened and they started at $999 and recently went to $1099, which only a single flight of the 10 or so (the last flight of the day) pricing at $649. What gives? Where do you find these much lower flight prices when I can't manage to do that every day for 4-5 months for flights on a winter Tuesday?

    Thanks!

    Todd

  9. Brian New Member

    44k miles for round trip first class 5-6 hours is not bad. I'd do that redemption. Business Plat will probably be my next card after my mortgage process is done.

  10. Gene Diamond

    Not an ideal redemption? Given that everything else they offer is coach, there are no other options! ;)

  11. Weymar Osborne Diamond

    It's not a trans-continental destination so it probably won't be any time soon but I hope they add Mint service to Denver.

  12. Don New Member

    Great post, thanks Lucky!

  13. DC-PHLyer Member

    I've redeemed TrueBlue a couple times for Mint at ~1.6-1.7 cents per point...

Featured Comments Most helpful comments ( as chosen by the OMAAT community ).

The comments on this page have not been provided, reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any advertiser, and it is not an advertiser's responsibility to ensure posts and/or questions are answered.

AL Guest

"So the $449 flight would cost you 44,810 points, but you’d get 22,405 of those points back, meaning a one-way redemption would cost you just 22,405 miles." Isn't that 50% back?

0
Mike Crawford Guest

I flew JB Mint BOS-SFO in November 2016 using points one way and paying for the return. Totally worth it. My best flight experience in the US ever. Flight cost about $550 each way. Used about 45,000 pts. for the "free" flight. A lousy return on miles, but I wanted the Mint Experience. Great service, great food, great selections to drink. Used my JB Plus Card and got the refund as promised. Will definitely fly this way in the future for long flights.

0
Jason Brandt Lewis Gold

@Joe ---> In my experience, SeattleTodd is correct. I typically see $999 fares for Mint flights between SFO-JFK. In fact, I just did random search on JetBlue for 2 roundtrip, nonstop, non-refundable tickets: Outbound, 4/13, Thursday -- SFO-JFK: Flight 16, Mint: $649 (leaves @ 7AM; have to be at the airport by 5:30; only 1 seat left) Flight 416, Mint: $999 Flight 616, Mint: $999 Flight 916, Mint: $999 Flight 1516, Mint: $999 Flight 1716, Mint: $999 Inbound, 4/17, Monday -- JFK-SFO: Flight 15, Mint: $999 Flight 415, Mint: $999 Flight 615, Mint: $649 (only 1 seat left) Flight 915, Mint: $999 Flight 1515, Mint: $649 (only 2 seats left; gets in at midnight) Flight 1715, Mint: $649 (only 2 seats left; gets in at 1:03 AM)

0
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