My last trip to Japan was in October 2019 and it was easy to get two First Class Japan Airlines (JAL) seats with points at that time (I used Alaska miles). Everything changed after COVID-19 and we must now book 355-360 days ahead of time to get two Business Class seats on Japan Airlines using Asia Miles (review).
My Asia Miles Booking Surcharges for JAL flight
Taxes and surcharges came to around $663 USD for a one-way booking for two business class seats. It is near impossible to get two premium cabin seats using other programs with least taxes (e.g., AA and Alaska).
My Japan Accommodations
I am planning to spend around 8 days in Japan between two Hyatt properties.
Hyatt Regency Seragaki Island, Okinawa
I was able to use my suite upgrade award (SUA) to confirm the “Regency Suite” for a 5-night stay at Hyatt Regency Seragaki Island (link).
I wanted to visit Okinawa during the January Cherry Blossom season. Cherry blossoms first start blooming in Okinawa in mid-late January and then appear on the mainland during mid-March (review).
Fuji Speedway Hotel
Fuji Speedway Hotel is part of the Unbound Collection by Hyatt (link) and I wanted to stay there due to the unique location near Mount Fuji. The hotel also enjoys an “exceptional” rating from Booking.com (link). I was able to use one of my SUA to secure a Grand Prix Corner Suite King, Circuit View for a 3-night stay.
Tokyo to Maldives
I was able to get Sri Lankan Air business class flights from NRT to MLE via Colombo for 40K AA miles per person.
Alila Kothaifaru, Maldives
I have a 4-night stay at Alila Kothaifaru in Maldives booked using Hyatt points. I will end up spending a night near the MLE airport due to late airplane arrival time.
Alila Kothaifaru has already sent me an email about purchasing the villa upgrades.
For the seaplane transportation, I have to pay the return airport transfer fee of USD 655 per adult.
Maldives to JFK Flights
Virgin Atlantic was my only option for business class flights from Maldives to JFK via London and required hefty taxes of $674 per person and 115K points (see image below).
I will continue to look for other flights with less taxes to reach the US from Maldives in the coming months.
Conclusion
We rarely travel in January and this is an exciting visit to Japan and Maldives during a two week trip for us. I was originally planning to go to Nepal from Japan but changed the destination since my wife always wanted to go to Maldives.