A great KLM business-class flight with a last-minute mileage deal

Flying KLM is always a treat, and I get especially excited at the prospect of picking up another KLM Delft house, which is a signature perk of flying long-haul business class on the Dutch flag carrier.

I recently had the opportunity to fly the airline’s Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner on a last-minute booking using miles. It turned out to be a great deal, especially considering I got to take a short KLM Cityhopper flight in European-style business class, capped off with a visit to the KLM Crown Lounge at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS).

Here’s how I booked the flight from Slovenia to Amsterdam and then on to New York City — and how you can book it, too.

How I scored a great deal on a Flying Blue award

Over the summer, a last-minute schedule change had me searching for a way back home to New York from Slovenia when I remembered the beauty of Air France-KLM Flying Blue miles.

While I didn’t find the lowest saver price of 60,000 Flying Blue miles one-way from Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport (LJU) to New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) via Amsterdam, I did find an award with a flight from Slovenia on KLM’s Cityhopper to Amsterdam and then on to New York aboard a Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner for 84,000 Flying Blue miles plus $346.81 in taxes and fees (ouch).

I put the charge on the Air France-KLM World Elite Mastercard®, issued by Bank of America, which earns 3 Flying Blue miles per dollar spent on Air France-KLM purchases.

The information for the Air France-KLM World Elite Mastercard has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

I probably should have used The Platinum Card® from American Express to earn 5 points per dollar on purchases made directly with airlines (on up to $500,000 of these purchases per calendar year).

Either way, I’d consider this a great redemption … especially at the last minute, considering the cash price was more than $4,250.

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Using my Flying Blue card for the taxes and fees earned me 1,040 Flying Blue miles, worth $13.52 according to TPG’s September 2025 valuations.

One of the great things about using Flying Blue miles is that even if you can’t find the perfect deal from one of the two airlines’ main hubs in Amsterdam or Paris, adding a connecting city can sometimes lower the mileage price, as can being flexible on your dates. That might not be possible for everyone, but this is one of the key strategies I use.

Occasionally, you’ll have better luck with lowering the prices by adding a second city in Europe. Here’s a good example of that. I looked for a last-minute flight from Paris to New York on Sept. 12. If I fly from Paris, the cheapest business-class redemption is around 92,000 miles, but if I start in Bordeaux, I can find the cheapest saver fare for just 60,000 miles.

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Mileage search on Air France. FLYING BLUE

In my case, I needed to get from Slovenia, so I wasn’t looking for a direct flight from Amsterdam anyway, but it probably helped lower my mileage cost, and I ended up with what I consider a good deal.

Remember that you can transfer points from multiple bank partners to Flying Blue, including:

So even if you don’t fly with Air France, KLM or their partners regularly, you have plenty of options for topping up your account.

Related: How to find the cheapest redemption rates using Flying Blue miles

Flying European business class on KLM Cityhopper

I flew from Ljubljana to Amsterdam on KLM Cityhopper, aboard an Embraer E195 with the ship number PH-NXG. I was in Seat 1C on the aisle. Business class had just two seats on each side of the aisle.

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CLINT HENDERSON/THE POINTS GUY

For a quick flight of about an hour and 50 minutes, I was surprised to get a full meal, including a predeparture bottle of fresh juice, water and a boxed lunch. Drinks flowed throughout the flight, too.

After a quick on-time flight, we arrived at a remote stand at the bustling Amsterdam airport from which we were bused to the terminal.

Another fun visit to the KLM Crown Lounge

I am a big fan of KLM’s flagship lounge, the Crown Lounge at Amsterdam. It’s labeled as Airline Lounge 52, and you’ll find it in the non-Schengen area of the airport.

This is a massive space with an upper and a lower level connected to the terminal with an escalator and an elevator, but it’s often crowded for much of the day. Still, there’s always a place to plop down and relax.

The walls at the entrance and on the upper levels are lined with hundreds of KLM’s famous Delft houses, which are filled with Bols Dutch gin (genever) when given out in flight.

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CLINT HENDERSON/THE POINTS GUY

This fun multilevel playground offers plenty to do, see, eat and drink. There are even nap rooms and an outdoor terrace.

I also got to try to trade one of my duplicate Delft houses at the exchange bar (really just a couple of carts near the customer service desks). Because mine was missing its gin, they wouldn’t let me exchange it. To trade it in, you’ll need a sealed container that still has the gin.

Despite getting rejected for a Delft house exchange, I had a great visit and highly recommend checking this lounge out next time you are passing through.

What it was like flying KLM business class on the Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner

I was on a 5-year-old 787-10 with the tail number PH-BKI.

Business class on KLM’s 787-10s consists of 38 seats: 10 rows of single seats at the windows and nine rows of two seats each down the middle in a reverse-herringbone 1-2-1 layout. All seats have direct aisle access.

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CLINT HENDERSON/THE POINTS GUY

I chose Seat 3A along the left-side window.

Each seat is 21 inches wide and reclines to a 78-inch lie-flat bed. Sadly, there are no individual air nozzles (this is also true of the airline’s 777-300ERs).

The two windows at my seat had electronic window shades that you could dim with the touch of a button.

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CLINT HENDERSON/THE POINTS GUY

The 18-inch entertainment screen was filled with plenty of content, including 28 new releases like “Mickey 17.” The Wi-Fi for the full flight cost about $26 and worked consistently, though not perfectly. There was also an interactive moving map.

The tray table was 18 by 14 inches, with plenty of room for a laptop or a meal tray (but not both).

There were just two lavatories for all the business-class passengers, but they were kept clean and there was never much of a wait. The artificial tulips in the mounted vases were a nice touch.

Amenities came in reusable kits by the Dutch firm Envisions with skincare products from Marie-Stella-Maris.

Passengers were also provided with a pillow and a light duvet.

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CLINT HENDERSON/THE POINTS GUY

The first multicourse meal service kicked off with a hot towel and a choice of beverages plus some nibbles like cheese and veggies, all served in bespoke tableware by Dutch designer Marcel Wanders.

The appetizer choices included delicious Thai red curry soup and a beef tartlet topped by shrimp. For my main dish, I chose the oven-roasted chicken fillet with Indian spices and Punjabi-style chickpeas in a masala sauce.

Dessert was a pear mousse in a sweet caramel sauce. The food was excellent and very filling.

While the meal service was great, it lasted until over two hours into the flight, which really cut short the time you could rest or work on a transatlantic day flight.

About an hour before descent, there was a prelanding meal served on one tray consisting of smoked salmon and trout roe pasta salad with a side of cheese and roasted eggplant ravioli. Dessert was described as a forest fruit orange pastry. It was scrumptious.

Service was excellent throughout the flight. My flight attendant, Howard, was consistently on hand to ask if I needed anything more and to bring me several coffees in the airline’s fanciful Delftware mugs.

Prior to landing, flight attendants distributed dark, milk and white chocolates in the shape of its darling Delft houses.

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CLINT HENDERSON/THE POINTS GUY

And then came my favorite part of the flight … I got to choose my Delft house collectible from a tray brought around by the flight attendant.

As far as I’m concerned, that is one of the best souvenirs in all of travel.

Bottom line

I can’t wait to fly KLM business class again. Not only did I add a Delft house to my extensive collection, but I also had great service and a fun and fast flight on the KLM Dreamliner.

A last-minute redemption that nabbed me two flights and a visit to the KLM Crown Lounge in Amsterdam for just 84,000 Flying Blue miles made it even better.

If you have a stash of Flying Blue miles, I strongly encourage you to redeem them on KLM since I can’t recommend the airline highly enough.

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