NEW American Express 25% and Rove 40% Transfer Bonus to Flying Blue (Air France, KLM)

Two transfer bonuses to Flying Blue are live right now, 25% from American Express and 40% from Rove, and both end October 31.

American Express 25% and Rove 40% Transfer Bonus to Flying Blue (Air France, KLM)

by Julia Portela

October 4, 2026 Reading Time: 4 min read

Flying business class to Europe sounds like something you save years to do. It is not. There are two ways into Flying Blue at a discount this month: American Express is adding 25% to every transfer, and Rove is adding 40%. Flying Blue is the program for Air France and KLM, so these bonuses put their business class within reach of the points you already have. Below is how each bonus works, the free miles Rove is handing new members, and the flights actually worth booking with either one.

The American Express 25% bonus to Flying Blue

Flying Blue is the frequent flyer program of Air France and KLM, and it is one of the easiest ways to book business class to Europe. Right now American Express is adding a 25% bonus when you transfer Membership Rewards points into it.

A few things to know:

• The minimum transfer is 1,000 Amex points.
• The bonus applies to eligible Membership Rewards cards.
• Most important: once you transfer your points, you can’t move them back to Amex. Find the flight first, then transfer.

Rove's 40% bonus, plus free miles to start

Amex is not the only program with a Flying Blue bonus this month. Rove has one too, and the percentage is higher: 40% against Amex's 25%, so every 1,000 Rove miles become 1,400 Flying Blue miles. It runs through the same October 31 deadline.

Rove is a free program you earn mostly through hotel bookings, which makes it worth starting even if it is new to you, because new members get a head start of bonus miles right away. Here is the bonus side by side, the free miles for joining, and proof of what one booking can earn with one code.

+25%

Amex

1,000 → 1,250

BIGGER

+40%

Rove

1,000 → 1,400

Rove is a free program you earn mostly through hotel bookings, and new members get a real head start.

A head start for new members

★1,500 bonus miles just for signing up

★5,000 more on your first hotel booking of $500 or more with code JOURNEYONPOINTS

That is a 6,500-mile head start.

A real example from a reader

Here is what a single hotel booking earned using my code:

A reader used my code on a 3-night stay that cost $580. The hotel's multiplier earned 15,740 miles and the code added 5,000 more, for 20,740 Rove miles on a single booking. They sent theirs to Japan Airlines, but with this month's 40% bonus you can route them to Flying Blue for Air France and KLM business class instead.

Sign up for Rove and claim 1,500 bonus miles →

Use code JOURNEYONPOINTS on a hotel booking of $500 or more

Flying Blue sweet spots right now

These are the redemptions worth your points, and they work no matter which bonus you use. The large number is the real award price, what the flight costs in Flying Blue miles. Underneath, in gold, is roughly what that comes to after each bonus, so you can see the cost in Amex points or in Rove miles.

How to find award space for the whole year

Most people search with exact dates and miss a huge amount of availability. Here is the trick I use. Go to airfrance.com or klm.com on a browser, not the app, and leave the dates completely blank when you search. It shows award space for the entire year at once, so you can find the best dates before you transfer anything.

The Air France business class experience

Here is what you are actually booking on the Air France A350. Each seat is its own suite with a full sliding door, so you have real privacy from the moment you sit down. The bed lies completely flat at nearly two meters long and 53cm wide.

The screen is a 20-inch 4K anti-glare display, the largest in the Air France business fleet, and the cabin is finished in French leather and wool. Champagne is poured from the moment you board. All of that normally runs about 60,000 miles one way, which the bonuses bring down to roughly 48,000 Amex points or 42,900 Rove miles.

How to earn Amex Membership Rewards points

If you want to build up the points to use this bonus again and again, Membership Rewards are some of the most useful out there because they transfer to around 20 airline and hotel partners, Flying Blue included. Two cards carry the biggest welcome offers right now.

PREMIUM BEST FOR LOUNGE ACCESS

The Platinum Card® from American Express

Annual fee: $895

WELCOME BONUS

Earn 175,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $12,000 on eligible purchases in your first 6 months of Card Membership.

5X points on flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel (up to $500,000 per calendar year)

5X points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel

1X points on everything else

Noteworthy Perks

• Up to $200 a year in airline incidental fee credits at one qualifying airline
• Up to $600 in prepaid hotel credits, semi-annually ($300 Jan to June, $300 July to Dec) on Fine Hotels + Resorts and The Hotel Collection
• Up to $100 per calendar quarter in credits at U.S. Resy restaurants
• Up to $25 per month on select digital subscriptions (Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+, The New York Times, Paramount+, Peacock, The Wall Street Journal, YouTube Premium and YouTube TV)
• Up to $120 Global Entry credit or $85 TSA PreCheck credit every 4 years
• $15 in monthly Uber Cash for U.S. rides or Uber Eats (an extra $20 in December)
• Up to $120 a year in credits toward an auto-renewing U.S. Uber One membership
• Up to $300 a year at U.S. lululemon (up to $75 per quarter)
• Up to $219 CLEAR Plus credit per calendar year
• Up to $12.95 (plus tax) a month for a Walmart+ membership
• Up to $200 back each calendar year on an Oura Ring purchased through Ouraring.com
• Global Lounge Access: Priority Pass (lounges only) with 2 guests, Centurion Lounges, and Delta Sky Club when flying an eligible Delta flight (10 visits a year, more after $75K annual spend)
• Rental car elite status
• Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status
• Hilton Honors Gold status
• Leading Hotels of the World Sterling status

Enrollment required for some benefits. Terms apply.

Apply Now

PREMIUM BEST FOR LOUNGE ACCESS

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

Annual fee: $895  ·  APR: 17.74% to 28.49% Variable  ·  Credit recommended: Good to Excellent

WELCOME BONUS

You may be eligible for as high as 300,000 Membership Rewards® Points after spending $20,000 in eligible purchases in your first 3 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Terms apply.

5X points on flights and prepaid hotels booked on AmexTravel.com

2X points on eligible U.S. business categories (hardware, electronics, software and cloud, shipping) and on each eligible purchase of $5,000 or more, up to $2 million per year

1X points on all other eligible purchases

Noteworthy Perks

• Global Lounge Collection: complimentary access to more than 1,550 airport lounges across 140+ countries, the most of any card issuer as of 01/2026.
• Up to $600 a year in prepaid hotel credits ($300 semi-annually) on Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection through Amex Travel (two-night minimum for The Hotel Collection).
• $200 airline fee credit a year on baggage and incidentals with one selected qualifying airline.
• Up to $200 a year back with Hilton for Business on eligible Hilton purchases. Enrollment required.
• Up to $219 a year in CLEAR Plus credits (subject to auto-renewal).
• Up to $150 a year in Dell Technologies credits, plus a $1,000 credit after $5,000 in eligible spend on the Card. Enrollment required.
• Up to $300 a year in ChatGPT Business credits (subject to auto-renewal). Enrollment required.
• $250 statement credit after $600 or more in Adobe purchases per year. Enrollment required.
• Up to $360 a year in Indeed credits ($90 per quarter). Enrollment required.
• Up to $120 a year in wireless credits ($10 per month with a U.S. wireless provider). Enrollment required.
• No preset spending limit: your buying power adjusts with your spending and payment history.
• Over $4,000 in annual business and travel value after meeting qualifying spend thresholds. Terms apply.

Enrollment required for some benefits. Terms apply.

Apply Now

Bottom line

You have two ways into Flying Blue this month. Amex gives you 25% more miles, Rove gives you 40%, and both close October 31. Search your flight first on airfrance.com or klm.com with the dates left blank, and only transfer once you have found the seat you want. If you are new to Rove, you start with 1,500 bonus miles for signing up plus 5,000 more on your first qualifying hotel booking with code JOURNEYONPOINTS, which is a strong base to begin with.

Some of the links in this article are referral links. If you use them I may earn a commission or miles at no extra cost to you, and this article is not sponsored. Credit card welcome offers are shown as "up to" amounts; your own offer may differ based on your credit profile, and Amex limits welcome bonuses to once per card per lifetime. All details were accurate as of October 2026 and are subject to change.