When it comes to redeeming points and miles for free flights, few things strike terror into the hearts of travelers like phantom space. As if getting the trip out of the group chat, researching transfer partners, and finding the best award flights weren’t tricky enough, there’s also a chance those seats you managed to track down don’t even exist.
Thankfully, there are a few things you can do to avoid the utter disappointment and frustration that comes with going through the transferring and booking process only to discover you need to start all over again from scratch. Here’s everything you need to know about phantom space and how to keep it from ruining your travel plans.
Table of contents
What is phantom space?
For starters, phantom space can best be described as the ultimate points-and-miles bait-and-switch. By all appearances, it seems like there’s an award seat available on a flight you searched for, and you should be able to redeem miles for it. But then, at the end of the booking process, you get an error message — or worse, you call to reserve that award seat and have an agent tell you they can’t find it in the system.
Other times, you might spot the redemption of a lifetime on your preferred airline’s website, but when you go to redeem points via its partner program, it’s nowhere to be found.
This can be very frustrating after earning and saving enough points for that redemption. It can be an even bigger pain if you’ve already maximized a transfer bonus and converted the necessary amount of credit card points — whether from Bilt Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Capital One Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, or American Express Membership Rewards — to one of its airline partners.
Since transfers are irreversible, they would be trapped within that carrier’s loyalty program, some of which allow miles to expire after a certain period. You’d have to figure out a way to use them, or else lose them.
Phantom space is unpredictable and more likely to occur when you’re trying to redeem flights with one carrier via its airline alliance partner. Since airlines release their award seats at different times — and the inventory isn’t usually updated in real-time — you may see space on one website that in reality is no longer available on the other.
This may come up, for instance, if you try to use Air Canada Aeroplan miles to book business class seats with its Star Alliance partner, All Nippon Airways, or Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles for award tickets with Japan Airlines.
If SkyTeam is your airline alliance of choice, you may encounter phantom space when trying to use Air France/KLM Flying Blue miles to redeem on its partner, China Airlines.
Similarly, you may want to hold off on transferring tons of Chase Ultimate Rewards points to United Airlines MileagePlan if you’re hoping to reserve award tickets aboard one of its partners, like Copa Airlines, until you’re certain it’s legitimately bookable.
Why does phantom space occur?
Unlike cash ticket purchases, award availability is not typically updated in real time, especially across partner websites. So, while you may have spotted a great deal with your desired airline (or on its alliance partner’s website), that same seat may already have been reserved by the time you finish the booking process. Or it may not have even existed at all if there was a computer glitch or website error.
Depending on the carrier, it’s also possible that award space was showing as being available through one partner but not the other. So it might be worth checking again once both award calendars open.
While you’re less likely to encounter phantom space if you’re using points to book economy seats, which generally have more availability, it’s a much bigger concern when redeeming points for business class, premium economy, or first class seats. That’s because, according to One Mile at a Time, some airlines — including Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa, EVA Air, Etihad, and Qatar Airways — make it a point to limit award availability to their own loyalty programs first. Sometimes, they’ll extend it to their partners later or open a sliver to the public as the departure date draws nearer. That is, if there is any space left by then.
In other words, the more sought-after a redemption is, the higher your chances are of seeing phantom space, since inventory is usually not updated as often as it should be. And because you’re converting larger numbers of credit card points to airline miles for premium class redemptions, it’s a much bigger pain if you encounter it.
How to avoid getting lured by phantom space
Cross-reference your search with the airline’s website — and its partners
Even if you manage to track down the perfect flight redemption, it’s always a good idea to double-check and make sure you can find it in several places before pulling the trigger on a points transfer. While point.me removes phantom space from its searches and helps you start on the right track, we still recommend running a search directly with your preferred airline (and maybe a partner or two) to confirm availability before transferring any credit card points to an airline loyalty program.
Let’s try searching for a one-way Qatar Airways business class flight in mid-March from Washington, D.C. (IAD) to Doha (DOH). Ideally, I’d like to redeem Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles for this seat, as points can be transferred from Bilt Rewards at a 1:1 transfer ratio (or from Marriott Bonvoy at a less lucrative 3:1 transfer ratio).
point.me makes it easy to view all available options, allowing you to narrow your search by preferred airline, alliance, and fare class. In this example, the system is showing availability on March 15, 2026, for 150,000 miles and $20 in taxes when you transfer points to Alaska Airlines and book through Mileage Plan.
Our next step is to see if you can find the same award space via the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan website, where you’ll ideally be able to redeem it. Simply log in to your account, run a search, and look for the same flight. So far, so good – that’s two sightings.
Once you’ve searched for your award flight through point.me and the relevant partner airline’s website, it’s worth making sure that award space also exists on the website of the carrier itself, or maybe an extra partner or two. Chances are, if you can see the award space in several places, it’s more likely to be real — and bookable.
Using the above example, let’s look for the same award availability on Qatar Airways Privilege Club’s website. Since it’s also showing up there, it’s a good sign. Note that while it’s available for 140,000 Avios by booking direct, taxes may be higher than $20.
Since we were able to track it down across multiple partners, there’s a better chance of this award space being real. Even so, it’s worth following the next few steps and going as far as into the booking process as possible to ensure availability, especially if you still need to transfer points to your preferred airline.
Pick up the phone
Another way to verify the existence of an award seat is to locate it online, then call the customer service center for the loyalty program you wish to book with. For instance, you may have found the award space through United’s website, but if you’re going to redeem Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles, you’ll need to call their customer service center, not United’s.
Be aware that you may have to pay a small fee for booking over the phone, although many airlines offer this service for free. It helps to have information regarding your desired travel dates, the flight number, fare class, and the airline operating the flight, so you can help the agent on the other end see exactly what you had in mind. If they’re able to locate the flight, you should be able to book it. If you’re not ready, ask to put the award on hold instead.
If the loyalty program’s customer service agent you’ve called isn’t able to track down your award seat and it turns out to be phantom space, politely request that they open up that award space on their end. In certain cases, it’s worth a try, like if you have elite status, are not using partner miles to book the award, or you only need one last award seat for the group you’re flying with. You may also be able to get them to reach out to an airline alliance representative and open award availability.
Put the award on hold
Say you’ve tracked down the perfect redemption, but still need to sort out some details or want to double-check to make sure the award space is valid before transferring your points. Several airlines will allow you to put the award on hold either online during the booking process or by calling customer service. Those include Air France/KLM Flying Blue, American Airlines AAdvantage, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, Emirates Skywards, Lufthansa Miles & More, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles, United Airlines MileagePlus, and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
The rules regarding fees and hold times vary by program, so note the time and complete your booking as soon as possible. If you’re ever on the phone with a rep who doesn’t seem to be aware of what the current award hold policies are, simply hang up and try again. Depending on who you get, it may take a few tries to get it right.
Also, be aware that point transfer times can vary. Most often, it’s immediate or within 24 hours, while some programs can take more than 48 hours. That’s worth considering if you still need to convert credit card points to a partner airline’s miles.
Check back to see if the inventory has been updated
While it’s always a good idea to begin your search as soon as your preferred program’s award calendar opens up — which can be up to a year in advance — it never hurts to check back often to see if anything has changed. A lot can happen in a few months, and there’s always a chance someone might have cancelled their flight or additional space has become available.
You might also be able to snag a better deal later and rebook, as most carriers allow you to cancel or change flights booked with points and miles in exchange for a refund (read the fine print first, of course). Airlines may also release award availability at the last minute, even up to the day before your departure, so it’s always worth re-checking, just in case.
Try to get the original points transfer reversed
If you’ve already transferred credit card points over to a partner program but it turned out to be phantom space, you could try calling the customer service department and speaking to a supervisor to see if it’s possible to reverse the points transfer. It’s worth a shot, especially if you can show that the phantom space was presented in a deceptive manner and you are currently stuck without a reasonable alternative.
Summary
While there are few things in the points and miles world that are less disappointing than encountering phantom award space, there are a few tips and tricks you can use to avoid it. Cross-checking your desired redemption across several partner websites or calling the airline loyalty program directly to book can go a long way toward ensuring the seat you’re redeeming actually exists. So can putting the award on hold and requesting additional award space. If all else fails, check back and see if anything has opened up at a later date.
Share "Phantom Space in Award Booking: What It Is and How to Avoid It"
