Lufthansa and SWISS 2-4-1 deals in Business Class and First Class, bookable to 3rd September

SWISS and Lufthansa are currently running some EXCELLENT First Class and Business Class ‘2-4-1’ deals.  Unlike some fare deals we write about, these are for departures from the UK so you don’t need to position yourself somewhere in Europe first.

Even better for those who live outside London, you can also book these deals from UK regional airports served by SWISS or Lufthansa.

But some people have had trouble booking them ….

I will run over the deals again in a second.  However, I need to explain the rather stupid way that the Lufthansa and SWISS booking engines work in relation to this offer.

The special booking link is VERY badly designed.  If there are no 241 seats available on the date you input, you are taken back to the booking page.  No explanation, nothing.

You probably think that the booking site is broken.  It isn’t.  It simply means that seats are not available.

How can I find dates where seats are available?

If you’re having trouble finding dates (and some destinations are worse than others – Buenos Aires is virtually impossible in First Class) then this is what you need to do.

Use the main Lufthansa or SWISS booking page (ie here for Lufthansa and here for SWISS) and search for two seats at FULL price.

You are looking for dates where the cost per seat is TWICE the price I quote below, because that is the 241 price, but no higher.

For Lufthansa First Class from London to Buenos Aires, for example, you need to find date pairs where the main booking home page quotes you (£2498 x 2) £4999 per seat.  This is very tough – on most dates, Lufthansa wants a whopping £9,000 for a First Class seat from London to Buenos Aires.

As of 9pm last night, 30th April to 20th May worked.  You can see two seats available at £4,999 each.

When you have found a date pair that works at full price, go back to the 241 link I give you below.  Type in the date there and – voila – it will work properly and it will show you the 241 price.

(For those who understand these things, in First Class it only works when Lufthansa has filed two ‘A’ class seats for both the outbound and return legs between the UK and your destination.)

Business Class deals

Here are the Business Class deals.  These are return prices per person from London BUT based on two people travelling.

With Lufthansa, you can depart from London, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow or Manchester.  You can book these deals here.

• Abuja £1,250
• Almaty £999
• Astana £999
• Bangkok £1,250
• Beijing £1,500
• Bengaluru £999
• Bogota £1,500
• Chengdu £1,350
• Chennai £999
• Dar es Salaam £999
• Delhi £999
• Guangzhou £1,350
• Hong Kong £1,250
• Lagos £999
• Luanda £999
• Mumbai £999
• Nairobi £999
• Port Harcourt £999
• Rio de Janeiro £1,500
• Sao Paulo £1,500
• Shanghai £1,350

Lufthansa is 100% fully flat in business class, although not everyone is a fan of the current seat layout which means that both of you are sharing a footrest, albeit with a divider.  The A350 cabin is pictured above.  SWISS is better in this regard as the seats are not angled towards your neighbour.

That said …. as these are 2-4-1 deals it is highly likely that your neighbour will be your companion!

Here are your options flying in SWISS Business Class, photo above.  You can see an availability calendar here from London on the SWISS website:

• Bangkok £1,250
• Beijing £1,500
• Dar es Salaam £999
• Delhi £999
• Hong Kong £1,250
• Mumbai £999
• Nairobi £999
• Rio de Janeiro £1,499
• Sao Paulo £1,499
• Shanghai £1,350

First Class deals

Lufthansa’s First Class seat may not look so special, but it is a genuinely special experience, especially for lovers of premium lounges, chauffeur driven plane transfers and caviar:

These are the Lufthansa First Class deals per person, based on two travelling – you can check availability online here:

• Beijing £1,999
• Bogota £1,999
• Buenos Aires £2,499
• Bengalaru £1,499
• Chengdu £1,750
• Delhi £1,499
• Guangzhou £1,750
• Hong Kong £1,999
• Johannesburg £2,499
• Mumbai £1,499
• Nairobi £1,499
• Sao Paulo £1,999
• Shanghai £1,749

Here are the SWISS First Class deals – see London departures on the SWISS website here:

• Beijing £1,999
• Dar es Salaam £1,499
• Delhi £1,499
• Hong Kong £1,999
• Johannesburg £2,499
• Mumbai £1,499
• Nairobi £1,499
• Sao Paulo £1,999
• Shanghai £1,749

Here are the rules:

• Book by 3rd September via the special links
• Two people must travel together
• Travel at ANY point – subject to availability – until 31st July 2019 (until 30th June 2019 for China)
• Must stay a Saturday night and the maximum stay is three months

Lufthansa is, perhaps, the most civilised First Class experience there is.   Here is the review of my Lufthansa First Class flight last year.  And, of course, the First Class Terminal – yes, a whole terminal – in Frankfurt where you get driven to the steps of your plane is something everyone should try once.

SWISS offers an excellent First Class and Business Class service.   We are NOT talking Emirates or Etihad style private suites, by any means, but you get a good quality seat, good food and drink and a very attentive crew.  It is a very civilised experience.

I flew SWISS First Class earlier this year, although I didn’t review it for the site, and it was as impressive as usual, albeit I put it a notch below Lufthansa First Class as the food is not as outstanding.  I also have a SWISS Business Class flight booked for October for me and my family.  Here is an older review of SWISS First Class I did.

SWISS and Lufthansa are both part of Lufthansa’s Miles & More loyalty scheme, although you can of course credit your flight to any other Star Alliance programme.

How to book

For SWISS, here are the special booking pages where you can also see availability calendars:

For Lufthansa:

all of the Business Class deals for London, Edinburgh, Birmingham, Glasgow and Manchester can be found here

and all of the First Class deals are here

There are some genuinely excellent deals here especially if you live outside London and especially because of the long travel period.  Take a serious look.  If you have had trouble booking so far, try again using my tips above.

Your best option to maximise your miles when paying is American Express Preferred Rewards Gold.  This offers double points – 2 per £1 – when you when you book flight tickets directly with an airline.  Our review of Amex Gold is here.