Bay Area flight deals radar — June 12–15, 2026 (first weekly issue)

Frontier OAK↔LAS $49 books out tomorrow, June 16 — that's the one item you need to act on today. Everything else below has a runway through June 30. This is the first weekly Monday edition of the Bay Area Flight Deals Radar, covering June 12–15 — a compressed ~4-day window as the channel transitions from daily to weekly cadence.

Action deadlines at a glance

Deal	Deadline	Urgency
Frontier OAK↔LAS $49 nonstop	June 16, 11:59 PM ET	🔴 Tomorrow
Chase UR → Virgin Atlantic 30% bonus	July 14	🟡 3 weeks
Amex MR → Flying Blue 25% bonus	June 30	🟡 15 days
Chase UR → Marriott 55% bonus	June 30	🟡 15 days
Rove → Turkish Miles 50% bonus	June 30	🟡 15 days
Citi TYP → Qatar Avios 30% bonus	June 30	🟡 15 days
Hotel → United MileagePlus 25% bonus	June 30	🟡 15 days
Citi TYP → ALL Accor 50% bonus	July 18	🟢 New
Amex MR → Avianca LifeMiles 15% bonus	July 15	🟢 New today
Alaska partner booking fee: $12.50 → $20	July 1	⚠️ Advance notice

🔴 Lead fare: Frontier OAK↔LAS $49 — book by June 16

Frontier Airlines is back at Oakland (OAK) for the first time in years, launching 11 weekly nonstop flights to Las Vegas starting August 20. The introductory fare is $49 one-way — and the booking window closes tomorrow night, June 16 at 11:59 PM ET. 1

Field	Detail
Route	OAK ↔ LAS (nonstop)
Airline	Frontier Airlines
Price	$49 one-way
Frequency	11x/week
Service starts	August 20, 2026
Travel window	Select days through November 19, 2026
Blackout dates	September 4 and 7, 2026
Advance purchase	21 days required
Book by	June 16, 2026, 11:59 PM ET
Book at	flyfrontier.com

The $49 base fare covers a personal item only. Carry-on bags run $29–$59 depending on how early you add them — at checkout (before selecting seats) is cheaper than at the gate. At $49 plus a carry-on, the OAK↔LAS roundtrip still competes favorably with what Southwest and Spirit typically show for the corridor in late summer. 2

Aerial view of the Las Vegas Strip at sunset showing the Bellagio fountains, Paris Hotel Eiffel Tower replica, and surrounding casino hotels

Las Vegas Strip at sunset — the destination on Frontier's new OAK nonstop starting August 20 (photo: Stephen Leonardi / Pexels)

Cash fare board: June 12–15 window

Freshness tiers follow The Flight Deal's own 48-hour guideline: D1 fares (posted June 14) are highly likely still live; D2 fares (posted June 13) are at the boundary; D3 fares (posted June 12) should be verified before booking. D4 fares (posted June 11) are omitted as active recommendations.

D1 fares — posted June 14, likely still live

JetBlue SFO↔Buffalo, NY — $258 BE / $346 RE

Field	Detail
Route	SFO ↔ BUF via JFK
Airline	JetBlue
Price	$258 BE / $346 RE (roundtrip, taxes included)
Travel window	September, late October – early November
Sample dates	September 15–22
Advance purchase	7 days
Fare classes	L (BE) / P (RE)
Book at	jetblue.com

BE restrictions: no advance seat selection, no changes or cancellations. RE includes carry-on and advance seat selection. 3

Asiana SFO→Dalian, China — $775 RT

Field	Detail
Route	SFO → ICN → DLC → ICN → SFO
Airline	Asiana Airlines (Star Alliance)
Price	$775 roundtrip (taxes included)
Fare class	W
Travel window	Late October–November; January–March 2027
Sample dates	November 5–12
Advance purchase	3 days
Visa	US citizens need a Chinese visa in advance
Mileage accrual	United MileagePlus: ~5,928 miles
Book at	Priceline

No stopover permitted. The $775 price point for SFO–Dalian is competitive for a Star Alliance itinerary with United mileage accrual. 4

D2 fares — posted June 13, verify before booking

Korean Air SFO↔Phnom Penh — $909 RT

Field	Detail
Route	SFO ↔ ICN ↔ PNH
Airline	Korean Air (SkyTeam)
Price	$909 roundtrip (taxes included)
Fare class	T
Travel window	Late August–November; January–April 2027
Departure/return days	Monday–Thursday
Advance purchase	3 days
Visa	US citizens: visa on arrival
Delta MQDs	~$787 (Medallion Qualifying Dollars, Delta elite status credit)
Book at	Expedia

Verify fare before booking; at the 48-hour boundary, lower inventory buckets may be gone. 5

Asiana SFO↔Manila — $897 RT

Field	Detail
Route	SFO ↔ ICN ↔ MNL
Airline	Asiana Airlines (Star Alliance)
Price	$897 roundtrip (taxes included)
Fare class	W
Travel window	Mid-August–November; January–early May 2027
Departure/return days	Monday–Thursday
Advance purchase	3 days
Visa	US citizens: visa-free
Mileage accrual	United MileagePlus: ~7,262 miles
Book at	Priceline

No stopover permitted; US citizens enter visa-free. Same 48-hour caveat applies. 6

D3 fares — posted June 12, likely expired but listed for reference

These two posted on June 12 and exceed the 48-hour guideline as of today. Check current pricing directly before booking — the fare structure may still be on the calendar even if the lowest buckets have sold out.

JetBlue SFO↔Aguadilla, Puerto Rico — $430 BE / $490 RE via FLL. Travel August–early September. 7
Delta SFO↔Cancún — $338 BE / $458 RE via MSP. Travel August–early December, January–mid-March 2027; Sunday–Wednesday departures. 8

Transfer bonus board

Nine bonuses are currently active. Programs use the following abbreviations throughout: Chase UR = Chase Ultimate Rewards; Amex MR = Amex Membership Rewards; Citi TYP = Citi ThankYou Points. The two new additions since the last issue are flagged. 9

Program	Bonus	Expires	Notes
Chase UR → Virgin Atlantic	+30%	July 14, 2026	VS Flying Club — Delta & United sweet spots
Amex MR → Flying Blue	+25%	June 30, 2026	Air France/KLM — SFO nonstop to CDG/AMS
Chase UR → Marriott Bonvoy	+55%	June 30, 2026	Highest active Chase transfer bonus
Amex MR → Marriott Bonvoy	+20%	June 30, 2026	Stack with Marriott → United 25% below
Rove → Turkish Miles & Smiles	+50%	June 30, 2026	Star Alliance redemptions incl. SFO routes
Citi TYP → Qatar Avios	+30%	June 30, 2026	BA/Iberia/Finnair partner backdoor
Hotel → United MileagePlus	+25%	June 30, 2026	Marriott/Hilton/IHG → United
🆕 Citi TYP → ALL Accor	+50%	July 18, 2026	~1.725¢/TYP; Fairmont, Raffles, Sofitel
🆕 Amex MR → Avianca LifeMiles	+15%	July 15, 2026	Star Alliance, no fuel surcharges

Two new bonuses launched this period:

Citi TYP → ALL Accor +50% (June 14 – July 18): Strata Premier/Elite cardholders get the best rate — 1,000 TYP → 750 Accor points with the bonus, worth approximately 1.725 US cents per Citi point toward hotel charges. Accor points erase room rate, dining, spa, and other charges at checkout, which is a flexible model compared to standard night awards. Brands include Fairmont, Raffles, Sofitel, Novotel, and Mövenpick. Accor's US footprint is thin, so this bonus makes most sense if you have Europe travel planned. 10

Citi transfer portal showing Accor 50% Bonus badge with 1,000 TYP converting to 750 Accor points for Strata Premier/Elite cardholders — Citi's transfer portal showing the 50% bonus: Strata Premier/Elite cardholders get 750 Accor points per 1,000 TYP 10

Amex MR → Avianca LifeMiles +15% (June 15 – July 15): Standard 1:1 ratio becomes 1,000 MR → 1,150 LifeMiles with the bonus. LifeMiles is a Star Alliance program with no fuel surcharges — useful for ANA first class, Lufthansa/SWISS business, and United awards from SFO. OMAAT's Ben Schlappig characterizes it as valuable with a specific redemption in mind: "Really this is the core value proposition of the program, since this is a great way to book Star Alliance premium cabin seats at a huge discount." 11 Do dummy award searches before transferring — LifeMiles availability doesn't always mirror other Star Alliance partner programs.

The LifeMiles promotion page confirming June 15 – July 15, 2026 window 11

Expired since the last issue: Citi TYP → Preferred Hotels 30% and Citi TYP → Wyndham 25% both ended June 13.

Card and program news

Chase Sapphire Preferred: major changes live today

Effective June 15 — the same day the CSR 150K bonus expired this morning — the Chase Sapphire Preferred (CSP, $95/year) received new benefits and a new welcome bonus, while also losing two features. New applicants get a 100,000-point welcome bonus (Chase Ultimate Rewards points) after $5,000 spend in 3 months, annual fee $95 not waived. OMAAT's Ben Schlappig values UR at 1.7 cents each, putting the bonus at roughly $1,700 in travel. 12

What changed — gains: 13

3x points on gas stations and EV charging (new)
3x points on vacation rentals (Airbnb, VRBO, Vacasa, others)
$100/year Chase Travel hotel credit (up from $50)
$120 every 4 years toward Global Entry / TSA PreCheck / NEXUS
Complimentary 1-year Apple TV subscription (activate by December 31, 2026)
Emergency evacuation coverage added to travel protections

What changed — cuts:

10% anniversary points bonus: eliminated
Chase UR → World of Hyatt transfer ratio: 4:3 for new applicants (down from 1:1). This is the first Chase UR transfer ratio that isn't 1:1. CSR (Chase Sapphire Reserve, $550/year) and CSR Business cardholders are not affected — they keep 1:1 Hyatt transfers.

The Hyatt devaluation matters if you hold CSP as your primary UR card and use Hyatt for hotel redemptions. At 4:3, you need 33% more UR points per Hyatt point compared to CSR. Points can be pooled between cards, so pairing CSP with a CSR (if you have one) preserves access to the 1:1 ratio.

Finnair Plus Avios: 40% discount, 3-day window (June 15–18)

A short-window purchase discount of up to 40% off Avios is live through June 18. Best tier: 85,000–200,000 Avios at 40% off, pricing out to 1.3 cents per Avios when paying in USD. 14

Avios transfer 1:1 between Finnair Plus, British Airways Executive Club, Iberia Plus, Aer Lingus AerClub, and Qatar Airways Privilege Club — so purchasing here is also a route into BA, Iberia, or Qatar redemptions (all of which serve SFO). Worth it only with a specific redemption already scoped; at 1.3¢ Avios is not cheap enough to stockpile speculatively.

Alaska partner booking fee: $12.50 → $20 effective July 1

Alaska Airlines will raise its partner award booking fee from $12.50 to $20 per ticket, effective July 1. If you're booking Alaska Mileage Plan awards on partner carriers — Cathay Pacific, British Airways, Finnair, American, Qantas, JAL, and others — the case for booking before July 1 is straightforward on any trip you've already settled on.

Chase Freedom Flex Q3: register now, earn July 1–September 30

Q3 5x categories are gas stations, public transit, EV charging, select live entertainment, and United Way donations — 5x on the first $1,500 per quarter. Register at chasebonus.com before September 14. Earnings convert to transferable UR when paired with a CSP or CSR. 15

Singapore KrisFlyer Spontaneous Escapes — no US routes this month

KrisFlyer's July Spontaneous Escapes list is out with 30% off awards for travel July 1–31 (book by June 30), but no SFO/LAX/JFK routes are discounted. All discounts are on intra-Asia routes from Singapore. OMAAT notes this is predictable: "Summer is a peak travel period, so there aren't many award seats that can even be discounted." 16 Skip unless you're connecting through SIN.

American Airlines suspends 6 California routes (August 5 – October 5)

American is suspending six California-touching domestic routes from August 5 to October 5, citing elevated jet fuel costs from the Iran conflict adding an estimated $4–5 billion to its 2026 fuel bill. The six routes: LAX–CLE, LAX–CMH, LAX–PIT, LAX–IAD, CLT–ONT, and CLT–SMF. SFO is not directly affected by these specific suspensions, though American has adjusted its SFO summer schedule for efficiency. Live and Let's Fly notes: "For passengers, this means fewer nonstop options and higher prices, a continued cost of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East." 17 On SFO routes where AA cedes ground, United and Delta typically fill capacity — watch for fare movement if you're booking LAX-connecting itineraries this fall.

Southwest 1,000-point glitch: canceled

A pricing error briefly showed many Southwest flights at 1,000 Rapid Rewards points. Southwest classified the bookings as "invalid fare sale" and is canceling affected reservations. If you booked during the June 11–12 window and paid ~1,000 points, expect cancellation and a full refund of points. Not actionable.

Cover image: Frontier Airlines A321 — Frontier Airlines Newsroom