Status: checked against official sources; automated independent review
GUIDE
How to Book Lufthansa Miles & More Awards
Booking a Lufthansa Miles & More award means using miles rather than cash for a flight, and such a booking sits inside the Star Alliance framework: Star Alliance counts 26 member airlines reaching over 1,150 airports in 190 countries. [4] Lufthansa (LH) is a Star Alliance member carrier, and the alliance has a paid Round the World fare. [5]
Facts checked: 18 October 2026
Key takeaways
- Lufthansa (LH) is named among the Star Alliance member carriers on whose flights the alliance's Round the World fare is valid, in a list the alliance describes as 26 airlines. [4] [5]
- Whether a flight earns miles and status points depends on its booking class and on the rules of the traveller's own frequent flyer programme, not on the alliance page itself. [5]
- Flights marketed under a member carrier's flight number but operated by a different airline are excluded from the alliance's Round the World product. [5]
What these sources cover
The member page draws a line worth knowing before planning any partner itinerary: it lists member airlines separately from Connecting Partners, naming Juneyao Air as one and describing connecting partners as regional airlines that plug into the wider network and offer certain privileges on combined itineraries. [4] Status as a member carrier is therefore not the same as status as a connecting partner in the alliance's own language. [4]
What the pages do not carry is the practical layer a Miles & More member needs at the booking screen: which partner cabins are open on a given date, what a redemption costs in miles, which taxes and carrier charges are added, and how long a held booking stays valid. [4] [5]
Lufthansa's place in the alliance
Star Alliance says it unites 26 airlines and gives travellers access to more than 1,150 airports in over 190 countries, covering 90% of the world. [4] The Round the World page lists the carriers on which that fare is valid and includes Lufthansa (LH) alongside Lufthansa Group siblings SWISS (LX), Austrian (OS) and Brussels Airlines (SN), plus carriers such as United (UA), Singapore Airlines (SQ) and ANA (NH). [5]
The same page adds a restriction that matters when a route looks available but is flown by someone else: certain flights marketed under a member carrier's flight number but operated by a different airline are not offered for that product. [5]
Earning and operating flights
The alliance's booking page promises that travellers earn miles and points on every leg of a Round the World journey through their frequent flyer programme. [5] Its FAQ narrows that promise: qualifying flights and booking classes used with the fare can earn miles and status points toward a Star Alliance frequent flyer programme, and a qualifying flight is defined as any flight eligible to earn miles or points. [5] For the booking classes and fares that actually qualify, the page sends readers to their own frequent flyer programme's rules. [5]
The practical reading is that the alliance page sets the framework and the programme sets the detail. [5] A flight that is perfectly bookable can still earn nothing if its booking class falls outside the programme's earning table, and the alliance page does not list those tables. [5]
How the alliance prices its own fare
The Round the World fare's total price is determined by total mileage, the point of origin and the class of travel, plus applicable fees, taxes and surcharges. [5] The fare is applicable only if the ticket is purchased before departure, and the fare must appear on the ticket. [5] It allows a maximum of 16 flight coupons for the whole journey, including later re-routing, and a trip can last up to 12 months after the first flight departs. [5] Reservations can be made at least 24 hours before departure for sectors up to and including the first international sector, while subsequent segments can be reserved at any time. [5]
The rules are for a cash fare priced in mileage bands. [5]
Exceptions and limits
- Codeshares. As noted above, flights marketed by a member carrier but operated by another airline fall outside the Round the World product, so a marketed flight number alone does not establish that a given product covers the flight. [5]
- Stopover definitions. Under the Round the World rules a stopover is any stay of more than 24 hours and a transfer is a stop of less than 24 hours, which is what decides how a multi-day break is counted. [5]
- Surface sectors. Up to five surface sectors are permitted, they are excluded from the calculated fare and paid for by the passenger, and their mileage must still be included in the maximum permitted mileage calculation. [5]
- Baggage and extra charges. Free baggage on that fare is one piece of 20 kg in Economy and Premium Economy, two pieces totalling 30 kg in Business and two pieces totalling 40 kg in First; if the trip is only within North America, surcharges may apply from the first checked bag. [5]
- Where to buy. The alliance directs travellers to its online Book and Fly tool, to any member airline reservation centre, or to a travel agent, and notes that infant bookings are handled through call centres rather than online. [5]
- The documentary limit.
Sources
Sources accessed on 18 October 2026.
- Star Alliance member airlines, checked 18 October 2026
- Star Alliance Round the World fare and FAQ, checked 18 October 2026