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JetBlue Mint Studio and Suites
I’ve been blogging for nearly 10 years, amd up until this flight, I’ve never flown JetBlue Mint anywhere. Let alone fly a narrow body across the great pond – I hadn’t flown it across the country nor down to the great islands of the Caribbean. Nope, never done it.
Well that all changed, and needless to say, I was very excited to give their very best product, the JetBlue Mint Studio, a thorough review on a day flight from New York JFK to London Heathrow. This was my first day flight across an ocean as well…why was I always taking redeyes – day flights are where its at. Never adjusted better for jetlag.
Here’s where I hemmed and hawed. I really debated paying the additional fee to upgrade from JetBlue Suites to the Studio, and I wasn’t going to do it. But given the cabin was exceptionally empty, I pulled the trigger feeling that I could review the Studio and the Suite on the same flight if I was in the Studio, but if I was in the Suite they may not let me use it. Plus, I could write off the upgrade and who doesn’t like more space?
The long story short.. great flight, with very good food, and fast, free Wifi ; however, I’m not really sure the Studio is worth the extra money, but I sure did love it, and what a great use of Qatar Airways Avios ( that’s how I booked ).
Details
- When 2024
- Where: JFK to LHR
- Seat: 1A
- Booked with Qatar Airways Avios 78k + $10
- Flight Time: 7 hours
- Flight: B6 1107
- Aircraft: A321Neo
Booking and Cost
Using Miles
I booked this with Qatar Airlines Avios transferred from Amex to British Airways ( then over to Qatar ) when Amex had a 30% transfer bonus running. The total cost I paid was 78k Avios, or 60k Amex Points ( this is a screenshot from another date ). Typically they peal off quite a few seats closer to departure ( JetBlue has also had some financial difficulties so flights are much emptier than you’d expect meaning more award avail – I’ve seen lots of flights with 7+ seats )
I actually stayed the night before at the Hyatt Regency JFK..it’s a short uber away or you can take a shuttle to the train, but with it being so early, I ubered.
Credit Card Reward Programs That Transfer to JetBlue TrueBlue
- American Express Membership Rewards
- Chase Ultimate Rewards
- Citi ThankYou Rewards
- Capital One Venture Rewards
Credit Card Reward Programs that transfer into Avios ( either British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus, or Qatar Airways since you can combine them )
- American Express Membership Rewards
- Bilt Rewards
- Chase Ultimate Rewards
- Citi ThankYou Rewards
- Capital One Venture Rewards
Booking Tips
I found this award space using Expert Flyer but you could search on Qatar Itself or on JetBlue. As far as search engines, Awayz ( soon to be integrated into my site ), Point.me, Points.Yeah, and Roame are all good options as well.
Airport Experience
Check-In and Security
JetBlue flies out of Terminal 5 at JFK and there is a very small Mint check in. It was quick and I inquired about upgrading to the Studio. They said there was nothing they could do, and I’d need to talk to the rep at the gate…weird. My app also wouldn’t allow me to buy the Studio, so I thought I’d try again after check-in. Secretly, I figured they didn’t know what they were talking about…
No Lounge
If you were wondering…JetBlue Mint doesn’t have any lounge access and there isn’t any reason to arrive early to the airport. I just grabbed a Starbucks and waited to eat on the plane.
Upgrading to the Mint Studio
While I was waiting in the security line I looked at the my phone and I had the offer to pay $299 to select a Studio seat. Snagged it
The Cabin and Seat
Cabin Layout
The cabin is in a 1-1 configuration across 12 rows with the first two seats being Mint Studio. The Suites face the aisle which may not be that desirable as you’re starting right at someone as they pass.
Cabin Seats – Mint Studio vs Mint Suite
Mint Studio
The Studio has a massive amount of space, and if you’re traveling with a small child, especially one under 2 this may be quite advantageous to you. The Studio has extra storage and an area next to it where another person could sit and dine with you.
The Studio has extra storage and an area next to it where another person could sit and dine with you.
As well as this big cabinet
As well as multiple places to plug your devices in
And then bed mode for the Studio…the little extra seating bit had some issues
Mint Suite
The suite is considerably more narrow with a seat width of 22 inches. The tv is slightly smaller and you don’t have the large storage bin, but the power plugs are similar as is the overall feel. I really like it.
The view from the seat where you can see the footwell is noticeably smaller.
In-Flight Service
Amenity Kit
Very basic and the same whether you get a suite or the studio.
Dining Experience
Dining with Mint is all ordered on the TV prior to takeoff. The food was excellent.
Meal Service
My first meal…egg frittata, yogurt and fresh fruit. One of the freshest meals I’ve had on a plane.
The second meal… very tasty pizza with a tomato salad + nice sea salt flakes. JetBlue makes you wonder why the typical airline meal is dreadful.
Wifi – free and fast!
There was Wifi on the flight, which I took advantage of, and it was fast enough to get easily get work done. It wasn’t Starlink fast, but I could upload pictures to my blog and edit Reels/TikToks with no problem. Couldn’t stream YouTube though.
Conclusion
This is an excellent way to fly to England
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex® and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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