SEA to ICN: Booking Hawaiian Airlines' New Leihoku Suite for 75k Miles

Want to fly business class from Seattle to Seoul on Hawaiian Airlines' brand-new 787-9 Dreamliner featuring the Leihoku Suite, with lie-flat seats, a privacy door, and direct aisle access? Normally that seat costs thousands of dollars, but I was able to book it for just 75,000 miles per person. Even better, I saved 40,000 miles compared to booking through Hawaiian directly. Here's exactly how I did it, why it's such a good deal, and strategies you can use to earn the miles to book trips like this.

The Route

Starting September 12, 2025, Hawaiian Airlines launched its first-ever non-stop route from Seattle to Seoul Incheon on Flight HA871. The service departs Seattle at 2:50 p.m. and arrives in Incheon the following day at 6:35 p.m., with a flight time of about 11 hours and 40 minutes. It operates five times a week with no flights on Mondays or Tuesdays.

The Plane: 787-9 Dreamliner with the Leihoku Suite

The Leihoku Suite on the 787-9 Dreamliner is a major upgrade from Hawaiian's older product. The A330 flying from Seattle to Narita uses an older 2-2-2 business class configuration with no real privacy. The Leihoku Suite has a sliding privacy door, a fully lie-flat seat, and direct aisle access from every seat.

Cash Fares and Award Prices

Cash fares for this route start at around $830 round-trip in economy, while business class round-trip runs about $4,200. One-way economy is roughly $430 and one-way business class is about $2,500.

The Trick: Book Through Alaska, Not Hawaiian

If you're booking with miles, the instinct is to go straight to HawaiianAirlines.com, but that's the more expensive option. Booking through Alaska Airlines saves you significantly on the exact same flight.

How to Earn Alaska Airlines Miles

Alaska is not a direct transfer partner for Chase, Amex, or Citi, so you cannot move points from those programs to Alaska. However, there are two programs that do transfer to Alaska: Bilt Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy.

• Marriott Bonvoy transfers at a 3:1 ratio. If you transfer 60,000 Marriott points you get a 5,000-mile bonus, so 60,000 Marriott points becomes 25,000 Alaska miles. The bonus increases the more you transfer. Transferring 30,000 Marriott points gets you 10,000 Alaska miles, which is decent if you just need to top off your balance.
• Bilt Rewards transfers to Alaska at 1:1, making it one of the best ways to earn Alaska miles without flying.

The best way to rack up Alaska miles quickly is through the Alaska Airlines Atmos credit cards. Both the personal and business versions have strong welcome bonuses and earn Alaska miles on every purchase.

• Alaska Atmos Base Card ($95 annual fee): 80,000 bonus miles plus a $99 companion fare after spending $4,000 or more in the first 120 days.
• Alaska Atmos Flagship Card ($395 annual fee): 100,000 bonus miles plus a 25,000-mile global companion award after spending $6,000 or more in the first 90 days.
• Alaska Atmos Business Card ($70 annual fee, $25 per additional card): 80,000 bonus miles plus a $99 companion fare after spending $5,000 or more in the first 90 days.

You can also earn miles by flying Alaska Airlines or their partners like American Airlines, Japan Airlines, Cathay Pacific, and more.

Why Alaska's Sweet Spots Still Stand Out

Even after Alaska's big program refresh, they still have hidden sweet spots like this one. Flying Hawaiian Airlines to Asia in business class for 75,000 miles is an incredible value compared to United or Delta, where similar flights can cost 100,000 to 120,000 miles or more.