First-class award flights from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Houston (IAH)
In the last 30 days AwardTool saw first-class award space on 6 programs for RDU→IAH. Lowest: 25,000 points + $25.60 with Alaska Atmos Rewards, which showed first-class award space on 10 dates. Nonstop first-class space was seen via Virgin Australia Velocity and United MileagePlus.
Every airport: Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Houston award flights.
Prices observed – ; newest observation .
Page regenerated from the Nov 12, 2026 data snapshot (normally daily). Summary last changed . Seats change quickly.
- Lowest observed
- 25,000 points + $25.60
- Alaska Atmos Rewards
- Programs with space
- 6 of 13
- programs seen on this route
- Most dates seen
- 30 of 30
- dates checked · American Airlines AAdvantage
- Nonstop
- Seen
- from 25,000 points + $9.66
In first class, the lowest award seen was 25,000 points + $25.60 with Alaska Atmos Rewards on American Airlines flights; Virgin Australia Velocity needed the same points (25,000 points + $9.66). With Alaska Atmos Rewards, first class started at 25,000 points + $25.60, about 2 times the points of its lowest economy award (12,500 points + $25.60).
Compare programs for first class
The lowest one-way first-class award each program showed on RDU→IAH, sorted by points.
| Program | Points + taxes | Stops | Airlines seen | Seats | Dates seen | Newest observation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Atmos RewardsLowest observed | 25,000 pts + $25.60 | 1 stop |  AA | 2 | 10 | See dates | |
| Virgin Australia Velocity | 25,000 pts + $9.66 | Nonstop |  UA | 1 | 5 | See dates | |
| American Airlines AAdvantage | 25,500 pts + $5.60 | 1 stop | AA AS | — | 30 | See dates | |
| Delta SkyMiles | 25,800 pts + $5.60 | 1 stop |  DL | 5 | 22 | See dates | |
| United MileagePlus | 30,800 pts + $5.60 | Nonstop |  B6UA | 9+ | 16 | See dates | |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 62,500 pts + $11.20 | 1 stop | DL | 3 | 2 | See dates |
Not seen in first class: Air Canada Aeroplan, Avianca LifeMiles, JetBlue TrueBlue, Etihad Guest, GOL Smiles, Air France/KLM Flying Blue and Qantas Frequent Flyer.
Not seen means AwardTool hasn't observed this cabin on this route in the last 30 days. It doesn't mean the airline has no seats. Dates seen counts departure dates with an open award in that cabin at any price; newest observation is the latest time AwardTool saw one of them. Seats is the count the program reported when we observed it; some programs report at most 9.
Observed first-class award examples
| Departure | Program | Points + taxes | Seats | Stops | Observed (UTC) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virgin Australia Velocity | 25,000 pts + $9.66 | 2 | Nonstop | Check this date | ||
| Virgin Australia Velocity | 25,000 pts + $9.66 | 1 | Nonstop | Check this date | ||
| Alaska Atmos Rewards | 25,000 pts + $25.60 | 2 | 1 stop | Check this date | ||
| Alaska Atmos Rewards | 25,000 pts + $25.60 | 5 | 1 stop | Check this date | ||
| American Airlines AAdvantage | 25,500 pts + $5.60 | — | 1 stop | Check this date | ||
| Delta SkyMiles | 25,800 pts + $5.60 | 5 | 1 stop | Check this date | ||
| United MileagePlus | 30,800 pts + $5.60 | 9+ | Nonstop | Check this date | ||
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 62,500 pts + $11.20 | 3 | 1 stop | Check this date |
Prices are one-way per traveler: the program's points or miles plus taxes and carrier fees in USD, as AwardTool observed them in the observation window. Award space changes constantly. A seat we saw may be gone, and space we haven't seen may exist. Always confirm with a live search before transferring points; most transfers can't be reversed.
How often first-class award space showed up
Departure dates in the next 365 days that AwardTool checked for each program in the last 30 days, how many had first-class award space at any price, and the latest departure with space.
| Program | Dates with space | Share of dates checked | Latest departure with space |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Atmos Rewards | 10 of 16 | 62% | |
| Virgin Australia Velocity | 5 of 328 | 1% | |
| American Airlines AAdvantage | 30 of 30 | 100% | |
| Delta SkyMiles | 22 of 22 | 100% | |
| United MileagePlus | 16 of 16 | 100% | |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 2 of 21 | 9% |
Nonstop and connecting first-class awards
Each program's lowest first-class award with its stops, its lowest nonstop award, and on how many of its departure dates with first-class space a nonstop award was open.
| Program | Lowest award | Lowest nonstop award | Dates with nonstop space |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Atmos Rewards | 25,000 points + $25.601 stop | Not seen | 0 of 10 |
| Virgin Australia Velocity | 25,000 points + $9.66Nonstop | 25,000 points + $9.66 | 5 of 5 |
| American Airlines AAdvantage | 25,500 miles + $5.601 stop | Not seen | 0 of 30 |
| Delta SkyMiles | 25,800 miles + $5.601 stop | Not seen | 0 of 22 |
| United MileagePlus | 30,800 miles + $5.60Nonstop | 30,800 miles + $5.60 | 16 of 16 |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 62,500 points + $11.201 stop | Not seen | 0 of 2 |
First class compared with economy, by program
Each program's lowest one-way first-class and economy awards on RDU→IAH, in its own points or miles, and how many times the economy points the first-class award needed. — in the last column means one of the two is a mixed-cabin award or was not seen on 2 or more dates.
| Program | First | Economy | First ÷ economy points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Atmos Rewards | 25,000 points + $25.60 | 12,500 points + $25.60 | 2× |
| Virgin Australia Velocity | 25,000 points + $9.66 | 12,500 points + $9.66 | 2× |
| American Airlines AAdvantage | 25,500 miles + $5.60 | 8,000 miles + $5.60 | 3.2× |
| Delta SkyMiles | 25,800 miles + $5.60 | 7,700 miles + $5.60 | 3.4× |
| United MileagePlus | 30,800 miles + $5.60 | 14,300 miles + $5.60 | 2.2× |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 62,500 points + $11.20 | 18,500 points + $5.60 | 3.4× |
Best months for first class from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Houston (IAH)
| Month | Lowest observed | Program | Dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25,000 pts + $9.66 | Virgin Australia Velocity | 2 | |
| 25,000 pts + $25.60 | Alaska Atmos Rewards | 3 | |
| 25,000 pts + taxes not reported | Virgin Australia Velocity | 1 | |
| 25,000 pts + taxes not reported | Alaska Atmos Rewards | 1 | |
| 25,000 pts + taxes not reported | Virgin Australia Velocity | 1 | |
| 25,500 pts + taxes not reported | American Airlines AAdvantage | 2 | |
| 25,000 pts + taxes not reported | Alaska Atmos Rewards | 4 |
A month's taxes are those of an award AwardTool recorded at that month's lowest price for a departure that month. “Taxes not reported” means the data has none for that month; the award still has taxes and fees.
Lowest first class award by month and program
Each program's lowest one-way first-class award by departure month, in its own points or miles, with the taxes of that month's lowest award and the program's open dates that month under it. A price without taxes had none reported for that month. — means the program showed no first-class space that month.
| Program | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Atmos Rewardspoints | 45,0001 date | 25,000+ $25.60 · 3 dates | — | 25,0001 date | 35,0001 date | — | 25,0004 dates |
| Virgin Australia Velocitypoints | 25,000+ $9.66 · 2 dates | 25,000+ $9.66 · 1 date | 25,0001 date | — | 25,0001 date | — | — |
| American Airlines AAdvantagemiles | 25,500+ $5.60 · 7 dates | 25,500+ $5.60 · 9 dates | 25,5003 dates | 25,5003 dates | 30,5002 dates | 25,5002 dates | 25,5004 dates |
| Delta SkyMilesmiles | 36,4005 dates | 25,800+ $5.60 · 6 dates | 25,800+ $5.60 · 3 dates | 55,7001 date | 43,5001 date | 36,6002 dates | 36,6004 dates |
| United MileagePlusmiles | 48,4004 dates | 30,800+ $5.60 · 6 dates | — | 33,9001 date | 60,3001 date | — | 49,0004 dates |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Clubpoints | — | 62,500+ $11.20 · 1 date | 62,500+ $11.20 · 1 date | — | — | — | — |
Airlines seen in first class
Airlines that appeared on the award itineraries AwardTool observed, and the programs that showed them.
- American Airlines (AA): Alaska Atmos Rewards and American Airlines AAdvantage
- Alaska Airlines (AS): American Airlines AAdvantage
- JetBlue (B6): United MileagePlus
- Delta Air Lines (DL): Delta SkyMiles and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- United Airlines (UA): Virgin Australia Velocity and United MileagePlus
First class on nearby routes
The lowest first-class award AwardTool observed on related routes, as each route's page shows it: the return direction, other airports in the same cities, and more routes from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) and to Houston (IAH). One way, in the program's points or miles, with that award's taxes when the data has them.
| Route | Lowest observed | Program | Dates seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston (IAH) to Raleigh/Durham (RDU)Return direction | 25,500 miles + $5.60 | American Airlines AAdvantage | 25 |
| Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Houston (HOU)Another Houston airport | 18,500 miles + $5.60 | American Airlines AAdvantage | 12 |
| Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to New York JFKAlso from RDU | 9,000 points + $25.60Nonstop | Alaska Atmos Rewards | 275 |
| Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Los Angeles (LAX)Also from RDU | 21,000 miles + $5.60Nonstop | American Airlines AAdvantage | 324 |
| Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Seattle (SEA)Also from RDU | 25,000 miles + $5.60Nonstop | American Airlines AAdvantage | 313 |
| Los Angeles (LAX) to Houston (IAH)Also to IAH | 15,000 points + $25.60Nonstop | Alaska Atmos Rewards | 329 |
| Salt Lake City (SLC) to Houston (IAH)Also to IAH | 25,000 miles + $5.60 | American Airlines AAdvantage | 324 |
| Seattle (SEA) to Houston (IAH)Also to IAH | 25,000 points + $5.60Nonstop | Alaska Atmos Rewards | 324 |
Points that transfer to these programs
| Program | Amex | Bilt | Capital One | Chase | Citi | Wells Fargo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Atmos Rewards | — | 1:1 · ~1 day | — | — | — | — |
| American Airlines AAdvantage | — | — | — | — | 1:1 · Instant | — |
| Delta SkyMiles | 1:1 · Instant | — | — | — | — | — |
| United MileagePlus | — | 1:1 · Instant | — | 1:1 · Instant | — | — |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 1:1 · Instant | 1:1 · Instant | 1:1 · Instant | 1:1 · Instant | 1:1 · Instant | 1:1 · Instant |
Check current transfer bonuses. Most transfers can't be reversed. AwardTool's list has no transfers from these US card programs to Virgin Australia Velocity.
Questions about first-class award flights from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Houston (IAH)
How many points for first class from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Houston (IAH)?
The lowest first-class award AwardTool has seen was 25,000 points + $25.60 with Alaska Atmos Rewards. Seen Nov 4, 2026, 13:50 UTC for a Dec 31, 2026 departure. Alaska Atmos Rewards showed first-class award space on 10 departure dates at any price (newest observation Nov 10, 2026, 04:09 UTC). Search live before transferring points.
Which programs had first-class award space from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Houston (IAH)?
Alaska Atmos Rewards (10 dates), Virgin Australia Velocity (5 dates), American Airlines AAdvantage (30 dates), Delta SkyMiles (22 dates), United MileagePlus (16 dates) and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (2 dates), in the last 30 days.
Can you fly first class nonstop from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Houston (IAH) on points?
Yes. AwardTool observed nonstop first-class award space via Virgin Australia Velocity and United MileagePlus. The lowest nonstop award was 25,000 points + $9.66 with Virgin Australia Velocity, which showed nonstop first-class space on 5 dates.
How much are taxes and fees on first-class award flights from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Houston (IAH)?
Taxes and fees on each program's lowest award ranged from $5.60 with AAdvantage (25,500 miles + $5.60) to $25.60 with Atmos (25,000 points + $25.60). Amounts are one way per traveler in USD and can differ on other dates and routings.
What's the best month to fly first class from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Houston (IAH) on points?
Counting only month prices from programs with award space on 2 or more dates that month, and leaving out unusually low outliers, the lowest first-class award AwardTool observed was for May 2027 departures: 25,000 points + taxes not reported with Atmos (4 dates). The month table shows every lowest price, including those. Based on dates we observed, not a forecast.