Signing up and earning miles with Etihad is a good alternative, if you are planning future trips to the Middle East, Africa or Asia — but still gives you very limited choices in Europe, with the bankruptcy
of airberlin and
alitalia... An even better solution might be to sign up for ANA Mileage Club, as you will be able to redeem for
flights on StarAlliance airlines, like Lufthansa, Swiss, SAS and LOT, giving you lots
of options from Europe!