Redeem Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles

HawaiianMiles is the frequent flyer program of Hawaiian Airlines and you’re able to both earn and redeem miles on all eligible Hawaiian Airlines flights. If you don’t have any HawaiianMiles you can transfer points from American Express Membership Rewards (1:1 ratio and instant transfer) or Marriott Bonvoy (3:1 ratio and average transfer time is 1-2 days).

The award chart can be viewed here. You will notice there are a few award charts – depending on the regions you are traveling from and to. Flights within Hawaii are usually inexpensive and therefore it may not make sense to redeem miles for those (unless traveling during a peak period where the revenue cost is high but there is award availability).

The best redemptions include:

• Hawaii to/from North America in First Class for 40,000 miles one-way
• Hawaii to/from Japan, Korea, Australia, and New Zealand in Business Class for 65,000 miles one-way
• Hawaii to/from Pago Pago and Papeete in Business Class for 47,500 miles one-way
• Hawaii to/from Pago Pago and Papeete in Economy Class for 27,500 miles one-way

All prices mentioned above are for the lowest (saver) level award availability. Redeeming 40,000 miles for a one-way First Class lie-flat seat on a nonstop flight from New York to Honolulu is a fantastic redemption and something you’re unlikely to find on other U.S. airlines.

redeem miles for flights on Hawaiian Airlines

Redeem American Airlines AAdvantage miles

You can redeem American Airlines AAdvantage miles on select Hawaiian Airlines flights – but not all flights. Furthermore, any flight within Hawaii on Hawaiian Airlines requires a separate award and cannot be combined with other Hawaiian Airlines flights (for example, Kauai – Honolulu – Tokyo cannot be booked on one award). You can redeem AA miles for Hawaiian Airlines flights within Hawaii and their international flights from Honolulu.

Award pricing is based on AA’s flight award chart for oneworld and partner airlines. You’re able to mix and match airlines, for example, you could fly Honolulu to Tokyo on Hawaiian Airlines and then Tokyo to Osaka on Japan Airlines all on one award. You can fly to the Asia 2 region via the Asia 1 region (Japan and Korea), so an award like Honolulu – Tokyo – Kuala Lumpur on Hawaiian Airlines and Malaysia Airlines is totally fine as long as the connection in Tokyo is under 24 hours.

Highlights of AA’s award chart include:

• Hawaii to Asia Region 1 in Business Class for 52,500 miles one-way
• Hawaii to Asia Region 2 in Business Class for 55,000 miles one-way
• Hawaii to the South Pacific in Business Class for 65,000 miles one-way

If there’s award space you could potentially fly something like Honolulu – Auckland – Sydney – Perth for 65,000 miles one-way in Business Class on Hawaiian Airlines and Qantas which would be a great use of AAdvantage miles.

If you don’t have any AAdvantage miles you can transfer points from Marriot Bonvoy (3:1 ratio and average transfer time is 2 days), Citi sometimes allows transfers from ThankYou points to AAdvantage but this isn’t permanent and rather an “offer” that has appeared before.

Redeem United Airlines MileagePlus miles

United Airlines no longer publishes an award chart so award redemption levels will vary but expect to redeem around 7,700 miles for a one-way flight within Hawaii in Economy. You can also add on a flight within Hawaii as part of your larger itinerary from the mainland U.S. For example, you can redeem United miles for a United flight from San Francisco to Honolulu and then Honolulu to Maui on Hawaiian Airlines all on the same award.

If you don’t have any MileagePlus miles you can transfer points from Chase Ultimate Rewards (1:1 ratio and instant transfer) or Marriott Bonvoy (3:1.1 ratio and average transfer time is 1-2 days).

Redeem Delta Air Lines SkyMiles

Delta Air Lines no longer publishes an award chart so award redemption levels will vary but expect to redeem around 7,500 miles for a one-way flight within Hawaii in Economy. You can also add on a flight within Hawaii as part of your larger itinerary from the mainland U.S. For example, you can redeem Delta miles for a Delta flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu and then Honolulu to Maui on Hawaiian Airlines all on the same award.

If you don’t have any SkyMiles you can transfer points from American Express Membership Rewards (1:1 ratio and instant transfer) or Marriott Bonvoy (3:1 ratio and average transfer time is 1 day).

Redeem Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points

Virgin Atlantic has some unique airline partners and one of them is Hawaiian Airlines. You can view the award chart for Hawaiian Airlines here. Virgin Atlantic miles are relatively easy to earn since you can transfer them from American Express Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, and Citi ThankYou points (1:1 ratio and instant transfer) or Marriott Bonvoy (3:1 ratio and average transfer time is 1-2 days).

Highlights of the award chart for Hawaiian Airlines include:

• Hawaii – West Coast Mainland USA in Business Class for 40,000 points one-way
• Hawaii – South Pacific in Business Class for 47,500 points one-way
• Hawaii – South Pacific in Economy Class for 27,500 points one-way
• Hawaii – Asia/Australia/New Zealand/East Coast Mainland USA in Business Class for 65,000 points one-way

fly to Hawaii using miles

Other Hawaiian Airlines Partners

Hawaiian Airlines is also partners with China Airlines, Japan Airlines, jetBlue Airways, Korean Air, and Virgin Australia. You may be able to also earn/redeem these points for travel on Hawaiian Airlines flights, but it is either hard to earn some of these miles/points or the value isn’t so great.

All in All

Hawaiian Airlines has some unique and cool flights that are outside of Hawaii for which you can redeem miles. Award availability in Economy is generally okay on their Asia flights, but harder to find on their South Pacific flights; First/Business Class is harder to book using miles, but not impossible.

Sometimes the best way to get to Asia or the South Pacific is via a stop in Hawaii. The U.S. state is conveniently positioned along the path of flights to the South Pacific and since those can generally be long from the U.S. mainland, a stop in Hawaii to stretch your legs (or even explore the islands for a few days), could be just what you need on your next trip.

The post Redeeming Miles for Hawaiian Airlines Flights appeared first on Travel Miles 101.

Use Miles & Points to travel here!

Airlines and their Partners

Today, we are going to look at a bigger picture in the miles & points hobby – airlines and their partners. The number one question that was asked was “how can I use my miles/points from airline X to travel on airline X’s partners?” While this may seem easy, in some cases it requires searching several websites and maybe even calling the airline over the phone to book.

I’d love to learn how to use airline points to be used on an airline partner! I get so confused when someone say you need to go to this site and search for this, then do this and you need to call this airline.

Like many others I’m most curious about the affiliate partners of airlines.

Explaining the value and optimization of transferring points to partners and booking through partners to find sweetspots for airfare. I’m understanding optimizing earning points and bonus categories, but spending points efficiently is a mystery.

When airlines are partners (or in the same alliance), you can generally earn and redeem miles across all of these airlines. For example, you can fly Lufthansa and credit miles to United Airlines (or the opposite) – this is because the two are in the same alliance. You can also use United Airlines miles to fly Lufthansa (and the opposite). If an airline is a member of an alliance, you can redeem your miles from any airline in that alliance for travel on other airlines in that same alliance.

Airline Alliances and non-alliance Partnerships

There are currently three major airline alliances – Star Alliance, oneworld, and SkyTeam. You can view the airlines that belong to each alliance here:

• Star Alliance member airlines
• oneworld member airlines
• SkyTeam member airlines

Airlines that are members of a specific alliance can also have partnerships outside of their alliances. For example, United Airlines is a member of Star Alliance, but also partners with Aer Lingus (an airline with no alliance membership). American Airlines is a member of oneworld, but also partners with Etihad Airways (an airline with no alliance membership).

Use Singapore Airlines Miles to fly on ALL Star Alliance airlines

In addition to airline alliances, some non-alliance airlines also partner with lots of other airlines and allow you to earn and redeem miles on all of the airlines in the partnership.

The important thing to note here is that while Alaska Airlines is partners with airline X and Y, it may not be true that airlines X and Y are partners on their own (if they aren’t in the same alliance, for example). Alaska is partners with both Singapore Airlines and Finnair and you can earn Alaska miles for travel on these two partners, however, Singapore Airlines and Finnair are not partners between themselves as they are in different alliances (Singapore Airlines is in Star Alliance and Finnair is in oneworld) – so while you can earn Alaska miles for travel on both airlines, you cannot earn Finnair miles for travel on Singapore Airlines since they aren’t partners (and not in the same alliance).

There are many other airlines that aren’t members of an alliance and partner with other airlines:

• Emirates partner airlines
• Etihad Airways partner airlines

You can redeem miles on all airlines within an alliance if an airline is a member of that alliance. With partnerships, you should check the website of the airline which you have miles with if you can use these miles on their partners outside of an alliance. For example, if you have American Airlines miles, it is automatic that you can redeem them on any oneworld airline (as AA is a member of oneworld), but you should check AA’s website for earning and redeeming specifics on their non-oneworld partner airlines (such as Etihad Airways, for example).

Searching for Alliance Award Space (flights using Miles)

Searching for award space within the three alliances is very easy. As a reminder, you can redeem miles on any airline within the same alliance from any other airline also in the same alliance, for example, you can use Turkish Airlines miles to fly Singapore Airlines as both airlines are in the Star Alliance.

Star Alliance

To search for Star Alliance award space, use United Airlines’ website. The website is fantastic and will show you ALL Star Alliance award space that is available. You do not need to have a United account to search for award space.

Use United.com to search ALL Star Alliance Award Space

The second website I use to find Star Alliance award space is Aeroplan, Air Canada’s frequent flyer program. Also, Aeroplan does NOT display ALL possible connections and therefore it is best to search each flight separately. For example, if you search for Seattle to London, you may get no results while if you search for Seattle to New York and New York to London, you may find available flights.

oneworld

Searching for oneworld award space is easy because you can use the American Airlines website to find award space on all of their oneworld partners.

Use AA.com to search for oneworld Award Space

To search oneworld award space, also use the British Airways website:

Use BA.com to search for oneworld Award Space

SkyTeam

The two best airlines to search for award space on SkyTeam are the Air France website and the Delta website. While you will need an account to use the award search function on Air France’s website, you don’t need an account on Delta’s website to search for award space.

Use Delta.com to search for SkyTeam Award Space

Delta’s website often does show a bunch of flight combinations, however it is terrible to use and you will often find errors after errors. Also, keep in mind that Delta only allows their SkyTeam partners to book award space at Delta Saver Level 1 – which is the lowest cost of a flight in Delta miles. However, Delta doesn’t publish award charts, so we can’t be 100% sure what is Saver Level 1. If you need to book Delta flights using SkyTeam partners, use the Air France or Korean Air website and if they show Delta award space, you can usually book it through other SkyTeam partners.

Searching for Award Space outside of Airline Alliances

Searching for award space outside of airline alliances is a bit tricky because sometimes airlines limit the number of award seats that are available to their non-alliance partners.

To search for award space on non-alliance partners, you should generally use the website of the airline you want to fly on. For example, if you want to fly Etihad Airways using American Airlines miles, you should use Etihad’s website to find awards space at the lowest saver level – which is the same award space American Airlines will see.

Use Etihad’s website to find award space on Etihad

In Conclusion

I hope this article clarified as to how you can use your miles from airline X on airline X’s partners. The general rules are:

• you can earn/redeem miles on ALL airlines within the same alliance
  • example: use United miles to fly Lufthansa
• you can earn/redeem miles on other partners of a specific airline
  • example: fly Etihad Airways using American Airlines miles (the two airlines are non-alliance partners)

Now that you understand you can use miles from airline X on airline X’s partners, my next articles will be a more detailed overview on how to find/book award space within each airline alliance and also on non-alliance partners.

If you have any questions at all or if something needs clarification, please post them below or tag and ask me in the TM101 Facebook group.

Happy Booking!

The post Redeeming Miles from Airline X on Airline X’s Partners appeared first on Travel Miles 101.

Alaska Airlines

Alaska Airlines, based in Seattle, is an airline operating flights within North America – the US, Mexico, Canada, and select international destinations such as Costa Rica. The beauty of Alaska Airlines is their fantastic mileage program, which offers incredible redemption rates on most of their partners.

Alaska Airlines Partner Airlines

Alaska Airlines partners with many airlines and you can earn and redeem miles on all of their partners. To find award space on these airlines, simply use Alaska’s website. The only two exceptions are Cathay Pacific and LATAM Airlines. Keep in mind that Alaska may not always see the same award space that British Airways shows.

Alaska Airlines Award Routing Rules

Alaska Airlines only allows one partner airline + Alaska on an award ticket. You cannot mix partners. For example, you can fly Seattle – Los Angeles on Alaska and Los Angeles – Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific, but you cannot fly Seattle – Los Angeles on American Airlines and later connect on Cathay Pacific. Only one partner airline is allowed.

Alaska Airlines is generous in that you can have a stopover on an award ticket, even on a one-way. So you could fly Vancouver to Hong Kong to Singapore on Cathay Pacific and stop in Hong Kong for however long you’d like. Most stopovers are limited to hub cities of their partner airlines, however, sometimes when calling to book an award over the phone other cities can be inserted as a stopover as long as the routing is direct.

Alaska doesn’t charge any close-in booking fees, but they do charge a $12.50 partner booking fee and a $15 phone booking fee.

Collecting Alaska Airlines Miles

Alaska Airlines miles are very easy to collect. Due to Alaska’s unique partnerships and generous routing rules on award tickets, Alaska miles are valued very high. Here are a number of ways to earn Alaska Airlines miles:

• Flying with Alaska Airlines
• Flying with Alaska’s Partner Airlines
• Purchasing or Sharing Miles (frequently on sale)
• Alaska Airlines Signature VISA Credit Card
  • Personal and Business versions

The quickest way to earn miles is either buy purchasing them (or transferring them from a different Alaska account).

Miles from Alaska flights generally post to your account a few days after the flight. Miles from partner airlines can take up to 14 days to post.

All in All

Alaska Airlines miles are very valuable. Being able to fly Cathay Pacific First Class with a stopover in Hong Kong for just 70k miles one-way is a great deal. You can also fly Cathay Pacific to Africa via Hong Kong for the same price in First Class… that’s amazing.

It is important to note that Alaska miles may sometimes not be redeemed on all routes operated by the partner airline. For example, you can’t fly British Airways Europe to Asia – only Cathay Pacific.

If you have any questions about earning or redeeming Alaska miles, please post them below! Happy Booking!

The post Alaska Airlines Miles: Partners, Routing Rules and Best Ways to Earn appeared first on Travel Miles 101.

While American Airlines miles are a bit harder to collect than United Airlines or Delta Air Lines miles, for example, AA miles still are worth having for unique redemptions. You can’t transfer from AMEX, Chase, or Citi to AA. However, you can transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to American Airlines miles.

There are many aspects I love about AA’s frequent flyer program and many things I don’t. My favourite redemption is 100k miles for First Class between the Middle East and the South Pacific. Some of the biggest downsides to AA is that they don’t allow you to transit via a third region in many cases, limit you to only 4 segments on one-way bookings, have high redemption rates for certain regions, and more.

American Airlines

Country-Based Sweetspots

American Airlines AAdvantage offers cheap redemption options for both Economy Class and Business Class if flying within one country. The key is that you have to fly domestically only within that country and of course, there must be award availability. You can book most of these country-based sweetspots online, but not all of them.

Finland

• Finnair
• 10k miles Economy one-way

Spain

• Iberia
• 10k miles Economy one-way
• 15k miles Business one-way

United Kingdom

• British Airways
• 10k miles Economy one-way
• 15k miles Business one-way

Jordan

• Royal Jordanian
• 7.5k miles Economy one-way
• 10k miles Business one-way

Low Miles = Great Value Last Minute

My favourite “part” of mileage redemption is when you can redeem very few miles for a last minute ticket that would usually cost a lot of money if booked last minute. Many frequent flyer programs feature a discounted mileage price when redeeming miles only within one region or only within one country.

In the case of American Airlines, we can see above. With United Airlines, for example, most flights outside of North America that are under 800 miles in distance cost just 8k miles one-way in Economy Class. British Airways has a distance-based frequent flyer program, so the more you fly, the more you pay.

Explore the World

In Conclusion

American Airlines AAdvantage offers some incredible redemption rates when flying within one country. It is usually a great use of miles when booking travel last minute on short flights at a low redemption rate where cash tickets can be expensive.

American Airlines miles are worth having as AA does offer some unique redemption opportunities – especially on their partner airlines. Remember that you will have to search for award availability through other airline websites if you cannot see it on AA.com – or you can just call AA directly. You can also place award flights on hold while you transfer in miles or think about your travel plans.

The post American Airlines AAdvantage Country-Based Sweetspots appeared first on Travel Miles 101.

American Airlines, a member of oneworld

Star Alliance remains the world’s #1 airline alliance in terms of passenger benefits, airlines, loyalty, etc. The world’s next important airline alliance is oneworld. While oneworld is certainly not as big as Star Alliance, it remains the world’s second most important airline alliance in terms of connecting people and ideas all over the world.

oneworld serves fewer destinations than Star Alliance and also has less than half of member airlines than Star Alliance. oneworld is especially important because it is home to American Airlines, the world’s largest airline and also a founding member of oneworld. The alliance was founded on 01 February 1999 by American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, and Qantas Airways.

Member airlines collectively serve around 1,000 airports worldwide, operate around 3,447 aircraft, and feature over 12,000 daily departures.

Traveller Benefits

Passengers flying on member airlines are entitled to a variety of benefits, even without frequent flyer status. These include:

• earning and redeeming miles on every airline
• check-in for all flight segments on every airline
• checking baggage all the way to the final destination on every airline
• all flights are monitored to ensure each traveller has a smooth journey

In addition to these, oneworld also offers status benefits to elite members of oneworld frequent flyer programs.

British Airways, a member of oneworld

oneworld Status Benefits

oneworld offers three status tiers – Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald. Flyers are able to earn status through accumulating enough status miles with their airline’s frequent flyer program. Each airline determines how many miles are required to earn each status level. oneworld status benefits include:

oneworld Ruby

• Access to Business Class Priority Check-in
• Access to Preferred or Pre-Reserved Seating
  • depends on airline
• Priority on Waitlists and Stand-by
  • depends on airline

oneworld Sapphire

• Ruby benefits
• Access to Business Class Lounges
• Priority Boarding
• Extra Baggage Allowance
• Priority Baggage Handling

oneworld Emerald

• Ruby benefits
• Sapphire benefits
• Fast Track Security
• Access to First Class Priority Check-in
• Access to First Class Lounges

All benefits are valid alliance-wide. This means if a member has earned oneworld Emerald Status through American Airlines, the Emerald status and benefits listed above are valid on all oneworld member airlines. Travelling on oneworld Connect Partners is subject to different benefits.

Cathay Pacific, a member of oneworld

Earning and Redeeming Miles

Passengers are entitled to earn and redeem miles on all oneworld airlines alliance-wide. For example, if a passenger is flying on American Airlines, s/he is able to credit miles for that flight to Cathay Pacific. The same situation applies to redeeming miles – you are able to redeem any oneworld miles on any oneworld member airline. For example, you can redeem British Airways miles for travel on Qantas Airways.

Each airline in oneworld determines how many miles are credited to their respective frequent flyer program. For example, if you are crediting an American Airlines flight to British Airways Executive Club, British Airways determines how many miles you will be awarded – not American Airlines. The same situation applies to redeeming miles – the miles you want to redeem are subject to the conditions of the frequent flyer program that your miles are in.

The best way to search for award availability is by using the British Airways Executive Club website. BA’s website displays award availability for every oneworld airline and therefore makes it easy to find available flights. However, do note that there are occasionally issues with BA’s website. One major issue is that BA does not display Cathay Pacific award availability close to departure.

In Conclusion

While oneworld does not have the global reach of Star Alliance, oneworld is still a very important alliance with some incredible member airlines that provide a great travel experience. While oneworld policies are different than those of Star Alliance, oneworld also does a great job in recognising elite benefits alliance-wide.

When redeeming miles, you will find it best to redeem them for travel to/from the Middle East and to/from Asia. This is where award availability is the most available. You will most likely want to avoid award travel on British Airways as the carrier imposes massive fuel surcharges on award tickets, which range upwards of $200 USD.

The oneworld alliance features incredible member airlines such as Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, and Qatar Airways – all of which have amazing First and Business Class products that provide a smooth and relaxing journey to passengers.

The post oneworld: An Alliance Overview appeared first on Travel Miles 101.

Cathay Pacific

Based in Hong Kong, Cathay Pacific is one of the world’s most luxurious airlines, especially in First Class. With just six private suites in the sky and unlimited bottles of champagne, you’re guaranteed a great flight. Booking Cathay Pacific First or Business Class with Alaska or American Airlines miles is incredibly easy.. it simply involves searching online and then calling Alaska or American Airlines to book.

Cathay Pacific North American Routes

Cathay Pacific flies to the following North American destinations:

• Vancouver
• Toronto
• San Francisco
• Los Angeles
• Chicago
• New York (EWR and JFK)
• Boston

Some of these routes do not feature a First Class cabin. The easiest way to check is by searching on Google Flights and selecting “First Class”, if the Cathay Pacific option does not show on your desired date/route then Cathay probably doesn’t operate First Class on that flight.

Searching Cathay Pacific Award Space

The best way to search for Cathay Pacific award space is by using the British Airways website. You will need to create a free Executive Club account if you don’t already have one. Once you do, simply go to this website:

https://www.britishairways.com/en-us/executive-club/spending-avios

You will need to scroll down and click on “Book a reward flight” under the “Reward flights” section.

Search for oneworld flights using BA

Once you click the button, the website will ask you to login to your British Airways Executive Club account (if you aren’t already logged in). Once you have logged in, you will be presented with the “Book flights with Avios” page where you can type in your desired route and date. You will want to also check the box that says “One way only” – searching one-way at a time is much simpler and quicker. Finally, select your desired class of service.

Search for Cathay flights using BA

When you click “Get flights” the website will ask you if you would like to add a stopover, simply skip this step by selecting the “NO” option and clicking “Continue“. You will then be brought to a results page:

Available Cathay Pacific Flights using Miles

As you can see, on our desired route and date that we initially typed in, we have 1 First Class seat and 2 Premium Economy seats available using miles. If there is no availability on your desired date, simply click on the calendar above and check other dates.

Booking Cathay Pacific Flights using Miles

Once you have located your availability, you will want to either call Alaska Airlines or American Airlines and book the flights. When redeeming Alaska or American Airlines miles, you will have to call the mileage department and book over the phone – you can’t do it online.

To find out how many miles are required, simply visit the award charts below:

• View Alaska Airlines Award Chart
• View American Airlines Partner Award Chart

You will need to look at your starting and ending region as well as the class of service you have selected to view the cost in miles. Keep in mind that you will also need to pay taxes/fees in addition to the required amount of miles. Thankfully, neither Alaska nor American Airlines charge fuel surcharges for travel on Cathay Pacific – meaning that your taxes/fees should be lower than $100 USD per ticket per direction of travel.

Once you are connected to an agent, you will want to provide them the route, date, class of service, and number of passengers. The agent will search and should be able to find the flight you have previously found on the British Airways website.

Booking Cathay Pacific with Alaska Airlines Miles

My favourite way to book Cathay Pacific is using Alaska Airlines miles since they’re so easy to earn and Alaska doesn’t charge as many miles as American Airlines does. When redeeming Alaska Airlines miles:

• you can book one-way awards
• you can add on Alaska Airlines flights for free (for example: Seattle to Los Angeles in order to connect to your Cathay Pacific flight from Los Angeles to Hong Kong)
• you can add a stopover in Hong Kong for FREE, even on a one-way ticket (you can stay in Hong Kong any number of days and then fly elsewhere on Cathay Pacific)

Important: Alaska Airlines does not have access to ALL Cathay Pacific award space that you find on the British Airways website. That being said, if the British Airways website shows at least two seats available, Alaska should see the award space. This isn’t always the case and sometimes even if one seat is available, Alaska might see it.

Also Important: Alaska Airlines allows you to only have ONE partner airline on an award ticket in addition to any Alaska Airlines flights. This means that you cannot fly from Los Angeles to Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific and then from Hong Kong to Tokyo on Japan Airlines, even though Alaska Airlines partners with both airlines.

Booking Cathay Pacific with American Airlines Miles

The other option is to book using American Airlines miles, which will cost you more and you aren’t allowed a free stopover in Hong Kong. You can still book one-way awards using AA miles and you can also add on domestic flights to get you to your Cathay Pacific North American gateway city.

The major advantage to booking with American Airlines miles is that you can mix & match oneworld airlines on the same ticket – you can’t do this with Alaska Airlines. For example, you could book Cathay Pacific from Los Angeles to Hong Kong and then from Hong Kong to Kuala Lumpur on Malaysia Airlines. Since American Airlines partners with Alaska Airlines, you can even add on a segment from Seattle to Los Angeles on Alaska Airlines when redeeming American Airlines miles.

In Conclusion

Cathay Pacific First and Business Class are amazing and easily the best way to travel to Asia. My favourite way to fly Cathay Pacific is by redeeming Alaska Airlines miles as they are very easy to earn and Alaska has a generous award chart. The free stopover in Hong Kong is always a plus.

The post Booking Cathay Pacific with Alaska or American Airlines Miles appeared first on Travel Miles 101.

Qantas Airways

Alaska Airlines has been partners with Qantas Airways for quite some time – which means you can earn and redeem Alaska Airlines miles on Qantas flights. Alaska sometimes also has bonus miles promotions for travel on Qantas (QF). QF is the flag-carrier of Australia and transports people to/from/around the wonderful country in the South Pacific.

Redeeming Alaska Airlines miles for travel on Qantas Airways has always been a great deal… when redeeming for Business Class or First Class. Economy and Premium Economy Class redemptions are also available, but aren’t as good of a deal as the premium cabins.

Qantas Airways Information

Qantas features four cabins (First, Business, Premium Economy, and Economy Class) on their Airbus A380, which they operate to Los Angeles, Dallas, etc. Other Qantas long-haul aircraft only feature three cabins – Business Class, Premium Economy Class, and Economy Class.

QF operates flights from Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dallas, Honolulu, and Vancouver to Australian cities: Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. These are the only long-haul Qantas flights you can redeem Alaska Airlines miles for.

QF hubs include:

• Sydney (SYD)
• Melbourne (MEL)
• Brisbane (BNE)
• Perth (PER)
• Adelaide (ADL)

Alaska Rules for Award Travel on Qantas Airways

You cannot redeem Alaska miles on Qantas flights to Asia, Europe, Africa, South America, etc. You can only redeem for North America/Hawaii flights and domestic Australian flights. You can also fly to New Zealand on Qantas if you combine a North American flight on the same booking (for example: Los Angeles – Sydney – Auckland).

You can also book Australian domestic flights on QF in Economy or Business Class. You cannot, however, book Australia – New Zealand flights (unless you combine it with a long-haul flight on the same booking).

You can have a stopover on an international booking, even on one-way trips. You can have a stopover anywhere in Australia or anywhere Alaska operates flights to. For example, you can fly: New York – Seattle (stopover) – Los Angeles – Sydney on Alaska and Qantas. Or you can fly: Seattle – Los Angeles – Sydney (stopover) – Perth. Remember you can only combine Alaska with Qantas on the same booking.

You cannot have a stopover on domestic trips. Furthermore, you can’t even have an overnight layover on domestic trips (so you can’t stop in one city overnight, even if the layover is less than 24 hours).

Alaska Airlines

QF Award Chart

You can redeem Alaska Airlines miles on Qantas Airways at the following rates (all are one-way):

• North America/Hawaii <-> Australia/New Zealand
  • Economy Class: 42,500 miles
  • Premium Economy Class: 47,500 miles
  • Business Class: 55,000 miles
  • First Class: 70,000 miles
• Australia <-> Australia
  • Economy Class: 12,500 miles
  • Business Class: 20,000 miles

As you can see, redeeming for Economy Class or Premium Economy Class on long-haul flights doesn’t really make sense as you can add a few thousand more miles and fly in Business or First Class. Qantas premium cabins are harder to book using miles, but not impossible.

Qantas Lounge Access

Naturally, all QF Business Class and First Class passengers automatically have lounge access to Qantas Lounges.

Alaska Airlines Lounge Members and Alaska Airlines MVP Gold and MVP Gold 75K elite members have access to select Qantas Lounges.

QF First and Business Class

Qantas Airways First Class is only offered on the Airbus A380. The best route you can redeem miles for (in terms of maximising your experience) is Dallas – Sydney, which also usually has the most First Class award availability.

You will want to avoid the Airbus A380 and the Boeing 747 if you decide to redeem for Business Class as these aircraft feature the old Business Class product. You will want to fly Business Class on the Boeing 787 and select Airbus A330s to experience the new Business Class product. Note that Qantas does not fly the A330 to North America.

Sydney, Australia

Qantas Award Availability

Award Availability in Economy on domestic Australian flights is excellent. Business Class is available on most shorter routes with lots of availability, but availability drops on the longer routes (for example, Sydney – Perth). However, you can find Business Class availability if you are flexible and book in advance.

On long-haul flights Economy Class and Premium Economy Class are usually open and easily bookable. Business Class is harder to book, but not impossible – just be flexible and book in advance. First Class is very hard to book… especially on the Los Angeles – Sydney route. Dallas – Sydney is often available in First Class and so is Los Angeles – Melbourne… however, again, you have to be very flexible to find award seats.

In Conclusion

If you are planning your Australian adventure and have Alaska miles, you should redeem them on Qantas as you can see more of Australia with a free stopover. Remember that if you book round-trip, you can have two stopovers (because you can have one stopover on a one-way ticket).

You can book QF flights right on Alaska’s website without issue. However do note that some of the regional flights operated by select Qantas partners will error when trying to book. Alaska frequently has issues booking partner airlines of their partner airlines, so if you are getting an error booking a regional Qantas flight, chances are you won’t be able to book it using Alaska miles (even if it shows as available).

If you found award availability in First Class – book it right away and think later. These seats disappear in a matter of seconds after they are released due to high demand and cabin capacity. If you are lucky to book a First Class seat, you will be in for a great flight down under!

Happy Flying!

The post Redeeming Alaska Airlines Miles on Qantas appeared first on Travel Miles 101.

Alaska Airlines

Alaska Airlines may not be the world’s #1 airline, but they do have one powerful aspect to them – their frequent flyer program, which is by far the best frequent flyer program in the United States. What makes Alaska’s Mileage Plan so incredible are the unique partnerships that Alaska Airlines has introduced – the Seattle-based airline is partners with airlines from every major airline alliance and then some more.

Alaska Airlines Award Ticket Rules

You can redeem Alaska Airlines miles to fly around the world on some incredible airlines such as Cathay Pacific or Japan Airlines. Here are the basic rules:

• You cannot combine partner airlines on award tickets
  • You can only fly one partner airline and Alaska Airlines (if needed) on one ticket
• You can have one stopover on a one-way ticket or two stopovers on a round-trip ticket
• There aren’t many restrictive rules
  • You can transit via a third-region
  • You can backtrack.. a little bit (for example: fly New York to London via Dallas on American Airlines)
• Cathay Pacific and LATAM awards need to be booked over the phone
• A $12.50 USD partner booking fee will apply per person per booking

Rules of the Award Ticket Stopover

The most powerful aspect of Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan is that you can have a stopover on one-way tickets. A stopover is defined as a city in which you spend more than 24 hours in. While stopovers are powerful (because you can visit 2+ places for the price of one), there are some rules which apply to Alaska Airlines award tickets:

• Stopovers are allowed on one-way tickets
  • 2 stopovers on a round-trip ticket are allowed
• One partner airline is permitted on an award ticket
  • You can also add on Alaska Airlines flights to connect to/from the partner airline’s U.S. gateway city
• Stopovers are limited to hub cities of partner airlines
  • for example: Cathay Pacific in Hong Kong, Japan Airlines in Tokyo, Korean Air in Seoul, etc.
  • there are reports of stopovers being allowed in non-hub cities if flying that partner airline to/from the desired city
• Stopovers on Alaska Airlines
  • for example: fly Los Angeles to Seattle to San Francisco and stopover in Seattle for however long you want
  • some restrictions apply (for example: you cannot fly Seattle – Honolulu – Los Angeles and stopover in Honolulu and have the entire ticket price out as a one-way award from Seattle to Los Angeles via Honolulu)

Booking Award Tickets Online

You can book award tickets online for all Alaska Airlines partner airlines EXCEPT Cathay Pacific and LATAM. You must call in to book these two partner airlines.

To search for award space and with a stopover, simply visit Alaska’s website and be sure to click the “All search options” link below the flight search box on the home page. Then you will redirected to a more advanced flight search:

Alaska Airlines Flight Search

Be sure to select the “Multi-city” and “Use miles” options on the left side and then type in your desired route with stopover city (in this case it would be Los Angeles to San Francisco with a stopover in Seattle), your desired dates of travel, and the number of passengers.

You will then be presented with a calendar for that week of travel with available flight options. Note that you may need to adjust your dates based on award availability.

Alaska Airlines Flight Search Results

When the search is complete, we will be presented with several flight options. You can play with the calendar, dates, and prices until you find your desired flight combination and desired cost.

Alaska prices out flights starting at just 5k miles + $5.60.. so why do two flights cost only 5k miles and not 10k? Because Alaska knows you are flying Los Angeles to San Francisco via Seattle (stopover in Seattle) all on one ticket… and since you can have stopovers on one-way tickets, they only charge you a one-way price. You do have to pay the TSA Security fee twice as you have a stopover in Seattle for multiple days and will leave the airport and need to pass through security again.

Alaska Airlines Flights

If you were to book these flights separately, it would cost 10k miles because you would be booking two one-way flights instead of a single one-way flight with a stopover.

You can follow this procedure to book flights with partner airlines. For example, say you want to fly from Los Angeles to London with a stopover in New York on American Airlines. Not a problem! You would simply type in Los Angeles to New York and New York to London and your desired dates of travel. You will be presented with flight options and will be able to select your desired combination.

In Conclusion

Alaska’s unique airline partners and powerful Mileage Plan frequent flyer program allows passengers to visit 2+ destinations for the price of one at very low award rates (especially if flying domestically). Keep in mind that it is always better to book two one-way awards instead of booking a round-trip award on Alaska since you would then be able to fly different airline partners on each ticket.

Happy booking!

The post Alaska Airlines Award Stopovers Explained appeared first on Travel Miles 101.

It is always important to double or triple check if the availability you found is actually there – because if you decide to transfer points from a bank to an airline to book the flight, the transfers are nonreversible, so you will be stuck with those points in a specific program if you cannot book your desired flight because of a website glitch. Usually the best way to verify if an award flight is available is by calling the airline or the frequent flyer program that you want to book through – for example, if I want to book a Lufthansa flight through United’s program, I would call United and double check over the phone if the agents can also see that award space.

Star Alliance Award Availability

Star Alliance features the world’s most amazing carriers… and it also features United’s website which is hands-down by far the best way to search for award availability on any Star Alliance airline or connecting partner. In addition, United also partners with a bunch of other airlines which you can search on their website directly. As with any airline website, they sometimes aren’t good at everything, so you always want to double check to make sure the award space you find is bookable (either with another airline or over the phone).

The best ways to search for Star Alliance award availability:

• United (Air China and Singapore Airlines award space is often phantom – always double check it)
• ANA (usually very accurate)
• Aeroplan
• Singapore Airlines (SQ mostly releases premium cabin award space on their flights to their members only – so don’t rely on SQ’s website for SQ availability that you want to book elsewhere)
• Miles & More (more availability on LH Group flights to M&M members – especially in premium cabins, double check other sources)

In general, I begin all of my Star Alliance searches on United and double check them on ANA or Aeroplan, and sometimes I will also call in to make sure that space is truly bookable, especially if it is something rare that might show up (like Singapore Airlines Business or First Class).

oneworld Award Availability

oneworld features many incredible airlines, especially when you travel on them in the premium cabin. The most popular way to book oneworld flights is through American Airlines or British Airways. BA’s website is the most popular way to search for oneworld availability and was usually the best way to do so – as AA’s website did not display all oneworld availability online. AA does now display most of their partner’s award flights online and therefore you should begin your searches there and then confirm with BA. The one important aspect to note about BA’s website is that it does frequently display phantom award space – therefore you should always double check with yet another airline like Qantas or by calling the program you want to book through.

The best ways to search for oneworld award availability:

• American Airlines
• British Airways (double check if you find availability here, sometimes shows phantom)
• Qantas Airways (usually most accurate)

One word of warning regarding American Airlines’ website – it will sometimes show you award space that is there but it will say it isn’t actually available when you go to book it. This is especially tricky because while it may seem like it is phantom space, sometimes that award space is actually there, but the U.S.-based website and agents cannot book it. In this case, you want to check as many ways as possible to see if that award space is there.

SkyTeam Award Availability

SkyTeam isn’t very popular with international award redemptions as there aren’t any incredible redemption opportunities since Delta has more or less destroyed their program and Air France-KLM followed their lead. The best way to search for award availability is on Delta’s website for non-Delta flights and for SkyTeam partners that appear online as the DL website does not show all partners. The other best way is to search on Air France’s website – this would be best for Delta availability and other SkyTeam availability, but not necessarily Air France-KLM flights as there may be more award space to their own members.

The best ways to search for SkyTeam award availability:

• Delta (for non-Delta flights, DL’s website does not show all SkyTeam airlines)
• Air France (for DL flights, not for AF/KL flights, for other SkyTeam airlines)
• Calling the Airline (best way for other SkyTeam airlines which might not show up online)

SkyTeam is very tricky – they do not allow International First Class redemptions across all airlines and they also have a bunch of other strange aspects to them – mainly because Delta mostly runs SkyTeam. You always should check with the program you want to use to book your flight if that award space is there (for example, using Delta miles on China Airlines – check with Delta over the phone to verify availability).

Other Airlines

Finding award space on airlines that do not belong to any major alliance is a bit tricky as you usually have to either search on their own website directly (and remember they sometimes give more seats to their own members) or you have to use their partner airlines to search – and some of them require you to call in and inquire over the phone.

The best ways to search for other airlines award availability (some examples):

• Aer Lingus = United Airlines or British Airways
• Air Tahiti Nui = American Airlines
• Alaska Airlines = American Airlines (for saver-level award space)
• Condor = Alaska Airlines (not all routes)
• Edelweiss Air = United Airlines or Miles & More (might be more availability)
• Eurowings = United Airlines or Miles & More (might be more availability)
• Etihad Airways = Etihad’s website (search for saver space) or American Airlines
• Fiji Airways = American Airlines or Alaska Airlines (not all routes)
• Hainan Airlines = Alaska Airlines (not all routes)
• Hawaiian Airlines = United Airlines
• Icelandair = Alaska Airlines

A word of caution: when airlines are not in an alliance together, they may not allow all earning and redeeming on their partners. For example, you cannot redeem Alaska Airlines miles on Fiji Airways for travel from/to Fiji from/to Asia (Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore)… but you should be able to redeem American Airlines miles for those routes. It is always important to check for situations like these.

In Conclusion

Searching for award availability can sometimes be tricky and it is important to know what the best way to go about searching is – whether that is through the airline directly, through a partner airline, over the phone, etc. Remember to always verify if the award space you find isn’t phantom by double checking with other airlines or over the phone before you complete any mileage transfers. Do note that when searching for partner award space outside of an alliance, there may be additional restrictions on mileage redemption and/or on which routes you can redeem, be sure to check all aspects of your desired booking and the rules of the frequent flyer program you want to use.

The post Award Availability: Best Ways to Search appeared first on Travel Miles 101.

Paradise

The Islands of Fiji are the most stunning place in this world – nothing is more majestic, captivating, and beautiful than these islands of paradise. Flying to exotic destinations on award tickets can be tricky – due to limited flights and lack of award availability on major carriers. I previously explained how to fly to Iceland on an award ticket… however, flying to Fiji is a bit trickier due to the location in the South Pacific.

If you are having trouble finding award availability on your desired dates of travel, my number one suggestion for you would be to spend some time in Australia or New Zealand before/after your trip to Fiji – this way you can match up the flights and explore even more destinations.

Flying to Fiji

The major international airport in Fiji is in Nadi (NAN), located on Fiji’s main island. The flag carrier of Fiji is Fiji Airways – which partners with American and Alaska Airlines, meaning you can earn and redeem miles on Fiji Airways. Airlines that currently fly to Nadi:

• Air New Zealand
  • Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington
• Fiji Airways
  • Adelaide, Auckland, Brisbane, Christchurch, Hong Kong, Honolulu, Los Angeles, Melbourne, San Francisco, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo–Narita, Wellington
• Virgin Australia
  • Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney

The only way to fly nonstop from North America to Fiji is with Fiji Airways from San Francisco or Los Angeles. If you wish to fly from Asia to Fiji, you can fly Fiji Airways from Hong Kong, Singapore, or Tokyo.

If you wish stay in Australia or New Zealand before/after your trip, then your best option is to either fly Fiji Airways or Virgin Australia to Australia or Air New Zealand or Fiji Airways to New Zealand.

Use Miles to fly to Paradise

Redeeming Miles on Fiji Airways

Fiji Airways partners with both American Airlines and Alaska Airlines – you can earn and redeem miles on flights with Fiji Airways. The one major exception is that you cannot redeem Alaska Airlines miles on Fiji Airways to/from Asia.

The cost in miles is:

• using American Airlines miles
  • North America to/from Fiji: 40k in Economy Class or 80k in Business Class (one-way)
  • Asia to/from Fiji: 30k in Economy Class or 40k in Business Class (one-way)
    • can route direct to Nadi on Fiji Airways
    • can route via Australia on Qantas Airways and Fiji Airways
• using Alaska Airlines miles
  • North America to/from Fiji: 40k in Economy Class or 55k in Business Class (one-way)
    • OR stopover in Fiji for however long you like and continue to Australia or New Zealand for the same price of 40k/55k (free stopover on Alaska Airlines award tickets)
  • Cannot use Alaska Airlines miles to fly Fiji Airways to/from Asia
  • Cannot mix Qantas and Fiji Airways on one ticket

You can also redeem American Airlines and Alaska Airlines miles for travel to/from Australia or New Zealand to/from Fiji – without touching North America. Please check each airline’s award chart for prices.

Searching Fiji Airways Award Space

How is Fiji Airways award space? In Economy Class, it is available on about half of the dates and in Business Class, it is rare (but not impossible). This applies to all Fiji Airways routes and not just on routes to/from North America. Fiji Airways does release a good amount of Economy Class award space, but Business Class awards are rare and will require extreme flexibility.

You should use Alaska’s website to search for award space on Fiji Airways if redeeming Alaska Airlines miles.

Redeem Alaska Airlines miles on Fiji Airways

If you are redeeming American Airlines miles, you can also use Alaska’s website to search for award space – however do note that Fiji Airways releases more award space to American Airlines than Alaska Airlines. Therefore even if Alaska’s website says there is nothing available, there still may be availability if redeeming American Airlines miles.

Flying to Fiji on other Airlines

To search for Air New Zealand award space, you can use United.com, though do understand that availability basically doesn’t exist on this route with Air New Zealand. If you do get lucky, you can search award space from North America and see if you can route all on one ticket from North America to Fiji via New Zealand.

In Conclusion

Fiji is paradise and while it can be tricky to fly there on an award ticket, it is possible if you have patience and are a bit flexible with your travel dates. If you can’t find any award space to Fiji from North America or Asia, I do recommend spending a few days in Australia or New Zealand as this should improve your chances of finding award space within the South Pacific.

Fiji is the most relaxing destination in the world and everyone needs to visit these islands of paradise at least once in their life. Please post questions if you need further assistance booking award tickets to paradise, I will be happy to guide you further!

The post Flying to Fiji on an Award Ticket appeared first on Travel Miles 101.