Australian credit card for kris flyer miles

[flupfront]

What are the current best options now HSBC is leaving the field?

 

[luxury-lizard]

Others may have better suggestions - AmEx back in the day was good for transferring points to KF but that is no longer true (it's 3 to 1 now). Now I collect Velocity points (lots of ways) and if I can't use them directly for awards, I transfer them to KF (at 1.55 to 1) which isn't all that great but it does mean you can get SQ awards as soon as the booking window opens. Also keeping them in Velocity until you want to use them (in KF). It also means you don't need to worry about the hard expiry of points in KF.

 

[flupfront]

Others may have better suggestions - AmEx back in the day was good for transferring points to KF but that is no longer true (it's 3 to 1 now). Now I collect Velocity points (lots of ways) and if I can't use them directly for awards, I transfer them to KF (at 1.55 to 1) which isn't all that great but it does mean you can get SQ awards as soon as the booking window opens. Also keeping them in Velocity until you want to use them (in KF). It also means you don't need to worry about the hard expiry of points in KF.

Thanks thats the best i plan i can find but its pretty meagre. Choices are few on rewards for someone living in Victoria Qantas availabilities are so poor these days its just not worth the effort. All I get offered is Jetstar business (thats a non-secatur) or unattractive routings eg via Columbo using air Lanka. Singapore are a better product when taking into account European routes avoiding the Gulf, reliability, general professionalism . Sothe great days are over.

 

[jordyp123]

Im on the revolut metal plan. $28.99 per month and 1 point per $1 spent. Transfers to 2:1

 

[Human]

Don't forget the AmEx Platinum Edge card which still earns the equivalent of 1 KF point per $ on petrol and groceries (ie. 3 AmEx MR points). Definitely a card worth having.

But I wouldn't describe the above as "meagre" at all. Put as much spending as you can on AmEx (including Platinum Edge), and for non-Amex purchases focus on a Velocity-earning credit card.

Also FlyBuys is a very good source of Velocity points which can then be transferred to KF.

My view is that the 1.55:1 transfer rate isn't that bad, and the fact that it's so easy to accumulate Velocity points more than makes up for it.

Qantas points are definitely not my first choice FF currency, but they're not as bad as people make them out to be either. Qantas has good partners such as Finnair, British Airways, Philippine Airlines, JAL who have pretty good availability out of SE Asia or E Asia. I'm from Victoria myself and last year I used Qantas points to book the following route to Paris:

MEL-SYD Qantas Economy
SYD-BKK Qantas Economy (operated by Finnair at the time)
BKK-HEL Finnair Business
HEL-CDG Finnair Business.

So it's do-able if you're able to be flexible, and especially if you're OK with economy class on daytime flights.

 

[flupfront]

Don't forget the AmEx Platinum Edge card which still earns the equivalent of 1 KF point per $ on petrol and groceries (ie. 3 AmEx MR points). Definitely a card worth having.

But I wouldn't describe the above as "meagre" at all. Put as much spending as you can on AmEx (including Platinum Edge), and for non-Amex purchases focus on a Velocity-earning credit card.

Also FlyBuys is a very good source of Velocity points which can then be transferred to KF.

My view is that the 1.55:1 transfer rate isn't that bad, and the fact that it's so easy to accumulate Velocity points more than makes up for it.

Qantas points are definitely not my first choice FF currency, but they're not as bad as people make them out to be either. Qantas has good partners such as Finnair, British Airways, Philippine Airlines, JAL who have pretty good availability out of SE Asia or E Asia. I'm from Victoria myself and last year I used Qantas points to book the following route to Paris:

MEL-SYD Qantas Economy
SYD-BKK Qantas Economy (operated by Finnair at the time)
BKK-HEL Finnair Business
HEL-CDG Finnair Business.

So it's do-able if you're able to be flexible, and especially if you're OK with economy class on daytime flights.

There in lies the problem almost all availability ex australia on qantas is in economy, to unappealling hubs,or on jetstar i want business via singapor/hk/japan or direct

 

[Human]

There in lies the problem almost all availability ex australia on qantas is in economy, to unappealling hubs,or on jetstar i want business via singapor/hk/japan or direct

Well, flexible points currencies are the way to go then. But there's also a lot to be said about mixing and matching -- for example, using your precious and relatively-difficult-to-accumulate KF points to get you out of Australia, but then saving them and using, say, Qantas points to get you the rest of the way.

I can't remember the last time I used the same points currency to get me both out of and back into Australia on the one trip!