Using points to get to Central Asia

[Wanderlust_tim]

Hi all,
I am in the initial stages of planning a bucket list trip to Central Asia in 2024/25, landing in Almaty, Astana, Samarkand or Tashkent. I've got no status, but a large volume of Qantas points which I am hoping to utilise for a classic flight reward seat to get as close as possible to one of the destinations above (as i don't believe any Qantas partners fly to these destinations).

I have done an initial search and at this stage, I am guessing that New Delhi on QF would be the optimal location as it's a short hop into either Kazakhstan or Uzbekistan (and relatively affordable on Air Astana).

Are there any other routes that i should be considering (with a realistic chance of landing tickets via classic flight rewards given I've no status)?

Thank you in advance for your advice

 

[elanshin]

I think the easiest way to look in this case is backwards. From the central Asia countries, which destination is it easiest to get to for reasonable cost. Then if QF/partner goes there.

For example, I took a quick look and saw Air Astana flies to Dubai, Delhi, Seoul, Bangkok (coughet too), Beijing as potential places that make sense.

 

[Mattg]

I'm currently in Almaty and got here by redeeming Velocity points to fly Etihad to AUH, then buying a ticket on Air Astana from DXB-ALA.

You could also do this by flying Emirates to Dubai (using Qantas points) and then from DXB to ALA on Air Astana. (Or to Tashkent/Samarkand on Flydubai or Uzbekistan Airways.)

The travel time via the UAE is slightly longer overall compared to India, but you don't need to apply for a visa to enter UAE (unlike India) so it's a bit easier if you have an Australian passport.

QF to ICN and then Air Astana/Asiana/Korean Air to Tashkent or Almaty is another way to do it.

 

[Wanderlust_tim]

Thank you @elanshin and @Mattg (I hope you have a lovely trip).

Based on your feedback, i've gone through and mapped each possible route (classic flight reward and then paid fare to the destination. I've added my workings into the post in case it's helpful for anyone else looking to explore the region.










Based on this, New Delhi would still probably be my preference - even when accounting for needing an Indian Visa. Air Astana out of Dubai also looks quite reasonable to me (price and the avoidance of redeyes!).

Now to do the hard yards of finding available classic flight rewards seats for a suitable date in 2023 or 2024!

 

[Tiki]

If you want a points redemption, you could also use QF on EK or QR to IST and then use *A on TK to most of these cities.

 

[Wanderlust_tim]

If you want a points redemption, you could also use QF on EK or QR to IST and then use *A on TK to most of these cities.

That's a very good point, i contemplated adding Istanbul to my comparison list, but skipped it because of the necessity for two stops into Central Asia. With Turkish hopefully launching in Australia this year, maybe a direct flight to Istanbul will be possible in the coming years.