Award Availability is a popular topic at the Australian Frequent Flyer. The ongoing challenge is to find an award ticket on the flight you want and when you want it.
Last week, American Airlines’ AAdvantage program announced a surprising new partner in China Southern. As of 20 March 2019, you can now earn and redeem AAdvantage miles for China Southern flights. This presents some interesting new opportunities. Based in Guangzhou, China Southern is one of China’s (and indeed, the world’s) largest airlines. China Southern sensationally … Continued
Business class on flights within Europe is not usually renowned for high quality. In fact, flying European Business Class typically means sitting in a regular Economy seat at the front of the plane with a blocked middle seat. You’ll get a nicer meal, lounge access and personalised service on board. But there is nothing special whatsoever … Continued
Please note: Velocity and Delta are no longer partners. Velocity Frequent Flyer members looking for a way to redeem their points to Los Angeles in a premium cabin will soon have a new option. From 16 April 2019, Delta Air Lines will switch its aircraft flying from Sydney to Los Angeles to a refurbished Boeing 777-200LR. … Continued
Booking premium award travel with Avianca LifeMiles can be extraordinary value, especially if you’ve purchased LifeMiles at a discount. But booking flights on the new LifeMiles website can also be real patience tester. If you’re lucky, you’ll be able to find and book the Star Alliance award flights that you want using the LifeMiles website. … Continued
As a Virgin Australia partner, Virgin Atlantic flights can be booked using Velocity Frequent Flyer points. This could be a handy option if you want to travel to the UK from Asia, North America, South Africa or – from 25 September 2019 – Israel. UK-based Virgin Atlantic is not to be confused with Australia-based Virgin … Continued
If you’re an Australian-based frequent flyer, you’re probably a member of Qantas Frequent Flyer and Virgin Australia Velocity. You might even be a member of a Star Alliance frequent flyer program, such as Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer or Air New Zealand Airpoints. But most Australians completely overlook SkyTeam airlines and their frequent flyer programs. SkyTeam is … Continued
A few weeks ago, Qantas opened a physical store where Qantas Frequent Flyer members can redeem their points in person for products such as toasters. Complementing the online rewards store, the Qantas Rewards Room is located in the Qantas domestic terminal of Melbourne Airport, near Gate 1. The store will remain there until the end … Continued
In this episode, Matt discusses how to take advantage of the current Qantas double status credits promotion, online tools for finding award availability, and the current (and very popular) Finnair round-the-world sale in Business class. Episode 5 of the AFF on AIR podcast features interviews with travel agent Alan Lam and Chris Lopinto, the founder … Continued
UPDATE: Avios partner award prices have increased slightly since this article was written. Here are the new award charts for short-haul redemptions on Qantas and other Oneworld airlines: Distance Avios (Economy) Avios (Business) 0-650 miles 6,000 12,500 651-1,151 miles 9,000 16,500 1,152-2,000 miles 11,000 22,000 The article below from February 2019 refers to the old … Continued
In Episode 4 of the AFF on AIR podcast, Matt discusses how to take advantage the current Virgin Australia Double Status Credits promotion, flight booking terminology, finding award availability, and more. This episode also features an interview with JessicaTam, one of the moderators on the Australian Frequent Flyer forum. Listen now to AFF on AIR … Continued
The Avianca LifeMiles website and booking engine will be offline for almost a week as the Colombian frequent flyer program upgrades its systems. The scheduled LifeMiles outage is from Friday 1 February to Tuesday 5 February 2019, Colombian time. This means you’ll be unable to make any new award bookings or access your LifeMiles account … Continued
Note: Thai Airways is making significant changes to its Royal Orchid Plus program from 1 October 2019. Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus is a frequent flyer program that’s often overlooked. While it does have some limitations, there are some great sweet spots for Australian travellers. And, if you have an Amex Membership Rewards account, you … Continued