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.
Australians can no longer redeem Velocity Points for United Business Class reward seats to the USA, because United hasn't released a single one for more than two months. Singapore Airlines has also stopped releasing Business reward seats to Velocity members from Sydney, Melbourne and Perth to Singapore.
Thanks to Airlink's partnership with Qatar Airways, you can now redeem Avios to fly to Saint Helena - the remote British Overseas Territory where Napoleon famously died. I did, and cannot recommend it enough.
See how much you'll have to pay when redeeming Qantas Points for Classic Flight Rewards with our complete list of Qantas carrier charges. We've updated this list following the recent price increase.
You can fly a mix of Business and First Class from Australia to London with Cathay Pacific, for fewer Asia Miles than you'd need when redeeming Qantas Points for Business Class. Plus, Cathay has better award availability and lower taxes & charges!
The Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus program had been relatively uncompetitive in recent years. But it now has a new booking website, reasonable pricing and surprisingly good award availability.
You can buy Avianca LifeMiles very cheaply during a generous promotion, lilke the current 160% bonus, but redeeming them for Star Alliance flights can be difficult. Is it worth it in 2025?
Velocity Frequent Flyer members can finally redeem points on Hong Kong Airlines, Hainan Airlines & Capital Airlines for the first time in more than five years.
You can now redeem Qantas Points to fly Air Tahiti Nui between Papeete and Seattle, in addition to the existing codeshare routes.
SkyTeam's Vietnam Airlines has lots of Premium Economy and Business Class award seats available from Australia to Vietnam, and onwards to Europe. You can easily book using Virgin Atlantic points.
Qantas Platinum and Platinum One frequent flyers can request the release of additional Classic Flight Reward seats on Qantas flights.
Cathay Pacific will resume flights from Adelaide to Hong Kong in November 2025, with a seasonal 3x weekly A350 service. There are currently lots of reward seats available, including in Business Class.
It's now your last chance to redeem Velocity Points on Etihad Airways and Hawaiian Airlines, with both airlines soon ending their partnerships with Virgin Australia.