Etihad Airways and Hong Kong Airways have launched a reciprocal frequent flyer partnership, permitting members of Etihad Visitor and Fortune Wings Membership to earn and redeem throughout each carriers’ networks.
For Canadians, this quietly opens up one other path into Hong Kong and onward throughout Asia, particularly should you already accumulate Etihad Visitor miles or have a stash of American Specific Membership Rewards factors you may convert.
Particulars of the Partnership
The core of the tie-up is straightforward:
- Hong Kong Airways Fortune Wings Membership members can do the identical on Etihad Airways.
- Etihad Visitor members can now earn and redeem miles on Hong Kong Airways flights.
It’s vital to keep in mind that neither Etihad Airways nor Hong Kong Airways is a member of a significant airline alliance, akin to Star Alliance or oneworld.
This makes direct incomes and redeeming throughout a broader community tougher, however bilateral partnerships like this assist bridge these gaps.
Incomes Etihad Visitor Miles With Hong Kong Airways
If you’re flying Hong Kong Airways on a paid ticket, now you can add your Etihad Visitor quantity and earn redeemable miles primarily based on distance and fare class.
Broadly talking:
- Enterprise class fares earn roughly 100–200% of miles flown.
- Financial system spans from 130% on full-fare Y down to only 10% on the deepest low cost buckets.
Flights have to be each marketed and operated by Hong Kong Airways to qualify. The catch for standing chasers is that these accomplice miles don’t rely towards Etihad Visitor elite standing – they’re purely redeemable miles, not Tier Miles.
Nonetheless, should you already play within the Etihad ecosystem, crediting Hong Kong Airways flights to Etihad Visitor is much extra helpful than letting a trickle of factors sit in Fortune Wings Membership.
Redeeming Miles on Hong Kong Airways
On the redemption aspect, Etihad makes use of a one-way, distance-based accomplice chart for Hong Kong Airways, with mounted pricing by distance band and cabin.
Reasonably than laying out each band, it’s simpler to take a look at actual examples from current searches:
- Hong Kong (HKG) –Sydney (SYD) costs at 60,000 Etihad Visitor miles in financial system or 100,000 miles in enterprise plus about HKD 1,300 in taxes and costs. That matches the 4,001–5,000-mile band within the chart.
- Hong Kong (KHG) – Denpasar (DPS) comes out at 28,000 miles in financial system or 50,000 miles in enterprise, plus roughly HKD 500–600 in taxes, lining up with the two,001–2,500-mile band.
These information factors affirm that Etihad’s revealed chart is behaving as anticipated, which is all the time comforting earlier than you begin planning one thing extra formidable than a easy point-to-point.
Vancouver (YVR) – Hong Kong (HKG): A Backup Choice When Costs Spike
For Canadians, the headline long-haul angle is the continuous service between Vancouver (YVR) and Hong Kong (HKG). The route clocks in at over 6,000 miles a technique, which places it within the prime band of Etihad’s accomplice chart.
On paper, a one-way Hong Kong Airways flight between Vancouver and Hong Kong will price:
- 75,000 Etihad Visitor miles in financial system, or
- 140,000 Etihad Visitor miles in enterprise, plus taxes and costs.
These numbers aren’t going to dethrone your favorite Aeroplan or Asia Miles candy spots, however they do get attention-grabbing when:
- Money fares on Air Canada or Cathay Pacific go sky-high round holidays and faculty breaks.
- Cathay releases little or no premium award house, or needs an absurd variety of factors for dynamically priced seats.
In these moments, a set 140,000-mile value for a continuous, lie-flat flight at the least provides you a agency ceiling on what you’ll pay in miles. You’re giving up a few of Cathay’s polish, however “out there and flat” usually beats “waitlisted and imaginary”.
Based mostly on early searches, long-haul business-class house on Hong Kong Airways appears a lot thinner than intra-Asia house, so consider Vancouver–Hong Kong as a security valve, not a core technique. If you have already got Etihad miles sitting round, although, it’s a very actual backup plan.
Finest Makes use of: Intra-Asia Connectors and Secondary Cities
Cathay Pacific remains to be the principle occasion in Hong Kong, and lots of travellers would fortunately select Cathay enterprise or first if value and award house cooperated.
These days, they usually don’t. Premium fares might be painful, and long-haul awards particularly might be laborious to snag.
That is the place Hong Kong Airways as an Etihad accomplice begins to earn its preserve. Lots of its routes fall properly into the mid-range distance bands the place the chart is most compelling. For instance:
- Hong Kong to main Japanese cities akin to Tokyo (NRT) and Osaka (KIX)
- Hong Kong to regional hubs like Bangkok (BKK) or Taipei (TPE)
- Hong Kong to pick out mainland Chinese language and Southeast Asian gateways
On these routes, financial system awards usually fall within the 12,000–34,000-mile vary, with enterprise awards round 25,000–60,000 miles a technique, relying on distance.
When money fares are elevated on full-service opponents, these numbers can symbolize respectable worth, particularly should you worth flexibility and need to keep away from ultra-low-cost carriers.
How This Partnership Helps Canadians
For Canadian travellers, this partnership primarily does three issues:
- Provides one other redemption path to Hong Kong when Cathay and Air Canada are both overpriced or stingy with awards.
- Improves intra-Asia connectivity as soon as you’re within the area, particularly to Japan, Southeast Asia, and choose secondary cities.
- Creates one other outlet for Amex Membership Rewards factors, which might be transferred to Etihad Visitor at a 1,000:750 fee in Canada.
Etihad Visitor is just not going to switch Aeroplan as your main program, however should you already dabble in secondary currencies, this partnership provides your Etihad miles a clearer job description: Hong Kong and Asia, with occasional long-haul obligation out of Vancouver when the same old suspects misbehave.
Issues To Watch Out For With Etihad Visitor
A few caveats are price repeating earlier than you rush to shift factors:
- Mileage expiry: Etihad Visitor has a comparatively strict expiry coverage. Miles can expire should you go too lengthy with out exercise, so this isn’t a set-and-forget foreign money.
- Change and cancellation charges: Accomplice awards have a tendency to hold larger charges for adjustments and redeposits than some competing packages. In case your plans are fluid, construct that into your calculations.
- Chart stability: Etihad has adjusted accomplice pricing earlier than, typically with restricted discover. Deal with the present Hong Kong Airways award ranges as “good for now,” not as a promise for the subsequent decade.
None of those are deal-breakers, however they do imply it is best to transfer factors with a plan in thoughts somewhat than speculatively hoarding Etihad miles simply because Hong Kong Airways joined the get together.
Conclusion
Etihad Visitor’s new partnership with Hong Kong Airways provides factors collectors one other lever to drag for journeys to Hong Kong and round Asia.
Incomes Etihad miles on paid Hong Kong Airways flights is a pleasant aspect profit, however the actual attraction is the distance-based award chart, stable intra-Asia availability, and a possible strain valve on the Vancouver (YVR) – Hong Kong (HKG) route when money costs and dynamic awards get out of hand.
If you happen to already maintain Etihad miles or can prime up from Amex Membership Rewards, preserve this partnership in your again pocket for the subsequent time you’re piecing collectively an Asia journey and Cathay’s greatest seats are nowhere to be discovered.
