Cathay Pacific Asia Miles: A Complete Guide to Earning, Redeeming Miles, Booking Partner Flights and More

Asia Miles is the frequent flyer program for Cathay Pacific and HK Express, connecting Hong Kong to destinations across Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America.

As a member of Oneworld, Cathay Pacific allows you to earn and redeem miles with major global airlines like Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, and British Airways. Use the Oneworld award chart to book round-the-world trips with partner airlines or enjoy great deals on Cathay Pacific flights. You can also earn Asia Miles through hotels, car rentals, retail partnerships, and its co-branded credit card. Additionally, Asia Miles partners with American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Capital One, and Citi ThankYou Rewards, making it easy to accumulate miles.

While there are many ways to redeem your Asia Miles, focusing on flight rewards offers the most value, especially when booking premium cabin tickets.

Here's everything you need to know about the Cathay Pacific Asia Miles program.

Which airlines are partners with Cathay Pacific’s Asia Miles?

As a member of the Oneworld alliance, Cathay Pacific allows you to earn and redeem Asia Miles with the following Oneworld airlines:

• Alaska Airlines
• American Airlines
• British Airways
• Finnair
• Fiji Airways (Oneworld Connect partner)
• Iberia
• Japan Airlines
• Malaysia Airlines
• Qantas
• Qatar Airways
• Royal Air Maroc
• Royal Jordanian Airlines
• SriLankan Airlines

Oman Air is set to join the alliance in 2024, while Fiji Airways is expected to fully integrate into Oneworld by 2025.

Asia Miles also collaborates with several airlines beyond the Oneworld alliance. Be sure to check the details of each partnership, as there may be limitations on earning and redeeming miles.

The non-Oneworld partners are as follows:

• Air Canada (Star Alliance)
• Air China (Star Alliance)
• Air New Zealand (Star Alliance)
• Bangkok Airways
• LATAM
• Lufthansa (Star Alliance)
• S7 Airlines

Achieving Cathay Pacific elite status

Cathay Pacific offers an elite status program that rewards frequent flyers with perks like access to lounges, priority seat reservations, and much more. These privileges enhance the overall travel experience when flying with any Oneworld airline.

To achieve elite status with Cathay Pacific, you'll need to accumulate the following Status points annually to upgrade or maintain your status:

• Green: 0 points
• Silver: 300 points
• Gold: 600 points
• Diamond: 1,200 points

To reach a higher tier, you must earn Status points by flying on paid flights with Cathay Pacific or its partners. The number of points awarded depends on the airline, route, and class of service you choose.

Visit Cathay Pacific's website and use their calculator to estimate the Status points you’ll earn.

For more details about elite status levels and the associated benefits, visit the Cathay website.

How to accumulate Asia Miles with Cathay Pacific

Asia Miles can be earned both during your flight and through everyday activities — here’s a guide to the best ways to rack up those miles.

Accumulate Asia Miles while you travel

When flying with Cathay Pacific, your Asia Miles are based on the fare class and destination zone, not the cost of your ticket. Longer journeys in premium cabins will earn you more miles.

Check out the Asia Miles website for a full list of earning rates and use the earning calculator to estimate miles for your flights. For example, a W-fare premium economy ticket from San Francisco (SFO) to Hong Kong (HKG), usually priced at about $2,500, will earn you 7,500 Asia Miles one-way.

Other airline partners award miles based on the distance traveled and the fare class. You can check the earning rates for each partner airline on the Asia Miles website — simply select your airline, then choose your cabin class in the center of the screen.

Accumulate Asia Miles by staying at hotels

At thousands of hotels worldwide, including top brands like Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott, InterContinental, and Shangri-La, you can opt to earn Asia Miles instead of hotel points. Be sure to review the earning rates carefully before deciding, as there may be times when earning hotel points offers more value, especially for high-end stays.

Turning hotel points into Asia Miles

If you have accumulated a lot of hotel points and are looking to use them, you can transfer them to Asia Miles. Just be sure to check if the transfer ratio aligns with your redemption goals.

Earn Asia Miles with your preferred car rental company

Asia Miles collaborates with several car rental services, including well-known brands like Avis, Hertz, and National. However, keep in mind that you may not receive rental car points if you choose to earn Asia Miles instead. Be sure to evaluate which rewards are more valuable to you before making a reservation.

The Asia Miles credit card

In the U.S., Cathay Pacific has teamed up with Synchrony Bank to offer a co-branded Visa® Card. With this card, you can earn 2 miles per dollar on Cathay Pacific purchases, 1.5 miles on dining both in the U.S. and internationally, and 1 mile per dollar on all other U.S. purchases.

The card is currently offering a generous welcome bonus of 38,000 miles when you spend $3,000 within the first 90 days of opening your account. As a cardholder, you'll also enjoy a variety of exclusive benefits when flying with Cathay Pacific, including priority check-in and boarding.

The details for the Cathay Pacific Visa Card have been independently gathered by Dinogo. The information on this page has not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Transfer points from your credit card programs

You can also transfer points from four major programs that offer transferable currencies directly to Asia Miles:

• American Express Membership Rewards
• Bilt Rewards
• Capital One
• Citi ThankYou Rewards

Each program offers a 1:1 transfer ratio, meaning that 10,000 points or miles will convert to 10,000 Asia Miles.

If you're looking for higher earning rates and more substantial welcome bonuses than the Cathay Pacific Visa Card, consider using a rewards card that allows you to transfer points to Asia Miles.

Here are some of the top transferable rewards cards we recommend:

• American Express® Gold Card: Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $6,000 on eligible purchases within the first six months. Additionally, enjoy a 20% statement credit on qualifying restaurant purchases (up to $100) during the first six months.
• The Platinum Card® from American Express: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $8,000 on purchases within the first six months of card membership.
• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.

How to redeem your Cathay Pacific Asia Miles

In contrast to many U.S. airlines, Cathay Pacific has chosen to stick with a fixed award chart for ticket pricing. This means you won’t be affected by dynamic pricing, and you can redeem miles for flights with Cathay Pacific or its partners at a consistent, predictable rate, provided there is available award space.

However, redeeming your miles can be a little tricky. The program uses three distinct award charts based on different redemption types — here’s a quick summary:

• Asia Miles award chart: Used to price award tickets for Cathay Pacific-operated flights worldwide.
• Airline partners award chart: Used for award tickets on Oneworld and non-alliance partner carriers.
• Oneworld multicarrier award chart: Used for multi-stop award tickets involving two or more Oneworld partners. This can be used for round-the-world tickets.

Note that Cathay Pacific applies fuel surcharges, which are determined by region rather than fare type. Be sure to consult Cathay’s updated fuel surcharge chart for the exact costs.

Booking Cathay Pacific flights using Asia Miles

This award chart offers good value, especially for long-haul flights in premium cabins. For instance, you can book a one-way business class flight from New York to Hong Kong for 85,000 miles, while a flight from Los Angeles to Hong Kong will cost 70,000 miles.

Booking flights with Asia Miles through airline partners

Unfortunately, Asia Miles does not provide an official partner award chart, and all awards booked with partner airlines include a mileage surcharge on top of the miles required for Cathay Pacific-operated flights of the same distance.

For example, Cathay Pacific charges 7,500 miles for an 'ultra-short' flight of up to 750 miles on its own aircraft, but booking the same flight with partner airline Alaska Airlines costs 10,000 miles due to partner airline mileage surcharges.

To check partner award prices, you’ll need to visit Cathay Pacific's website. Enter your departure and destination locations along with the airline, and the pricing for all available cabins will be displayed — though keep in mind that some partners may not offer online booking options.

Booking award tickets online

You can easily book Cathay Pacific-operated award tickets online. Simply go to the award redemption page, log in, enter your travel details in the search box, and click the yellow "Search flights" button to begin your search.

Booking award tickets can be a bit tricky as only select airline partners are available for online booking. The following carriers offer award space and can be booked directly on the Asia Miles website:

• Air China
• Alaska Airlines
• British Airways
• Cathay Pacific
• Finnair
• Iberia
• Japan Airlines
• LATAM
• Malaysia Airlines
• Qantas
• Qatar Airways
• Royal Jordanian
• S7 Airlines
• SriLankan Airlines

To book flights with these airlines, follow the same process as for Cathay Pacific award tickets. If you're booking with other airlines, use our guide to searching for Oneworld award space to find your flight, and then call Asia Miles to complete the booking.

Use the Oneworld multi-carrier award chart to create your round-the-world ticket

Using this award chart, you can book a round-the-world ticket for a relatively low number of miles. These awards are priced based on the distance traveled and the class of service you choose. You can book flights in any class, including first class. Here's a breakdown of the pricing:

The routing guidelines are simple to follow:

• You can have up to five stopovers, along with two transfers and two open jaws.
• Your total flight distance must not exceed 50,000 miles.
• You are required to return to your initial departure point.
• At least two Oneworld partners (excluding Cathay Pacific or Cathay Dragon) must be included in your itinerary.
• Non-alliance carriers cannot be added to a multicarrier award ticket.
• Premium economy is not permitted on this award ticket.

To book one of these tickets, locate award availability and verify that your ticket complies with all the conditions. Once that's done, call Asia Miles to complete the booking.

Upgrade and companion awards

You can also use your miles to upgrade an existing paid Cathay Pacific flight and bring a companion along for the ride. The upgrade award chart is based on the distance flown and applies to one-way upgrades.

Redeeming Asia Miles for merchandise and other travel

Asia Miles can also be redeemed for merchandise, hotel stays, and other non-flight-related rewards. However, this option typically doesn't offer great value. You'll usually get fewer cents per mile compared to booking premium airfare, and in some cases, you may get less than half of TPG's September 2024 valuation of 1.3 cents per mile.

I recommend avoiding these types of redemptions if possible. They offer poor value, especially for frequent travelers who could better use their Asia Miles for future flight bookings.

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles sweet spots

Cathay Pacific first- and business-class flights

As expected, using Asia Miles for Cathay Pacific flights can be a good deal. While the program isn't the absolute cheapest for Cathay Pacific awards, you can still find great value, especially for premium cabins departing from the West Coast. Here’s a look at Asia Miles' round-trip award pricing from U.S. cities to Hong Kong International Airport (HKG):

Be aware that availability for business and first-class awards across the Pacific can be extremely hard to come by.

Round-the-world tickets with the Oneworld multicarrier award chart

The Oneworld multicarrier award chart is an invaluable tool for booking round-the-world tickets with Oneworld airlines. You can use it to book a ticket with up to five stopovers, and if your total flight distance is 50,000 miles or fewer, your journey can span multiple regions.

Make sure to allow ample time and flexibility when planning and booking a round-the-world trip.

British Airways award tickets

Asia Miles applies lower fuel surcharges compared to other Oneworld airlines on British Airways award tickets, even in premium cabins. Although you might use a few more miles than when booking with other carriers, the potential cash savings may make the extra miles worthwhile.

For instance, a round-trip flight from New York's JFK to London's Heathrow (LHR) in British Airways business class costs 126,000 Asia Miles and $765, with no differences between peak and off-peak pricing.

Booking through the American Airlines AAdvantage program would require 115,000 miles plus approximately $1,783 in taxes and fees. British Airways charges similar surcharges, although you could reduce these costs by using more Avios points.

If you are transferring points to book a British Airways award ticket, make sure to compare the pricing through British Airways and Cathay Pacific; the latter may provide better award rates and lower taxes and fees.

Conclusion

Cathay Pacific's Asia Miles program may not be your top choice when it comes to earning or redeeming rewards within the Oneworld alliance.

That said, it's far from lacking. There are some fantastic opportunities, particularly when redeeming miles for Cathay Pacific flights and multicarrier round-the-world tickets, with premium cabin bookings offering the best value.