Cathay Pacific Adds Tiers to Its Premium Award Redemptions
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
Cathay Pacific is the latest carrier to implement some potentially unwelcome changes to its award redemptions. The Hong Kong-based carrier announced that as of October 12, it will offer an additional two tiers of award options for first and business class on Cathay and Dragonair flights — what it's calling "Priority Awards."
For the time being, there are still saver awards, however, with these new tiers, it's possible that these saver awards could eventually start to disappear or become more difficult to find availability for. Here's what a one-way business class and first class redemption would cost you with Asia Miles through the new Priority Award tiers between most US cities and Hong Kong:
Business Class
- Saver: 85,000 miles
- Tier 1: 128,000 miles
- Tier 2: 170,000 miles
First Class
- Saver: 130,000 miles
- Tier 1: 195,000 miles
- Tier 2: 260,000 miles
What does this mean for the average flyer? Because Cathay is a member of Oneworld and therefore a partner of American Airlines, AA passengers looking to book premium cabin award tickets on Cathay could not find many options in the future — especially given the good availability they're used to seeing. As of now, however, there are no noticeable changes in the standard availability for those who are looking to book through partners.
These new priority awards could potentially have some impact in the future, but as of now, it could still be a good time to book Cathay premium awards, especially if you're looking to book through partners like American and Alaska. These changes shouldn't be a huge surprise, however, as Cathay introduced tiered awards in economy and premium economy in 2014.
Keep in mind that you can also transfer your Amex Membership Rewards and Citi ThankYou points to Cathay Pacific to redeem for these premium-class awards. The new-and-improved Platinum Card from American Express now earns you 5x points on airfare booked directly with the airline, which could put you well on your way to saving up for a premium-class redemption. The card currently comes with a sign-up bonus of 60,000 points after you spend $5,000 in the first three months.
H/T: One Mile at a Time
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- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
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- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
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- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month
Rewards Rate
| 2X miles | 2 miles per dollar on every purchase |
| 5X miles | 5 miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel |
| 10X miles | 10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Business Travel |
Intro Offer
Earn 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200K miles when you spend $150K in the first 6 monthsLIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus milesAnnual Fee
$395Recommended Credit
Credit ranges are a variation of FICO® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.740-850Excellent
Why We Chose It
The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)Pros
- The Capital One Venture X business card has a very lucrative welcome offer.
- In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
- Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.
Cons
- The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
- Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
- With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
- Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month