Get a 10% bonus when transferring credit card points to Cathay Pacific Asia Miles

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.

Cathay Pacific must really love the New Year! Last year the Hong Kong-based airline kicked off 2019 with an incredible fare that allowed passengers to book round-trip first-class tickets for as low as ~$1,000, and this year Cathay Pacific is starting 2020 with a limited-time 10% transfer bonus.

Now through Jan. 31, you can get an extra 10% when transferring credit card points from Amex Membership Rewards or Citi ThankYou Rewards to Cathay Pacific Asia Miles. Both programs normally transfer at a 1:1 ratio, so with this bonus you'll get 1,100 Asia Miles for every 1,000 Membership Rewards or ThankYou Points you transfer.

Unlike most transfer bonuses which are publicly available, you'll need to register at this link in order to take advantage of the promotion. Bonus miles will post within eight to 10 weeks of the Jan. 31 end date.

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Cathay Pacific uses distance-based award charts both for flights on its own metal and for Oneworld partner awards. This means that long-haul flights, like those from the U.S. to and from Hong Kong (HKG) can be pretty expensive, but the upside is that Asia Miles has access to much better first-class award space than partners like British Airways and American Airlines do these days.

If you have your heart set on 16 hours of first-class bliss from New York-JFK or Boston (BOS) to Hong Kong, you can book those "ultra-long" awards for 125,000 Asia Miles in first class, or just 114,000 Amex or Citi points with the current transfer bonus. Cathay Pacific offers one of the world's most consistent and luxurious first-class experiences with a private six-seat cabin, though the airline recently refreshed its soft product with an extra focus on healthy dining options.

Related: The ultimate guide to Cathay Pacific first class

Another great use of Asia Miles is to save on fuel surcharges when booking British Airways premium-cabin awards. While British Airways is known for adding some pretty egregious fuel surcharges on flights to and from London (often north of $500 one-way for U.S.-London business-class tickets), Asia Miles taxes on the same award will be closer to ~$250, though that number varies based on your departure city.

Earning Amex and Citi points

Beyond this limited-time transfer bonus, Amex Membership Rewards points and Citi ThankYou points are two of the most valuable currencies out there, weighing in at 2 and 1.7 cents a piece (respectively) in TPG's monthly valuation series. If you're looking to build up your account balances, consider applying for the following cards:

• The Platinum Card® from American Express: Earn 100,000 Membership Rewards Points after you spend $6,000 on purchases within the first six months of account opening. ($695 annual fee, see rates & fees)
• American Express® Gold Card: Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in first six months of account opening ($250 annual fee, see rates & fees)
• American Express® Green Card: 45,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $2,000 on purchases in the first six months of card membership. ($150 annual fee, see rates & fees)
• Citi Premier® Card: Earn 80,000 ThankYou points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening

The information for the Amex Green Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Bottom Line

While Asia Miles is becoming an increasingly attractive program, the distance-based award chart still makes most Cathay Pacific awards incredibly expensive. This limited-time transfer bonus does a great job bringing those costs down, but just remember that you have to register at this link in order to receive your 10% bonus.

For the rates and fees of the Amex Platinum card, please click here.
For the rates and fees of the Amex Gold card, please click here.
For the rates and fees of the Amex Green card, please click here.