Skip to content
Go to Home Page
News

This Airline Just Enabled Mileage Auctions for Premium Cabin Seats

Darren Murph
Articles
Darren Murph holds a Guinness World Record as the planet's most prolific professional blogger. He's an explorer at heart, having traversed nearly 50 countries and all 50 US states. He's flown over one million miles on Delta alone, and serves as a senior writer at TPG.
March 28, 2019
•
5 min read
etihad residence brian kelly
This Airline Just Enabled Mileage Auctions for Premium Cabin Seats
This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.

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

As more airlines seek to provide more ways for consumers to burn their miles, Etihad Airways just announced a new function that will enable passengers to use Etihad Guest Miles to bid for a premium seat in a higher cabin.

The airline has supported cash bids since 2012, and cash bidding arrangements for unsold premium seats are fairly prevalent across the commercial aviation and cruise industries. A system for mileage bidding, however, is a novel concept.

Something tells us bids for seat upgrades on Etihad's A380 will exciting to watch

Especially notable is the real-time nature of the new system. Per an Etihad release, guests "will be able to see real-time notifications of their bid displayed on their screen, allowing two or more individual bids at the same time," and "regular email and SMS updates will also be sent to notify them of the status of their bid."

Etihad Guest members will receive an email invitation to bid for a one-cabin upgrade 7 days before their flight. Alternately, they can visit the etihad.com ‘Manage Your Booking’ page or etihadguest.com. The auction will run from 48 to 6 hours prior to their flight’s departure, and once it closes, the winner will be notified immediately.

Bidding for business class on Etihad's A380? Don't mind if I do...

Future enhancements will enable Etihad Guest members to bid with their miles on "Neighbour-Free seats" (which you can read more about here), as well as allowing guests to combine cash and miles for bidding.

Sign up for our daily newsletter

For those considering a bid on an upcoming flight, keep in mind that TPG values each Etihad Guest mile at 1.4 cents. As the bid increases, it's wise to do the math and ensure that you're actually getting a deal. While it's easy to get caught up in the rush of winning an auction, cooler heads will realize that future award redemptions may be a smarter use of those miles should the bid rise beyond what you could secure the same upgrade for using cash. (That said, Etihad offers some of the most luxurious cabins anywhere, and we wouldn't blame you for spending your stash of miles for a confirmed seat in its first class Apartment or opulent Residence.)

Unsold seats aboard Etihad's Dreamliners will soon be snapped up via mileage auctions

Given that airlines have a long history of copying one another (ahem, basic economy and rising bag fees), it's likely that other carriers will take note of Etihad's announcement. As more mechanisms for selling premium cabin seats enter the fold, this is likely to negatively impact elite members who hold out for complimentary upgrades in programs that offer them.

How To Earn Etihad Guest Miles

It's easy to earn miles in the Etihad program, even if you rarely (or never) fly Etihad. You can transfer both Citi ThankYou Rewards and American Express Membership Rewards to Etihad Guest at a 1:1 transfer ratio. There have also been a few transfer bonuses offered by the banks in the past, which sweeten the deal when they happen. Below, we've highlighted Citi and Amex cards offering robust welcome bonuses, which can then be used to fund your Etihad Guest Miles account.

  • The Platinum Card® from American Express ($695 annual fee; See Rates & Fees); 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 on purchases in your first 6 months of Card Membership, though be sure to check the CardMatch Tool to see if you’re targeted for a 125,000-point welcome bonus (you can transfer Membership Rewards points directly to Delta SkyMiles)
  • The Business Platinum Card® from American Express ($595 annual fee; See Rates & Fees); Earn 85,000 points after you spend $15,000 on qualifying purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. Terms Apply.
  • American Express® Gold Card ($250 annual fee; See Rates & Fees); 60,000-point welcome bonus after you spend $4,000 on qualifying purchases within your first six months of card membership
  • Citi Premier® Card ($95 annual fee); 80,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening.

For the latest travel news, deals and points and miles tips please subscribe to The Points Guy daily email newsletter.

For rates and fees of the Amex Platinum, click here.
For rates and fees of the Amex Business Platinum, click here.
For rates and fees of the Amex Gold, click here.

Featured image by Jared Heinrich
Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.