Would you like a return ticket to Hong Kong with Cathay Pacific? Mark the 29th of May in your diary!

That’s when Cathay Pacific will release 6,020 tickets to Australian-based members of the Cathay loyalty program as part of its “World of Winners” promotion.

Lucky winners will receive a round-trip ticket in Cathay Pacific Economy Class from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane or Perth to Hong Kong. While there is no cost for the airfare, travellers will still need to pay all taxes and surcharges.

The tickets are sponsored by Hong Kong International Airport as part of the “Hello Hong Kong” campaign to revitalise Hong Kong’s tourism industry. It comes after several years of border closures and COVID-19 pandemic measures. Hong Kong is now open to travellers again and COVID-19 restrictions on international arrivals have been removed.

How to claim a Cathay Pacific “World of Winners” ticket

Firstly, to enter this competition, you must be a member of the Cathay program. If you’re not already a member, you can join for free on the Cathay Pacific website. You also need to be at least 18 years old and cannot be related to anyone who works for Cathay Pacific or the Hong Kong Airport Authority.

Cathay will make the tickets available to Australians from 12pm (AEST) on Monday, 29 May 2023 on the dedicated Cathay Pacific webpage.

After heading to the webpage when the ticket allocation commences, you’ll need to have either your email address, mobile number and Cathay membership number on hand. You may then be asked to answer some quiz questions about Cathay Pacific and Hong Kong.

Tickets will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis to anyone who answers all the questions correctly. The promotion will end on 4 June 2023 or once all the tickets are given away, whichever comes first.

Note that there are individual allocations available from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. So, if all tickets from one airport have already been given away, there may still be tickets available from another port. Each person may only receive one ticket.

Cathay Pacific will also make 460 return tickets available from Auckland to Hong Kong at 6pm (NZST) on Monday, 29 May 2023.

What we’ve learned from ticket releases in other countries

“World of Winners” is a global promotion. Cathay Pacific has already released tickets in many of the other countries that it flies to over recent weeks.

If you’re hoping to score a ticket from Australia or New Zealand, there are a few things to be learned from the previous giveaways in other countries.

Firstly – and this is probably quite obvious – the ticket allocations in other countries were exhausted very quickly. You really do need to get in at 12pm (AEST) on the release date.

Secondly, in many cases, these promotions have crashed the Cathay Pacific website. So, be prepared for this possibility and if the website crashes, keep trying. It’s also possible that you might be placed in a queue before you can complete the quiz and claim your prize.

It’s also worth noting that people have edited information relevant to the quiz on Wikipedia after the offer went live in some other markets. This caused entrants relying on Wikipedia for their answers to get questions wrong, therefore missing out on tickets. So, don’t rely on Wikipedia!

About the giveaway tickets

If you’re lucky enough to secure a ticket, you’ll be able to use it to book a round-trip Economy Essential ticket from Australia to Hong Kong between 29 May 2023 and 28 February 2024. You can stay in Hong Kong for between two days and a month.

These tickets book into “O” class, and there would need to be availability in this fare class on the flight you wish to book. Blackout periods apply, so you might not be able to use your ticket during peak periods.

You can earn Cathay Asia Miles and Status Points, but Cathay Pacific flights booked in “O” class are not eligible to earn any Qantas points or status credits.

As these are Economy Essential fares, regular seat selection is available free of charge. There’s an included checked baggage allowance of 2x 23kg bags. Although cash upgrades to a higher cabin are not available, you could use Cathay Asia Miles to upgrade to Premium Economy.

Tickets are non-transferrable and you cannot change the routing. You can rebook the travel date for a $460 fee. The rebooking fee is subject to change based on exchange rate fluctuations.

Will you give this a go?

Good luck to anyone who claims a ticket! You can let the community know how you go and share tips on the Australian Frequent Flyer forum:

Matt Graham

The editor of Australian Frequent Flyer, Matt's passion for travel has taken him to over 90 countries… with the help of frequent flyer points, of course!
Matt's favourite destinations (so far) are Germany, Brazil & Kazakhstan. His interests include aviation, economics & foreign languages, and he has a soft spot for good food and red wine.

You can connect with Matt by posting on the Australian Frequent Flyer community forum and tagging @AFF Editor.