Fly China Airlines Brisbane-Auckland with Qantas Points

There’s a new way to cross the ditch in style using Qantas points!

For several years, Qantas Frequent Flyer members have been able to redeem their points to fly with China Airlines between Australia and Taipei. Earlier this year, the carriers expanded their partnership to give Qantas Frequent Flyer members access to reward seats across the entire China Airlines network. But Qantas hasn’t generally made Classic Reward seats available on China Airlines’ fifth-freedom route from Brisbane to Auckland… until now.

China Airlines’ Brisbane-Auckland route

As an extension of its Taipei-Brisbane service, China Airlines flies from Brisbane to Auckland five times per week. This is the trans-Tasman schedule:

• CI53 Brisbane 12:55 – Auckland 19:00
• CI54 Auckland 20:30 – Brisbane 21:20

An Airbus A350-900 with lie-flat Business Class seats and a Premium Economy cabin is used for this service.

Despite the name, note that China Airlines is based in Taipei. The carrier has a good reputation and safety record, with modern and comfortable aircraft cabins.

Booking a seat with Qantas points

At the time of writing, there is a good amount of China Airlines award availability between Brisbane and Auckland, including in Premium Economy and Business Class, for travel dates in October and November 2023. This could be handy if you want to book a last-minute jaunt across the Tasman!

The number of Qantas points you’ll need to book on China Airlines is slightly higher than an equivalent Qantas flight, as China Airlines is on the partner airline reward table. The taxes & carrier charges are also slightly higher on this particular route, but not by much.

The trade-off is that China Airlines offers a lie-flat Business product and Premium Economy, which Qantas doesn’t have on its Boeing 737-800s.

It would cost 34,500 Qantas points + $178 in taxes & carrier charges for a one-way China Airlines flight from Brisbane to Auckland. A Business seat costs only 9,300 more Qantas points – which would be worth paying if there is availability. You can book on the Qantas website.

In the opposite direction, the taxes & charges are a bit lower.

By comparison, China Airlines Premium Economy airfares from Brisbane to Auckland normally start from around $1,020 return. You could expect to pay around $1,720 return when buying a Business Class ticket on this route.

Book using Virgin Atlantic points

As China Airlines is part of the SkyTeam alliance, you could also book a seat using a SkyTeam frequent flyer program such as Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. Australians can transfer Amex Membership Rewards points into the Virgin Atlantic program.

With Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, a one-way China Airlines Premium Economy reward seat from Brisbane to Auckland would cost just 16,000 Virgin Points + taxes & charges. A Business seat is just 21,500 Virgin Points + taxes & charges. That’s less than half the number of points that Qantas Frequent Flyer charges.

Unfortunately, the Virgin Atlantic website does not display China Airlines award flights. You would need to call Virgin Atlantic to enquire about award availability or to make a booking.

Other creative ways to fly to New Zealand with Qantas points

Several other Qantas partner airlines also operate fifth-freedom services between Australia and New Zealand.

For example, you could redeem Qantas points to fly with LATAM Airlines between Sydney and Auckland. Or, indulge in the luxury of Emirates A380 Business or First Class by using Qantas points to fly Emirates from Sydney to Christchurch!

Would you like help using your points?

We offer a Frequent Flyer Concierge service that can help you find and book reward flights using your own points! Click here to learn more.

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.