Qantas Frequent Flyer changes coming in early 2024

[dairyfloss]

Here's a few products that you can use to transfer to QFF from abroad. Who knew there was an actual Qantas AmEx card in New Caledonia!? I suspect anywhere that AmEx, Citi or HSBC offer their products, you could bank and transfer to QFF:

North America
-------------
United States of America
------------------------
American Express Membership Rewards®
Brex Card
Capital One®
Citi® - US Points Transfer
HSBC Rewards for Miles
Barclays Arrival® World Elite Mastercard®


South America
-------------
Mexico
------
HSBC Mexico - Programa Más de HSBC

United Kingdom
--------------
United Kingdom
--------------
American Express Membership Rewards®
HSBC UK Reward Programme

Asia
----
China
-----
Ping An WanLiTong

Hong Kong
---------
American Express Membership Rewards®
Citi® - Global Points Transfer
Hong Kong - HSBC RewardCash Programme

India
-----
Axis Bank Points/Miles Transfer Program

Japan
-----
American Express Membership Rewards®

Singapore
---------
American Express Membership Rewards®
DBS Rewards
Citi® - Global Points Transfer
Standard Chartered 360˚ Rewards Programme

Thailand
--------
KBank

South Pacific
-------------
New Caledonia
-------------
Qantas American Express Gold card
Qantas American Express Silver Card also earns Qantas Points.

New Zealand
-----------
AMEX Platinum Edge Credit Card
BNZ Rewards

Middle East
-----------
United Arab Emirates
--------------------
Citi® - Global Points Transfer

https://www.qantas.com/au/en/freque...nternational-points-earning-credit-cards.html

Cheers,
Matt.

 

[Lynda2475]

Plus most of the Hotel award programs - Hilton, IHG, Accor allow transfer of points to QFF.

 

[RichardMEL]

In that respect it really depends on the airline. But if you are travelling internationally where generally you have a choice, I would argue that much of the benefits you cite for having status (Flounge, preferred seating, better access to customer care agents) are things that are built-in to your J ticket. For instance if you are flying business on Air Canada you have access to a concierge who monitors your flight and is available at the airport to assist you. You can choose whatever seat you want in the J cabin free of charge. I will concede that the Flounge is probably better than the Signature Suite Lounge and certainly better than the Maple Leaf lounge, but one wonders is that alone worth tying so much spend to one airline?

And UA have the Polaris lounges, but those are products, as you say, linked to the J ticket.

However status can add a whole other dimension. You mention is it worth tying so much spend to one airline while ignoring the clear benefits of status in alliances. Most specially OW (since *G is far less useful in this context and SkyTeam top status doesn't seem to offer quite the same level as OWE benefits).

For example, OWE provides for much more, for example, flying on a (cheaper) AY fares through HKG, the CX F lounges are available. Totally worth it. Going through SIN? QF F.

Some of the unbundled J products ie "Business Lite" fares from QR, EK and AY which don't offer some things like lounge access included can be had with status benefits - eg: OWS/OWE.

And of course, QF WP can access EK lounges(well in certain areas), and the F lounge in DXB.

Not to mention the state of play in the US of A (yes I know it's domestic) where a QF Gold/WP can use AC's and Flagship lounges where they are, OWE the Flagship First entry - which you wouldn't get on a "F" ticket.

Sure, I agree that for a QF Gold, the benefits are pretty much in line with a J ticket - the real differences come with higher status.

 

[CaptJCool]

We may be using the same optician here...
QF could well afford to make the whole program sweeter if it also makes it more attractive. Though, one natural limitation they have is the small population compared to the number of members enrolled in the program. There probably isn't much organic growth available any more.

A quick reply to @Lynda2475's comment about max 10% level of fees & carrier charges in CR's. Domestic short hops are about $50 in fees but a Red E-deal goes these days for $149 off-peak. That would make it 33% of the cash fare. The fees + cost to acquire points come so close to the cash fare to me that it's usually not worth to look for a CR on those routes. Though, if I can replace a $249 cash fare with a CR, then it can make sense.

Calculations done here
Does it make sense to buy Qantas points?

What I’ve learnt since is the cheapest Red-E deal is about 25-30% of full flexi (as the initial price offer)

Usually 7-8 price levels until they are exhausted and all that’s left are Flexi where “name their price”. Same applies for J

The $449 J Syd-Bris for 40 SCs is about as low as they appear to go $11/SC
comPare the cheapest Y deal around $125-185 for 10 SCs

 

[atomik]

I don't think this is reasonable nor affordable. No major airline I know of does this in the modern era, at least not for Classic Rewards-type pricing (wasn't a policy similar to this as part of WorldPass partly responsible for the downfall of Pan Am?). The only programs that allow you to book any seats are programs with extensive dynamic pricing and/or directly convert points value to cash (e.g. NZ Airpoints).

I suppose if users want to just get some savings on their next flight booking, then a system like NZ Airpoints is good for that (and won't result in people complaining about seat availability). However if we want opportunities for outsized value whilst flying premium cabin classes, then limited award seat availability is a necessary evil to make the program financially viable.

Personally, I'd much rather the latter, and just pay cash for other flights where I'm unable to find award availability. That is not to say the QFF program shouldn't get improvement, but making every seat available as a reward is not it.

I'd have to disagree. QFF is setup the way it is and they have to expect that customers will - and rightly so - expect to maximise benefit for their time, effort and investment of earning points in this program. Otherwise we switch business and investment of earning points elsewhere, which I have, to VA/SQ.

In offering the earn of points and advertising the availability of "so many redemption opportunities", QFF needs to meet customer expectations, which it is far from doing. Yes it's a business, yes I run a business myself, so yes, we all expect better. Do as you promise, deliver upon your advertised redemption "opportunities" and make all unsold seats available from 300 days out (for example) - and that's fine if silver and above get first dibbs to select award seats in any fare class. That's a reasonable perk and benefit of those membership tiers. Beyond that, it's all open to all including Bronze. That is fair, reasonable and sustainable, Qantas know it.

 

[PineappleSkip]

make all unsold seats available from 300 days out

That would be most or almost all the plane

 

[dajop]

That would be most or almost all the plane

Yes. 300 minutes might be more appropriate

 

[RichardMEL]

The $449 J Syd-Bris for 40 SCs is about as low as they appear to go $11/SC
comPare the cheapest Y deal around $125-185 for 10 SCs

Yes, indeed. Recently there's also been a $450 MEL-HBA J (non sale) fare and $500 also non sale MEL-ADL v.v. - I'm not sure what's prompted this pricing drop (VA? ZL?) but it's only on certain routes but has been consistent for awhile now (MEL-SYD has also dropped, but not by a whole lot compared to the competition), It's interesting that there has been some movement in these fares. I'd even seen sub-$1200 for MEL-PER over the past month - again non sale - which compared to the usual which is usually >double that's a pretty decent fare (by QF standards).

but that $450 mark seems about the best for domestic AU in the J cabin right now I agree

(I'd note that there was a $770ish J fare MEL-AKL one way recently which is under $10/SC)

 

[serfty]

(I'd note that there was a $770ish J fare MEL-AKL one way recently which is under $10/SC)

Also, a D class for $1k'ish which allows routing via BNE.

 

[RooFlyer]

I don't find the carrier charges on QF J classic awards anywhere near the cash ticket price, 10% max. Whereas QR and EK carrier charges can be 3-4 times the QF ones.

As someone who has flown both QR and QF recently ( as opposed to yourself, whom you have written will never fly any Middle Eastern carrier) I can say that’s not true, in my recent experience. For someone who never flies any Middle East carrier, you seem to profess to know a lot about their prices and scheduling.

Also consider the fact that Qantas sometime before Covid folded its fuel fines into its base price, so the extra costs are there - they are just hidden with Qantas

certainly with the reputational damage Qantas has suffered these past few months, the likes of which no ASX listed company has ever experienced.

I think that’s a pretty silly statement for someone who I believe is relatively new to this country. So, more Australian history for you – have a look at the banks after the Royal commission.

 

[encryptededdy]

Also consider the fact that Qantas sometime before Covid folded its fuel fines into its base price, so the extra costs are there - they are just hidden with Qantas

Sure, but that's good in that it doesn't affect award tickets

I don't find the carrier charges on QF J classic awards anywhere near the cash ticket price, 10% max. Whereas QR and EK carrier charges can be 3-4 times the QF ones.

I think the problem is Qantas love have a significantly higher tax on premium class fares. While I suppose you're right that they wouldn't be 10% of a (business) cash fare, they're still often higher than the competition when comparing premium class to premium class.

If we look at SYD-xDOH-LHR (QR), they charge AU$270 in Y on award tickets in total fees (not just YQ). I can't find any J award seats on QR right now for this route, but from past posts it looks like it should be $370 in J.

This is higher than CI who charges $223 in Y/W/J on SYD-xTPE-LHR, or MH who charges $154 on Y/J on SYD-xKUL-LHR.

It's also a little bit higher than QF who charges $243 on SYD-xSIN-LHR (QF1) or $262 on SYD-xPER-LHR (domestic + QF9) in Economy. However in Business, Qantas charges a massive $453 on QF1.

Of course, nothing beats Emirates here. EK415 + EK003 SYD-xDXB-LHR has AU$477 in Economy and AU$1905 in total fees in Business.

 

[Lynda2475]

For someone who never flies any Middle East carrier, you seem to profess to know a lot about their prices and scheduling.

LOL never mentioned their scheduling, and true would never fly them but when searching for awards they show in results. Plenty of articles also covering the exorbitant EK fees on award tickets.

Ex Aus the fees in Y on EK are easily 50% of a cash fare, and in J usually at least 20-30%.

Domestically I would never redeem points if there are cheap sale tickets, only on premium routes or if last minute and cash fares are super high bringing taxes back to ~10%.

IME the fees on QF J OWAs and international J are usually about 10% of the cash fares, and I'm happy to pay this. Indeed if you redeem QF awards on AA can be less than 10%.

YMMV, but even if QF increase it is to me worth it to avoid the ME and China.

 

[justinbrett]

Amazingly you can find out carrier surcharges without actually flying the airline.

How to book Qatar Airways Business Class with points

How to use your frequent flyer points to book Qatar Airways flights: Qantas Points, Asia Miles and more. How to search for award seats.

www.pointhacks.com.au

Emirates increases carrier charges again - Point Hacks

You'll need to pay a lot more money to fly Emirates Business or First with Qantas Points.

www.pointhacks.com.au

A List of Qantas Carrier Charges for Reward Flights

31 March, 2023

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

 

[coyote25]

Interesting to see flights from Melbourne and Sydney to Los Angeles from 27 & 28 October have zero CR seats in any class. Same for domestic flights.

Usually QF have at least some Y seats for CR when sales start.

Wonder if this is the start of the new Flyer Program changes?

 

[Lynda2475]

Doubtful as they havent been releasing per the 353 days out schedule for about a year now. I find they seem to bulk load the Y CR seats randomly and hold back the J until they do one of these mass drops.

 

[coyote25]

Yeah I originally thought they had stopped new releases at the edges of the sake window (353 days). But I’ve being tracking daily for almost 6 weeks most days to get a feel for what is happening on several routes before the flights go on sale and with the exception of when it would have been school holidays Sept 2024 there were daily CR releases in Y with some PE and even occasionally a rare J out of SYD TO LAX (however never saw a F CR on any route that sold them).

 

[coyote25]

Well QF are back to releasing classic awards seats 353 out so must have just been a 3 day delay for another reason.

I guess we will wait to early 2024 for the new (please don’t be an ‘enhancement’) QFF features.

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

Well, at the least according to ET, (Executive Traveller), their lounges are getting a move on in being worked on.

 

[Lynda2475]

I just received a "How Are We Doing" survey this morning which took almost 30 minutes to complete about the program (darn annoyed no red planet type points given for my trouble). I was able to give lengthy feedback about the app (i.e. no google wallet support), issues with the web page search engine, inability to book lengthy multi-sector bookings online, credit cards and poor call centre experience. Hope they take note.

 

[Rangalad]

thanks for the correction @Rangalad - classic example of my chemo brain fog meaning I forget even the most obvious things that I know really well - it's both frustrating and hilarious!!

No worries.

Strength and good thoughts to you.