Aug 7, 2015, 8:58 am
Cathay Pacific Award Availability
when using Alaska Airlines Miles
North American CX Gateway Cities
New York City (JFK/EWR)
Boston (BOS)
Toronto (YYZ)
Chicago (ORD)
Vancouver (YVR)
Los Angeles (LAX)
San Francisco (SFO)
Notes and tips:
You cannot book CX award flights on alaskaair.com.
http://www.alaskaair.com/content/mil...rs/cathay.aspx
Both BA and JL websites can be used to search for CX partner inventory. JL is typically a more accurate engine. BA should only be used on a per-segment basis (in other words, do not search for LAX-BKK, search for LAX-HKG, then HKG-BKK). Note that AS award availability is only for 330 days, the BA engine will show availability to 365 days.
There are mixed reports on getting a CX stopover outside of HKG. By rule, HKG is the only allowed stopover. Stopovers are not allowed on intra-Asia award bookings (you will need a North American segment to be able to book a stopover).
All CX awards except for the intra-Asia award must either originate or end in HKG or North America. If you wish to fly Middle East/India/Europe/Asia/Australia to a CX destination beyond your initial flight to or from HKG that is not a North American destination, it will be two awards: XXX-HKG and HKG-YYY. CX intra-Asia awards do not include a stopover.
CX releases availability close in. If you do a change where you book another cabin and upgrade to F (which often may be the only way to get F on CX), you will be charged the $125 rebooking fee (waived for MVPG+).
*Have the AS CSR perform the search one leg at a time (Transoceanic first). That might yield more results than the whole itinerary at once.*
The CX forum has a FAQ on the CX experience.
Award eligible Destinations
By region.
(Dragon Air is not allowed on AS award)
Africa
Johannesburg (JNB)
Asia
Bangkok (BKK)
Beijing (PEK)
Cebu (CEB)
Denpasar (Bali) (DPS)
Fukuoka (FUK)
Ho Chi Minh City (SGN)
Hong Kong (HKG)
Jakarta (CGK)
Kuala Lumpur (KUL) [Ends 30 April]
Manila (MNL)
Osaka (KIX)
Sapporo (CTS)
Seoul (ICN)
Shanghai (PVG)
Singapore (SIN)
Surabaya (SUB)
Taipei (TPE)
Tokyo (HND)
Australia/NZ
Adelaide (ADL)
Auckland (AKL)
Brisbane (BNE)
Cairns (CNS)
Melbourne (MEL)
Perth (PER)
Sydney (SYD)
India/Middle East
Bahrain (BAH)
Chennai (MAA)
Colombo (CMB)
Delhi (DEL)
Doha (DOH) [Discontinued as of Feb 2016]
Dubai (DXB)
Hyderabad (HYD)
Mal (MLE)
Mumbai (BOM)
Riyadh (RUH)
Tel Aviv (TLV)
Europe (To/from HKG only. NA is separate award)
Amsterdam (AMS)
Barcelona (BCN)
Dsseldorf (DUS)
Frankfurt (FRA)
London (LHR, LGW)
Manchester (MAN)
Milan (MXP)
Paris (CDG)
Rome (FCO)
Zurich (ZRH)
when using Alaska Airlines Miles
North American CX Gateway Cities
New York City (JFK/EWR)
Boston (BOS)
Toronto (YYZ)
Chicago (ORD)
Vancouver (YVR)
Los Angeles (LAX)
San Francisco (SFO)
Notes and tips:
You cannot book CX award flights on alaskaair.com.
http://www.alaskaair.com/content/mil...rs/cathay.aspx
Award Travel on Cathay Pacific
Book Your Award Travel: To use Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Miles on Cathay Pacific, call Alaska Airlines Reservations at 1-800-252-7522 (TTY: Dial 711 for Relay Services) 5:00 a.m. - Midnight (PT), daily
Book Your Award Travel: To use Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Miles on Cathay Pacific, call Alaska Airlines Reservations at 1-800-252-7522 (TTY: Dial 711 for Relay Services) 5:00 a.m. - Midnight (PT), daily
There are mixed reports on getting a CX stopover outside of HKG. By rule, HKG is the only allowed stopover. Stopovers are not allowed on intra-Asia award bookings (you will need a North American segment to be able to book a stopover).
All CX awards except for the intra-Asia award must either originate or end in HKG or North America. If you wish to fly Middle East/India/Europe/Asia/Australia to a CX destination beyond your initial flight to or from HKG that is not a North American destination, it will be two awards: XXX-HKG and HKG-YYY. CX intra-Asia awards do not include a stopover.
CX releases availability close in. If you do a change where you book another cabin and upgrade to F (which often may be the only way to get F on CX), you will be charged the $125 rebooking fee (waived for MVPG+).
*Have the AS CSR perform the search one leg at a time (Transoceanic first). That might yield more results than the whole itinerary at once.*
The CX forum has a FAQ on the CX experience.
Award eligible Destinations
By region.
(Dragon Air is not allowed on AS award)
Africa
Johannesburg (JNB)
Asia
Bangkok (BKK)
Beijing (PEK)
Cebu (CEB)
Denpasar (Bali) (DPS)
Fukuoka (FUK)
Ho Chi Minh City (SGN)
Hong Kong (HKG)
Jakarta (CGK)
Kuala Lumpur (KUL) [Ends 30 April]
Manila (MNL)
Osaka (KIX)
Sapporo (CTS)
Seoul (ICN)
Shanghai (PVG)
Singapore (SIN)
Surabaya (SUB)
Taipei (TPE)
Tokyo (HND)
Australia/NZ
Adelaide (ADL)
Auckland (AKL)
Brisbane (BNE)
Cairns (CNS)
Melbourne (MEL)
Perth (PER)
Sydney (SYD)
India/Middle East
Bahrain (BAH)
Chennai (MAA)
Colombo (CMB)
Delhi (DEL)
Doha (DOH) [Discontinued as of Feb 2016]
Dubai (DXB)
Hyderabad (HYD)
Mal (MLE)
Mumbai (BOM)
Riyadh (RUH)
Tel Aviv (TLV)
Europe (To/from HKG only. NA is separate award)
Amsterdam (AMS)
Barcelona (BCN)
Dsseldorf (DUS)
Frankfurt (FRA)
London (LHR, LGW)
Manchester (MAN)
Milan (MXP)
Paris (CDG)
Rome (FCO)
Zurich (ZRH)
CX (Cathay) Award availability
Mar 5, 2015 | 2:54 pm
#706
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: SDF
Programs: AS MVPG, Hyatt Plat, SPG Gold
Posts: 290
Hello,
I hope this is in the right spot, if not let me know. I am looking for planning advice and help for a F award booking on CX.
My wife and I would like to take a 2+ week trip to Asia and use my AS miles for 2 R/T F tickets on CX. The trip would be the last week of May, first week of June.
The Plan
Leave last week in May 2016, head to Hong Kong. Spend 4 days in HK then moving onto Shanghai. I believe we can use a stopover and make Shanghai our final.
After spending 4 days in Shanghai we would book a one way cash to Tokyo. We are planning on spending 5-6 days in Tokyo. We would then do a return on CX through HK. (we could do Delta but I have tried their product and would take the longer flight for F).
I live in Seattle and have no problem going out of YVR, SFO, or LAX. I can book that trip separately or in conjunction if the space is available.
So, my questions:
1. When do I need to book those seats? I am a planner and can book as soon as possible.
2. Can I realistically get 2 F seats on those flights? I can take business but would rather burn the miles for the experience.
3. Is there a limit to how long a stopover can be?
4. I assume my open jaw is correct?
5. What else do I need to know to get this done right.
Thanks in advance!!
I hope this is in the right spot, if not let me know. I am looking for planning advice and help for a F award booking on CX.
My wife and I would like to take a 2+ week trip to Asia and use my AS miles for 2 R/T F tickets on CX. The trip would be the last week of May, first week of June.
The Plan
Leave last week in May 2016, head to Hong Kong. Spend 4 days in HK then moving onto Shanghai. I believe we can use a stopover and make Shanghai our final.
After spending 4 days in Shanghai we would book a one way cash to Tokyo. We are planning on spending 5-6 days in Tokyo. We would then do a return on CX through HK. (we could do Delta but I have tried their product and would take the longer flight for F).
I live in Seattle and have no problem going out of YVR, SFO, or LAX. I can book that trip separately or in conjunction if the space is available.
So, my questions:
1. When do I need to book those seats? I am a planner and can book as soon as possible.
2. Can I realistically get 2 F seats on those flights? I can take business but would rather burn the miles for the experience.
3. Is there a limit to how long a stopover can be?
4. I assume my open jaw is correct?
5. What else do I need to know to get this done right.
Thanks in advance!!
AFAIK:
1. 331 days before your flight, so you should book your first SFO/LAX/YVR-HKG segment 331 days before, then add HKG-PVG seg a few days later when it becomes available. I don't know if end of May is a high season or not. If it's not you might be fine to book it a few days later. But 331 days before is the best you can get from AS
2. With award travel, you have to be flexible. It's not guaranteed that you can get 2 first class on the day you want to travel, as some other partners or CX itself can book the first class seats before -331 days. If you can be flexible, it shouldn't be too hard to find a date with 2 first class seats.
3. 180 days? your 4-5 days layover is definitely fine.
4. Just book it as 2 one-ways and you're fine.
5. You can check availability on BA before -331 days, also for flights departs between midnight and 1am, you might need to ask the agent to check the previous day for them to find the availability for you.
1. 331 days before your flight, so you should book your first SFO/LAX/YVR-HKG segment 331 days before, then add HKG-PVG seg a few days later when it becomes available. I don't know if end of May is a high season or not. If it's not you might be fine to book it a few days later. But 331 days before is the best you can get from AS
2. With award travel, you have to be flexible. It's not guaranteed that you can get 2 first class on the day you want to travel, as some other partners or CX itself can book the first class seats before -331 days. If you can be flexible, it shouldn't be too hard to find a date with 2 first class seats.
3. 180 days? your 4-5 days layover is definitely fine.
4. Just book it as 2 one-ways and you're fine.
5. You can check availability on BA before -331 days, also for flights departs between midnight and 1am, you might need to ask the agent to check the previous day for them to find the availability for you.
Mar 9, 2015 | 9:28 pm
#707
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 4,795
Gotta love AS with their free changes (60 days before departure) vs. Aeroplan $90+tax PER CHANGE
I've made 3 calls/changes so far
#1 to book it ORD-HKG-TPE
#2 after a schedule change, to YYZ-HKG-TPE instead
#3 different date/time
I should apply more MBNA Alaska CC then (25K AS miles per signup)
I've made 3 calls/changes so far
#1 to book it ORD-HKG-TPE
#2 after a schedule change, to YYZ-HKG-TPE instead
#3 different date/time
I should apply more MBNA Alaska CC then (25K AS miles per signup)
Last edited by jerryhung; Mar 9, 2015 at 11:55 pm Reason: corrected from 120 days to 60 days, thanks
Mar 9, 2015 | 10:26 pm
#708
Join Date: Jan 2001
Posts: 3,105
Gotta love AS with their free changes (before 120 days) vs. Aeroplan $90+tax PER CHANGE
I've made 3 calls/changes so far
#1 to book it ORD-HKG-TPE
#2 after a schedule change, to YYZ-HKG-TPE instead
#3 different date/time
I should apply more MBNA Alaska CC then (25K AS miles per signup)
I've made 3 calls/changes so far
#1 to book it ORD-HKG-TPE
#2 after a schedule change, to YYZ-HKG-TPE instead
#3 different date/time
I should apply more MBNA Alaska CC then (25K AS miles per signup)
Mar 10, 2015 | 6:39 pm
#710
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: Free Agent
Posts: 18,344
Mar 10, 2015 | 7:28 pm
#711
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 4,436
Quick question-- I'm thinking of using AS for CX flights. I'm interested in Turkey, specifically Istanbul. Is that considered Europe or Middle East?
Mar 10, 2015 | 7:47 pm
#712
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: Free Agent
Posts: 18,344
Mar 10, 2015 | 8:25 pm
#713
Join Date: Oct 2010
Programs: AS 100K, Million miler
Posts: 245
Dave in LA, for travel on CX there is a way around the difference between the AS 330 day calendar, and the BA 355 day calendar, but it takes some nerve.
For as long as I can remember, CX adds in lots of F seats starting about 7-10 days before the travel date. Check it out for yourself. Using the BA website, do a search for tomorrow, and the next 6-9 days. Especially out of LAX, you will see lots of F seats available. You may not get the exact flight and date that you want, but if this pattern continues, you will get something close. These seats that show on the BA website are almost always available to AS flyers.
For travel to Turkey, you might consider using AS miles to fly on AA LAX-LHR in F. It is not BA or CX, but it gets solid reviews. Then pick up something else to Istanbul. BA would fly you all the way there if you could get seats, but the fuel surcharges would be exhorbitant.
For as long as I can remember, CX adds in lots of F seats starting about 7-10 days before the travel date. Check it out for yourself. Using the BA website, do a search for tomorrow, and the next 6-9 days. Especially out of LAX, you will see lots of F seats available. You may not get the exact flight and date that you want, but if this pattern continues, you will get something close. These seats that show on the BA website are almost always available to AS flyers.
For travel to Turkey, you might consider using AS miles to fly on AA LAX-LHR in F. It is not BA or CX, but it gets solid reviews. Then pick up something else to Istanbul. BA would fly you all the way there if you could get seats, but the fuel surcharges would be exhorbitant.
Mar 10, 2015 | 8:30 pm
#714
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 4,795
Today's blog post seems timely then
Cathay Pacific First and Business Class Availability Patterns | MileValue
Some comment is asking about the idea of "hold by Avios, cancel, then book with AA/AS", I don't know if it's really doable or one wants to risk it, but certainly worth a try.
Worst case, 2 weeks out should have open availability as above suggested
Cathay Pacific First and Business Class Availability Patterns | MileValue
Some comment is asking about the idea of "hold by Avios, cancel, then book with AA/AS", I don't know if it's really doable or one wants to risk it, but certainly worth a try.
Worst case, 2 weeks out should have open availability as above suggested
Mar 10, 2015 | 10:00 pm
#715
Join Date: Oct 2010
Programs: AS 100K, Million miler
Posts: 245
In my experience, when you cancel CX space using BA miles, the seat does appear immediately in the inventory that AS has access to, so this strategy should work. However, if one has the BA miles to book CX in the first place, keep in mind the massive BA devaluation for partner bookings scheduled for April 28. Might be prudent to just burn the BA miles. BA Fuel surcharges are usually less than $100 traveling to HKG, 3 x that much on the return.
Last edited by macfadsj; Mar 10, 2015 at 10:22 pm
Mar 11, 2015 | 5:20 am
#716
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Eastern Washington
Programs: AS MVPGold 75K
Posts: 82
At time CX releases to Alaska, if I book on CX from JNB to HKG and then wait until the next day to book HKG to SFO (because HKG won't be available yet because it starts on the following day) I it appears I will have two reservations. Can I merge the two or will they be completely separate? As I am checking luggage this is a concern. Especially with a 10 hour layover and I don't plan on leaving the airport. If I have to collect bags and then check in and recheck bags for new flight, will I even be able to check in 8 hours (after immigration etc) before flight?
Mar 11, 2015 | 5:26 am
#717
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: Free Agent
Posts: 18,344
At time CX releases to Alaska, if I book on CX from JNB to HKG and then wait until the next day to book HKG to SFO (because HKG won't be available yet because it starts on the following day) I it appears I will have two reservations. Can I merge the two or will they be completely separate? As I am checking luggage this is a concern. Especially with a 10 hour layover and I don't plan on leaving the airport. If I have to collect bags and then check in and recheck bags for new flight, will I even be able to check in 8 hours (after immigration etc) before flight?
Mar 11, 2015 | 6:10 am
#718
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS
Posts: 15,027
There seem to be two dates floating around: 330 and 331 in advance. Which is it?
Mar 11, 2015 | 6:52 am
#719
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: Free Agent
Posts: 18,344