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)
Malé (MLE)
Mumbai (BOM)
Riyadh (RUH)
Tel Aviv (TLV)
Europe (To/from HKG only. NA is separate award)
Amsterdam (AMS)
Barcelona (BCN)
Düsseldorf (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)
Malé (MLE)
Mumbai (BOM)
Riyadh (RUH)
Tel Aviv (TLV)
Europe (To/from HKG only. NA is separate award)
Amsterdam (AMS)
Barcelona (BCN)
Düsseldorf (DUS)
Frankfurt (FRA)
London (LHR, LGW)
Manchester (MAN)
Milan (MXP)
Paris (CDG)
Rome (FCO)
Zurich (ZRH)
CX (Cathay) Award availability
Nov 3, 2015, 10:21 am
#976
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Northern Calif./Eastern Ida.
Programs: Amethyst Premier Plutonium Medallion
Posts: 20,643
It was sometime between 1 and 2 am eastern when they add 1 more day to the booking calendar. I then went to AA site and the calendar was showing 1 less day than AS had available. If the day is on the web calendar it should be available for calling in as well. I've only done it for QF award so far.
i will have to check on this in the morning tomorrow, since i will be awake anyways very early to catch AS17
Nov 4, 2015, 5:29 pm
#977
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 29,762
AS charges YQ on CX redemption?
Today I ticketed an itinerary LAX-HKG-JNB-HKG-LAX, it shows a $12.00 surcharge line.
Base Fare and Surcharges $12.00
Taxes and Other Fees $131.50
Ticketing Fee (nonrefundable) $15.00
Partner Award Booking Fee (nonrefundable) $25.00
per person total: $183.50
Agent initially gave me the taxes figure was $131.50. After she finalized the booking, she saw the system gave her $143.50. Then she said, it was because of CX flights. The details in the confirmation email reveals $12.00 surcharge.
Back in the Spring this year I ticketed FRA-HKG and the surcharge line is 0.
Base Fare and Surcharges $0.00
Taxes and Other Fees $95.00
Ticketing Fee (nonrefundable) $15.00
Partner Award Booking Fee (nonrefundable) $12.50
per person total: $122.50
Under what circumstances AS charges YQ on CX? Also the amount seems odd.
The $12.00 does not match any of the airline imposed surcharges shown on BA site on each segment.
Anybody has experiences on CX awards carry surcharges?
Base Fare and Surcharges $12.00
Taxes and Other Fees $131.50
Ticketing Fee (nonrefundable) $15.00
Partner Award Booking Fee (nonrefundable) $25.00
per person total: $183.50
Agent initially gave me the taxes figure was $131.50. After she finalized the booking, she saw the system gave her $143.50. Then she said, it was because of CX flights. The details in the confirmation email reveals $12.00 surcharge.
Back in the Spring this year I ticketed FRA-HKG and the surcharge line is 0.
Base Fare and Surcharges $0.00
Taxes and Other Fees $95.00
Ticketing Fee (nonrefundable) $15.00
Partner Award Booking Fee (nonrefundable) $12.50
per person total: $122.50
Under what circumstances AS charges YQ on CX? Also the amount seems odd.
The $12.00 does not match any of the airline imposed surcharges shown on BA site on each segment.
Anybody has experiences on CX awards carry surcharges?
Nov 4, 2015, 5:45 pm
#978
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: SFO
Programs: OZ *G; HH Diamond;
Posts: 1,644
Today I ticketed an itinerary LAX-HKG-JNB-HKG-LAX, it shows a $12.00 surcharge line.
Base Fare and Surcharges $12.00
Taxes and Other Fees $131.50
Ticketing Fee (nonrefundable) $15.00
Partner Award Booking Fee (nonrefundable) $25.00
per person total: $183.50
Agent initially gave me the taxes figure was $131.50. After she finalized the booking, she saw the system gave her $143.50. Then she said, it was because of CX flights. The details in the confirmation email reveals $12.00 surcharge.
Back in the Spring this year I ticketed FRA-HKG and the surcharge line is 0.
Base Fare and Surcharges $0.00
Taxes and Other Fees $95.00
Ticketing Fee (nonrefundable) $15.00
Partner Award Booking Fee (nonrefundable) $12.50
per person total: $122.50
Under what circumstances AS charges YQ on CX? Also the amount seems odd.
The $12.00 does not match any of the airline imposed surcharges shown on BA site on each segment.
Anybody has experiences on CX awards carry surcharges?
Base Fare and Surcharges $12.00
Taxes and Other Fees $131.50
Ticketing Fee (nonrefundable) $15.00
Partner Award Booking Fee (nonrefundable) $25.00
per person total: $183.50
Agent initially gave me the taxes figure was $131.50. After she finalized the booking, she saw the system gave her $143.50. Then she said, it was because of CX flights. The details in the confirmation email reveals $12.00 surcharge.
Back in the Spring this year I ticketed FRA-HKG and the surcharge line is 0.
Base Fare and Surcharges $0.00
Taxes and Other Fees $95.00
Ticketing Fee (nonrefundable) $15.00
Partner Award Booking Fee (nonrefundable) $12.50
per person total: $122.50
Under what circumstances AS charges YQ on CX? Also the amount seems odd.
The $12.00 does not match any of the airline imposed surcharges shown on BA site on each segment.
Anybody has experiences on CX awards carry surcharges?
It is HKG airport security surcharge of HK$45 (or ~$6 per one way).
Then this surcharge makes base fare no longer $0, AA then starts to charge junk USA arriving fees. In the AA thread, there are people reporting CX award co-pay went up from ~$20(?) to over $80(?)
I found a link:
https://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/...s/pr_1128.html
Nov 4, 2015, 6:25 pm
#979
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 29,762
You can search AA's Cathay award thread for more details.
It is HKG airport security surcharge of HK$45 (or ~$6 per one way).
Then this surcharge makes base fare no longer $0, AA then starts to charge junk USA arriving fees. In the AA thread, there are people reporting CX award co-pay went up from ~$20(?) to over $80(?)
I found a link:
https://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/...s/pr_1128.html
It is HKG airport security surcharge of HK$45 (or ~$6 per one way).
Then this surcharge makes base fare no longer $0, AA then starts to charge junk USA arriving fees. In the AA thread, there are people reporting CX award co-pay went up from ~$20(?) to over $80(?)
I found a link:
https://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/...s/pr_1128.html
I also have an AA award HKG-LAX-MIA, indeed it shows a fare of $6 and taxes are $60.80 (almost identical to what BA showed as $68ish in total).
Then I changed to overnight at LAX, then agent said the tax was an additional $4 due to the overnight at LAX. The annoying thing is, AA does not give you the detailed breakdown on the taxes/fee part, just a lump sum.
Why Hong Kong government not treats the airport security fee as part of the taxes versus part of the airfare?
Nov 4, 2015, 6:53 pm
#980
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Northern Calif./Eastern Ida.
Programs: Amethyst Premier Plutonium Medallion
Posts: 20,643
now, have to decide if we will actually take the trip. we got the outbound with UA miles via SYD for now.
Nov 4, 2015, 7:39 pm
#981
Join Date: Aug 2001
Posts: 1,053
For a while CX did not attempt to recover any of this cost from award tickets, then they wised up decided that they were leaving money on the table, so why not "price" their award tickets at $6 (or the HKG equivalent). This has, as they say, unintended consequences -- namely that it triggers certain US taxes/fees that are only levied on tickets with a actual cost other than zero.
DAK
Nov 6, 2015, 12:13 am
#982
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS
Posts: 15,027
Should I book BOS-HKG at the 330 day mark and call the next day to add HKG-SYD, or should I wait 331 days and book the whole itinerary at once?
Or is there no waiting because it already is "tomorrow" in Australia relative to Boston?
Nov 6, 2015, 5:21 am
#983
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: AS 75K
Posts: 18,323
I am still confused about the best course of action if I want to fly BOS-HKG-SYD.
Should I book BOS-HKG at the 330 day mark and call the next day to add HKG-SYD, or should I wait 331 days and book the whole itinerary at once?
Or is there no waiting because it already is "tomorrow" in Australia relative to Boston?
Should I book BOS-HKG at the 330 day mark and call the next day to add HKG-SYD, or should I wait 331 days and book the whole itinerary at once?
Or is there no waiting because it already is "tomorrow" in Australia relative to Boston?
Nov 6, 2015, 10:28 am
#984
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: SDF
Programs: AS MVPG, Hyatt Plat, SPG Gold
Posts: 290
To add. Alaska can see availability at exactly 330 days their time(3 AM EST for us east coast folks). So even if it's already 330 days elsewhere, you can't book it.
Nov 6, 2015, 10:40 am
#985
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: AS 75K
Posts: 18,323
I've noticed its more between 1 & 2 AM eastern (Reservation system servers are not in pacific time from what I recall). If the date is available for online booking its available for call in booking (are they open 24 hours?).
Nov 9, 2015, 4:58 pm
#988
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS
Posts: 15,027
Any reason why Dragon Air is disallowed? That seriously hampers the usefulness of CX awards.
Nov 9, 2015, 5:31 pm
#989
Join Date: Sep 2013
Programs: AC SE100K, AA EXP, SPG Plt, HH Dmnd
Posts: 1,507
Nov 9, 2015, 7:21 pm
#990
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: YVR to SEA
Posts: 2,535
There's zero feed between AS and Dragonair.
Hainan is a partner, HK express is not
Korean Airlines is a partner, Jin air is not
Qantas is a partner, Jetstar is not
Air France is a partner, HOP! is not
I'm sure there are more examples out there...
Hainan is a partner, HK express is not
Korean Airlines is a partner, Jin air is not
Qantas is a partner, Jetstar is not
Air France is a partner, HOP! is not
I'm sure there are more examples out there...