Last edit by: eponymous_coward
Cathay Award Guide Using Alaska Airlines Miles
Note: Cathay flights cannot be booked using alaskaair.com. Mileage requirements in chart form available on alaskaair.com.
Routing Rules:
North American Gateway Cities:
Western
Vancouver
San Francisco
Los Angeles
Seattle (Spring 2019)
Eastern (Can not be used if traveling to west coast)
Boston
Chicago
New York (JFK & EWR)
Toronto
Washington
Award Chart Links*:
Asia
Australia
Europe
India/Middle East
North America
Anyone with 90 posts and 90 days can edit the wiki. Everyone else if you want something added to the wiki please comment in the thread.
Note: Cathay flights cannot be booked using alaskaair.com. Mileage requirements in chart form available on alaskaair.com.
Request your Partner Award reservation on Cathay Pacific by calling Alaska Airlines Reservations at 1-800-252-7522 (TTY: Dial 711 for Relay Services) 5:00 a.m. - Midnight (PT), daily.
- If it's not on the award chart, it's not allowed. For example EUROPE is To/From HKG only.
- Stopover are only allowed on any CX award for North America awards as destination or origin. For instance: intra-Asia awards do not get a stopover. It must be a North America->Somewhere or Somewhere->North America award to qualify for a stopover.
- The only awards that do not break at HKG are intra-Asia or North American ones. For instance, Australia-Europe/Middle East/Asia outside of HKG will be two awards (breaking at HKG). The AS award chart can be misleading about this and give you the impression you can fly an award like Australia/Europe-ICN, but the chart for these award types will show "Hong Kong".
- One stop-over allowed on one way award. You can build open jaw and other advanced routings by booking multiple one way awards. Please note change fee rule below.
- Allegedly stop-over only in Hong Kong, but some have posted success in other enroute cities such as YVR or SEA.
- As of 5 June 2018 changes/cancellations made to a booking will incur a $125 fee which is waived for MVPG/MVPG75K. Bookings made prior to 5 June will be allowed one complimentary change or cancellation for up to 60 days prior to date of travel.
- Awards can be booked 330 days in advance.
- Cathay and Alaska (or an Alaska flight operated by SkyWest/Horizon on behalf of Alaska) are the only airlines allowed on a Cathay award. No other partner airlines may be used on a single award (e.g. American, JAL, Emirates).
North American Gateway Cities:
Western
Vancouver
San Francisco
Los Angeles
Seattle (Spring 2019)
Eastern (Can not be used if traveling to west coast)
Boston
Chicago
New York (JFK & EWR)
Toronto
Washington
Award Chart Links*:
Asia
Australia
Europe
India/Middle East
North America
Anyone with 90 posts and 90 days can edit the wiki. Everyone else if you want something added to the wiki please comment in the thread.
Cathay Pacific (CX) Award Redemption, Booking and Availability – 2017 and Later
#931
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: SEA, but up and down the coast a lot
Programs: Oceanic Airlines Gold Elite
Posts: 20,420
#932
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Arlington, VA USA
Posts: 670
Qantas seems to be the only site showing availability for less than 4 days... but that varies depending on routing. JL will show availability up to 4 days before flights and I find it to be more accurate.
According to JL web site there are at least 4 award seats in J available from EWR-HKG-SIN on Aug 9th. On the HKG-SIN segment 7 (out of 8) flights have 4 award seats available... choose one that is scheduled to be a A350-900.
DAK
According to JL web site there are at least 4 award seats in J available from EWR-HKG-SIN on Aug 9th. On the HKG-SIN segment 7 (out of 8) flights have 4 award seats available... choose one that is scheduled to be a A350-900.
DAK
#933
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Kan@da
Programs: Anything with sweet spots
Posts: 1,790
Why aren't more people doing searches using JL ? It's the most accurate one and there is no seat blocking because JL doesn't sell its frequent flyer miles.
#935
Join Date: Dec 2016
Location: Saipan, MP
Programs: Marriott Ambassador, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Diamond, Alaska 75K, United Platinum
Posts: 203
Hi Everyone,
Need some advice......GF wants to fly Cathay F when we go to Hong Kong in November. Currently have her confirmed booked 11-19 in F from ORD. Problem is we live in Orange County, CA. There is no availability in F from LAX, SFO, or YVR, all of which would obviously be preferred to ORD.
My question is two-fold:
Thanks everyone
Need some advice......GF wants to fly Cathay F when we go to Hong Kong in November. Currently have her confirmed booked 11-19 in F from ORD. Problem is we live in Orange County, CA. There is no availability in F from LAX, SFO, or YVR, all of which would obviously be preferred to ORD.
My question is two-fold:
- What strategies should I use to try and fly availability from SFO or LAX? Basically just check BA website to see if anything opens up?
- Is there anyway I can consolidate this reservation to include a flight from either LAX/SNA to ORD flying AA?
Thanks everyone
#936
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: AS 75K
Posts: 18,323
Hi Everyone,
Need some advice......GF wants to fly Cathay F when we go to Hong Kong in November. Currently have her confirmed booked 11-19 in F from ORD. Problem is we live in Orange County, CA. There is no availability in F from LAX, SFO, or YVR, all of which would obviously be preferred to ORD.
My question is two-fold:
Thanks everyone
Need some advice......GF wants to fly Cathay F when we go to Hong Kong in November. Currently have her confirmed booked 11-19 in F from ORD. Problem is we live in Orange County, CA. There is no availability in F from LAX, SFO, or YVR, all of which would obviously be preferred to ORD.
My question is two-fold:
- What strategies should I use to try and fly availability from SFO or LAX? Basically just check BA website to see if anything opens up?
- Is there anyway I can consolidate this reservation to include a flight from either LAX/SNA to ORD flying AA?
Thanks everyone
#937
Join Date: Aug 2001
Posts: 1,055
Hi Everyone,
Need some advice......GF wants to fly Cathay F when we go to Hong Kong in November. Currently have her confirmed booked 11-19 in F from ORD. Problem is we live in Orange County, CA. There is no availability in F from LAX, SFO, or YVR, all of which would obviously be preferred to ORD.
My question is two-fold:
Thanks everyone
Need some advice......GF wants to fly Cathay F when we go to Hong Kong in November. Currently have her confirmed booked 11-19 in F from ORD. Problem is we live in Orange County, CA. There is no availability in F from LAX, SFO, or YVR, all of which would obviously be preferred to ORD.
My question is two-fold:
- What strategies should I use to try and fly availability from SFO or LAX? Basically just check BA website to see if anything opens up?
- Is there anyway I can consolidate this reservation to include a flight from either LAX/SNA to ORD flying AA?
Thanks everyone
DAK
#938
Join Date: Dec 2016
Location: Saipan, MP
Programs: Marriott Ambassador, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Diamond, Alaska 75K, United Platinum
Posts: 203
You cannot combine AA and another partner. Some have been lucky enough to get an agent to allow AS metal to ORD but its rare and you will probably have to beg and likely be denied but it never hurts. Might have better chances if it were just SEA-ORD but LAX-SEA-ORD would be pushing it.
TY CDKing.
#939
Join Date: Dec 2016
Location: Saipan, MP
Programs: Marriott Ambassador, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Diamond, Alaska 75K, United Platinum
Posts: 203
Best strategy to find a seat is awardnexus.com and purchase their "trip pass" to set up a daily automated search selecting QF and JL as methods. Once within ~10 days of flight time supplement that with occasional manual searches (daily timed not to coincide with when you asked awardnexus to search).
DAK
DAK
EDIT: I purchased the required membership and got my alerts all set up. Thank you so much for this recommendation!
Last edited by Voldoo; Jul 22, 2017 at 11:58 am
#940
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: SEA, but up and down the coast a lot
Programs: Oceanic Airlines Gold Elite
Posts: 20,420
Yeah, I wouldn't want to add another stopover by connecting through SEA anyways. I can use the few AA or UA miles to get her a direct flight to ORD that morning. The UA flight will arrive in ORD 1.5 hours before the CX flight to HKG. Do you think that is pushing it? The AA flight gets in sooner, but she would have to leave at 5am.
TY CDKing.
TY CDKing.
I wouldn't do a 90 minute connection into ORD for a once a day flight that required a terminal switch AND reclearing TSA, but everyone has different tolerance for risk. Any checked luggage might not make it (she will need to recheck, UA will not interline to CX on a separate ticket), so hopefully she is carry on only. Official minimum connection time domestic to international terminal is 75 minutes (so she is cutting it close anyway, even before accounting for the fact she is not actually connecting on the same ticket but is traveling on separate tickets).
Is your girlfriend an experienced traveler? If she is not, this proposed itinerary is extremely inadvisable. I usually try to give myself multiple hours buffer at least, ideally 24 on separate tickets as an experienced traveler... and I am mostly in carryons, have TSA Prcheck, Global Entry, etc. so I have tricks at my disposal.
Last edited by eponymous_coward; Jul 22, 2017 at 11:20 am
#941
Join Date: Dec 2016
Location: Saipan, MP
Programs: Marriott Ambassador, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Diamond, Alaska 75K, United Platinum
Posts: 203
I think I will have her to take the AA flight (which unfortunately leaves LAX at 5am) or even a red-eye/day-before flight and have her hang out at the airport a few extra hours. She has pre-check/Global Entry and will be traveling with all carry-on.
#942
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 29,795
Thank you for all that. She is fairly experienced but neither of us fly through ORD that often (certainly not for international flights) so I wasn't sure if 90 minutes was unreasonable. Sounds to me like it is.
I think I will have her to take the AA flight (which unfortunately leaves LAX at 5am) or even a red-eye/day-before flight and have her hang out at the airport a few extra hours. She has pre-check/Global Entry and will be traveling with all carry-on.
I think I will have her to take the AA flight (which unfortunately leaves LAX at 5am) or even a red-eye/day-before flight and have her hang out at the airport a few extra hours. She has pre-check/Global Entry and will be traveling with all carry-on.
It does not have much to do with experience. The problem is, should there is any delay, you are completely SOL meaning you would be at the complete mercy on AS/CX to rebook you on the next available flight.
Do you feel lucky enough to gamble this, i.e. absolutely no delay whatsoever to connect at ORD?
Give it to me if it is a connection between a long haul and a short haul, ON SEPARATE TICKETS, I ALWAYS give it an overnight to allow for any possible hiccup. Sure, it involves extra time and money but it is a good way to protect the trip. YMMV.
Last edited by Happy; Jul 22, 2017 at 12:54 pm
#943
Join Date: Aug 2001
Posts: 1,055
Thank you for all that. She is fairly experienced but neither of us fly through ORD that often (certainly not for international flights) so I wasn't sure if 90 minutes was unreasonable. Sounds to me like it is.
I think I will have her to take the AA flight (which unfortunately leaves LAX at 5am) or even a red-eye/day-before flight and have her hang out at the airport a few extra hours. She has pre-check/Global Entry and will be traveling with all carry-on.
I think I will have her to take the AA flight (which unfortunately leaves LAX at 5am) or even a red-eye/day-before flight and have her hang out at the airport a few extra hours. She has pre-check/Global Entry and will be traveling with all carry-on.
That is a long winded way of saying don't buy a non-refundable flight to ORD because if LAX opens up then you want to move to that at minimal cost.
DAK
#944
Join Date: Dec 2016
Location: Saipan, MP
Programs: Marriott Ambassador, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Diamond, Alaska 75K, United Platinum
Posts: 203
#945
Join Date: Oct 2014
Programs: All of them
Posts: 1,666
Experiment:
Looked for F award JFKHKG over various days next week (July 24, 25, 26, 27). It's all over the place.
24th - BA shows 2 @ 1000, 1 @ 1455. AS has 1 @ 1000.
25th - BA 1 @ 0145, AS nothing.
26th - BA 1 @ 0145, 1 @ 1000, 2@ 1455. AS shows 2 at 1455, but not the earlier flights.
27th - BA 1 @ 1000, AS 1 @ 1000.
So, at first, I started thinking maybe Alaska is "partner minus 1". But they have the same 2 awards available on the 26th, and the same 1 award on the 27th.
This is going to be such a pain next month. I'm ticketed in J, my wife is in F, and I need to snag another seat once released. Hate to burn AA or BA for it. Wish me luck - Jamie
Looked for F award JFKHKG over various days next week (July 24, 25, 26, 27). It's all over the place.
24th - BA shows 2 @ 1000, 1 @ 1455. AS has 1 @ 1000.
25th - BA 1 @ 0145, AS nothing.
26th - BA 1 @ 0145, 1 @ 1000, 2@ 1455. AS shows 2 at 1455, but not the earlier flights.
27th - BA 1 @ 1000, AS 1 @ 1000.
So, at first, I started thinking maybe Alaska is "partner minus 1". But they have the same 2 awards available on the 26th, and the same 1 award on the 27th.
This is going to be such a pain next month. I'm ticketed in J, my wife is in F, and I need to snag another seat once released. Hate to burn AA or BA for it. Wish me luck - Jamie
Just ran into same problem, booking 21 days out, don't feel like paying AA close booking fee but AS sees nothing. On the positive note, they can book E+ for 35k. That's tempting, as I'll need a morning departure from LAX...can't really sleep anyway, only have 1hr layover in HKG so can't really use the lounge. Makes me question the point of booking business.