Finnair Plus - New option to use cash+points.

I tried using this option on Y-class between HEL-ARN and HEL-MUC. Using 10000 points lowered the cash portion by about 30-35 euros. Not a great value, but it´s practical as now you can get rid of any number of points, that might be expiring soon. No need to wait to get enough points for a regular award.

What do you guys think?

Redeem your flight ticket with a convenient combination of Plus points and money!
As a Finnair Plus member, you can now purchase flight tickets with a combination of Plus points and cash. These Any Seat flight awards can be booked on all flights on offer that are flown on Finnair’s planes and marked with the AY code. Bookings can be made through the online reservation system after you have logged in.
You can determine the number of points or the amount of money that suits you best – the total price of the ticket is based on your selection. You can purchase both one-way and round-trip flights. You collect Plus points according to the booking class of the flight you choose.

If you would like to book a flight using only Plus points, select the traditional Classic award. Only a limited number of seats are available for Classic awards, which is why a lower number of points is debited for these flights.

By redeeming an Any Seat award, you receive a great discount on the price of a flight ticket, even with a small number of points. Remember to take advantage of this benefit!

Nifty option, terrible value for points.

I tried HEL-CDG-HEL return in biz (I) - ticket price 1834 EUR.

50560 points drop it to 1685 EUR
199299 points to 1271 EUR

...and...

A WHOPPING 733728 points to get it for free! A regular biz award is 60K minus the online discount.

Oh sorry, I forgot that you get almost 4000 points for these flights so deduct that from the amounts.


I just wish they'd followed the BMI cash + points model which is much better value, especially for premium awards.

I agree it is terrible valueif you´re using plenty of points. The only way this is useful is if you have say 15800 points expiring and no other use for them. Then I guess using the points to get a ticket 50 or so € cheaper makes sense.

Nifty option, terrible value for points.

I tried HEL-CDG-HEL return in biz (I) - ticket price 1834 EUR.

50560 points drop it to 1685 EUR
199299 points to 1271 EUR

...and...

A WHOPPING 733728 points to get it for free! A regular biz award is 60K minus the online discount.


This must be a BAD joke or something..?

It´s not.It is calculated using the 30 or something euros per 10000 points, I guess.

I find these recently raised Euro-Business fares of AY a joke as a whole. Certainly easy days for the FAs in front of the curtain!

Killing the cow instead of milking...

I agree it is terrible valueif you´re using plenty of points. The only way this is useful is if you have say 15800 points expiring and no other use for them. Then I guess using the points to get a ticket 50 or so € cheaper makes sense.

Well, if I had 15800 points to use, I'd just buy the (economy) ticket at regular price and use 10K points for one-way biz upgrade. Maybe even using the 5800 points to get a 17 EUR discount.

I find these recently raised Euro-Business fares of AY a joke as a whole. Certainly easy days for the FAs in front of the curtain!
Killing the cow instead of milking...

Couldn't agree more. Why oh why can't AY introduce some decently priced, completely inflexible business fares like the BA I-fares? Price them something like 200-250 EUR above the cheap Y fares for European routes and you have a winner. The marginal cost for business is far below that (as is evident from the 99 EUR upgrade campaign this summer - a great idea which I unfortunately was unable to take advantage off as I had booked all my summer travel on other carriers far in advance) - and extra revenue is direly needed at the moment.

Maybe even using the 5800 points to get a 17 EUR discount.
The problem here is, that you usually get the ticket 15-20€ cheaper anyway if you book it though an online travel agency rather than Finnair (at least through the Finnish site).
Different thing of course if you are eligible for the <25 or >65 fares.

The problem here is, that you usually get the ticket 15-20€ cheaper anyway if you book it though an online travel agency rather than Finnair (at least through the Finnish site).


Oh yes, you got that right. Lately I've been using Expedia more and more to book AY flights - there's no booking fee and the availability is often much better (probably due to using US as the POS).

I've seen something in the area of commercial aviation and various frequent flyer schemes during the last 20+ years but I must admit that this latest move from AY is something I cannot find any words for...how stupid can they get?

I must admit that this latest move from AY is something I cannot find any words for...how stupid can they get?

While this is obviously not a good value, it's also nothing unique. SPG and AMEX Membership Rewards are examples of programs with this exact same feature -- points-for-cash-for-flights at a terrible per-point value.

While this is obviously not a good value, it's also nothing unique. SPG and AMEX Membership Rewards are examples of programs with this exact same feature -- points-for-cash-for-flights at a terrible per-point value.

Terrible value is something else but AY's way is out of this world :D :D