Jun 28, 2017, 8:46 pm
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
Jul 15, 2017, 10:00 pm
#901
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 636
What is you guys' experience on asking the phone agent to waive the phone booking fee for CX award? I have seen several people mentioning that it is possible to ask the phone agent to waive the fee by saying that CX award cannot be booked online. I tried several time and none of the phone agents agrees to waive the fee. Is it just my luck?
Jul 15, 2017, 10:03 pm
#902
Join Date: Jul 2012
Programs: Delta Gold, Alaska Gold 75K, LATAM Black
Posts: 3,393
What is you guys' experience on asking the phone agent to waive the phone booking fee for CX award? I have seen several people mentioning that it is possible to ask the phone agent to waive the fee by saying that CX award cannot be booked online. I tried several time and none of the phone agents agrees to waive the fee. Is it just my luck?
Jul 16, 2017, 12:43 am
#903
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend, Moderator, Information Desk, Ambassador, Alaska Airlines
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: FAI
Programs: AS MVP Gold100K, AS 1MM, Maika`i Card, AGR, HH Gold, Hertz PC, Marriott Titanium LTG, CO, 7H, BA, 8E
Posts: 42,953
Lots of us are MVPG+ on these boards so don't deal with most fees (like phone fees) so it's not an issue. However I'd expect to pay the fee in most circumstances (understand CX is not bookable online, however you are basically just covering the cost of the agent; not making money off the transaction). But YMMV.
Jul 16, 2017, 2:14 am
#904
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Somewhere over the rainbow
Programs: Airline Free Agent, Bonvoy Platinum, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 3,809
I'm not a fan of the partner booking fee...
Jul 16, 2017, 5:39 am
#905
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 636
Phone booking fee ($15). I understand that the partner booking fee ($12.50) is not waivable. I tried 4 times so far and still could not find a single agent who is willing to waive the phone booking fee.
Jul 16, 2017, 3:20 pm
#906
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 29,740
This is no different from when AA charged phone booking fee on awards not bookable online for YEARS. There were occasionally someone spent a lot of time, escalating to supervisors for many times and finally got the phone fee waived.... AA finally dropped the phone fee Officially and listed this info on its site. Though for the first 6 to 9 months the AAgents would need to be reminded the phone fee was not chargeable because the system continued to default to charge - the AAgents had to manually to uncheck the box, so to speak.
I would imagine very similar situation with AS system.
AS never says in the conditions that if award not booking online it would wave phone booking fee. Hence the default is, this fee is chargeable (and nonrefundable even the award is canceled before the 60 days window.)
Jul 16, 2017, 8:04 pm
#907
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Arlington, VA USA
Posts: 670
Called tonight to try and get an award booking something between EWR and SIN leaving August 9. Agent was able to find availability between EWR and HKG, and despite the BA site saying there were three available connecting flights in business class to SIN, he tried all three and there was no availability, even in economy.
I took the opportunity to task the agent about his success rate in booking those who wanted first class, but called with flights in mind (meaning they used ba.com or some other method of obtaining availability before they called) and he said, "honestly about 1 in 10." Then I asked them about success booking business class, and he said much higher with a 4 or 5 out of ten for business and economy class, and that gets better inside of a week.
One question for me though, is what tool are you all using to check CX availability inside of a week. It seems (at least during the summer) that BA is not just blocking mainland China, Taiwan, and other regional destinations, but also all North American flights inside of 6 days?
I took the opportunity to task the agent about his success rate in booking those who wanted first class, but called with flights in mind (meaning they used ba.com or some other method of obtaining availability before they called) and he said, "honestly about 1 in 10." Then I asked them about success booking business class, and he said much higher with a 4 or 5 out of ten for business and economy class, and that gets better inside of a week.
One question for me though, is what tool are you all using to check CX availability inside of a week. It seems (at least during the summer) that BA is not just blocking mainland China, Taiwan, and other regional destinations, but also all North American flights inside of 6 days?
Jul 16, 2017, 11:34 pm
#908
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend, Moderator, Information Desk, Ambassador, Alaska Airlines
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: FAI
Programs: AS MVP Gold100K, AS 1MM, Maika`i Card, AGR, HH Gold, Hertz PC, Marriott Titanium LTG, CO, 7H, BA, 8E
Posts: 42,953
One question for me though, is what tool are you all using to check CX availability inside of a week. It seems (at least during the summer) that BA is not just blocking mainland China, Taiwan, and other regional destinations, but also all North American flights inside of 6 days?
Jul 17, 2017, 12:04 am
#909
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: ORD [formerly] + HKG
Programs: CX Diamond, AA exExPlat, BAEC exGold, HH Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Starriott Titanium, GE
Posts: 2,966
BA.com cannot display/book any CX KA awards within 6 days of departure; while calling BA is YMMV.
Jul 17, 2017, 1:19 am
#910
Join Date: Jan 2009
Programs: Hilton Diamond, IHG Spire Ambassador, Radisson Gold, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 3,621
I've booked an award BKK-HKG-LAX using Mileage Plus miles.
Can I drop the BKK-HKG segment for free or do I have to pay to do that? I'm inside 60 days from departure.
Can I drop the BKK-HKG segment for free or do I have to pay to do that? I'm inside 60 days from departure.
Jul 17, 2017, 4:48 am
#911
Join Date: Nov 2010
Programs: IHG Platinum
Posts: 1,066
Would HKG-ORD-PDX/SEA-LAX/SFO be allowed?
Jul 17, 2017, 6:00 am
#912
Join Date: Nov 2010
Programs: IHG Platinum
Posts: 1,066
Departing YVR 22 March 2018:
CX 889: BA.com shows W2 and J3, AS doesn't see any.
CX 855: BA.com shows Y2 W2 J1, AS sees Y1 W1 J1
CX 837: BA.com shows Y8 W1 J5, AS doesn't see any.
Tried several other dates - CX889 ex-YVR seems to be most affected with regards to AS not being able to see availability. On the contrary, for CX889 ex-JFK, AS could see availability on many days -1 BA.com searches.
CX 889: BA.com shows W2 and J3, AS doesn't see any.
CX 855: BA.com shows Y2 W2 J1, AS sees Y1 W1 J1
CX 837: BA.com shows Y8 W1 J5, AS doesn't see any.
Tried several other dates - CX889 ex-YVR seems to be most affected with regards to AS not being able to see availability. On the contrary, for CX889 ex-JFK, AS could see availability on many days -1 BA.com searches.
Jul 17, 2017, 8:01 am
#913
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: BOS/ORH
Programs: AS 75K
Posts: 18,323
Jul 17, 2017, 9:30 am
#914
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: HNL <-> BOS
Posts: 382
Also, I think you mean Mileage Plan not Mileage Plus, which is United's FFP.
Jul 17, 2017, 9:57 am
#915
Join Date: Jan 2009
Programs: Hilton Diamond, IHG Spire Ambassador, Radisson Gold, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 3,621