Jan 14, 2016, 5:43 am
Last edit by: medellinfein
Booking Award Seats on EY / Etihad Airways Using AA / AAdvantage Miles
Also see: Earning AA Miles EQM / EQD / EQS on EY / Etihad (master thread)
This thread is about how to book Etihad / EY award seats using AA AAdvantage miles, and sharing success stories. This wiki is new, so anyone with 90/90 who wishes to add helpful information is, of course, urged to do so.
NOTE:AA has removed most EY and QR award access from aa.com due to a glitch booking these:
Please see the archived threads for previous experiences:
Also see: Earning AA Miles EQM / EQD / EQS on EY / Etihad (master thread)
This thread is about how to book Etihad / EY award seats using AA AAdvantage miles, and sharing success stories. This wiki is new, so anyone with 90/90 who wishes to add helpful information is, of course, urged to do so.
NOTE:AA has removed most EY and QR award access from aa.com due to a glitch booking these:
From One Mile at a Time (link)
Bottom Line
For the time being you’ll have to call American if you want to ticket AAdvantage awards on Etihad & Qatar that aren’t for travel to & from the US or Canada. It makes sense that American took these awards “offline,” and now it also makes sense why so many passengers have been having issues with checked bags on awards.
Bottom Line
For the time being you’ll have to call American if you want to ticket AAdvantage awards on Etihad & Qatar that aren’t for travel to & from the US or Canada. It makes sense that American took these awards “offline,” and now it also makes sense why so many passengers have been having issues with checked bags on awards.
- You can now search or book awards for travel on EY (Etihad) on www.aa.com.
- You can search award availability on EY's website. Look only for seats on flights operated by Etihad Airways that are labeled as "GuestSeats". You can also search on ExpertFlyer
- Note: You may see more availability if you search on EY's website using itineraries that do not originate in the US. In other words, to potentially see more availability on a USA-XYZ segment, search for XYZ-USA-XYZ. Expertflyer does not report this additional availability (if any), and US-based agents probably will not be able to see or book it (but see further below for Fiji).
- To expand on this point a bit, it seems that even if you only want to fly USA-AUH (or to other foreign destinations, since they route through AUH), due to an EY website quirk you need to search AUH-USA-AUH in order to find available USA-AUH routes.
- You no longer have to call AA to book them. You may need to request the AA agent to look up the inventory one segment at a time in order to find the inventory in their system. OR:
- It is often or even typically the case that for first and business class awards US agents cannot see the award space that you see on Etihad's site. Your best bet, then, is to call AA Australia (+61 2-9101-1948 ) then press 3 - or the New Zealand number (+64 09-308-4014) (actually South African contractor Mindpearl in Fiji) or Singapore (+65 6349-8444) as an alternative - what you need is the specific call center which is actually in Suva, Fiji (I believe it's our old South African agency friend Mindpearl) or, according to recent reports, in Trinidad (since there have been some reports that the Fiji center has closed). You can put the EY segments on hold so you can flesh out the award afterward and/or pay the fees in USD through the US call center, or simply buy it through non-US call center if you think you won't be making subsequent routing changes (such as adding AA connecting flights within the USA) that would incur fees. (NOTE: calls may get picked up by the local Brisbane office, or rerouted to Trinidad or the USA. As noted, there are reports that the Fiji call center has closed, but people have still been able to book some of the time, particularly if they reach the Trinidad center since that seems to be the call center that yields the greatest success in late 2017 and 2018 - with the big caveat that there are at least as many failures as successes in calling there, including repeatedly. To increase the chances of success, you may have to call several times, since for some reason a given customer service representative at a given time won't see availability even if it shows at the EY site, but another CSR at the same center may be able to do so even a few minutes later. It's conceivable that this difference is due to some CSRs knowing how to search for award availability better than others do, but that's simply a matter of speculation at this point.)
- Note: EY award holds only last 72 hours...irrespective of what AA reservation hold email states
- Booking connections via AUH / Abu Dabhi using one award is now allowed.
- Get both AA and EY reservation codes/numbers: Upon booking with AA, make sure to get the EY reservation number as well as that of AA from the AA CSR, as without the EY number it will be difficult or impossible to deal with EY, such as for checking or managing your reservation online. And of course, if there is another airline involved in the reservation as well (such as BA), get its reservation number.
- A handy EY route map is here: http://flights.etihad.com/routemap.
- The applicable AAdvantage miles award chart is the oneworld and partner airlines award chart.
- Award routing rules are in the wikipost of this thread.
- If you find EY inventory from your continent but not your city of choice, as usual you can include any other AAdvantage award airlines in order to complete the itinerary. E.g. LHR-xAUH-DEL-xAUH-CDG on EY connecting to CDG-LHR on BA.
- WARNING: While this trick is great for new bookings (especially if you have patience to get lucky for call to be routed to Fiji office), modifying booking on partner airlines is always risky especially when an overseas center is involved, Your original seats are immediately released and while new reservation is supposedly confirmed, it may actually not the case until ticket desk actually issues ticket after approval of the partner liaison. Weekend/Holidays/Time-Difference can delay issuance of ticket and if something goes wrong, there is always risk of being SOL. (Mistakes by agents are rare but not unheard of).
- SEAT ASSIGNMENTS: You cannot choose seats until after ticketing. Even then, the regular web site will not allow seat assignments to be made for AAdvantage award bookings. The mobile site (which can be reached with either a mobile or a desktop browser) may work in some cases. Calling EY to make seat assignments always works, as long as you can give them the EY record locator, and as long as AA has issued the ticket (which can take a few days, you will get e-mail). Call 1-877-690-0767, press 1 for English, then 2 for First/Business, then 2 for existing bookings, then they will tell you the call is ending - but it's not: they have added "press 1 to speak to an agent", so finally, press 1 to continue the call. After this, you should have someone on the line quickly to help you. They will ask you a series of questions such as "What class are you traveling in?" and "Where are you going?" Alternatively, you can choose your seats on the Etihad website and app by using the EY record locator to find your award itinerary.
- Availability: EY award availability using AA miles can be fairly good, including in business and first class - IF you get past the big, aforementioned challenge of actually booking award seats that the EY site shows as available but that AA agents have trouble finding. But it ebbs and flows quite a bit in at least two respects (in addition to the general rule that the further in advance you seek availability, the better, as well as reports that availability is easier to find from one to three weeks before a flight): 1) availability showing at the EY site and 2) even if availability shows at the EY site, the ability of non-US call centers (especially the "least bad" ones for finding availability, which might have been Fiji and might now be Trinidad) to find that availability. So if the EY site is not showing availability for a given day or week, and if you have flexibility, check other dates. And if availability seems to be particularly constrained across many dates, particularly if you are searching many months in advance, check again periodically to see if this has changed (or arrange an alert via ExpertFlyer, if it provides such a service for EY flights).
- "Baby-sit" your tickets: Though this advice could apply to many award bookings, EY's systems can be glitchy and the airline apparently is going through some financial challenges. So it makes sense to check online or via phone occasionally with EY to make sure everything remains in order, particularly if there have been even minor changes in things like your flight times. And if there seem to be problems, including with checking in online or other procedures, the EY forum here at FT can be a source of useful advice about whether or not those problems are worth worrying about.
- Itinerary: You can use https://www.virtuallythere.com/new/login.html to enter your EY record locator and last name to 1)display your complete itinerary 2)save a pdf 3)add to outlook/ical 4)view ticket # and different times the ticket has been reissued
- AA lounge access: If you book a premium cabin itinerary on EY with domestic connections on AA, you will not be able to access the Admiral's Club during your domestic layovers because EY is not a member of OW.
Please see the archived threads for previous experiences:
- How to: Use AA Miles to Book Award on Etihad / EY (Archive - 2015 and earlier)
- Success stories booking awards on Etihad using AA miles (Archive - 2015 and earlier)
- Booking AA Award travel on Etihad / EY - [2015-17 ARCHIVE]
Booking AA Award travel on Etihad / EY (master thread July 2017 onwards)
May 22, 2019, 2:29 pm
#1051
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Chicago, IL
Programs: AA EXP (LT Plat 2MM), Marriott Plat, IHG Plat, HHonors Diamond, Hyatt Plat, SPG Plat75, UA1K
Posts: 1,248
Just booked ORD-AUH-CMB in J for August for 70K miles. Availability just popped up on the date I needed. I had been booked ORD-DFW-AMS (all AA) - DOH-CMB (QR) as two awards totaling 100K miles. Less wear and tear on the body and I plan on a nice night's rest in AUH between flights. Surprised at how easy it was to book. Bummed I will miss trying out the QSuites on the AMS-DOH QR leg but I think shaving the number of flights in half is well worth it.
May 23, 2019, 5:45 pm
#1053
Join Date: Aug 2004
Programs: AA (EP), Hilton (Diamond), Marriott Bonvoy (Titanium)
Posts: 8,937
I believe it should be one award (unless you get hit by governing fare rules). Definitely put what you can see on line on hold, then call to add a domestic connection to it.
May 24, 2019, 7:12 am
#1054
Join Date: Feb 2019
Posts: 268
I could be wrong on this (and I'm sure someone will educate me--LOL):
My understanding (so maybe I can add to the Wiki?) is that in addition to all the other goodies in the sticky post:
Even though aa.com online booking shows 330 days in advance - today is 5/24/19 and you can book a flight as far as 4/20/20, Etihad doesn't release "guest first" to AA until 320 days? So there's a 10-day lag or thereabouts?
Is that true/correct?
My understanding (so maybe I can add to the Wiki?) is that in addition to all the other goodies in the sticky post:
Even though aa.com online booking shows 330 days in advance - today is 5/24/19 and you can book a flight as far as 4/20/20, Etihad doesn't release "guest first" to AA until 320 days? So there's a 10-day lag or thereabouts?
Is that true/correct?
May 24, 2019, 8:19 am
#1055
Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 183
I went to place a hold on a booking and it error-ed out. Now I tried again and same result.
It appears now that the flight availability is gone on Etihad's website... there was 2 spaces before. So either someone booked 2 tickets at the exact worst moment for me or my holds took away availability. Has anyone experienced this? This is... unfortunate.
It appears now that the flight availability is gone on Etihad's website... there was 2 spaces before. So either someone booked 2 tickets at the exact worst moment for me or my holds took away availability. Has anyone experienced this? This is... unfortunate.
Last edited by quitecryptic; May 24, 2019 at 10:27 am
May 24, 2019, 10:34 am
#1056
Join Date: Aug 2004
Programs: AA (EP), Hilton (Diamond), Marriott Bonvoy (Titanium)
Posts: 8,937
I went to place a hold on a booking and it error-ed out. Now I tried again and same result.
It appears now that the flight availability is gone on Etihad's website... there was 2 spaces before. So either someone booked 2 tickets at the exact worst moment for me or my holds took away availability. Has anyone experienced this? This is... unfortunate.
It appears now that the flight availability is gone on Etihad's website... there was 2 spaces before. So either someone booked 2 tickets at the exact worst moment for me or my holds took away availability. Has anyone experienced this? This is... unfortunate.
You can also try checking again in 15 minutes. It's conceivable that space was deducted temporarily and will be released.
If you can book alternative dates, I would do so, while checking frequently if your preferred dates have opened up.
May 24, 2019, 10:48 am
#1057
Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 183
If you log in, do you see the itinerary? It's conceivable that it was created. You could also try calling Etihad and asking if they see you on the manifest of one of the flights.
You can also try checking again in 15 minutes. It's conceivable that space was deducted temporarily and will be released.
If you can book alternative dates, I would do so, while checking frequently if your preferred dates have opened up.
You can also try checking again in 15 minutes. It's conceivable that space was deducted temporarily and will be released.
If you can book alternative dates, I would do so, while checking frequently if your preferred dates have opened up.
May 24, 2019, 11:02 am
#1058
Join Date: Aug 2004
Programs: AA (EP), Hilton (Diamond), Marriott Bonvoy (Titanium)
Posts: 8,937
May 24, 2019, 5:45 pm
#1059
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jan 2002
Posts: 44,543
May 24, 2019, 7:29 pm
#1060
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: ORD
Programs: US Air, UA BA LH AI DELTA MARRIOTT CHOICE SGP
Posts: 9,883
May 24, 2019, 9:03 pm
#1061
Join Date: Aug 2018
Programs: AA Plat Pro
Posts: 105
I went to place a hold on a booking and it error-ed out. Now I tried again and same result.
It appears now that the flight availability is gone on Etihad's website... there was 2 spaces before. So either someone booked 2 tickets at the exact worst moment for me or my holds took away availability. Has anyone experienced this? This is... unfortunate.
It appears now that the flight availability is gone on Etihad's website... there was 2 spaces before. So either someone booked 2 tickets at the exact worst moment for me or my holds took away availability. Has anyone experienced this? This is... unfortunate.
If you care at all about those tickets I would get on the phone. In our case it seems like the tickets were attached to us but in some sort of limbo. It seems that eventually the computer realized an issue and just released my husband's ticket and I think it would've eventually done the same to mine. If the tickets you're trying to hold are somehow attached to you right now, I'd want to get them sorted out before the seats are potentially re-released only to be potentially snatched back up by someone else.
May 24, 2019, 9:09 pm
#1062
Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 183
Just an update, but now about 10 hours later space is back. Set an alert just because I was curious. The flight isn't that important as I have my eyes on a QR route that would be one less connection on a later date (not bookable yet).
Edit: I just determined the issue with the hold was actually caused by BA/comair. The route I was trying to put on hold was WDH-JNB-AUH-ORD. I tried to place a hold on WDH-JNB and it error-ed out. I guess the hold was sent successfully to Etihad but the booking as a whole couldn't be placed on hold. Why the WDH-JNB route has issues I couldn't tell you.
edit 2: I can't book ANY award flights out of WDH... not BA/comair or QR flights despite them showing up when booking. It's not phantom space either, I can get to the point where I can hold it then it errors out. Space shows on BA search as well.
Edit: I just determined the issue with the hold was actually caused by BA/comair. The route I was trying to put on hold was WDH-JNB-AUH-ORD. I tried to place a hold on WDH-JNB and it error-ed out. I guess the hold was sent successfully to Etihad but the booking as a whole couldn't be placed on hold. Why the WDH-JNB route has issues I couldn't tell you.
edit 2: I can't book ANY award flights out of WDH... not BA/comair or QR flights despite them showing up when booking. It's not phantom space either, I can get to the point where I can hold it then it errors out. Space shows on BA search as well.
Last edited by quitecryptic; May 25, 2019 at 10:25 am
May 25, 2019, 9:39 am
#1063
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: America!
Programs: Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Explorist Caesars Wyndham Diamond, MGM Gold
Posts: 249
Booked AUH to LAX (Etihad business) and LAX to SEA (Alaska air first) on a single ticket and paid 70K AA miles
At the airport and Etihad wouldnt through check in upto Seattle since it doesnt have partnership with alaska. Both our bags are 70 pounds. Now when we go drop the bags at alaska air check in counter in LAX, how do we make sure they dont charge a fee for the bags? Called alaska air and they are saying beg at the ticket counter to make an exception. ...!!??
At the airport and Etihad wouldnt through check in upto Seattle since it doesnt have partnership with alaska. Both our bags are 70 pounds. Now when we go drop the bags at alaska air check in counter in LAX, how do we make sure they dont charge a fee for the bags? Called alaska air and they are saying beg at the ticket counter to make an exception. ...!!??
May 25, 2019, 10:20 am
#1064
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 2,647
Booked AUH to LAX (Etihad business) and LAX to SEA (Alaska air first) on a single ticket and paid 70K AA miles
At the airport and Etihad wouldnt through check in upto Seattle since it doesnt have partnership with alaska. Both our bags are 70 pounds. Now when we go drop the bags at alaska air check in counter in LAX, how do we make sure they dont charge a fee for the bags? Called alaska air and they are saying beg at the ticket counter to make an exception. ...!!??
At the airport and Etihad wouldnt through check in upto Seattle since it doesnt have partnership with alaska. Both our bags are 70 pounds. Now when we go drop the bags at alaska air check in counter in LAX, how do we make sure they dont charge a fee for the bags? Called alaska air and they are saying beg at the ticket counter to make an exception. ...!!??
Yes, I know you will pre-clear in AUH so there's no "transfer desk" at LAX.
May 25, 2019, 10:34 am
#1065
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: America!
Programs: Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Explorist Caesars Wyndham Diamond, MGM Gold
Posts: 249
Now, we have to go pickup the bags in LAX and on top off it have to go fight with Alaska to not charge a fee. All within the 3 hour layover. Frustrating.
