Down Under Award Seats
 

Hey!
I recently learned that Continental/Quantas wants 80K for a seat from IAD-SYD. How does that compare with AA/others? Surely, others are not that high! Family of four traveling this Summer.

I believe on AA it is 75k minimum (I assume you mean Y) - and you don't even wanna know about the QF miles cost.

QF is 128,000 points in Y
NZ is 2180 airpoints dollars in Y

UA's unrestricted (non-saver) coach award is 100k. BTW, this award entitles you to E+ seating. A pretty good deal, IMHO.

Last summer did opem jaw from BOS to SYD and back from CNS in coach via United for 60,000 points each.

We went from SYD to CNS by paying via Virgin Air Blue. Great country.

That's about par for the course sadly. AA, as previously stated is 75k miles, not much of a difference. You could look into HA through HNL and/or QF through HNL. You might be able to get creative with it and work out something cheaper.

And there's always NZ.

With UA miles it's 60k for the restricted "Saver" award in Y. You can use them on UA flights or Air NZ, though I think there is still no way to book the latter online (which means there's a fee for booking by phone, even though there is no other way to book it).

Going by more routine methods, I've found the UA-issued awards for travel from the US-Australia/New Zealand to be a good values at 60k in coach on UA or other * Alliance carriers.

DL is 100,000 for economy and if I remember correctly it routes you through ICN on KE. I had checked into burning some DL miles to get to SYD a while back and opted against for the above reasons.

You can redeem 80,000 AS miles for a round-trip coach award between North America and Australia on Qantas or Cathay Pacific, 105,000 for Business, 135,000 for first class (if you can find it.)

I'd consider that DL-issued award a bad value. Better to break the trip up into two tickets or more -- with some combination of award tickets and/or perhaps with paid ones too -- than pay the 100k miles for a coach award.

I thought that DL could only get you to Auckland anyway?

I have a friend that wants to burn his DL miles to go to Oz, and he just checked and found that you can't use DL miles on any carrier to get to Oz, just to Auckland. Which carrier gets you to there?

The 60,000 mile (saver) economy class awards on UA/Star Alliance and, even more so, the 90,000 mile business class awards provide outstanding value to Australia and New Zealand. I believe UA/Star Alliance offer the least expensive redemption options of any carrier/alliance to Australia and New Zealand from the United States.

Doesn't CO fly to Cairns? If so, that should work with SkyMiles too, right?

I believe KE (Korean) would work with its ICN-SYD nonstop. Or CO Micronesia to CNS (Cairns).

Much more comprehensive discussion here.