"There's still time": Why you should cash in your Qantas points before the system overhaul
In less than two weeks, Qantas frequent flyers will have to save up more points to redeem for flights as significant changes are set to take place.
Starting September 18, reward seats in premium economy, business and first class will cost up to 18 per cent more in Qantas points, with the increases varying by route.
The increased points requirement is balanced out by a reduction on the fees levied on reward flights.
“On the other side they are reducing the taxes, so up to 50 per cent less fees are being charged for those reward tickets,” said the airline’s CEO Alan Joyce.
In June, Qantas announced that its Frequent Flyers program would go through a major overhaul over the next 12 months.
Some of the changes include the addition of more than one million extra reward seats to more destinations on Qantas and new partner airlines, the opportunity to gain more flight and travel benefits through non-flying related transactions with partners in Points Club, and the introduction of Lifetime Platinum status.
Flight Global Asia’s finance editor Ellis Taylor said the best way to make the best out of the changes is to redeem frequent flyer points before September 18.
“At the end of the day, for airlines this is a financial obligation they have, and it goes on their balance sheets so if there’s a way to get people to spend more of their points to bring down that liability for them they’ll take it,” Taylor told 9News.
The Champagne Mile publisher Adele Eliseo advised travellers to nab an upgrade for their future Qantas flight, book a first class flight for short trips or a premium Classic Reward seat to popular northern hemisphere such as Europe and the United States before the changes kick in.
“While many travellers will be sad to see these award chart increases kick in, there’s still time to lock in your dream redemption with Qantas points before September 18,” she wrote on news.com.au. “So, it’s time to get booking.”