Cathay Pacific Asia Miles

Use it for

• Hong Kong to Sydney, Melbourne or Dubai in Cathay business: 60,000 miles one-way plus a USD 174.60 fuel surcharge and airport taxes
• Short Cathay business flights from Hong Kong to Bangkok, Singapore or Seoul: 27,000 miles one-way plus a USD 43.50 surcharge and taxes (Japan and India routes cost 33,000)
• Hong Kong to London in Cathay business: 91,000 miles one-way plus a USD 174.60 surcharge and taxes, for travelers who earn Asia Miles in Hong Kong, Singapore or the UK
• Cathay First Hong Kong to London or the US West Coast: 125,000 miles one-way (New York 160,000) plus a USD 174.60 surcharge and taxes, with the best First award access of any program

Do not use it for

• US to Hong Kong business when you hold US points: 91,000 (West Coast) to 119,000 (New York) plus surcharges, against 70,000 through AAdvantage for the same Cathay seat
• Speculative bookings: a refund costs USD 120 or 17,000 miles and a date change USD 50 or 7,500 miles online
• British Airways flights: BA's surcharges are passed on, though lower than through AAdvantage

Where to search

Search on cathaypacific.com logged in to Asia Miles using the redeem flights search. Cathay holds back most business and First award space for its own members, so a seat visible here may not appear on Alaska, AAdvantage, BA or on cached tools that read those programs; award space opens about 360 days out. Cathay, American, BA, Finnair, Iberia, JAL, Qantas, Qatar, Alaska, Malaysia and several other oneworld partners book online; other partners need an award request form or a phone call.

How to book, step by step

1. Join Asia Miles, log in, and register anyone you will book for in your Redemption Group (up to 5 nominees) before booking; awards for other people are only possible for nominees.
2. Search Business on cathaypacific.com with flexible dates, one-way or return.
3. Check the price band: awards price by flown distance, and routes to Japan, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka cost more than other routes of the same length.
4. Go to the payment page to see the fuel surcharge (USD 43.50 to 174.60 per Cathay segment from 1 August 2026, fixed on the booking date) and taxes before you move points.
5. If you need time for a transfer, ask by phone for a hold; up to 72 hours (free on Cathay flights, USD 39 on partner awards) is reported, not confirmed for 2026.
6. Transfer points: Bilt, Capital One and Citi post near-instantly, Amex US at 5:4 instantly to 48 hours, Marriott in about 1 day.
7. Book online, pay surcharges and taxes by card, and check the ticket number in Manage Booking; award tickets are valid one year.
8. If plans change, change online (USD 50 or 7,500 miles; other channels add USD 40 or 6,000 miles) rather than refunding (USD 120 or 17,000 miles).

When you need to phone

Not needed for Cathay or the oneworld partners bookable online. Call for partners not bookable online and for holds, using the Cathay reservations number for your country on cathaypacific.com.

Fees

Changes USD 50 or 7,500 miles online, plus USD 40 or 6,000 miles through other channels. Refunds of completely unused tickets USD 120 or 17,000 miles, with taxes and surcharges refunded. A fee for booking nominees (USD 90 online, USD 160 offline) is reported by one source, not confirmed.

Surcharges

Cathay charges fuel surcharges on its own award flights: from 1 August 2026 USD 43.50 per segment to Singapore, North Asia and China, USD 81.20 to India and South Asia, and USD 174.60 to Australia, New Zealand, North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, fixed on the booking date. Levels changed five times in 2026. Partner surcharges are passed on, highest on British Airways.

Getting points in

US: Bilt 1:1, Capital One 1:1, Citi ThankYou 1:1, Wells Fargo 1:1 (added 28 April 2026), Amex MR 5:4 (since 1 March 2026). Marriott 3:1 plus 5,000 bonus per 60,000 points (about 1 day). Canada: RBC Avion 1:1, Amex MR 1:0.75. Hong Kong: HSBC Reward+ (HKD 1 RewardCash for 10 miles), Citi ThankYou HK, DBS, and the Standard Chartered Cathay Mastercard, which earns Asia Miles directly. Singapore: HSBC, Citi, UOB, DBS, OCBC and Standard Chartered. UK: Amex MR. India: HDFC 2:1. Non-US ratios beyond these were not rechecked for 2026.

Booking for other people

No pooling. Book for others through the Redemption Group of up to 5 nominees; one source says each slot can be changed free once per membership year and then USD 50 online, another says only the first 5 registrations are free. Miles expire after 18 months without activity, and any earning or spending resets the clock.