How to earn frequent flyer and other rewards points when eating out
Reward yourself when you wine and dine.
We’re reader-supported and may be paid when you visit links to partner sites. We don’t compare all products in the market, but we’re working on it!
The Qantas Frequent Flyer program has a wide range of partners that allow you to earn points for everyday spending and activities, including going out for a meal. With more than 18,000 restaurant partners across the country, Qantas Restaurants makes it easy to boost your point balance while you feast. Here, we explain how to make use of the partnership so you can maximise your frequent flyer perks while eating out.
1. Earn Qantas Points at Quandoo restaurants
You can earn 100 Qantas Points per person, per booking at your choice of 18,000 Quandoo restaurant partners in more than 12 countries. Quandoo is one of the largest online restaurant booking platforms in the world and you can earn points when you book reservations through the Qantas Restaurants portal on Qantas.com or through the Qantas app.
How does Qantas Restaurants work?
Qantas Restaurants is on online restaurant booking service powered by restaurant booking platform Quandoo. The partnership launched in August 2019. Highlights of the service include:
- Points per diner. When you book a restaurant via Qantas Restaurants, you earn 100 points for each person dining. You can make reservations either via the Qantas site or through the Qantas app. (Support for booking through the Quandoo site will be added in the future.)
- Online reservations. Reservations are confirmed by email immediately after your online booking.
- Special offers. Periodically, you will find bonus offers exclusive to the website, including food discounts and additional points. You can view these offers by visiting the Qantas Restaurants home page.
Which restaurants can I book to earn Qantas Points?
There is an expanding list of over 18,000 restaurants in 12 countries across the country that can be booked through Qantas Restaurants.
How long will it take for my points to be credited?
Points can take up to 7 days to appear in your Qantas Frequent Flyer Account.
Key details to remember
When using Qantas Restaurants to make your dining reservation and earn more frequent flyer points, make sure you keep the following details in mind:
- Membership details. You must be a Qantas Frequent Flyer member and include your membership number to earn points for Qantas Restaurant bookings.
- Reservation guests. Points will only be awarded for guests included in the reservation who actually dine on the day. For instance, if you make a reservation for five people but only three turn up, you will earn points for three people. If you make a booking for five people but seven people dine on the day, you will only earn points for five people.
- No points-splitting. Points in a single reservation can only be earned by the frequent flyer member under whose name the booking was made.
Now that you're clued in to the conditions of the program, you're ready to go earn some extra Qantas points on your dining expenses. This can be a great way to further maximise your frequent flyer rewards. If you already earn Qantas Points for everyday spends with a Qantas frequent flyer credit card, you can also double or triple your earn rate by using it in conjunction with Qantas Restaurants.
2. Use a credit card that earns more points at restaurants
While you can earn points on all of your restaurant bookings with a rewards or frequent flyer credit card, some products offer higher earn rates just for using your card at a restaurant.
A bunch of American Express and Citi cards currently offer higher earn rates for restaurant bookings. You can compare some of them below:
| Card | Number of points earned at restaurants |
|---|---|
| American Express Platinum | 2.25 points per $1 spent |
| American Express Explorer | 2 points per $1 spent |
| Qantas American Express Ultimate | 1.25 points per $1 spent |
| Citi Premier Card (existing customers only) | 2 points per $1 spent |
| Citi Prestige | 3 points per $1 spent |
3. Cover the bill with your credit card and get your friends to pay you back
If you’re going out for dinner with a group of friends, offer to cover the bill with your rewards credit card and get your friends to pay you back later. This way you’ll maximise how many points you’ll earn per $1 on the bill, but without the cost once your pals pay you back.
4. Free wine every time you dine with Citi
This is a little different to some of the other restaurant loyalty programs in this lineup, but free wine is a reward in itself! If you’re a Citi credit card holder, you’ll enjoy a free bottle of wine every time you dine with the Citibank Dining Program.
There are participating restaurants all around Australia and you can make your booking via the Citi Dining website. Then you just need to mention that you’re a Citibank cardholder at the restaurant, choose your free bottle of wine from the Citibank selection and pay for your meal with your Citibank card.
There is a limit of one bottle of wine per table and the whole bill must be covered by the Citi card, but you can take advantage of this offer as many times as you like.
5. Collect 'Yums' with TheFork
TheFork has a loyalty program which allows members to earn points or 'Yums' as they wine and dine at over 4,000 eateries around Australia.
Every time you make an online booking via TheFork app you’ll earn 150 Yums. You can also collect 500 Yums when you invite a friend to make their first booking. Once you’ve reached 1,000 Yums you’ll receive a $20 discount at participating restaurants, and if you earn 2000 Yums for a $50 discount.
If you don’t belong to a frequent flyer program, this is an easy way to reward yourself every time you eat out!
So next time you go out to eat or order in, make sure to double-check this list to see if there’s a way you can earn points on the bill first!
Looking for more ways to earn Qantas Frequent Flyer points? Compare cards:
Pictures: Shutterstock
More guides on Finder
-
Qantas EXTENDS triple points offer: Last chance to boost yours
Earn triple Qantas Points on flights, hotels and holidays from now until June 2022.
-
Qantas 20% points sale: Watch out for this catch
The Big Points Sale is back - here's how to get maximum value for your Qantas Points.
-
5 ways to earn extra Qantas Points from your business in 2021
SPONSORED: We all know flights are the big-earners, but there are plenty of other ways to collect Qantas points through your business.
-
Citi Rewards Card – Bonus Points Offer
Earn flexible rewards points as you spend and enjoy a big 100,000 bonus points offer with the Citi Rewards Credit Card.
-
Citi Rewards Card – Velocity Points Offer
Get 100,000 bonus Velocity Points when you meet the spend requirement, a reduced first-year annual fee and Citi Rewards points per $1 spent with the Citi Rewards Card.
-
American Express Platinum Business Card
From Membership Rewards Points to savings on first and business class flights, this charge card is packed with features to help you manage business spending.
-
Citi Rewards Card – Points & Gift Card Offer
Get an introductory 90,000 bonus Citi Rewards points, a $100 Coles eGift card plus a reduced first-year annual fee with this Citi Rewards card offer.
-
Westpac Altitude Platinum Qantas – Existing customer offer
With bonus Qantas Points and a range of complimentary insurance covers, the Westpac Altitude Platinum - Qantas is worth considering if you want more frequent flyer points.
-
Frequent Flyer Diners Club card
Diners Club isn’t as widely accepted as other cards, but you can still earn 1 Qantas Point per $1 at major retailers with this card.
-
Netflix frequent flyer wars: Coles and Woolworths points deals compared
Earn Qantas or Velocity points from streaming. Which deal is better?
Ask an Expert
