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How to fly to New Zealand with reward points
Want to fly to New Zealand for less? Find out how you could book your trip with reward and frequent flyer points.
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Whether you’re going on a Lord of the Rings tour, hitting the Queenstown slopes or simply want to bask in the breathtaking snow-capped mountains and mirror lakes, there are plenty of reasons to visit New Zealand.
While flights to New Zealand from Australia are usually a reasonable price, there is a way you could get there for free. If you have a rewards credit card or belong to a frequent flyer program, you could redeem your points for a trip to the land of the long white cloud.
How many points you’ll need to get to New Zealand will depend on the loyalty program you’re with, the fare class and flight time you choose plus the airports you’re flying between. To give you an idea of your options, we’ve looked at how many points you’d need for reward flights to New Zealand with six of the most popular reward programs in Australia.
As destinations also vary the cost, we’ve based our guide on flights leaving Australian capital cities that land in New Zealand’s busiest airport: Auckland.
I want to use my points to fly with
How to fly to New Zealand with Qantas Points
You can use the table below to see how many Qantas Points you’ll need for a one-way or return flight in Economy or Business class to Auckland. According to the Qantas Frequent Flyer website, flights from some of the capital cities in Australia cost the same number of points.
| Departure city | One-way economy flight | Return economy flight | One-way business class flight | Return business class flight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra | 18,000 points | 36,000 points | 36,000 points | 72,000 points |
| Darwin, Perth | 22,500 points | 45,000 points | 50,000 points | 100,000 points |
| Adelaide | 14,400 points | 18,800 points | 28,000 points | 56,000 points |
*Accurate on 25 July 2017
What else should I remember before booking a flight with Qantas Points?
Before you spend your hard-earned Qantas Points on your New Zealand adventure, make sure to review these important terms and conditions.
- Fees and taxes. Additional airport and airfare fees, charges and taxes may apply to your tickets. When these costs apply, they will be shown before you confirm your booking.
- Booking fee. If you make your booking through a Qantas Contact Centre, you’ll be charged a booking fee of 6,000 Qantas Points or $40 per passenger.
- Limited availability. Any flights you book through Classic Flight Rewards are subject to availability. So make sure you plan ahead to find flight options that suit your travel plans.
- Points Plus Pay. If you don’t have enough Qantas Points to redeem a Classic Flight Reward, you can use cash to make up the difference.
- Flight upgrades. If you’ve already booked tickets to New Zealand with Qantas, you could also think about using your points for a flight upgrade. These rewards can offer great value for your points and mean you’ll get added luxuries for your flights – but they are also subject to availability.
For more ways to earn and redeem Qantas Points for your next holiday, check out our Qantas Frequent Flyer guide for some more inspiration.
Compare Qantas Frequent Flyer credit cards
How to fly to New Zealand using Velocity Frequent Flyer points
Velocity loyalty members can use their points for flights in two ways:
- Reward Seat. These seats are available exclusively for Velocity members who want to fly using points and offer the highest redemption value. Similar to other frequent flyer programs, these Reward Seats are limited and subject to availability.
- Any Seat. With this option, you can use your points to pay for any seat booked with Virgin Australia. This option costs more but can give you more flexibility in your booking.
We’ve compared how many Velocity Points you’ll need for either option below:
Reward seat
| Departure city | One-way economy flight | Return economy flight | One-way business class flight | Return business class flight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide, Canberra, | 17,800 points | 25,600 points | 35,500 points | 71,000 points |
| Perth, Darwin | 22,300 points | 44,600 points | 49,500 points | 99,000 points |
*Please note that these calculations are based on the minimum points requirements detailed on the Velocity points table and mileage calculators on 25 July 2017.
Any seat
The number of points you’ll need for an Any Seat reward will vary on the commercial cost and the fare class of the flight.
For example, an Economy one-way flight from Brisbane to Auckland at 6.30am on 2 October 2017 will cost you 29,100 points. Meanwhile, the same flight at 7:05am on the same date could cost 95,500 points.
If you want to redeem your Velocity Points for an Any Seat ticket to Auckland (or anywhere for that matter), you can opt to view the cost in Velocity Points when making your booking.
What else should I remember before booking a flight with Velocity Points?
From fees to other rewards options, here’s what you should consider before you splurge your Velocity Points on flights to New Zealand:
- Fees and taxes. Additional airport and airfare fees, charges and taxes may apply to your tickets. When these costs apply, they will be shown before you confirm your booking.
- Booking fee. If you make your booking by calling the Guest Contact Centre, you’ll be charged a booking fee of $70.
- Limited availability. Reward Seats are subject to availability and may not be available on certain dates. If you’re flexible with your dates, it may be worth searching for flights across a range of days to find one that works for you. Otherwise, you can consider the Any Seat option.
- Points+Pay. If you don’t have enough Velocity Points for your chosen reward, you can use cash to make up the difference.
- Flight upgrades. If you already have your tickets to New Zealand, you could also look at using points to upgrade to a higher fare class. While flight upgrades are subject to availability, they can offer you competitive value for your points.
Visit our Velocity Frequent Flyer guide for more ways to tips and tricks to maximise how you earn and spend your Velocity Points.
Compare Velocity Frequent Flyer credit cards
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How to fly to New Zealand with American Express Membership Rewards
If you have a credit card that is linked to the American Express Membership Rewards program, you can redeem your points for a trip to New Zealand by booking through Amex Travel or by transferring your points to a partnered frequent flyer program.
Using points for direct bookings
You can redeem your Membership Rewards points to make travel bookings with American Express Travel Online, Webjet or at selected helloworld locations. The number of points you’ll need will depend on the retail cost of the fare.
How far your points can get you can also vary depending on the Membership Rewards stream you’re enrolled in. For this example, we’ve looked at the American Express Membership Rewards Gateway stream, which is available on the American Express Essential and Amex Explorer cards.
The Gateway Membership Rewards terms and conditions explain that 13,500 Membership Rewards points equal $100 of your travel booking. Here’s a table to show how many points you’d need based on examples of the prices you might pay for one-way and return fares from Sydney to Auckland:
| Fare cost | Number of Membership Rewards points needed |
|---|---|
| $250 | 33,750 points |
| $400 | 54,000 points |
| $700 | 94,500 points |
| $900 | 121,500 points |
| $1,300 | 175,000 points |
*Costs are accurate as of 25 July 2017
Transferring Membership Rewards points to a frequent flyer program
If you already belong to a frequent flyer program, you can transfer your Membership Rewards points to partnered frequent flyer programs including Velocity, Emirates Skywards, Etihad Guest and Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer.
The number of frequent flyer points you’ll get per Membership Rewards point will also vary depending on the Membership Rewards stream you belong to and the partnered program. For example, Ascent or Ascent Premium Membership Rewards members can often get a 1:1 exchange rate when transferring with partnered programs. However, the Gateway program will get you 0.75 frequent flyer points for every 1 Membership Reward you exchange.
So, let’s say you have 100,000 Membership Rewards from your Amex Explorer credit card. As this card is linked to the Gateway program, you’ll get 0.75 Velocity Points per 1 Membership Reward or 75,000 Velocity Points if you transferred your entire balance. 75,000 Velocity Points is enough to get you a return Business Class flight from Sydney to Auckland (71,000 points).
What else should I know before redeeming my Membership Rewards for a trip to New Zealand?
Here are the other essential details you should look at when you’re planning to use Membership Rewards for your trip to New Zealand:
- Additional fees. Booking sites and services may add extra fees that increase the cost of your flights.
- Transfer times. If you transfer Membership Rewards points to a frequent flyer program, keep in mind that it may be between 1-5 business days before the points appear in your account.
- Points Plus Pay. If you don’t have enough Membership Rewards points to redeem your reward, you can use a combination of points and cash or buying more points. Please note that this option won’t always be available if you’ve transferred your points to a frequent flyer program.
- Complimentary insurance. If your Amex card also comes with complimentary credit card travel insurance, you can activate the insurance cover when you use your Membership Rewards points to pay for some or all of your flight.
See our guide on how to transfer credit card points to a partnered frequent flyer program for more information.
Compare American Express Membership Rewards cards
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How to fly to New Zealand with CommBank Awards
If you have a CommBank Awards credit card, you can redeem flights to New Zealand by using them to book with a partnered travel agency or exchanging them for points with a select frequent flyer program.
Using CommBank Awards points with Flight Centre
If you have a credit card that’s linked to CommBank Awards, you can use your CommBank Awards points to book flights to New Zealand through partnered travel agencies in Australia including Flight Centre, Student Flights and Travel Associates. You can also opt to use a combination of cash and points, but you must use a minimum of 2,500 points.
Unfortunately, CommBank doesn’t openly list the number of points you’ll need to book travel through Flight Centre and its partnered agencies. However, we’ve looked at the number of points required for a Flight Centre gift card as an example. In this case, a $100 gift card costs 20,000 Award points. We’ve calculated how many points you’d need to redeem enough gift vouchers to cover your flight to Auckland below:
| Fare cost | Number of Membership Rewards points needed |
|---|---|
| $250 | 50,000 points |
| $400 | 80,000 points |
| $700 | 140,000 points |
| $900 | 160,000 points |
| $1,300 | 260,000 points |
*Costs are accurate as of 25 July 2017
Transferring CommBank Awards points to partner frequent flyer programs
If you belong to either program, you can also transfer your CommBank Awards to a Qantas Frequent Flyer or Velocity account.
Qantas Frequent Flyer
If you want to exchange your CommBank Awards points for Qantas Points, you need to opt into the CommBank Awards Qantas Frequent Flyer Direct program. This charges an annual fee of $30.
You can then transfer your points at a rate of 2.5 Commbank Awards points for 1 Qantas Frequent Flyer point.
Based on this rate, you’d need 90,000 CommBank Awards to get the 36,000 Qantas Points you’d require for a return Economy flight from Sydney to Auckland.
Velocity
You can also redeem your CommBank Awards for Velocity Points in minimum transfers of 3,600 Awards points. The transfer rate is different depending on your CommBank Awards account level (standard, platinum or diamond), with the following conversions:
Awards: 2.5 CommBank Awards points = 1 Velocity Point
Platinum and Diamond: 2 CommBank Awards points = 1 Velocity Point
If you have a CommBank Platinum Awards card, you’d need 72,000 CommBank Awards points to get enough Velocity Points for an Economy return flight from Sydney or Brisbane to Auckland.
Depending on the cost of the specific flight you’re taking, you should consider whether exchanging your CommBank Awards to your frequent flyer partner or using them to purchase a Flight Centre voucher is cheaper.
What else do I need to know before using CommBank Awards for travel?
Make sure to consider the following factors before using your points to book flights to New Zealand:
- Additional fees. Booking sites and services may add extra fees that increase the cost of your flights. If you don’t have enough CommBank Awards points, you may want to consider using both points and cash to cover the cost.
- Points Plus Pay. If you don’t have enough CommBank Awards points for a travel booking, you can make up the difference with cash. This isn’t available with all partnered frequent flyer programs though.
- Subject to availability. All travel products and offers from Flight Centre are subject to availability, as are any flights you book through a frequent flyer rewards program after transferring your points. So, you might need to allow for some flexibility when using points to book your flights.
- Frequent flyer point transfers. Once you’ve transferred your points to Qantas or Velocity Frequent Flyer, the transaction cannot be reversed. You can also only transfer CommBank Awards points to a frequent flyer account that matches the name on your CommBank credit card.
- Complimentary insurance. If you have a CommBank Awards card that also includes travel insurance, you can enjoy this cover by logging into your NetBank account and activating it before your trip to the New Zealand. No minimum spend is required for this insurance, but make sure to read the insurance policy document first.
How to fly to New Zealand with NAB Rewards
If you have a NAB Rewards credit card, you have the option to use your points to pay for online flight bookings via Webjet or transfer them to a frequent flyer account with Velocity, Asia Miles or Air New Zealand Airpoints. These cards include the NAB Rewards Signature card and NAB Rewards Platinum card.
Using NAB Rewards to book flights with Webjet
NAB Rewards doesn’t openly list exactly how many points you’ll need to redeem a flight with Webjet. Instead, you’ll need to log into your account and start comparing bookings on the Webjet website to see your options. However, we do know that a $100 Webjet gift card would cost you 19,230 NAB Rewards.
Based on this, here are some examples of the points you’d need to cover the cost of a flight to Auckland.
| Fare cost | Number of NAB Rewards points needed |
|---|---|
| $250 | 48,075 points |
| $400 | 76,920 points |
| $700 | 134,610 points |
| $900 | 173,070 points |
| $1,300 | 249,990 points |
*Costs are accurate as of 26 July 2017
Transferring NAB Rewards to a frequent flyer program
You can also transfer a minimum of 3,000 NAB Rewards to partnered frequent flyer accounts. The following transfer exchange rates apply.
| Partnered frequent flyer program | Exchange rate |
|---|---|
| Velocity | 3,000 NAB Rewards points = 1,500 Velocity Points |
| Asia Miles | 3,000 NAB Rewards points = 1,000 Asia Miles |
| Air New Zealand Airpoints | 3,000 NAB Rewards points = 45 Airpoints Dollars |
*Exchange rates are accurate as of 26 July 2017
Considering these exchange rates, you’d need 51,200 NAB Rewards points to redeem a return economy flight from Sydney, Brisbane or Adelaide to Auckland for 25,600 Velocity Points.
What else do I need to know before redeeming my NAB Rewards for a trip to New Zealand?
Before you splurge your NAB Rewards points on your New Zealand adventure, consider these factors:
- Points Plus Pay. If you don’t have enough NAB Rewards points to cover your flights via Webjet, you can use cash to make up the difference.
- Additional fees. You could be charged additional fees when you’re using NAB Rewards points to make bookings through Webjet or when you’ve transferred them to your frequent flyer account.
- Point transfers. If you’re transferring your NAB Rewards points to Velocity, Asia Miles or Air New Zealand Airpoints, it could take several business days before the points appear in your frequent flyer account. You also need to transfer a minimum of 3,000 NAB Rewards points at a time.
- Complimentary insurance. If you have a NAB Rewards credit card that offers complimentary travel insurance, any reward points you use to pay for travel won’t count towards activating the cover. This means you’ll still have to use your card to spend at least $500 on eligible prepaid travel costs to get cover for your trip.
Compare NAB Rewards cards
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How to fly to New Zealand with Flybuys
If you belong to the Flybuys program, you can use your Flybuys points to book flights via Flybuys travel or transfer them to either Velocity or Etihad Guest.
Using points to pay for flights to New Zealand via Flybuys travel
Launched in April 2016, Flybuys travel allows members to earn points on travel bookings or redeem their points for flights, hotels, holiday packages and car rentals.
If you want to redeem your Flybuys points for travel to New Zealand, Flybuys travel offers flights to Auckland with Jetstar, Virgin Australia, Qantas and Air New Zealand. With this option, each Flybuys point you redeem is worth 0.5 cents towards the dollar value of your flight booking.
The retail cost of flights to Auckland varies according to the airline you choose, the dates you’re booking for and the fare class you choose. We’ve included some examples of how many points you’ll need to cover different fare costs from Australian capital cities to Auckland below.
| Fare cost | Flybuys points needed |
|---|---|
| $336 | 67,200 points |
| $441 | 88,400 points |
| $530 | 106,000 points |
| $667 | 133,400 points |
| $745 | 149,000 points |
*Costs accurate on 26 July 2017
Transferring Flybuys points to Velocity or Etihad Guest
If you belong to either program, you can also exchange your Flybuys points for Velocity Points or Etihad Guest miles. The following exchange rates apply when you transfer your Flybuys:
| Partnered frequent flyer program | Exchange rate |
|---|---|
| Velocity | A minimum transfer of 2,000 Flybuys points equals 870 Velocity Points. |
| Etihad Guest | A minimum transfer of 10,000 Flybuys points equals 4,000 Etihad Guest Miles. |
*Exchange rates are accurate as of 26 July 2017
Considering you’re more likely to fly via Virgin Australia or one of its partner airlines to get to Auckland, let’s look at how many Flybuys points you’d need to use Velocity Points to cover the cost of your flight.
If you wanted to take an Economy return trip from Sydney, Brisbane or Adelaide to Auckland, you’d need to exchange 58,864 Flybuys points to get the 25,600 Velocity Points you’d need to cover the cost. If you’d prefer to fly in luxury, you’d need approximately 163,228 Flybuys points to redeem a return Business flight on the same route for 71,000 Velocity Points.
Want to know your points potential? You can use our calculator to see how many Velocity Points you could earn on your weekly Coles shopping trip.
What else should I consider before using my Flybuys points for travel?
If you want to redeem your Flybuys to help you reach your New Zealand getaway, consider these factors before you redeem your points:
- Points Plus Pay. If you don’t have enough Flybuys points to redeem your flights with Flybuys travel, you can use a combination of cash and points to cover the cost.
- Additional fees. You could be charged additional fees when you’re using Flybuys points to make bookings through Flybuys travel or when you redeem them after transferring them to a frequent flyer rewards program.
- Point transfers. If you’ve decided to transfer your Flybuys points to Velocity or Etihad Guest, remember that minimum transfer amounts apply. It could also take up to five business days for points to show up in your Etihad Guest account. However, transfers to Velocity are instant.
Compare credit cards that earn Flybuys rewards
How to use credit card bonus points to pay for flights to New Zealand
Many rewards and frequent flyer credit cards offer cardholders introductory bonus points that could help you book your flight to New Zealand. For example, a card that offers 50,000 bonus Qantas or Velocity Points would be more than enough to cover a return Economy flight from any capital city in Australia to Auckland. If you prefer the luxury of Business class, a card with a bonus points offer of 80,000 or 100,000 points could be better suited.
These cards generally come with high annual fees and interest rates, so you should make sure that the value of the flight and other card features outweigh the cost of the annual fee. You’ll also be required to meet a spend requirement to access the points, so make sure that this aligns with your budget before spending away. You can compare frequent flyer and rewards credit cards with bonus points here to see if any could help you get your New Zealand holiday quicker.
If you have enough points and a clear strategy for how you’ll redeem them, this travel hack gives you a cost-effective way to get to New Zealand without blowing your budget. While it could be rewarding, remember to weigh up your options and calculate which one offers the most value for your points before you book your flights.
If you’ve saved up enough points to head to New Zealand, you can use our New Zealand travel money guide to organise how you’ll spend on your holiday. Plus, you’ll want to check out our New Zealand travel guide for the best places to visit plus tips on organising accommodation, travel and food on the cheap.
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