Qantas Points cuts for flights and hotels: Are they worth it?
These changes to the Qantas Frequent Flyer program mean your points can get you up to 45% more value.
The Qantas Frequent Flyer program is going through a massive shake-up with changes aimed at increasing bookings for Qantas Hotels and Qantas Holidays. Qantas is also offering a limited-time discount on flights booked with Points Plus Pay.
Qantas Hotels and Holidays
The airline is permanently lowering the points cost when:
- Booking a combined Qantas (or Jetstar) flight and Qantas Holiday package – by 45%
- Booking at 1 of over 440,000 Qantas hotels – by 30%
To give you an idea of the difference this makes, Qantas provided a few examples:
| Type of booking | Where | Details | Was | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qantas Hotel (Domestic) | Ovolo Woolloomooloo | 1 night, 2 adults, Superoo Room | 66,191 Points | 46,368 Points |
| Qantas Hotel (Domestic) | Lancemore Crossley St. Melbourne | 1 night, 2 adults, William Standard King Room | 46,406 Points | 30,980 Points |
| Qantas Hotel (International) | L'Ermitage Beverly Hills – Los Angeles | 2 nights, 2 adults, Classic Suite | 289,686 Points | 202,780 Points |
| Qantas Hotel (International) | Sheraton Fiji Golf & Beach Resort – Fiji | 2 nights, 2 adults, Garden View Room | 164,945 Points | 115,461 Points |
| Qantas Holidays (Flights + Accommodation) | Crystalbrook Riley – Cairns | 5 nights, 2 adults, Urban King Room, Return economy Qantas flights ex Sydney | 525,834 Points | 289,209 Points |
| Qantas Holidays (Flights + Accommodation) | Pan Pacific – London | 5 nights, 2 adults, Guest Room King, Return economy Qantas flights ex Sydney | 908,512 Points | 499,512 Points |
Note: Points values are based on a check-in date of 14 September 2022 and are correct as at 14 January 2022.
Qantas Loyalty CEO Olivia Wirth said, "Members have remained highly engaged despite the low levels of flying over the past 2 years, shown by the fact they've kept earning points on the ground and then redeemed them in record numbers.
"We saw more than 7 billion points used to redeem flights in just 4 weeks following borders reopening and we want to keep that momentum going by making points go further for hotels and holidays, which in turn encourages members to keep earning with our partners and with the airline."
Points Plus Pay
For a little over 2 months, frequent flyers will be able to enjoy 20% off Points Plus Pay on every seat of every flight. Qantas says this brings the value of flights booked with itself, Jetstar and partner airlines using Points Plus Play closer to the value of Classic Flight Rewards.
Qantas has recently increased the availability of reward seats across its network by 50%.
Do the changes make it worth booking?
Finder frequent flyer credit card expert Amy Bradney-George said, "These changes are great for people who were already planning to use Qantas Points on hotels and holidays. But you'll still typically get more value from your points when you use them for Classic Flight Rewards, not Points Plus Pay."
Learn the value of your Qantas Points. See our analysis of how much 1 Qantas Point is worth.
