Great Card If
- You frequently fly with Cathay Pacific.
- You want a card that will help you earn elite status and offer benefits like priority boarding.
Don’t Get If
- You seldom fly with Cathay Pacific.
- You’d rather have a card that earns flexible rewards that can be transferred to Cathay.
Cathay World Elite Card: Is It Worth It?
Becoming a cardholder of the Cathay World Elite card can be worth it if you’re looking to add a card to your wallet to help you earn more Cathay miles on all of your daily purchases, offer added perks during your travels with Cathay, and help you earn Cathay elite status.
That said, since Cathay Pacific is a transfer partner of many transferable programs, if you don’t frequently travel with Cathay Pacific and are looking to earn elite status with the airline, you might be better off with a card that earns transferable rewards.
Cathay World Elite Card Top Benefits and Perks
Here is a full look at all of the benefits you’ll receive as a cardholder of the Cathat World Elite card:
- Fast-Track elite status: Earn 10 Status Points for every $5,000 in eligible purchases made each month, up to a maximum of 100 Status Points per calendar year
- Priority boarding: Enjoy the same boarding line as premium economy class passengers on flights operated by Cathay Pacific
- Priority check-In: Cardholders and their traveling companions can check in at the premium economy class airport check-in counters.
- Business class lounge redemptions: Use your Cathay Asia Miles to redeem access to Cathay Pacific business class lounges.
- No foreign transaction fees: Use your card during international travel to continue earning miles with no fees.
- Redemption discounts: 10% redemption discount on hotel, car rental, and experiences awards with Asia Miles, and 10% savings on Asia Miles Gift Miles and mileage transfer fee transactions.
- Flight discount: Through December 31, 2025, enjoy up to 15% off eligible flights when booking select fare classes and paying with your card.
Best Ways To Earn and Redeem Cathay Asia Miles
If your aim is to earn as many miles as possible, use your Cathay World Elite card for as many of your daily purchases as you can, provided that you are not overspending purely to earn more miles. You’ll especially want to use the card on any purchases that fall within the bonus categories of 3x on all eligible travel with Cathay Pacific, 2x on dining and eligible delivery services, and 1x on all other purchases.
Then, once you’re ready to redeem your Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, you’ll find that you aren’t just limited to redeeming your miles with Cathay Pacific but that you can also redeem them for luxury flights with Oneworld partners such as American Airlines, Qatar Airways, and Royal Jordanian.
Alternative Cards to the Cathay World Elite Card
Though there aren’t any other U.S. credit cards available that help you earn Cathay elite status or offer perks during your flights with Cathay Pacific, if your goal is to earn as many miles as possible, then adding one of the following transferable credit cards to your wallet might make more sense.
With the Capital One Venture card, you pay a similar annual fee as the Cathay World Elite card but earn 5x miles on hotels, vacation rentals, and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and an uncapped 2x miles on all other purchases.
Keep in mind that all of the points you earn with the Capital One Venture card can be transferred to Cathay Pacific at a 1:1 rate and to several other excellent Capital One transfer partner programs, such as Air Canada Aeroplan, Japan Airlines Mileage Bank, Finnair Plus, and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
Plus, the Capital One Venture card also offers up to a $120 Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit, a $50 experience credit and premium benefits on hotel and vacation rentals booked through the Capital One Lifestyle Collection, and no foreign transaction fees.
Depending on what sort of daily purchases you tend to make the most, the Amex Gold card can really help supercharge your rewards earnings, especially if you love food and travel.
This is thanks to its 4x points at restaurants worldwide, up to $50,000 per calendar year, then 1x thereafter, and 4x points at U.S. supermarkets, up to $25,000 per calendar year, then 1x thereafter. It also offers 3x points on flights purchased directly from airlines or at AmexTravel.com and 2x points on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked through AmexTravel.com.
While the card’s annual fee might seem pricey, it comes with benefits to help offset that, like an up to $120 annual dining credit, up to $120 in annual Uber Cash, up to $100 in annual Resy credit, and up to $84 in annual Dunkin’ credit.
Further, all of those statement credits are in addition to the card’s other perks, including access to Amex’s The Hotel Collection, travel and purchase protections, no foreign transaction fees, and access to the Amex transfer partners, which include Cathay Pacific.
