10 Best Ways to Redeem Hawaiian Airlines Miles for Max Value

BY 

Stephen Au

- UPDATED: May 13, 2021   |    24

1. Travel  / 
2. Airlines

24

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Hawaiian Airlines is the Aloha State’s largest carrier and the tenth-largest commercial airline in the U.S. Although it’s not in any major alliance, Hawaiian has codeshare agreements with a dozen airlines in various alliances and serves many destinations, including Asia and Oceania.

HawaiianMiles is the airline’s frequent flyer program. Though many flagship carriers now award redeemable miles based on the cost of a ticket, HawaiianMiles still lets flyers earn miles based on the distance of their flight.

This helps program members earn miles more quickly! For example, Los Angeles to Honolulu would earn 2,556 redeemable HawaiianMiles, and New York to Honolulu would earn 4,981 redeemable HawaiianMiles.

If you’ve collected enough points for an award flight — either through credit card spending, by flying the airline and its partners, or by shopping and dining with its partners — keep on reading for some of the best ways to use HawaiianMiles.

Boost Your Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles With Partners

Amex Membership Rewards Credit Cards

Amex points transfer to Hawaiian Airlines at a ratio of 1:1. Look out for sporadic transfer bonuses that can Amex offer to Hawaiian, too! The last major bonus offered a 25% bonus.

Recommended Amex Cards (Personal)

If you’re a business owner, see our list of the best Amex business credit cards.

Hawaiian Airlines Credit Cards

The following cards also collect HawaiianMiles directly, but this is not our preferred method because the points are not transferable or flexible like Amex points are.

• Hawaiian Airlines® World Elite MasterCard®
• Hawaiian Airlines® Business MasterCard®

Marriott Credit Cards

You can earn Marriott Bonvoy points and transfer those to Hawaiian at a transfer rate of 3:1. Plus, for every 60,000 Marriott points that you transfer, you’ll receive an extra 5,000 HawaiianMiles bonus.

Recommended Marriott Bonvoy Cards

List of Hawaiian Airlines Partners

As mentioned above, Hawaiian Airlines is not part of an alliance, but it does have several airline partners. These partners include:

Boost Your Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles With Partners

Passengers who hold a Hawaiian Airlines World Elite card (or have HawaiianMiles elite status) are eligible for discounted flight awards.

The credit card typically offers a welcome bonus, but the annual fee of $89 is not waived in the first year.

The 10 Best Ways to Use Your Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles

1. Fly to the Neighboring Hawaiian Islands on Hawaiian Airlines (From 7,500 Miles One-Way)

If you’re already in Hawaii and want to take advantage of an opportunity to island-hop, one-way flights in coach are 7,500 to 20,000 miles.

Hawaiian Airlines also offers premium cabin awards for 15,000 to 30,000 miles.

Do you enjoy flying in style on short flights? Economy flights booked with cash can be upgraded to first class for 7,500 to 15,000 miles.

All award upgrades must be processed through reservations and ticketed at least 26 hours before departure.

Here are a few great example redemptions you can make:

• Hilo (ITO) – Kahului (OGG) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines economy from 7,500 HawaiianMiles + ~$5.60 in taxes and fees
• Honolulu (HNL) – Lanai (LNY) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines economy from 7,500 HawaiianMiles + ~$5.60 in taxes and fees
• Kauai (LIH) – Kailua-Kona (KOA) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines economy for 7,500 HawaiianMiles + ~$5.60 in taxes and fees

2. Fly From the Continental U.S. to Hawaii in Hawaiian Airlines First Class (From 40,000 Miles One-Way)

Most travelers looking to fly to Hawaii on points are likely located in the continental U.S. and will benefit from this redemption opportunity.

First class awards are as low as 80,000 miles round-trip, with a maximum of 160,000 miles round-trip from the West Coast and 260,000 miles round-trip from the East Coast.

Here are a few great example redemptions you can make:

• Boston (BOS) – Honolulu (HNL) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines first class from 40,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees
• Las Vegas (LAS) – Kahului (OGG) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines first class from 40,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees
• New York City (JFK) – Honolulu (HNL) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines first class from 40,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees
• Salt Lake City (SLC) – Honolulu (HNL) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines first class from 40,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees

Hot Tip: The Amex Platinum card provide miles you can transfer to HawaiianMiles and also offers great travel benefits like lounge access and airline fee credits to help pay for bags and other services!

3. Fly From Hawaii to Australia or New Zealand in Hawaiian Airlines Business Class (From 65,000 Miles One-Way)

Hawaiian Airlines also connects the mainland with the land down under and presents some interesting redemption opportunities.

A round-trip flight from Hawaii to either Sydney or Auckland in first class ranges from 130,000 to 260,000 miles.

In comparison, you’ll need 180,000 Delta SkyMiles to book a flight from Honolulu to either Sydney or Auckland at the lowest redemption level.

We’ve found availability for a round-trip ticket from Honolulu to Auckland at the Saver level on United for 140,000 MileagePlus miles. American Airlines requires 150,000 AAdvantage miles.

Here are a few great example redemptions you can make:

• Honolulu (HNL) – Auckland (AKL) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines business class from 65,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$34 in taxes and fees
• Honolulu (HNL) – Brisbane (BNE) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines business class from 65,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$54 in taxes and fees
• Honolulu (HNL) – Sydney (SYD) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines business class from 65,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$52 in taxes and fees

4. Fly From Hawaii to Japan in Hawaiian Airlines Business Class (65,000 Miles One-Way)

Hawaii and Japan are 2 of the most intimately connected regions. In fact, the first known arrival of Japanese came in 1806, and the Japanese have since become the second largest ethnic group in Hawaii.

For this reason, Hawaiian Airlines, among other airlines, offers some of the most unique routes to/from Japan. And by booking these tickets on Hawaiian Airlines, you’ll get to experience its long-haul business class product on point-to-point routes.

For one-way flights between Hawaii and Japan on Hawaiian Airlines, you’ll pay as little as 35,000 miles in economy and 65,000 miles in business.

Here are some great example routes you can take:

• Honolulu (HNL) – Fukuoka (FUK) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines business class for 65,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees
• Honolulu (HNL) – Osaka (KIX) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines business class for 65,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees
• Honolulu (HNL) – Sapporo (CTS) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines business class for 65,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees
• Honolulu (HNL) – Tokyo (TYO) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines business class for 65,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees
• Kona (KOA) – Tokyo (HND) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines business class for 65,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees

5. Fly From Hawaii to the South Pacific in Hawaiian Airlines Business Class (From 47,500 Miles One-Way)

The South Pacific region includes far-flung tropical destinations such as Pago Pago in American Samoa and Papeete in Tahiti.

Many travelers put Tahiti and its gorgeous islands high on their bucket list and using HawaiianMiles to get there isn’t a bad redemption if you depart from the Hawaiian Islands.

A round-trip flight from Hawaii to Papeete in first class is 95,000 to 190,000 miles round-trip.

Here are a few great example redemptions you can make:

• Honolulu (HNL) – Pago Pago (PPG) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines business class from 47,500 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees
• Honolulu (HNL) – Tahiti (PPT) one-way in Hawaiian Airlines business class from 47,500 HawaiianMiles + ~$10 in taxes and fees

6. Fly Hawaiian Airlines Partner Japan Airlines (From 24,000 Miles Round-Trip)

Hawaiian has several partnerships with other airlines and offers a separate award chart for each of its partners. For example, Hawaiian uses a region-based award chart for flights booked on Japan Airlines, the second-largest airline in Japan after ANA.

You can book either one-way or round-trip flights on Japan Airlines, where round-trip is twice the cost of a one-way ticket.

Flying round-trip on Japan Airlines between North America and Japan will cost 90,000 HawaiianMiles in economy, 120,000 in premium economy, and 180,000 in business class.

Flying round-trip on Japan Airlines between Japan and Hawaii will cost 80,000 HawaiianMiles in economy, 100,000 in premium economy, and 150,000 miles in business class.

For shorter hops, travelers will spend 24,000 HawaiianMiles on a round-trip flight within Japan in economy and 30,000 miles for premium economy. One thing to remember that each flight is priced by sector, meaning this price is only valid for nonstop flights. If you want to book a connecting flight, it’ll double in price for adding that extra segment.

Hawaiian Airlines’ own redemption rate to Japan ranges from 80,000 to 280,000 HawaiianMiles round-trip.

Here are a few great example redemptions you can make:

• Boston (BOS) – Tokyo (NRT) one-way in Japan Airlines business class for 90,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$13 in taxes and fees
• Honolulu (HNL) – Osaka (KIX) one-way in Japan Airlines business class for 75,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$13 in taxes and fees
• Komatsu (KMQ) – Okinawa (OKA) round-trip in Japan Airlines economy for 24,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$43 in taxes and fees
• New York City (JFK) – Tokyo (HND) one-way in Japan Airlines business class for 90,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$13 in taxes and fees
• Tokyo (HND) – Amami (ASJ) one-way in Japan Airlines economy for 12,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$51 in taxes and fees
• Tokyo (HND) – Ishigaki (ISG) round-trip in Japan Airlines economy class for 24,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$63 in taxes and fees

Hot Tip: Looking to fly to Japan using points and miles? We’ve got you covered in our guide!

7. Fly Hawaiian Partner Korean Air Within Asia in Business Class (From 60,000 Miles Round-Trip)

Just as with ANA, it is possible to redeem HawaiianMiles for flights operated by Korean Air (but not Korean Air’s other partners). This award chart is region-based. At the moment, you can only redeem flights for:

• Round-trip awards wholly within South Korea
• Round-trip awards within Asia
• Round-trip awards between the U.S. and South Korea

Passengers can book a round-trip flight within Korea for 15,000 HawaiianMiles in economy and 30,000 miles in business class. Flyers can also book a round-trip within Asia for 30,000 HawaiianMiles in economy and 60,000 miles in business.

A round-trip flight between Korea and the U.S. can be booked for 100,000 HawaiianMiles in economy and 200,000 in business class.

All the redemptions above can actually be booked with Korean Air SKYPASS miles for a bit cheaper: 10,000 miles for flights within Korea, 30,000 miles within Asia (China and Japan, for example), and 70,000 miles from Seoul to Honolulu — all in economy class.

Please note, awards on Korean Air booked through Hawaiian Airlines are based on round-trip travel only, while Korean Air allows one-way award bookings through its own program.

Hawaiian Airlines’ own redemption rate to Korea ranges from 80,000 to 280,000 HawaiianMiles round-trip originating in Hawaii.

Here are some great example redemptions you can make:

• Seoul (ICN) – Kuala Lumpur (KUL) round-trip in Korean Air business class for 60,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$78 in taxes and fees
• Seoul (ICN) – Singapore (SIN) round-trip in Korean Air business class for 60,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$64 in taxes and fees
• Seoul (ICN) – Ulaanbaatar (ULN) round-trip in Korean Air business class for 60,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$31 in taxes and fees

Hot Tip: Need help booking? Check out our step-by-step guide to booking Korean Air business class.

8. Fly Hawaiian Partner Virgin Australia Within Australia (From 20,000 Miles Round-Trip)

This award chart is distance-based, meaning a longer flight will require more miles to book.

Flights within Australia can be booked for 20,000 miles in economy if they’re 1,000 miles or shorter, and 40,000 miles in economy for distances longer than 1,000 miles.

These rates increase to 30,000/60,000 miles for awards booked in premium economy, and 40,000/80,000 miles for business class flights.

International destinations served by Virgin Australia also vary. Passengers can book economy flights of 2,000 miles in length or shorter for 40,000 HawaiianMiles (60,000 in premium economy and 80,000 in first).

Travelers can book flights that are between 2,001 and 4,000 miles in length for 60,000 HawaiianMiles in economy, 90,000 miles in premium economy, and 120,000 miles in business class.

Flights longer than 4,000 miles can be booked for 100,000 HawaiianMiles in economy, 150,000 miles in premium economy, or 200,000 miles in first class. All mileage calculations are based on round-trip bookings.

Similar to airlines previously mentioned, these awards cannot be booked on flights operated by Virgin Australia’s other partners.

Here are some great example routes you can take:

• Brisbane (BNE) – Mount Isa (ISA) round-trip for 20,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$96 in taxes and fees
• Brisbane (BNE) – Perth (PER) round-trip for 80,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$200 in taxes and fees
• Perth (PER) – Onslow (ONS) round-trip for 20,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$127 in taxes and fees
• Perth (PER) – Sydney (SYD) round-trip for 80,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$195 in taxes and fees

9. Fly Hawaiian Partner JetBlue (From 10,000 Miles)

It is possible to redeem HawaiianMiles on JetBlue flights, and this award chart works a little differently. Redemption levels are directly correlated with a monetary ticket value, which is a little unusual considering most other partner redemptions are distance- or region-based.

JetBlue tickets that cost $99 or less require 10,000 HawaiianMiles. If the flight costs between $100 and $179, then redemptions fall between 15,000 miles and 20,000 miles. Tickets that cost between $180 and $259 will cost between 25,000 and 30,000 miles.

Flights costing $260 and $339 require 35,000 to 40,000 miles to book, and a ticket that costs $340 to $419 can be booked for 45,000 to 50,000 HawaiianMiles.

As you can see, redemption values are the poorest for the more expensive flights, coming in at about 0.8 cents per mile. Generally, redeeming TrueBlue points will return a better value of about 1.5 cents per mile.

10. Fly Hawaiian Partner Virgin Atlantic From the U.S. to the U.K. in Upper Class (From 125,000 Miles Round-Trip)

Redeeming rewards on this Hawaiian Airlines partner will be based on regions rather than distance flown or ticket costs. As with the other partners we mentioned, HawaiianMiles can be redeemed for flights operated by Virgin Atlantic only.

Flying round-trip from the U.K. to the Caribbean, Africa, Middle East, or North American East Coast will cost 60,000 miles in economy, 100,000 miles in Premier Economy, and 125,000 miles in Upper Class.

For flights originating in the U.K., awards to India, Asia, Australia and the West Coast of North America come to 80,000 miles in economy, 130,000 miles in Premier Economy, and 160,000 miles in Upper Class.

It turns out that redemptions from the East Coast to the U.K. are on par with many U.S. carriers’ mileage redemptions, which makes this a decent use of HawaiianMiles. Expect to pay 60,000 miles in economy, 100,000 in Premier economy, and 125,000 miles in Upper Class for North America East Coast flights.

North America West Coast flights are slightly more expensive at 80,000 miles in economy, 130,000 miles in Premier economy, and 160,000 miles in Upper Class.

Another bonus of using HawaiianMiles to book Virgin Atlantic flights is that Hawaiian does not charge exorbitant fuel surcharges on these flights.

Here are some great example redemptions you can make:

• Los Angeles (LAX) – London (LHR) round-trip in Virgin Atlantic New Upper Class for 160,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$369 in taxes and fees
• Miami (MIA) – London (LHR) round-trip in Virgin Atlantic Upper Class for 125,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$369 in taxes and fees
• New York (JFK) – London (LHR) round-trip in Virgin Atlantic New Upper Class for 125,000 HawaiianMiles + ~$369 in taxes and fees

Final Thoughts

We hope you’ve enjoyed learning about what we feel are some of the best ways to use HawaiianMiles.

Hawaiian Airlines does not always present the most lucrative options for booking award flights, but there are a few sweet spots travelers can leverage if they’ve amassed a healthy balance of HawaiianMiles.

It is also possible to transfer American Express Membership Rewards points to Hawaiian if you need to top off a balance before booking one of these awards.

The information regarding the Hawaiian Airlines® World Elite MasterCard®, and Hawaiian Airlines® Business MasterCard® was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.

For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card, click here.
 For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card, click here.