Which airlines include carrier-imposed surcharges on award flights to Hong Kong?

Lufthansa passes on all fuel surcharges from its partners. Air Canada, Avianca, Cathay Pacific, and United do not impose fuel surcharges on any award flights.

What is the fewest number of miles you can use to book an economy class award flight to Hong Kong?

ANA offers round-trip economy class flights on its partners for 60,000 miles.

What is the fewest number of miles required to fly business class to Hong Kong?

ANA charges 95,000 for round-trip business class tickets on partners (Air Canada and United in the case of nonstop flights between North America and Hong Kong). The runner-up is Alaska Airlines at 100,000 for round-trip business class on Cathay Pacific.

What is the fewest number miles required to fly first class to Hong Kong?

You have 3 first class flight options when flying to Hong Kong: Cathay Pacific, American Airlines, and Singapore Airlines. Using Etihad Guest miles on American Airlines will cost 110,000 miles round-trip, using Alaska miles on Cathay Pacific will cost 140,000 miles round-trip, and using Singapore Airlines miles will cost 208,000 miles round-trip.

The Best Ways To Fly to Hong Kong With Points [Step-by-Step]

Hong Kong is a bustling city. A capital of global finance, the city also has amazing cultural traditions and an unmatched international atmosphere. Unsurprisingly, this city sits at or near the top of the priority list for many travelers.

Though very small geographically (the city measures just 1,063 square miles), it manages to be an economic powerhouse, a tourist hotbed, foodie heaven, and luxury travel oasis all at once. Thanks to all of this, it sees a huge amount of inbound and outbound travel in a typical (non-pandemic) year.

There are many airlines and different routes you can choose from to fly to Hong Kong, primarily with Star Alliance and Oneworld alliance carriers.

In this post, we’ll cover the best programs to use for round-trip flights in all cabin classes, including economy and business class, across a healthy variety of airlines. We’ll also share a few “sweet spots” which allow you to redeem points and miles at a great value for business and first class flights between North America and Hong Kong.

Let’s get to it!

Table of contents

Nonstop Flights Between North America and Hong Kong
Best Programs for Booking Flights
Final Thoughts

Table of Contents

Nonstop Flights Between North America and Hong Kong
Best Programs for Booking Flights
Final Thoughts

Nonstop Flights Between North America and Hong Kong

Since Hong Kong is one of the primary hubs of the global financial system, it boasts a huge number of airlines that offer service to and from the city. This also means there are many options for booking flights with points and miles.

We’re going to be focusing this section on Star Alliance and Oneworld alliance carriers because SkyTeam carriers don’t offer any nonstop flights into Hong Kong from North America.

Here’s a look at the foreign airlines that offer nonstop flights to Hong Kong from the U.S. or Canada:

Cathay Pacific
- Boston (BOS) – Hong Kong (HKG)
- Chicago (ORD) – Hong Kong (HKG)
- Los Angeles (LAX) – Hong Kong (HKG)
- New York (JFK) – Hong Kong (HKG)
- San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG)

Singapore Airlines
- San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG)

Air Canada
- Toronto (YYZ) – Hong Kong (HKG)
- Vancouver (YVR) – Hong Kong (HKG)

And here are all of the U.S. airlines that have nonstop flights to Hong Kong:

American Airlines
- Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) – Hong Kong (HKG)

United Airlines
- Newark (EWR) – Hong Kong (HKG)
- San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG)

Best Programs for Booking Flights

As we jump into each redemption, it’s important to note that booking premium cabin award space will require you to plan ahead.

There are some exceptions (particularly with Cathay Pacific first class close-in award bookings), but the general rule of thumb is to plan as far in advance as possible.

Hot Tip: Remember that the key to award travel is flexibility in both the points you earn as well as the dates you are looking to travel!

All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club

United Polaris Business Class Seat on Boeing 787 9 Dreamliner — ANA offers incredible round-trip business class pricing with miles, which you take advantage of to fly United Polaris nonstop to Hong Kong! Image Credit: Chris Hassan

All Nippon Airways (ANA) is at the top of our list for several reasons, but the main one is value.

ANA offers some of the best round-trip redemptions in the business. Keep in mind that ANA only allows round-trip bookings, so one-ways are not an option here.

Because ANA doesn’t offer nonstop flights from North America to Hong Kong, our best bet will be to utilize its partners that do offer nonstop service between North America and Hong Kong: Air Canada, Singapore Airlines, and United Airlines.

Hot Tip: ANA offers 1 free stopover AND 1 open-jaw OR 2 open-jaws on round-trip award bookings. If Hong Kong is not your final destination, you could work in any number of routes using this rule.

Unfortunately, Singapore Airlines does not allow premium cabin partner award bookings. If you want to book Singapore Airlines’ flight from San Francisco to Hong Kong on its Boeing 777, you’ll need to use the Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer program, which we’ll cover later on in this post.

Here are the round-trip redemption rates and an estimate of the taxes and fees you’ll pay for nonstop Air Canada and United flights from North America to Hong Kong:

Cabin Class	ANA Miles Cost	Fees
Economy	60,000	~$80 to $136
Business	95,000	~$80 to $136
First	N/A	N/A

Here are some example routes you can consider:

Newark (EWR) – Hong Kong (HKG) round-trip for 95,000 miles and ~$136 in taxes and fees in United Polaris business class
San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG) round-trip for 95,000 miles and ~$136 in taxes and fees in United Polaris business class
Toronto (YYZ) – Hong Kong (HKG) round-trip for 95,000 miles and ~$85 in taxes and fees in Air Canada business class

Once you’re ready to book, follow these steps:

Visit ANA’s U.S. website.
On the homepage, click Award Booking in the search box.
Log in to your ANA Mileage Club account.
Fill in the search box with your airport pairs, departure and return dates, cabin class, and the number of passengers. Click Search.
Find a suitable flight that matches your needs.
Redeem your ANA miles, use a credit card to pay for taxes and fees, and confirm your ticket.

Hot Tip: Need help booking this award? Here’s our step-by-step guide to booking business class award tickets on ANA.

Earning ANA Miles

Utilizing the ANA award program is made easier by the fact that ANA partners with Amex Membership Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy.

Amex points transfer to ANA at a 1:1 ratio in around 2 to 3 business days.

Marriott Bonvoy transfers to ANA at a 3:1 ratio with a transfer bonus of 5,000 extra ANA miles after transferring 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points at once. Marriott transfers to ANA usually take around 4 business days.

Amex has many personal and business cards to choose from that earn Membership Rewards points, making it easy to accumulate the points necessary for a redemption.

Recommended American Express Cards (Personal)

Recommended American Express Cards (Business)

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan

Cathay Pacific 777 First Class — Book Cathay Pacific first class round-trip to Hong Kong for only 140,000 Alaska miles! Image Credit: Alex Miller

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan offers some incredible value on premium award flights on a variety of carriers. We’re focusing on flying to Hong Kong today, so there are 2 options — Cathay Pacific and American Airlines. However, the real star is Cathay Pacific, a frequent pick of aspirational travelers.

Known for massage chairs, flawless service, Krug Champagne, and amazingly comfortable bedding, Cathay Pacific is definitely towards the top of the bucket list when it comes to first class. And its business class product is no slouch, either!

Though first class availability is difficult to book far in advance, economy and business award space is abundant. Sometimes you’ll find 5 to 7 business class seats per flight!

Booking Cathay Pacific flights through Alaska Airlines is the best way to get outsize value for your miles — here’s a look at the round-trip redemption rates and an estimate of the taxes and fees for nonstop flights from the U.S. to Hong Kong:

Cabin Class	Alaska Airlines Miles Cost	Taxes and Fees
Economy	60,000	~$40 to $275
Business	100,000	~$40 to $275
First	140,000	~$40 to $275

You’ll notice that Alaska Airlines offers extremely competitive redemption rates. In fact, these rates are the lowest you will find for flying in Cathay Pacific premium cabins to Hong Kong.

Here are some great example routes you can book:

Boston (BOS) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in Cathay Pacific first class for 70,000 Alaska Airlines miles + ~$19 in taxes and fees
Chicago (ORD) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in Cathay Pacific first class for 70,000 Alaska Airlines miles + ~$19 in taxes and fees
Vancouver (YVR) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in Cathay Pacific first class for 70,000 Alaska Airlines miles + ~$19 in taxes and fees

Booking with Alaska Airlines requires a phone call:

Visit British Airways’ site and log in.
Select your route, travel dates, and class of service.
Note the flight number, date, and time.
Call Alaska Airlines at 800-252-7522.
Ask them to search for first class award space on Cathay Pacific for the appropriate date (you may have to provide the flight number).
Provide all necessary information to complete the booking.

Hot Tip: Alaska Airlines’ award tickets allow stopovers on one-way tickets, but you can only fly 1 partner per itinerary, limiting you to stopovers in Hong Kong when flying Cathay Pacific. Use this to construct trips that add even more value!

Need help booking? See our step-by-step guide for booking Cathay Pacific first class. If you don’t need first class but still want a lie-flat bed and awesome service, check out our guide for booking Cathay Pacific business class.

Earning Alaska Mileage Plan Miles

Unfortunately, the main drawback of the Mileage Plan program is its limited number of transfer partners. The best option you have for transferring points is from Marriott Bonvoy. You can transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to Alaska Airlines at a 3:1 ratio in approximately 3 business days. Also, for every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points transferred to Alaska in a single transaction, you’ll get a bonus of 5,000 Alaska miles.

Another way to earn lots of Alaska miles is by applying for its co-branded credit cards offered by Bank of America.

Finally, you can purchase Alaska miles if you have a specific redemption in mind. You can buy up to 150,000 miles per year, though you’re limited to 60,000 miles per transaction. Alaska often offers bonuses of up to 60% on purchased miles, so try to limit your purchasing to those times.

Bottom Line: Alaska Airlines offers the best redemption rates on Cathay Pacific from North America to Hong Kong. Redeeming 100,000 and 140,000 miles, respectively, for round-trip business and first class flights between the U.S. and Hong Kong makes it very difficult to beat Alaska Airlines!

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles

Cathay Pacific Business Class Bed — Book Cathay Pacific business class from Los Angeles to Hong Kong for only 140,000 Asia Miles and ~$247 in taxes and fees! Image Credit: Cathay Pacific

Cathay Pacific may have some of the best products in the sky, but its award chart is crazily confusing. Looking at it may be enough to overwhelm you, but we’re here to help!

Cathay Pacific has a distance-based award chart, which means the cost of a redemption is closely tied to the actual distance flown on a particular award flight.

You have 2 main options for booking nonstop flights between North America and Hong Kong using Asia Miles: American Airlines and Cathay Pacific. Oddly enough, the best place to book Cathay Pacific flights is not using the carrier’s own Asia Miles program if you’re looking for simple itineraries.

The main advantage of using Asia Miles is that you’ll be able to utilize its incredibly powerful (albeit confusing) routing rules.

Cathay Pacific has indicated different award redemption rules depending on which award chart you’re using for redemption. The program maintains separate award charts — 1 for flights on Cathay Pacific itself and 1 for flights on partner airlines.

For the Cathay Pacific award chart, here are a few of the most important rules:

For a one-way flight, up to 2 segments are allowed, with 1 stopover or 1 transfer.
If the first segment origin airport and the final segment destination airport are located in different cities, but all segments are within the same country or region, this itinerary is treated as a one-way flight.
If the first segment origin airport and the final segment destination airport are located in different cities but within the same country or region, and the first segment destination airport is located in a different country or region, this itinerary is not treated as a one-way flight (i.e. JFK-DFW-LAX is a one-way flight while JFK-LHR-IAD is not a one-way flight).

There are additional rules associated with award bookings. For more information, please visit Asia Miles’ dedicated page for flight award redemption terms and conditions.

Since American Airlines currently only flies from Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) to Hong Kong (HKG), let’s quickly examine the Asia Miles redemption costs on American Airlines flights:

Asia Miles Cost for Redeeming on American Airlines Flights to Hong Kong
Cabin Class	Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) – Hong Kong (HKG)
Economy	94,000 + $247
Business	180,000 + $247
First	270,000 + $247

Let’s compare this to Cathay Pacific’s own flights:

Asia Miles Cost for Redeeming on Cathay Pacific Flights to Hong Kong
Cabin Class	Boston (BOS) – Hong Kong (HKG)	Chicago (ORD) – Hong Kong (HKG)	Los Angeles (LAX) – Hong Kong (HKG)	New York (JFK) – Hong Kong (HKG)	San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG)
Economy	84,000	84,000	60,000	84,000	60,000
Business	170,000	170,000	140,000	170,000	140,000
First	250,000	250,000	220,000	250,000	220,000

You can search for award space on the Cathay Pacific website, which is where you’ll also book the ticket. Follow these steps:

Visit the Asia Miles website.
Log into your Asia Miles account.
On the top banner, click Redeem awards, then Flight Awards.
Enter your search details and click Search.
Choose your cabin class, number of passengers, and travel dates.
Find the flight you want to book, and confirm the ticket using Asia Miles and a credit card for taxes and fees.
- If you’re booking American Airlines flights using Asia Miles, you’ll need to call Asia Miles at 866-892-2598.

Hot Tip: Asia Miles has the distinct advantage of receiving access to award space about 12 months before departure. Additionally, Asia Miles has access to more Cathay Pacific award space, making it much easier to book through this program.

Earning Cathay Pacific Asia Miles

One of the biggest upsides of the Asia Miles program is its abundant transfer partners, which means that earning Asia Miles is not difficult.

Unlike Alaska Mileage Plan (which only has a single transfer partner), Cathay Pacific partners with American Express Membership Rewards (1:1 ratio), Citi ThankYou Rewards (1:1 ratio), Capital One (1:1 ratio), and Marriott Bonvoy (3:1 ratio with a 5,000-mile bonus for every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points transferred).

Amex usually transfers in a few hours, while Citi transfers almost instantly. Capital One takes up to 36 hours, and Marriott Bonvoy takes up to 5 business days.

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles can also be earned directly by signing up for its co-branded credit cards offered by Synchrony Bank.

Bottom Line:Using the Asia Miles program is great for more plentiful award availability, leveraging award routing rules, or using the ability to earn through multiple credit cards. On the other hand, the award redemption rates are a bit higher, so it’ll cost you more miles.

Recommended Citi Cards

Etihad Guest Miles

American Airlines First Class 777-300ER — Use 135,000 Etihad Guest miles to book American Airlines First Class on its flagship Boeing 777-300ER! Image Credit: American Airlines

Etihad Airways is known for its extravagant First Class Apartment and out-of-this-world Residence. And its loyalty program, known as Etihad Guest, actually provides one of the best ways to fly to Hong Kong.

Etihad’s sole partner that flies nonstop to Hong Kong is American Airlines, currently from its hub at Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) only. And although Cathay Pacific’s premium cabin products are superior to American’s, its Flagship Business class is still an excellent way to get to Hong Kong.

Hot Tip: Basically, the only time you would want to fly American Airlines when Cathay Pacific is flying the same route is when you can’t book Cathay Pacific or if the same Cathay Pacific flight is way more expensive than American’s. This is one of those situations.

American’s Flagship First product features a spacious open suite with swiveling chairs on board, Flagship First Dining access in private rooms within the airline’s Flagship Lounges, and more. It’s a great way to fly overall.

Here’s what it’ll cost you to book round-trip American Airlines flights to Hong Kong with Etihad Guest miles:

Cabin Class (American Airlines)	Etihad Guest Miles Price: DFW – HKG Round-Trip	Fees
Economy	75,000	~$274
Business	110,000	~$274
First	135,000	~$274

With these prices, there is tremendous value to be had here! Etihad Guest, without a doubt, presents the absolute best way to fly to Hong Kong on American Airlines.

Booking with Etihad requires a phone call. In fact, it’s basically the same process to book, as you’ll see below:

Visit British Airways and log in to your account.
Select your route, travel dates, and class of service (British Airways can sometimes not show award availability; you’ll have to play with dates back and forth and keep refreshing the page if this happens).
Note the flight number(s), date(s), and time(s).
Call Etihad Airways at 877-690-0767. Press 1 for English, then press 4 (don’t press 2 for “first and business class” bookings). Press 1 to book or change a flight, and then press 1 again to book or change a flight using Etihad Guest miles.
Ask the agent to search for first class award space on American Airlines for the appropriate date (you may be asked to provide flight numbers).
Provide all necessary info to complete the booking.

Earning Etihad Guest Miles

You can earn Etihad Guest miles without ever setting foot on its planes.

Etihad is transfer partners with American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, and Capital One.

Amex and Citi both transfer to Etihad Guest miles at a 1:1 ratio almost instantly, while Capital One transfers at a 1:1 ratio in around 36 hours.

Bottom Line: Etihad Guest provides a nearly unbeatable way of booking American Airlines flights to Hong Kong. Unless you’re sitting on a pile of Marriott Bonvoy points, you’re going to get better value from Etihad Guest Miles. The ease of earning transferable points along with the amazing value could get you nearly 20 cents per point!

Recommended Capital One Cards

American Airlines AAdvantage

Cathay Pacific 777 first class seat — Cathay Pacific first class seat on the Boeing 777. Image Credit: Stephen Au

Booking flights to Hong Kong through American Airlines offers 2 distinct advantages (pun intended): access to Oneworld airline partners and simplicity of booking awards.

And, you won’t be on the hook for paying fuel surcharges (except for flights on British Airways and Iberia). This will keep your out-of-pocket costs to a minimum.

If you’re looking to fly nonstop to Hong Kong with your AA miles, you have the option of flying either on American Airlines or Cathay Pacific. If the cost is the same, you’ll always want to choose Cathay Pacific. Plus, it has many more gateways from North America to Hong Kong than American does.

Here’s the AAdvantage award chart for round-trip flights operated by Oneworld partner airlines between North America and Hong Kong:

Cabin Class	AA Miles Price	Fees
Economy	75,000	~$50 to $100
Business	140,000	~$50 to $100
First	220,000	~$50 to $100

You’re going to pay more miles than with some other programs, but you won’t be charged much in fees.

In some instances, you may find Web Special award tickets on AA-operated flights that can drop the mileage price.

Here are some example flights that can be booked with AA miles:

Boston (BOS) – Hong Kong (HKG) nonstop round-trip for 220,000 AA miles + ~$60 in taxes and fees in Cathay Pacific first class
Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) – Hong Kong (HKG) nonstop round-trip for 144,000 AA miles + ~$11 in taxes and fees in American Airlines Flagship Business class (Web Special)
Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) – Hong Kong (HKG) nonstop round-trip for 168,000 AA miles + ~$11 in taxes and fees in American Airlines Flagship First class (Web Special)

Follow these steps to book your AAdvantage award ticket:

Visit American Airlines’ website.
On the homepage, you’ll see a search box. Check off the box that says Redeem Miles and fill out the search details.
Click Search.
Find the flight you wish to book, redeem your American Airlines miles, and pay for the taxes and fees using a credit card.

Hot Tip: Looking for more information about finding award availability for American and its partners? Check out our guide to searching for Oneworld award availability.

Need help booking? See our step-by-step guide for booking American Airlines business class. The process for booking American Airlines first class is pretty much the same as business class, only the award availability will be more sparse.

Earning American Airlines AAdvantage Miles

AAdvantage miles are easy to stockpile, as American has a variety of co-branded credit cards issued by both Barclays and Citi.

If you’re short on AA miles, you can transfer Marriott Bonvoy points at a 3:1 ratio.

Keep in mind that it can take up to 2 business days for transfers from Marriott Bonvoy to American AAdvantage to complete.

Bottom Line: American Airlines’ AAdvantage program is easy to understand, and the program is especially useful because it’s easy to miles through co-branded credit card bonuses, it’s easy to use, and you can book everything online. The main drawback is that your miles won’t get you as far as Etihad Guest miles or Alaska miles would.

Japan Airlines (JAL) Mileage Bank

American Airlines Flagship Business Class 777-300ER — A lie-flat seat with direct aisle access to keep you comfortable in business class. Image Credit: American Airlines

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank is similar to Cathay Pacific Asia Miles in that it has a distance-based award chart with excellent routing rules. If you combine these 2 factors — and spend enough time planning itineraries and routes — you can get some serious value!

Mileage Bank is an excellent rewards program, without a doubt. However, it sits at the bottom of the list for booking Oneworld partner airlines for these specific routes and flights.

It’s very difficult to earn these miles (it only has a transfer relationship with Marriott Bonvoy and its co-branded U.S. credit card is a niche option that lacks bonus categories found on many other cards), and you can get some serious value out of these miles elsewhere, such as booking JALs’ first class product!

Hot Tip: Japan Airlines’ award routing rules allow up to 7 stopovers! We would not recommend using Japan Airlines miles to book Hong Kong routes due to the relatively poor redemption value and opportunity costs. Instead, you can use its miles for multi-segmented routes that can exceed $100,000 in value.

Still, it is a possibility — and we’ll explore it here.

Award tickets on partner airlines are distance-based according to this chart. For more details on JAL’s award redemption rules, visit JAL’s dedicated page here.

Here are some example routes you can book:

Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) – Hong Kong (HKG) round-trip in American Airlines Flagship Business class for 130,000 Japan Airlines miles + ~$11 in taxes and fees
San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG) round-trip in Cathay Pacific first class for 110,000 Japan Airlines miles + ~$39 in taxes and fees
Vancouver (YVR) – Hong Kong (HKG) round-trip in Cathay Pacific first class for 165,000 Japan Airlines miles + ~$39 in taxes and fees

You can book flights through Japan Airlines online by following the steps below:

Go to Japan Airlines’ website.
Log in to your JAL Mileage Bank account.
Select JAL International Award Ticket Reservation.
Select round-trip or one-way.
Select your desired Area of Departure and Area of Arrival.
Select your travel dates, departure and destination airports, and class of service.
Select Designate Date if you have to travel on specific dates, or Award Reservation Calendar if you have flexible travel dates.
Click Next.
If you selected Designate Date, you’ll be taken directly to your flight options.
- Make sure the flights you select have seats available and do not require waitlisting.
If you selected Award Reservation Calendar, you’ll see 7 dates for departure and 7 for return. Select the dates and you’ll be taken to your flight options for the selected dates.
Confirm the Mileage Bank miles and taxes/fees required.
Select your desired flights and hit Next (assign seat now) so you can select your seat and complete the booking process.

Hot Tip: When you select your flights, make sure there actually is availability, since Japan Airlines will also list flights you can be waitlisted for.

Earning Japan Airlines Miles

You can earn Marriott Bonvoy points and then transfer those to JAL at a 3:1 ratio. For every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points that you transfer, you’ll receive an extra 5,000 JAL miles bonus. Transfers take around 2 business days.

Recommended Marriott Bonvoy Cards

Bottom Line:Unless you have a huge stockpile of Marriott Bonvoy points, we don’t suggest using this method to book flights to Hong Kong. If you wanted to fly American Airlines, you can utilize the Etihad Guest Miles method above. If you wanted to fly Cathay Pacific (as you should), you can utilize the Alaska Airlines miles method above.

Avianca LifeMiles

Air Canada business class seat — Air Canada Signature Class is bookable with Avianca LifeMiles. Image Credit: Air Canada

Avianca’s LifeMiles program has proven to be very useful for booking Star Alliance award flights. And it’s no different for flights to Hong Kong — the cost of business class seats booked with LifeMiles for flights to Hong Kong is indeed very competitive. Since we’re looking at nonstop flights between North America and Hong Kong, you have 2 main options for flights: Air Canada and United Airlines.

You can earn LifeMiles through several different avenues, as LifeMiles has transfer partnerships with a number of transferable points programs, has its own co-branded credit card, and even offers the option to purchase LifeMiles!

It sometimes can be easiest to just purchase the miles necessary for a redemption and then complete your booking with those purchased miles. However, this method does involve spending more than $1,000 on purchased miles, so we wouldn’t suggest it unless you have a specific redemption in mind.

Another advantage of the LifeMiles program is that you could save a significant amount of miles round-trip over Aeroplan if you’re planning to fly first class to other parts of Asia.

Here’s the award chart for round-trip flights between North America and Hong Kong:

Cabin Class	LifeMiles Cost	Fees
Economy	70,000	~$121
Business	150,000	~$121
First	180,000	~$121

Hot Tip: LifeMiles does not pass on any fuel surcharges — a huge advantage!

Here are some great example redemptions you can make:

Newark (EWR) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in United Polaris business class for 75,000 Avianca LifeMiles + ~$61 in taxes and fees
San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in United Polaris business class for 75,000 Avianca LifeMiles + ~$61 in taxes and fees
Toronto (YYZ) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in Air Canada Signature Class for 75,000 Avianca LifeMiles + ~$61 in taxes and fees
Vancouver (YVR) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in Air Canada Signature Class for 75,000 Avianca LifeMiles + ~$61 in taxes and fees

Here are the steps to take if you’ve decided on redeeming LifeMiles for nonstop Air Canada or United flights between North America and Hong Kong:

Visit LifeMiles’ website.
In the top-right corner, log into your LifeMiles account.
On the main banner, click Fly.
Once you’re on the search page, fill out the trip details, and perform the search.
Enter your desired travel dates and finalize your search.
The next screen shows award availability and costs for those dates. Scroll through the dates and choose the best options for you.
Redeem your LifeMiles, pay for taxes and fees using a credit card, and confirm your ticket.

Earning Avianca LifeMiles

LifeMiles has a transfer relationship with Amex Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, Brex Rewards, Capital One, and Marriott Bonvoy.

Amex, Brex, Capital One, and Citi transfer at a 1:1 ratio, and Marriott Bonvoy points transfer at a 3:1 ratio.

Amex, Citi, and Capital One transfers should process immediately, while Brex and Marriott Bonvoy usually take 1 business day to transfer.

You can also earn LifeMiles miles by applying for the Banco Popular co-branded card.

The last resort would be to purchase LifeMiles. There are periodic sales that offer bonuses of up to 200%, so be sure to take advantage of that if you can.

Air Canada Aeroplan

Air Canada Business Class — Air Canada Signature Class on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Image Credit: Air Canada

Let’s move on to Aeroplan, the loyalty program associated with Air Canada. Aeroplan is typically one of the first options we think of when the objective is to book Star Alliance flights.

Technically, you can use Aeroplan points for flights on Oneworld member Cathay Pacific, but only between Hong Kong and Bangkok, Cebu, Chiang Mai, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, and Phuket.

Today, of course, we’ll be focusing on booking long-haul nonstop flights between North America and Hong Kong, which means flights will be operated either by Air Canada or United Airlines.

The one-way award redemption rates are based on the total distance flown as shown here:

Flight Distance (Miles)	Operating Airline	Economy	Premium Economy	Business	First
0 to 5,000	Air Canada	35,000 to 65,000	45,000 to 120,000	55,000 to 150,000	90,000 to 200,000
0 to 5,000	Partner Airlines	35,000	N/A	55,000	90,000
5,001 to 7,000	Air Canada	45,000 to 80,000	60,000 to 140,000	75,000 to 175,000	110,000 to 250,000
5,001 to 7,000	Partner Airlines	50,000	N/A	75,000	110,000
7,001 to 11,000	Air Canada	50,000 to 90,000	70,000 to 160,000	85,000 to 200,000	130,000 to 300,000
7,001 to 11,000	Partner Airlines	60,000	N/A	85,000	130,000
11,000+	Air Canada	65,000 to 110,000	80,000 to 180,000	105,000 to 250,000	140,000 to 350,000
	Partner Airlines	75,000	N/A	105,000	140,000

Air Canada will not charge fuel surcharges on any award flights, which is fabulous news!

Here’s the award chart for Aeroplan redemptions to Hong Kong:

Cabin Class	Aeroplan Points Cost	Fees
Economy	100,000 to 120,000	~$50
Business	150,000 to 170,000	~$50
First	220,000 to 260,000	~$50

Check out some of our recommended flight redemptions with Aeroplan points:

Newark (EWR) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in United Polaris business class for 85,000 Aeroplan points + ~$41 in taxes and fees
San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in United Polaris business class for 75,000 Aeroplan points + ~$41 in taxes and fees
Toronto (YYZ) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in Air Canada Signature Class for 85,000 Aeroplan points + ~$41 in taxes and fees
Vancouver (YVR) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in Air Canada Signature Class for 75,000 Aeroplan points + ~$41 in taxes and fees

Hot Tip: If you’d like to treat Hong Kong as an intermediate destination and spend a few days there en route to your final destination, you can book Aeroplan award tickets over the phone and add a stopover for just 5,000 miles extra!

Follow these steps to book your ticket:

Find award availability on United.com.
Write down all of the flight details.
Visit Aeroplan’s website.
Log in to your Aeroplan account in the top right corner.
On the homepage, toggle the slider button that says Points.
Fill in the search details and complete the search.
Find the flight options that work for you.
Enter your traveler information, redeem your Aeroplan points, and use a credit card to pay for taxes and fees.

Earning Aeroplan Points

You can acquire the co-branded Chase Aeroplan® Credit Card, which earns 3x points per $1 spent on dining, groceries, and Air Canada, as well as 1x point per $1 spent everywhere else.

Aeroplan is also a transfer partner of American Express Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Capital One, and Marriott Bonvoy.

Amex, Chase, and Capital One transfer to Aeroplan at a 1:1 ratio. Transfers from those 3 programs are almost instant.

Marriott Bonvoy points transfer at a 3:1 ratio with a 5,000-mile bonus for every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points transferred at once. Transfers from Marriott take 5 business days to complete.

Recommended Chase Cards

Bottom Line: If you’re booking flights to Hong Kong and have Chase points, you’ll get great value from the Aeroplan program!

United MileagePlus

United Airlines Business Class — United Polaris business class is a great way to relax and unwind in the sky. Image Credit: United Airlines

Now let’s have a look at United Airlines’ frequent flyer program, MileagePlus, and how you can use it to book flights to Hong Kong from around North America.

The pros and cons are simple here: the main advantage is the ease of booking and no fuel surcharges, while the disadvantage is high award costs.

Here’s a look at what you can expect to pay for round-trip nonstop flights on United or Air Canada when booking through MileagePlus:

Cabin Class	United Airlines	Air Canada	Fees
Economy	From 80,000	88,000	~$6
Business	From 180,000	198,000	~$6
First	N/A (United and Air Canada don’t offer international first class)		~$6

As you can see, there’s a 10% difference in pricing between United and Air Canada flights. In either case, your out-of-pocket costs are at a minimum here because fuel surcharges are not passed on.

Hot Tip: When using United Airlines’ search engine for awards, be sure to use the award calendar. You can book awards completely online using United Airlines.

For those who are set on flying United Airlines, here are the best redemptions to fly on United Airlines to Hong Kong:

Newark (EWR) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in United Polaris business class for 90,000 United miles + ~$6 in taxes and fees
San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in United Polaris business class for 90,000 United miles + ~$6 in taxes and fees

Follow these steps to book your MileagePlus award ticket:

Visit United’s website.
On the homepage, you’ll see a search box. Check off the box that says Book with miles.
Fill in the search box and complete the search.
Log in to your United MileagePlus account.
Find your desired flights, redeem your United miles, and pay for taxes and fees with a credit card.

Earning United MileagePlus Miles

You can earn Chase Ultimate Rewards that can then be transferred to United. In many cases, this method will be the fastest way to earn lots of United miles.

Chase transfers to United at a 1:1 ratio almost instantly, and Marriott Bonvoy points transfer to United at a 3:1.1 ratio in around 3 business days. When you transfer 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points at once to United, you’ll get a bonus of 5,500 United miles!

Another great way to earn United miles is to use any of the co-branded credit cards issued by Chase.

Recommended United Cards

Bottom Line: United Airlines offers an easy, completely online method of booking award flights. Though the award prices are higher than in some other programs, you’re virtually paying nothing out of pocket and it’s easy to earn miles. Partner awards are much more expensive, but they may be worth it unless you’re flying routes that feature United’s Polaris business class product.

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer

Greg Stone - Singapore Airlines Boeing 777 First Class - Side On — Singapore Airlines Boeing 777 first class. Image Credit: Greg Stone

Singapore Airlines keeps it very simple when it comes to Hong Kong: you can only fly premium cabins on Singapore Airlines if you book through its KrisFlyer program.

Furthermore, there’s currently only 1 nonstop Singapore Airlines route between North America and Hong Kong: a fifth-freedom flight between San Francisco (SFO) and Hong Kong (HKG).

The SFO-HKG route is operated by the Boeing 777-300ER, not the Airbus A380. This means you won’t get to experience the famous Singapore Suites on this route, though you’ll still get a very nice inflight experience with one of the most sought-after airlines on earth.

See below for the award chart for round-trip tickets on the SFO-HKG flight:

Cabin Class (SFO-HKG)	KrisFlyer Miles Cost	Fees
Economy	73,000	~$107
Business	201,000	~$107
First	234,000	~$107

As you can see, there’s just a small difference in the rates for business and first class (and, you’ll notice you’ll only pay a minimal amount of taxes and fees). If you had lots of KrisFlyer miles, we would recommend flying first class to experience it on Singapore Airlines.

Here are a couple of great redemptions we really like:

San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in Singapore Airlines business class for 100,500 KrisFlyer miles + ~$5.60 in taxes and fees
San Francisco (SFO) – Hong Kong (HKG) one-way in Singapore Airlines first class for 117,000 KrisFlyer miles + ~$5.60 in taxes and fees

Booking first class and business class is very easy — just follow these steps:

Visit the Singapore Airlines website.
Select Redeem Flights.
Select your desired travel dates and route.
Select Business as your cabin of choice.
Hit Search.
Select your flight.

Hot Tip: When possible, be sure to use Singapore Airlines’ “Book the Cook” option that allows you to select from a wide variety of meals in advance!

Earning Singapore KrisFlyer Miles

KrisFlyer miles are very easy to earn, as the program is transfer partners with Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, Brex Rewards, Capital One, and Marriott Bonvoy.

Amex, Brex, Chase, Capital One, and Citi all transfer at a 1:1 ratio. These programs take anywhere from 1 to 2 business days to process transfers.

Marriott Bonvoy points transfer at a 3:1 ratio with a bonus of 5,000 KrisFlyer miles when you transfer 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points in a single transaction to Singapore Airlines. Marriott transfers to Singapore Airlines take around 2 business days.

Bottom Line: Singapore KrisFlyer has solid redemptions for its SFO-HKG route, but not much else for Hong Kong. You can earn miles through any of the transferable programs. This is also the only way to fly Singapore Airlines from North America to Hong Kong in business/first class.

Lufthansa Miles and More

United Airlines Polaris Business Class — United Airlines boasts an impressive business class known as Polaris on Hong Kong routes. Image Credit: United Airlines

Lufthansa’s Miles and More Program is only useful in this case for booking Star Alliance flights.

The only way to earn Lufthansa miles readily is its co-branded credit card, the Miles & More® World Elite Mastercard® issued by Barclays.

With Miles & More, you will be able to book on Air Canada and United Airlines if you’re looking for nonstop flights. Lufthansa also passes on fuel surcharges, which you’ll be responsible for paying.

Here’s a look at what you’ll pay for round-trip nonstop flights from North America to Hong Kong:

Cabin Class	Lufthansa Miles Cost	Fees
Economy	80,000	~$325
Business	142,000	~$325
First	222,000	~$325

Technically speaking, Lufthansa presents a good deal for Star Alliance redemptions, behind only ANA.

However, miles are difficult to come by and fuel surcharges are high, which is why we hesitate to recommend it highly for booking these flights.

Hot Tip:You’ll want to search close-in for award space in a premium cabin. Based on a recent search, we did not find availability 10 to 11 months out in the calendar.

To book a Miles & More award ticket, follow these steps:

Perform your award search on United’s website.
Write down the flight details of the itinerary you located.
Call Miles & More at 800-581-6400.
Give the agent your flight details, and confirm that the flight is available on their end.
Book the ticket using your miles and a credit card for taxes and fees.

Earning Lufthansa Miles & More Miles

You can earn Miles & More miles by applying for its Barclays co-branded card.

There aren’t many other ways to snag lots of Lufthansa miles besides sign-up bonuses on credit cards. For more information, check out the best ways to earn lots of Lufthansa miles.

Bottom Line: Lufthansa business class awards on partners are a decent “sweet spot” at 142,000 points round-trip. However, because the miles are so difficult to earn and Lufthansa passes on fuel surcharges, we would suggest looking toward ANA for the equivalent routes.

Final Thoughts

We’ve explored every valuable avenue of flying to Hong Kong from North America.

There are a total of 5 airlines offering nonstop flights from North America to Hong Kong. These are:

Air Canada
American Airlines
Cathay Pacific
Singapore Airlines
United Airlines

Overall, there are plenty of ways to fly to Hong Kong on points and miles. Air Canada, Singapore Airlines, and United Airlines are Star Alliance partners, so we would look first at ANA Mileage Club for the most competitive redemption costs. Unfortunately, Singapore Airlines’ premium cabin products can only be booked using its own miles, so that’s the only option for flying Singapore Airlines business or first class.

American Airlines and Cathay Pacific are in the Oneworld alliance. For booking American Airlines, look no further than Etihad’s Guest program, which offers first and business class flights on American at the same price! Cathay Pacific is best booked with Alaska Airlines miles, but you can look at Japan Airlines, American Airlines, or Asia Miles for some great rates, too.

There’s a lot of value and variety to be had when flying to Hong Kong. Now that you’ve got the full picture, it’s time to put your points to good use and book your tickets!

The information regarding the Capital One Venture Rewards Card, Capital One VentureOne Rewards Card, Capital One Venture X Card, and Miles & More® World Elite 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 Business Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the American Express® Business Gold Card, click here.
For rates and fees of The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card, click here.

12 comments

Peter August 10, 2018

FYI: Aeroplan miles can be redeemed for Cathay Pacific only on select routes between HKG and Thailand/Philippines/Malaysia and Vietnam.
https://www.aeroplan.com/whats_new/news_articles.do?dl=WhatsNew_WEBUP30000062_2017_03_24

Currently, aeroplan miles are not useful to book award travel on Cathay Pacific flights between USA and HKG.

- Michael McHugh August 16, 2018
  
  Thanks for letting us know Peter. We appreciate it!
  
David March 18, 2019

Your award chart is out of date for UA. I hate when google publishes the update date and not the original post date.

- Stephen Au March 20, 2019
  
  Hey David,
  
  United has not changed their award chart in a long time, and these redemption numbers are the most updated and therefore not out-of-date. Thanks for reading!
  
Sunny April 11, 2019

I tried booking a business class flight through United Mileageplus program, but the airline doesn’t show any United Business Saver seats or Air Canada Business seats available at all, through the next 9 months. I was working with an UA agent and she couldn’t find any. We’re going this route mainly because we have a lot of points on our Chase cards. Any suggestions?

- Stephen Au April 17, 2019
  
  Hey Sunny,
  
  United is horrible with releasing award availability for business class routes overseas.
  
  We would advise you to keep looking, especially closer to departure as award seats can be released at any time.
  
Tho August 7, 2019

I am planning a trip to Hong Kong-Japan for early 2020. We fly out of the NE ( JFK, BWI, PHL, EWR). My wife and I each have about 65K Alaska Air miles. I can also transfer Marriott points to fill up if need be. I was thinking about taking advantage of the free stopover Cathay Pacific biz and go JFK-HKG-NRT one way then use either BA or AA for NRT-JFK. Just not sure if that is even possible. Any recommendation on what’s the best way to book Cathay Pacific Business for 2 for these destinations? We don’t have any preference on where to go first. Thanks.

- Andrew Kunesh August 8, 2019
  
  Hey Tho, booking JFK-HKG-NRT on Cathay Pacific with Alaska Airlines miles is totally possible. However, you have to find award availability by British Airways’ site first and then call Alaska Airlines to book. This is because Alaska Airlines does not show Cathay Pacific awards on its website at this time.
  
  Search for JFK-HKG and HKG-NRT separately on the BA website. Anything that shows up as bookable with Avios will be bookable with Alaska miles, so note the flight numbers so you can give them to the Alaska Airlines phone agent.
  
  Also: make sure to mention that you’d like to take advantage of your free stopover when calling in. You may be charged for two separate award tickets if you don’t.
  
  Thanks!
  
Jason October 5, 2022

If I am flying from San Francisco to Hong Kong and I have no points accumulated at the moment, which airlines would be my best option for economy or business class?

- Jarrod West October 6, 2022
  
  Hi Jason,
  
  If you don’t have any points to redeem, then you might want to opt for whichever flight is the least expensive on the day you’d like to travel.
  
Marcus October 25, 2022

Is booking ANA with a stopover in Tokyo and onto HKG as a final destination using Virgin points an option? Thanks!

- Jarrod West November 9, 2022
  
  Hi Marcus,
  
  Yes, it is possible for you to book that itinerary.