The Ultimate Guide to Etihad Guest

Etihad Guest is Etihad Airways’ loyalty program, useful for those who fly on the airline to major destinations around the world via Abu Dhabi or simply travel on its partner airlines, such as Virgin Australia and Air New Zealand.

Although not commonly heard of in Australia, Etihad Guest miles can be earned through credit cards, flying and bonus points promotions. You can use them for ticket redemptions in any class, including Etihad’s luxurious First Class Apartments. Read on for how to join the program, earn as many miles as possible, and use them for maximum value.

How do I join the Etihad Guest program?

Signing up to Etihad Guest is free.

1. Go to the Etihad Guest enrolment page
2. Enter your personal details
3. Accept the Privacy Policy and T&Cs. 

How to earn Etihad Guest miles in Australia

There are three key ways for Australians to collect Etihad Guest miles without flying.

1. Through credit cards

There are no credit cards in Australia that allow you to earn Etihad Guest miles directly. Instead, Etihad Guest partners with the following bank rewards programs:

• American Express Membership Rewards
• Citi Rewards (Citi Prestige cardholders only)

With the programs above, you’ll earn points towards the program that can be converted to Etihad Guest miles at the following rate:

• 2 Amex Membership Rewards points = 1 Etihad Guest mile
• 3 Citi Rewards points = 1 Etihad Guest mile

Occasionally, American Express offers a transfer bonus to Etihad Guest.

2. By transferring Marriott Bonvoy points

Marriott Bonvoy points are one of the most flexible points currencies in the world. This is because they can be transferred to most major airline programs, including Etihad Guest. The transfer rate is as follows:

• 3 Marriott Bonvoy points = 1 Etihad Guest mile

You’ll also get 5,000 bonus Etihad Guest miles for every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points you transfer.

3. By buying them

Finally, you can buy Etihad Guest miles. This is handy if you need to shore up your balance for a redemption.

If you already have 75% of the miles required, you can buy Etihad Guest miles for less, even if they’re not on sale.

Other ways to earn points

There are several other ways to earn bonus Etihad Guest miles, including:

• flying on Etihad Airways, Virgin Australia and 20+ other partner airlines (Etihad isn’t part of any alliance, though)
• booking a hotel through Kaligo
• booking a car rental
• participating in the Etihad BusinessConnect program for businesses

How do I redeem Etihad Guest miles?

Redeeming Etihad Guest miles for Etihad flights

First and foremost, Etihad Guest miles can be used for redemptions on Etihad Airways itself. There are two types of fares you can book using Etihad Guest miles: GuestSeats and OpenSeats.

• GuestSeats are the reward seats you want to aim for, as they offer the best value with fixed, reduced fares.
• OpenSeats provide flexibility, but you’ll often use more miles and the number of miles needed can fluctuate.

To book a flight using Etihad Guest miles, ensure you’re logged into your Etihad Guest account. Then, search for your flights (make sure to tick ‘Pay with miles’ if prompted, or if you initiate your search from the homepage.)

How many Etihad Guest miles do I need for Etihad flights?

In June 2024, Etihad Guest revamped its loyalty program. Many of Etihad’s short-haul routes (e.g. Abu Dhabi to the Middle East and South Asia) now require fewer Etihad Guest miles to book a reward seat. However, there are some minor increases to long-haul routes, like when flying between Australia and Abu Dhabi in Business Class.

Here’s how many Etihad Guest miles you’ll need to fly from Australia:

For comparison, it costs 56,000 Velocity Points to fly from Melbourne/Sydney to Abu Dhabi with Etihad in Economy, or 104,000 Velocity Points for Business Class.

While you’ll get better value using Velocity Points (and can directly earn them in Australia), partner programs can only access Etihad Business and First Class reward seats from 30 days before departure. So if you want to fly in a premium cabin with Etihad, your best shot is to have Etihad Guest miles.

The luxurious First Apartment on the A380 flies between Abu Dhabi and key destinations such as London, Paris, and New York. Unfortunately, it hasn’t returned to Sydney.

The Apartments are one of the world’s best First Class products, with a vast amount of space and an onboard shower. It’s a great way to burn your points if you have enough. In either case, you’ll want to aim for a cheaper GuestSeat rather than an OpenSeat when making a redemption.

You can use the updated Miles Calculator on the Etihad website to determine how many you’ll need.

Redeeming Etihad Guest miles on partner airlines

Etihad Airways isn’t part of one of the big three airline alliances (oneworld, Star Alliance and SkyTeam). Instead, it has built a network of more than 20 airline partners, including Virgin Australia, ANA, American Airlines, Air Canada, Air France, and others.

Some partner flights can be booked online directly through the Etihad Airways website, while others require you to call the Etihad Guest call centre to redeem your Etihad Guest miles. Clicking on each individual airline on Etihad Airways’ partner airline page will bring up booking instructions.

You can also view the redemption table for Etihad GuestSeats (reward seats) under each airline. Note that all partner airlines use the same distance-based award chart.

Flights with the following partner airlines can be booked online via the Etihad website:

• American Airlines
• Air France
• Air Canada
• JetBlue
• Gulf Air
• Air Serbia
• Korean Air
• KLM
• Malaysia Airlines
• Saudi Arabian Airlines
• SriLankan Airlines
• Virgin Australia 

Next, we’ll cover some of the best ways to use Etihad Guest miles on partner airlines that fly to Australia.

Using Etihad Guest miles for Virgin Australia flights

The key Etihad Guest partner for Australia-based travellers is Virgin Australia. The best-value pricing can be found on medium-haul Economy and Business Class flights, where using Etihad Guest miles can be slightly cheaper than paying with Velocity Points.

Below we’ve included some examples of using Etihad Guest miles versus Velocity Points on Virgin Australia Business Class flights:

In the example above, fewer Etihad Guest miles are required for a reward seat from Melbourne-Cairns, compared to using Velocity Points. However, on either side of this, many shorter and longer routes required more Etihad Guest miles.

Let’s take a look at some examples of Economy reward redemptions:

In short, it’s not black-and-white when it comes to determining whether you should use Etihad Guest miles or Velocity Points on Virgin Australia flights. It varies depending on your route – and, with Velocity’s Economy reward seat tiered pricing, a host of other factors, too.

You can find out how many Velocity Points you’ll need for a reward seat on the Velocity Frequent Flyer website.

Also read: How to use Velocity Points for Etihad flights

Using Etihad Guest miles for upgrades on Etihad flights

It is possible to use your Etihad Guest miles (or cash) to upgrade an Etihad-operated flight. However, you can’t use Etihad Guest miles to upgrade a flight on partner airlines, like Virgin Australia.

If you run the numbers by factoring in the cost of paying for the Economy ticket, it’s usually better to just make an outright Business or First Class redemption using Etihad Guest miles.

However, if your work is paying for your flight, then you may want to explore upgrading. There are two ways to do this:

• Bid to upgrade your flight using Etihad Guest miles
• Upgrade at the airport when you check-in, subject to availability

In both cases, upgrades are subject to availability, and certain fare classes cannot be upgraded. Learn more about how to upgrade Etihad flights.

How do I earn Etihad Guest elite status?

Etihad has four status levels: Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum. You can visit Etihad’s website for an in-depth comparison of the tiers. Our quick comparison is below:

Etihad Guest Bronze

This is the free base-level membership and the bare minimum requirement to be able to earn and redeem Etihad Guest miles for flights and other products.

Etihad Guest Silver

To achieve: 25,000 Tier Miles (at least 10,000 miles from flying)
To maintain: 20,000 Tier Miles (at least 10,000 miles from flying)

• 25% bonus miles on Etihad and selected partners
• Guaranteed Economy Seat at least 48 hours in advance
• Priority Check-in at Abu Dhabi
• Free onboard Wi-Fi ‘Chat’ package

Silver members can also choose two Custom Benefits, including:

• Lounge access for self at Abu Dhabi
• Additional 10% off extra baggage on eligible fare brands
• 2x Reward shop vouchers

Etihad Guest Gold

To achieve: 50,000 Tier Miles
To maintain: 40,000 Tier Miles

In addition to Silver benefits, Gold members receive:

• 50% bonus miles on Etihad and selected partners
• Free onboard Wi-Fi ‘Chat’ package + 50% off ‘Surf’
• Two free Economy Standard seat selections
• Avis and Budget tier match
• Dedicated call centre
• Priority check-in immigration and baggage

Gold members can also choose four Custom Benefits, including:

• Lounge access + one guest at Business Class lounges
• One extra bag up to 15kg on Etihad flights
• Chauffeur service for GuestSeat Business and First when departing Abu Dhabi
• 1x free refund on a GuestSeat booking
• 2x chauffeur services for Economy class flights departing Abu Dhabi
• 2x home check-in at Abu Dhabi
• 4x Reward shop vouchers

If you reach 75,000 Tier Miles within the membership year, you can also pick two of the following Beyond Benefits:

• 2x Business Class lounge passes
• A Silver Tier nomination
• 10,000 bonus Etihad Guest miles

Etihad Guest Platinum

To achieve: 125,000 Tier Miles
To maintain: 100,000 Tier Miles

As the highest elite tier earned with miles, here are the extra benefits you’ll receive:

• Nominate a friend to Gold status
• 100% bonus miles on Etihad and selected partners
• Guaranteed Economy Seat at least 24 hours in advance and Business Seat 48 hours
• Up to four free Economy Standard seats for you and other guests on your booking
• Free onboard Wi-Fi ‘Chat’ and ‘Surf’ plans
• Chauffeur service for GuestSeat Business and First when departing Abu Dhabi
• One membership extension in a lifetime
• One custom Etihad Guest number for redemption in a lifetime

The following video provides further information regarding Tier Miles and Tier Segments.

Platinum members can also choose five Custom Benefits, including:

• Lounge access + one guest at First Class lounges
• One extra bag up to 20kg on Etihad flights
• Same-day flexibility
• 2x complimentary upgrades on eligible routes
• 2x chauffeur services for Economy class flights departing Abu Dhabi
• 2x free refund on a GuestSeat booking
• 4x home check-in at Abu Dhabi
• 6x Reward shop vouchers

If you reach 175,000 Tier Miles within the membership year, you can also pick two of the following Beyond Benefits:

• 3x Business Class lounge passes
• 3x vouchers for priority access
• 20,000 bonus Etihad Guest miles

There is also an Etihad Guest Diamond Tier with unpublished benefits, earned by spending at least US$150,000 on Etihad flights a year. We can imagine that the perks are next-level!

How do I contact Etihad Guest?

To get in touch about a membership enquiry or flight redemption, try:

• calling 1300 532 215 from Australia or +971 600 555 666 from overseas, 24/7
• sending them a direct message on Twitter or Facebook
• submitting an online enquiry

While the Call Centre might be the quickest way to resolve your issue, if the line is busy, try the social media channels.

Summing up

Etihad Guest offers great-value redemptions on both Etihad Airways and Virgin Australia. Although the recent program changes have been a mixed bag, especially around award cancellation rules, it’s still a program to consider if Etihad and its partner airlines are on your radar.

Additional reporting by Brandon Loo.