Is West best? Living in Perth can feel like a disadvantage when you’re trying to get anywhere in the world. We’re a long way from the east coast, with fewer direct international flights and, for many destinations, an extra domestic leg is unavoidable.
But there are some surprising advantages to being on the western side of Australia when it comes to frequent flyer points. Perth can offer better reward seat availability and cheaper points pricing on some international routes!
Perth can have far more reward seats on certain airlines
Let’s start with reward availability. We’ve looked at Business Class reward availability across a selection of popular international routes, and the difference can be significant. In some cases, Perth has dozens or even hundreds more reward seats available than Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane.
Take Hong Kong as an example. At the time of checking (on 15 September 2026), Qantas Frequent Flyer members had access to just 14 reward seats to/from Sydney and 12 to/from Melbourne. Brisbane had one, while Adelaide had three.
Perth? 142 dates with Business Reward availability between Perth and Hong Kong with Cathay Pacific (return). That’s more than 10 times the number available from Sydney!
| Qantas Points (Business Class) | SYD | MEL | BNE | ADL | PER |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hong Kong | 14 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 142 |
| Singapore | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 10 |
| Dubai | 60 | 227 | 147 | 217 | 159 |
| Kuala Lumpur | 8 | 45 | 14 | 64 | 218 |
| Johannesburg | 3 | – | – | – | 0 |
This isn’t an isolated example. On the Kuala Lumpur route, Qantas members can find 218 Business Reward seats to and from Perth with Malaysia Airlines, compared with 64 from Adelaide, 45 from Melbourne and just eight from Sydney.
There are exceptions, of course. Dubai is relatively well supplied from most Australian gateways, while Qantas’ popular Perth-Johannesburg flight doesn’t seem to have a single reward seat available.
Velocity tells a similar story
Velocity Frequent Flyer shows some interesting results too, though the numbers are more balanced across the board. Singapore Airlines has 12 reward seats from Sydney, 33 from Melbourne and 140 from Brisbane, while Perth has 51. That’s fewer than Brisbane, but still more than Sydney.
Doha is another strong result for Perth, with 173 reward seats, although Sydney and Melbourne have even more at 237 and 243 respectively. Perth’s Virgin Australia/Qatar Airways wet-lease flights (VA21/22) are recommencing in December 2026.
Johannesburg is a standout, as South African Airways’ only Australian destination is Perth. Meanwhile, Japan’s ANA only flies to Sydney and Perth in Australia.
| Velocity Points (Business Class) | SYD | MEL | BNE | ADL | PER |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singapore | 12 | 33 | 140 | 97 | 51 |
| Doha | 237 | 243 | 99 | 73 | 173 |
| Tokyo | 35 | – | – | – | 26 |
| Johannesburg | – | – | – | – | 151 |
These numbers are only a snapshot. Reward availability changes constantly, and airlines can release seats in batches or close them off as demand changes.
Perth also has some seriously good sweet spots
Reward availability is only half the equation. Perth can also benefit from the way frequent flyer programmes calculate the number of points required for an award. Because Perth is geographically closer to Asia, the Middle East and Europe, some destinations fall into a cheaper distance band when you start from the west.
One of the best examples is Singapore Airlines through KrisFlyer. A one-way Business Class redemption from Perth to destinations across parts of Southeast Asia can be available from around 44,500 KrisFlyer miles, depending on the destination and award pricing. You can transfer 68,975 Velocity Points for that.
The equivalent redemption from the eastern states costs up to 77,000 KrisFlyer miles (that’s 119,350 Velocity Points if you transfer those over).
Qantas and Velocity also use distance-based tables for partner redemptions. Perth to Europe has a few good sweet spots with destinations such as Rome, Venice, Vienna, Athens, Munich and more – which are two price bands cheaper than flying from the eastern states.
| Destination (points) | From Perth | From Sydney | (Difference) |
| Rome flying QF Business Class (Qantas Points) | 130,100 points | 166,300 points | 36,200 points |
| Rome flying QR Business Class (Velocity Points) | 119,500 points | 158,500 points | 39,000 points |
| Rome flying EK First Class (Qantas Points) | 234,500 points | 299,300 points | 64,800 points |
Take a Perth-Doha-Rome itinerary on Qatar Airways as an example. The Business Class reward price is 119,500 Velocity Points one way from Perth, while a comparable itinerary from Sydney is 158,500 points. For a return trip, that’s potentially 78,000 Velocity Points saved simply by starting the journey in Perth.
A trick with the Amex Velocity Platinum Card
Perth also has an unusual advantage when it comes to the American Express Velocity Platinum Card. The card comes with a complimentary Virgin Australia domestic return flight each year, subject to the card’s terms and availability. For a Perth-based cardholder, this can be particularly valuable.
A return flight between Perth and Sydney or Melbourne can often be worth $600 or more, depending on the dates and availability. That can put the value of the flight benefit well above the card’s annual fee on its own.
There’s an important catch, however. The complimentary flight can be used for Perth to Adelaide, Sydney or Melbourne and return, but not the other way around. So a Perth cardholder can potentially book Perth-Sydney-Perth, while an east coast cardholder can’t book Sydney-Perth-Sydney using the same benefit.
Instead, you might want to ‘nest’ the Perth-Sydney-Perth free flight in between separate Sydney-Perth-Sydney flights that you book yourself, if you travel over west at least twice a year.
American Express Velocity Platinum
- Bonus points
- Up to 100,000 bonus Velocity Points¹
- Annual fee
- $440 p.a.
- Earn
- 1.25 Velocity Points earned per $1 on all eligible spend except for government bodies⁵. 2.25 Velocity Points per $1 spent on selected Virgin Australia purchases⁵. 0.5 Velocity Points per $1 on Government spend⁵
American Express Velocity Platinum
- Bonus Points
- Up to 100,000 bonus Velocity Points¹
- Annual Fee
- $440 p.a.
- Earn
- 1.25 Velocity Points earned per $1 on all eligible spend except for government bodies⁵. 2.25 Velocity Points per $1 spent on selected Virgin Australia purchases⁵. 0.5 Velocity Points per $1 on Government spend⁵
Earn 70,000 Velocity Points¹ with the American Express Velocity Platinum when you apply by 13 October 2026, are approved, and spend $5,000 in the first 3 months. Plus, an additional 30,000 bonus Velocity Points when you spend a further $5,000 on eligible purchases within the first 3 months of your second year Card Membership. Offer available to new American Express Members only. T&Cs apply.
Summing up
Perth may be Australia’s most isolated capital, but when it comes to frequent flyer points, our isolation isn’t always a disadvantage. We have access to more reward seats on certain routes, cheaper distance-based redemptions and a particularly valuable domestic flight benefit from the right credit card.
Of course, bigger hubs like Sydney and Melbourne will have many more carriers, and therefore, potential seats available to book other destinations. Our comparison is limited to popular airlines serving both Perth and other major cities. But within those results, we can see Perth tipping the scales on some routes.
While it’s not always going to be more convenient or cost-effective to book a separate domestic flight to Perth, if you’re struggling to find Business reward seat availability from other cities, it could be worth a look. Or come and make a holiday out of your West Coast stopover – the quokkas are waiting!
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