If you are planning or considering travel with Qantas, Jetstar or Fiji Airways at some point this year, this is a great opportunity to get good value from your Qantas Points.
These promotions tend to run every 3-6 months and are valuable for those travelling during peak periods and/or as a family or group. The last time we saw a promo like this was in June last year. A 30% discount is the average that is offered.
What is unique in this promotion is that Business and Premium Economy redemptions are also included on some routes. Discounts are usually restricted to Economy Class travel.
Current Qantas, Jetstar & Fiji Airways discount offer
Here is how Qantas describes the offer:
Take 30% off the Qantas Points required for a Classic Flight Reward on eligible Qantas, Jetstar and Fiji Airways operated flights across multiple cabins# to select destinations. Hurry, offer ends 10.59pm (AEDT) 19 February 2020. Conditions apply.
Eligible routes & cabins
| Origin | Destination/s | Airline/s | Cabins |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane & Adelaide | Auckland, Christchurch, Queenstown & Wellington | Qantas & Jetstar | Economy, Premium Economy & Business |
| Sydney, Melbourne & Brisbane | Fiji | Qantas, Jetstar & Fiji Airways | Economy & Business |
| Brisbane | San Francisco | Qantas | Economy & Premium Economy |
Some readers have noticed that there may be a system glitch that is discounting redemptions on other routes by 30% too. Some have had success booking discounted flights to Hong Kong and Johannesburg, for example.
Please note, the discount doesn’t apply to taxes, fees and carrier charges.
Recommended redemptions
- Sydney to Auckland in Qantas Premium Economy for 21,700 points + $140
- Sydney to Auckland in Qantas Business for 29,000 points + $140
- Sydney to Nadi in Fiji Airways Business for 29,000 points + $92
- Brisbane to San Francisco in Qantas Economy for 29,330 points + $233
- Brisbane to San Francisco in Qantas Premium Economy for 56,910 points + $352
How to take advantage of this promotion
- Log in to your Qantas Frequent Flyer account and select Use points to search for your flights
- Book an Economy Classic Flight Reward before 10:59pm AEDT on 19 February 2020 on Qantas-, Jetstar- or Fiji Airways-operated flights with a QF, JQ or FJ flight number
- Travel before 31 December 2020
Getting the best value out of this promotion
You may want to aim to get at least 1.9 cents per point value from your Qantas Points (according to our valuations).
So, if a one-way flight to Auckland costs $225 or 12,600 Qantas Points + $135 in taxes with this promotion, you’d be getting only ~0.7c per point value.
However, if your return flight from Brisbane to San Francisco during Christmas time is $2,300 or 58,660 points with this discount + $363 in taxes, then you’d be getting a healthier ~3.3c value for each point you use—that represents better value.
Frequently asked questions
Everyone’s financial situation, points balances and preferences are different. This means that the option of using points for Economy Class travel should not be written off. This guide can help you decide.
No, the discount does not extend to the ordinary surcharges and taxes that apply to Classic Flight Reward redemptions.
Yes, you can, but you’ll want to make sure that the savings are more than 5,000/6,000 points for a domestic/international trip, given the change fee.
Annoyingly, when you go to book a Classic Flight Reward, the total points cost will just show you the final discounted amount and will not show you what the price would have been without the discount. If you are unsure whether or not the discount has been applied, you can check the ordinary points cost of your flight here.
This promotion covers travel on Qantas, Jetstar and Fiji Airways.
No, you cannot mix Qantas and Jetstar flights. That is because the required points for Jetstar redemptions are already 20% less than redemptions on Qantas flights.
No. As usual, you will not earn any points on award flights.
No, it does not.
Offer history
Previous promotions have run as follows:
| Date | Discount (%) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| February 2020 | 30 | Select flights to New Zealand, Fiji and the US; includes Premium Economy & Business Class |
| June 2019 | 30 | |
| March 2019 | 30 | |
| September 2018 | 25 | |
| March 2018 | 30 | |
| December 2017 | 50 | International only |
| August 2017 | 25 | |
| May 2017 | 25 | |
| August 2016 | 20 | |
| Average | 29.44 |
Summing up
Whilst the best value for redeeming your points is usually found in Business and First Class, there are cases where redeeming your points for Economy Class tickets can make good sense.
Note, though, that these promotions do not take into account the generally significant taxes and fees that Qantas tends to charge on award flights, so that reduces the value of this redemption opportunity. Having said that, of course, it is 100% up to you how you use your points.
You can start your search and make your booking online on the Qantas website.
Quick and ongoing opportunities to boost your Qantas Points balance
Three of the quickest ways to top up your Qantas Frequent Flyer balance are to:
- transfer points from a family member: usually instant but can take up to an hour
- buy wine through Qantas Wine: usually within 24 hours but can take up to five business days
- buy top-up Qantas Points: instant but the most expensive option
More longer-term, you can earn Qantas Points by:
- signing up to a Qantas Points-earning credit card
- taking advantage of bonus Qantas Points offers
- swiping your Woolworths Rewards card and opting to earn Qantas Points
- booking accommodation through Airbnb
Syd > Nadi business is $273 + points
I just booked a MEL – Noumea flight for my wife and two of our kids in the September school holidays for about 100k QFF points + $1100 taxes. Very happy indeed. Thanks Point Hacks.
On va parler francais 🙂
I thought I should let you know that this particular iteration of the promo actually allows Jetstar AND Emirates flights as part of the deal. The article should be updated to reflect this.
Mike
this offers value for family trips to amazing holidays in rural australia where prices are inflated for mining, monopolies etc
last year we went to Exmouth to swim with whale sharks – even on sale the flights from exmouth to perth were the most expensive part of the holiday – so this offer could be perfect.
It was one of best family holidays ever.
I understand using points for flights does not add status credits but does it count as a segment flown to help reach new tier?
E.g. in your BNE-LAX example, you would be charged $600 odd in taxes on top of the 67,500 points. This means the $2000 cash fare should be reduced down to $1400 for the purpose of $/point calculation.
($2000 – $600) / 67,500 points = a meager 2 cents per point, not 3 cents per point.
This also means most AU domestic flights would struggle to reach even 1.5 cents per point in value except for the monopoly routes.
Great article. Just a quick question, it says in the table that a redemption for a Sydney to Melbourne is 8000 points then discounted down to 6000. I’ve searched a variety of dates and I’m finding nothing below 18000 points for one way. Am I doing something wrong?
According to the above, Jetstar flights are not included as part of the promotion. Which makes a QF redemption cheaper than a JQ one