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Award chart changes rarely bring good news — but Cathay Pacific's upcoming Asia Miles update is a bit of a mixed bag. On April 15, 2025, Cathay will adjust pricing for awards on its own flights. While many business class redemptions are increasing slightly, some short-haul economy awards are actually getting cheaper. Plus, since we are getting advanced notice of the changes from Cathay Pacific, there's still time to book an award before the price increases.
Here’s what’s changing — and what you should book now to lock in current rates.
Cathay Pacific Award Chart Changes Effective April 15, 2025
Cathay Pacific announced changes to its award program on its website, stating it has been “continuously reviewing our flight award mileage requirements.” While we don't know the full scale of changes at the time of publication, the airline did let us know sample routes and new redemption rates on the site. These changes are largely negative for North American premium flyers, who will see modest increases of 4.8% on West Coast business class awards and 4.5% on East Coast business class awards to Hong Kong.
The changes announced are just for Cathay Pacific's own metal, meaning flights operated on the airline's own planes. Cathay Pacific is a part of the Oneworld alliance, and Asia Miles members can redeem their miles on partner airlines. No announcement has been made on changes to partner award rates, but we'll give an update once changes go live on April 15, 2025.
New Cathay Pacific Asia Miles Award Chart
| Examples (From/To Hong Kong) | Cabin class | Asia Miles Currently Required | Asia Miles Required As of April 15, 2025 | % Increase (Decrease) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hangzhou, Manila, Taipei | Economy | 7,500 | 7,000 | (6.7%) |
| Bangkok, Shanghai, Singapore | Economy | 10,000 | 9,000 | (10%) |
| Denpasar, Osaka, Tokyo | Economy | 12,500 | 13,000 | 4% |
| London, Los Angeles, Vancouver | Business | 84,000 | 88,000 | 4.8% |
| Boston, New York, Toronto | Business | 110,000 | 115,000 | 4.5% |
These changes go into effect at noon EST on April 15, 2025. Asia Miles awards are bookable up to 360 days in advance. Therefore, those planning 2025 travel can still redeem under the old rates.
This announcement comes on the heels of a major devaluation in 2023, where we saw awards increase as much as 25% in some cases. These changes are more muted, and even decreasing award prices in some instances.
What Awards Should You Book Now? Which Awards Should You Wait to Book?
These changes from Cathay Pacific are a mixed bag for flyers, so it's important to review what awards you planned on booking in 2025 and beyond to see if it makes sense to book now, or wait until the changes go into effect.
Book now
Business class awards from the West Coast of the U.S. will see increases of 4.8% from cities like Los Angeles (LAX) and Seattle (SEA). European destinations like London (LHR) and Zurich (ZRH) will see increases as well. East Coast flyers will see a 4.5% increase on award flights in business class. Destinations include Toronto (YYZ), Washington, DC (IAD), and New York (JFK).
Routes in the “Short- Type 2” band — which involves flights 751-2,750 miles long to or from India, Indonesia, and Japan — are also negatively affected by these changes, with awards increasing by 4%. Flights from Bali (DPS), Osaka (KIX), and Tokyo (NRT) are mentioned. Destinations like Chennai (MAA) and Delhi, India (DEL) also are affected.
Wait to book
Ultra short-haul economy flights 1-750 miles are decreasing by 6.7% with the changes. Destinations mentioned include Hangzhou (HGH), Manila (MNL), and Taipei (TPE), but flyers that frequent Guangzhou (CAN), Fuzhou (FOC, and Chongqing (CKG) should also see their awards drop in price.
Short-haul economy flights in the “Short- Type 1” band, which are flights between 751-2,750 miles and include a city in China, Singapore, Malaysia, and South Korea, are going down 10%. Destinations specifically mentioned include Bangkok (BKK), Shanghai (PVG), and Singapore (SIN), but other Cathay Pacific destinations in this band include mainline China destinations like Qingdao (TAO).
Final Thoughts
While most travelers focus on the premium cabin devaluations — especially from the U.S. — Cathay Pacific’s updates aren’t all bad news. If you fly short-haul economy routes in Asia, you might actually pay fewer miles after April 15.
All things considered, even the award increases aren't bad. Plus, it's great to receive advance notice of a devaluation (looking at you, Southwest Airlines). Kudos to Cathay Pacific for the heads-up. Still, if you’ve got your eye on a transpacific business class award, book it before prices go up.
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