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American Airlines AAdvantage® miles are one of the most versatile airline currencies you can earn. And thanks to their versatility, they can take you just about anywhere — including Australia, New Zealand, the South Pacific, and more. On top of that, American has an extensive partner airline network to give you options on how to get there.
Here's all you need to know about using AAdvantage miles to get to Oceania and the South Pacific.
How To Get to Australia, New Zealand, and the South Pacific With AAdvantage Miles
If you've got a balance of American Airlines AAdvantage miles, there are a variety of carriers you can fly to reach Australia, New Zealand, and the South Pacific. Using AA's definition, the “South Pacific” region includes the following countries — as you'll see on its award charts:
- American Samoa and Samoa
- Australia
- Fiji
- French Polynesia
- Guam
- Kiribati
- New Caledonia
- New Zealand
- Palau
- Papua New Guinea
- Solomon Islands
- Tonga
Related: A Complete Guide to American Airlines Award Travel Rules
Fly American Airlines
The most straightforward use of AAdvantage miles to trek across the Pacific Ocean is for flights on American Airlines. Even though the airline employs dynamic award pricing, the “starting at” rates for the two destinations in Oceania it serves —Sydney (SYD) and Auckland (AKL) — are reasonable.
Presently, you can fly to Sydney, Australia from Los Angeles (LAX) and to Auckland from both LAX and Dallas–Fort Worth (DFW).
For AA-operated flights originating in the lower 48, award prices follow the chart below:
But in reality, the “starting at” pricing doesn't wholly reflect the rates you'll see out in the wild. Usually, the actual pricing is a touch higher in every fare class. Think 40,000 miles for one-way economy award instead of 35,000, for example.
If either of AA's two outposts in Oceania aren't your intended final destination, you can connect to numerous other cities through Qantas' flight network out of Sydney. You also can connect out of Auckland on a Qantas-operated flight, but it will almost always require a stop in one of the carrier's hubs in the Eastern half of Australia, such as Brisbane (BNE). Even better, adding an extra leg (or two) can usually be done without additional cost.
For instance, you can fly from Los Angeles to Perth via Auckland and Brisbane for 40,000 AAdvantage miles in economy — the same price as flying from LAX to AKL directly.
Fly Oneworld partner airlines
American Airlines belongs to the Oneworld alliance, which houses 13 member airlines. Two of those members offer easy access to Oceania and the South Pacific: Qantas and Fiji Airways (Oneworld connect partner).
Compared to the flight award chart for AA flights, American's partner chart looks a lot busier. But of particular interest to this post is the bottom row, which reflects the partner rates for transpacific flights to the South Pacific.
On partner awards, the price you see in the chart is the price you'll pay if you can find availability. There's no need to wrangle dynamic pricing when booking a partner flight.
From the United States, Qantas flies a handful of routes to Sydney (SYD), a couple to Melbourne (MLB), and one to Brisbane (BNE). Additionally, Qantas operates an ultra-long-haul flight from New York (JFK) to Auckland (AKL), which clocks in at just under 18 hours. Each route patterns the award chart above, and, as mentioned earlier, you can add a connection at no extra cost, pending availability.
You also can fly Qantas from Honolulu (HNL) to Sydney (SYD), but these shorter routes feature a different award chart. Presently, flights between Hawaii and the South Pacific price as follows:
- Main cabin: 37,500 AAdvantage miles
- Premium economy: 50,000 AAdvantage miles
- Business/domestic first: 65,000 AAdvantage miles
- First: 90,000 AAdvantage miles
If you can find award seats available for booking, Fiji Airways offers a comfortable product to the South Pacific and beyond through its hub in Nadi, Fiji (NAN). American Airlines doesn't allow stopovers on award bookings, but taking advantage of the maximum connection time of 23 hours and 59 minutes is an easy way to explore an extra destination, like Nadi, before continuing onwards.
Fly AA's non-alliance partner airlines
Although they typically fly under the radar, American Airlines partners with two non-Oneworld carriers that offer access to the South Pacific and Oceania, namely, Air Tahiti Nui and Hawaiian Airlines.
Air Tahiti Nui flies from a handful of international destinations to its home in Papeete (PPT). From the United States, you can fly to PPT from Los Angeles (LAX) and Seattle (SEA). The carrier also flies from both U.S. destinations to Paris (CDG). You can book the European routes with AA miles, but you can't fly from Europe all the way to Papeete on Air Tahiti Nui on one award ticket, given American's routing rules.
American Airlines AAdvantage miles are also useful for Hawaiian Airlines flights from Honolulu (HNL) to five destinations scattered across Oceania and the South Pacific:
- Papeete (PPT)
- Rarotonga (RAR)
- Pago Pago (PPG)
- Auckland (AKL)
- Sydney (SYD)
Flights to and from Hawaii use the abbreviated partner award chart shown earlier. And to note, Hawaiian's Pago Pago route is the hardest to find award space on. The carrier operates the route twice weekly on Mondays and Thursdays. Rarotonga is difficult to find, too, but it's possible with enough digging.
Connections are also allowed on itineraries featuring a route operated by Hawaiian Airlines. So, for example, you could fly from HNL to Sydney with Hawaiian and then fly with Qantas to Brisbane if you so choose.
Earning AAdvantage Miles
If any of these destinations are on your bucket list, you'll want to build a stash of AAdvantage miles to make a redemption. The easiest way to earn miles is by flying American Airlines and its partners, using the AAdvantage eShopping portal, earning miles (instead of cash) interest with Bask Bank, and banking a welcome bonus on an AA credit card. With the right strategy, you can rack up a lot of miles in a short amount of time.
With these perks, it's easy to justify the annual fee of $99, waived for first 12 months.
- Free checked bags for you and up to 4 companions on domestic itineraries
- Priority boarding to help you win the race for overhead bin space
- A 25% discount on inflight food, beverage, and Wi-Fi purchases
- Earn 2X miles for every $1 spent at restaurants
- Earn 2X miles for every $1 spent at gas stations
- Earn 2X miles for every $1 spent on eligible American Airlines purchases
- Earn 1X mile for every $1 spent on all other purchases
You also can transfer Bilt Rewards points to American Airlines AAdvantage at a 1:1 ratio. At present, Bilt is the only transferable point currency that offers transfers to AA.
Related: Do American Airlines AAdvantage Miles Expire?
Final Thoughts
For many, Oceania and the South Pacific are aspirational travel destinations. But instead of paying expensive cash fares, you can redeem American Airlines AAdvantage miles for flights to Australia, New Zealand, French Polynesia, and more. Even better, AA has a great network of partners you can leverage to get there.
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