Starting on May 14th, Alaska Airlines will operate its new route with a Hawaiian Airlines A330-200 aircraft four times a week. One cool quirk about this flight from Japan is that you'll actually land 5-6 hours before you left Japan, so you get to relive some of the same day over again.<\/p>\n
Seattle (SEA) to Osaka (KIX)<\/strong><\/p>\n Osaka (KIX) to Seattle (SEA)<\/strong><\/p>\n I'm all for this route. My husband and I just went to Japan for the first time this year, and now I can't wait to go back and experience more. I'm keen to try the route on Alaska's plane, as I wasn't too impressed with JAL's service from Seattle.<\/p>\n About a month later, Seattle will start a route that Air Tahiti Nui abandoned not too long ago, with three-times-weekly service from Seattle to Papeete, Tahiti. This flight will also be operated using the Hawaiian Airlines Airbus A330-200.<\/p>\n Seattle (SEA) to Papeete (PPT)<\/strong><\/p>\n Papeete (PPT) to Seattle (SEA)<\/strong><\/p>\n Here's to hoping Alaska has more success than Air Tahiti Nui did on this route. Personally, I think they will, since Alaska can sell tickets not only through Atmos Rewards but also as cash tickets across its wide nationwide flight network.<\/p>\n One interesting point here is that Alaska Airlines will operate these routes using Hawaiian Airlines' A330-200 aircraft instead of their new Dreamliner 787 planes. Alaska is scheduled to get a few more of those Dreamliners this year and the next, but since the delivery will be slower, it looks like they'll be using these aircraft in the meantime.<\/p>\n Also, since Papette (PPT) and Osaka (KIX) are routes both currently in service with A330-200 aircraft, if there was ever a need to do an equipment swap or service one, I would imagine it'll be easier to make those last-minute adjustments.<\/p>\n You can book these routes now, with both cash and points rates available.<\/p>\n Alaska doesn't seem to have loaded any business class saver availability on these routes yet. So, business class awards currently start at 150,000 points each way.<\/p>\n Economy flights are available for far fewer points, but since the A330-200 planes don't have any premium economy, that's all you can access. Alaska offers a Premium Class — but for now it's just a regular economy seat with a few extra inches of legroom.<\/p>\n If you want to fly these new Alaska routes without paying that much for business class, we recommend setting up award availability alerts with your award search tool of choice.<\/p>\n\n
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Alaska's New Service From Seattle to Papeete<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Using Hawaiian Airlines Planes<\/span><\/h2>\n
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How To Book These New Routes<\/span><\/h2>\n
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