Avios multipartner

Avios: Oneworld multi-partner award tickets

To the point Here are all the details you need to know about using your British Airways Avios miles for Oneworld multi-partner bookings.

A common and well known use of Avios miles is for short flights since the price depends on the distance traveled.

In fact, the majority of sweetspots with British Airways Executive Club Avios miles are on domestic flights in Australia or Japan where flights are very expensive.

However, there is another sweetspot in Oneworld’s multi-partner itineraries on long-haul routes, especially in business and first class.

Multi-partner itinerary with Avios

The usual pricing with Avios miles is per flight segment.

However, for multi-partner Oneworld itineraries, the total distance of the trip will be taken into consideration. So, it allows us to include several flights for a lower cost, especially if we include short-haul flights in our route.

Qantas

What is the cost in Avios for a Oneworld multipartner ticket?

There is a second fee schedule for Oneworld multi-partner reservations. This chart works when traveling on two or more Oneworld partners, excluding British Airways.

It is still possible to have flight segments with British Airways, but you will have to add two more partners to access these prices.

Avios Multi-carrier reward chart

For example, the following fare schedule (economy class cost) applies if you book a flight from Montreal to Sydney

  • with American Airlines for the segment between Montreal and Dallas
  • with Qantas for the segment between Dallas and Tokyo
YUL-SYD sur partenaires

The number of Avios miles required for a Oneworld multi-partner award ticket in premium economy will be 1.5X higher than the amounts above; for business class it will be 2X and first class will be 3X higher.

On British Airways flights, the fare difference between economy and business class is increased by 3X when it is only 2X when using partners!

We can see here that a flight between Montreal and London requires well over three times the Avios miles in business class compared to the cost of economy class.

YUL-LHR Y
YUL-LHR J

So using the Oneworld Multi-Partner chart in business or first class is a great way to get the most value out of your Avios miles.

Avios multipartner

Oneworld multi-partner pricing rules

The rules for using your Avios on Oneworld multi-partner award tickets are not very clear.

In theory, you should limit yourself to 8 flight segments and one overland segment; this leaves a lot of room to build a dream itinerary! In practice, the restriction on the number of flight segments seems very firm, but for land segments, it depends on the agent.

  • Two or more different Oneworld partners, excluding British Airways
  • Three different Oneworld partners and more if you want to include British Airways
  • Taxes and fees must be paid in cash
  • Oneworld multi-partner tickets can only be booked by phone

A land segment means that you get from one place to another on your own.

Thus, this distance is not taken into consideration in the pricing. You just need to be on time for your flight after the ground segment.

For example, Montreal-London flight, ground segment, Helsinki-Doha flight, Doha-Hong Kong flight and so on.

Avios sweetspots in the Oneworld multi-partner grid

To get the most value from this chart, it is best to book long distance and in business or first class.

Also, it’s a great way to try out several airlines with Avios since these miles are easily accessible in Canada with multiple credit card transfer partners or with some card directly from RBC!

Oceania and Asia at a good price

There are plenty of Oneworld partners to go to Australia and Asia.

Indeed, the following companies have a very interesting network from their hub.

  • American Airlines
  • American Eagle
  • Cathay Pacific
  • Finnair
  • Japan Airlines
  • Malaysia Airlines
  • Qantas
  • Qatar Airways
S– Australie—

Travelling to Australia and Japan with Avios

By using Avios on the Oneworld multi-partner grid, it would be possible to make a trip to Japan and Australia on the same ticket!

  • in economy class for 120 000 Avios
  • in business class for 240 000 Avios

What is interesting in this example is the addition of the short-haul segments between NRT-KIX and SYD-MEL to the long-haul flights to get there.

Asie et Océanie Avios
ROUTE COMPANY
Segment # 1 Montreal-Dallas American Airlines
Segment # 2 Dallas-Tokyo Japan Airlines
Segment # 3 Tokyo-Osaka Japan Airlines
Segment # 4 Osaka-Sydney Qantas
Segment # 5 Sydney-Melbourne Qantas
Segment # 6 Melbourne-Los Angeles Qantas
Segment # 7 Los Angeles-Chicago American Airlines
Segment # 8 Chicago-Montreal American Airlines
JAL

Optimizing internal flights in Australia and Japan with the Oneworld multi-partner grid

Internal flights in Japan and Australia are expensive. Indeed, Avios miles are often optimized when leaning towards this avenue.

If you want to travel to both countries, it can be interesting to build a multi-partner Oneworld itinerary.

Optimisation multicarrier Japon et Australie
ROUTE COMPANY
Segment # 1 Tokyo-Fukuoka Japan Airlines
Segment # 2 Fukuoka-Okinawa Japan Airlines
Segment # 3 Okinawa-Osaka Japan Airlines
Segment # 4 Osaka-Sydney Qantas
Segment # 5 Sydney-Cairns Qantas
Segment # 6 Cairns-Alice Spring Qantas
Segment # 7 Alice Spring-Melbourne Qantas

Since you must limit yourself to a maximum of 8 flight segments, it can be smart to book multiple short-haul flights with Avios on the Oneworld multi-partner grid.

Then use Aeroplan points, for example, on another ticket to get to Japan and back from Australia!

  • 70,000 Avios for internal flights in Japan and Australia + flight between the two countries
  • 93,300 Aeroplan points for international flights to and from Montreal

All flights to Japan and Australia would have totaled approximately 78,000 Avios if booked on the standard fare schedule compared to 70,000 Avios on the same ticket with the Oneworld multi-partner fare schedule.

YUL-NRT AC
MEL-YUL AC

When we search for prices on Google Flights for the domestic Japan portion of the flight only, we can see that they are upwards of $900.

Vols internes Japon

For comparison purposes:

If you use your Membership Rewards points for an account credit, you will need 90,000 American Express Membership Rewards points to apply to your domestic flights within Japan only.

If you use your Membership Rewards points to transfer to Avios for a Oneworld multi-partner flight, you’ll need 70,000 American Express Membership Rewards points to get domestic flights in Japan, domestic flights in Australia and a flight between the two countries.

Travel to Europe, Africa and the Middle East with Avios

Then, you can also discover several very different destinations on the same ticket in Europe, the Middle East and Africa with the Oneworld multi-partner grid!

  • in economy class for 100,000 Avios
  • in business class for 200,000 Avios
Europe, MO, Afrique Avios 2
ROUTE COMPANY
Segment # 1 Montreal-Casablanca Royal Air Maroc
Segment # 2 Casablanca-Madrid Iberia
Segment # 3 Madrid-Copenhagen Iberia
Segment # 4 Copenhagen-Amman Royal Jordanian
Segment # 5 Amman-Doha Qatar Airways
Segment # 6 Doha-Nairobi Qatar Airways
Segment # 7 Nairobi-London British Airways
Segment # 8 London-Montreal British Airways

Considering that round-trip economy flights between Montreal and Nairobi run between $1,500 and $2,000, it’s worth transferring 200,000 American Express Membership Rewards points in Avios instead of using these points as an account credit (200,000 Membership Rewards points = $2,000 cash back).

This way, not only will you be in business class, but you have the opportunity to visit several other places for the same price!

YUL-NBO Y
Sahara

Oneworld multipartner world tours with Avios

The distances mentioned in the Oneworld multi-partner price list are large enough to allow us to make “round the world” type itineraries!

The following itinerary (19,258 miles) allows us to fly on the wings of four different companies and visit four cities for the cost of:

  • 100,000 Avios in economy class
  • 200,000 Avios in business class
Tour du monde en J 200 000 Avios
ROUTE COMPANY
Segment # 1 Montreal-Chicago American Eagle
Segment # 2 Chicago-Tokyo Japan Airlines
Segment # 3 Tokyo-Hong Kong Cathay Pacific
Segment # 4 Hong Kong-Doha Cathay Pacific
Segment # 5 Doha-Montreal Qatar Airways

Then, here is another example with a segment by land. Since the total distance is 19,873 miles, the price in Avios is identical to the previous illustration.

Tour de l’Asie en J 200 000 Avios avec segment terrestre
ROUTE COMPANY
Segment # 1 Montreal-Dallas American Airlines
Segment # 2 Dallas-Tokyo Japan Airlines
Segment # 3 Tokyo-Hong Kong Japan Airlines

Land segment

Segment # 4 Sydney-Dallas Qantas
Segment # 5 Dallas-Montreal Qantas

This kind of Oneworld multi-partner itinerary is perfect for visiting Japan before going to Southeast Asia.

Then, you can use the numerous low-cost airlines to discover the region at your own pace (Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, etc.) before you go to Australia.

Once in Kangaroo Country, you can drive along the beautiful landscape of the east coast from Cairns to Sydney to catch your flight back to Montreal!

IMG_1613
Backtracking

Two trips for the price of one? Again, the rules are not very clear on this. Technically, nothing prevents you from booking two separate trips on the same airline ticket. Try your luck with the agent and if it doesn’t work out, call back another time!

Trip # 1: YUL-LGA; JFK-HEL-DOH-YUL

Trip #2: YUL-DFW-SYD-DFW-YUL

How do I make a multi-partner reservation with Avios?

You’ll need to be patient as you search for availability on each of the flight segments in your Oneworld multi-partner itinerary, one by one.

Using the previous example, it will be frustrating to find seats on all flights, on the dates you want and in the fare class you want, and then hit a wall at the last segment.

In the event that you can’t find a seat on a flight, you can always check on partner programs. In fact, if a Cathay Pacific flight appears available on Asia Miles, you will be able to book it with your Avios even if it does not appear on British Airways Executive Club.

For each segment, make sure you have the following information

  • origin and destination
  • airline company
  • flight number
  • date

Once you have your detailed itinerary at hand, simply call to make a reservation!

Conclusion

The Oneworld multi-partner grid is an excellent tool to master to optimize Avios miles.

Aeroplan, Asia Miles, Avios… which is the best program (or mix of programs) to book your dream trip? There is no single answer unfortunately; get out your calculator and do some simulations!

In short, the possibilities are endless. Sky is the limit. Do you have any questions? Come and ask them in this Facebook community topic.

Come to discuss that topic in our Facebook Group!
Aline
I'm Aline, an experienced traveller, a foodie at heart, an Avgeek, a photography enthusiast and an expert on credit card programs. I use Reward Points to travel on a budget and to save money on everyday life; writing about these topics allows me to share my passion and help you. ~ 7 continents and 75 countries ~

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