Airpoints™ - Air New Zealand

The Airpoints rewards program from Air New Zealand has thousands of members and offers them a rather efficient way to earn and redeem points. Those who are a member of this program are able to earn points just by booking flights with this airline and their partners. One of the things that make this particular frequent flyer program unique is that members accrue points based on how much they spend rather than the distance they travel. There are a lot of great things about this program, so it’s important that you take the time to look into some of them.

Earning Airpoints Points

To be able to make the most of the Airpoints program, you want to maximize your account by accumulating Airpoints through paid flights, hotel stays, duty-free shopping, car rentals, and a lot more.

Paid Flights: Always give your Airpoints membership number whenever you make reservations or during check-in to ensure that Airpoints are credited accordingly. Airpoints may be earned at varying values based on the fare of your booked flight.
Partner Flights: Air New Zealand is a member of the Star Alliance, which allows flyers the ability to earn Airpoints for flights flown with alliance airlines. The number of miles you earn from each partner varies, so it’s best to reference Air New Zealand’s site to understand what mileage you stand to earn from your upcoming flight. To earn Airpoints on a partner flight, just enter in your membership number on your boarding pass and then check your account post-flight to ensure the mileage credits were properly posted to your account.
Credit Card Spending: Air New Zealand has a variety of co-branded credit cards available to New Zealand residents, see details here. They are also a transfer partner with SPG, which has a personal and business card that can be obtained for US residents. See the section below for card details.
Travel Partners: When you do business with Air New Zealand’s travel partners, you also get the opportunity to earn Airpoints. Your account accrues additional Airpoints when you stay in a Hilton branded hotel, for example, or hire a car from Avis or Budget. Check this page for further information.
Promotions: Air New Zealand occasionally offers promotions that provide members the ability to earn additional Airpoints Dollars. For the latest list of promotions, refer to the Air New Zealand website.

Redeeming Mileage Points

There are a number of different ways that you can go about redeeming the mileage points that you accrue as an Airpoints member, including:

Free Flights: Redeem your Airpoints for award flights online or calling the reservation desk. For other details on how to claim your reward and how many Airpoints Dollars you will need, visit this Air New Zealand page.
Upgrades: There are different kinds of Upgrades available in the Airpoints program. There are OneUp Upgrades, Recognition upgrades, Elite Short Haul Recognition upgrades, Elite Airpoints Dollar upgrades, and many more. For details on what these are and how you can avail of these benefits, refer to this link.
Partner Awards: Air New Zealand is a member of the Star Alliance, which allows travelers to redeem Airpoints Dollars and Status Points for award flights on partner airlines, subject to availability. Refer to Air New Zealand’s published Star Alliance award chart, as well as the Star Alliance strategy guide for further advice on how to search availability and book awards for each member airline.

Routing Rules

Airpoints members will want to keep in mind that both stopovers and open-jaws are allowed, so you will be able to maximize what you get out of your award flights.

Benefits of Air New Zealand’s Airpoints Program

There are quite a few benefits that you will enjoy when becoming a member of Air New Zealand’s Airpoints program, such as the ability to earn points through a number of ways. You will also be able to redeem the points you earn for lots of different things. The fact that this frequent flyer program is based on how much you spend rather than the distance you travel is something else to consider.

Elite Levels

Air New Zealand’s rewards program, Airpoints, offers flyers the advantage to accrue miles upon enrollment. Frequent flyers can earn Status Points and move up to the three elite tiers of status membership upon completing the status requirements. These levels are Silver, Gold, and Elite, which can afford a qualified member various perks and exclusive privileges like upgrade benefits, priority waitlisting, business class award fares, and many more.

Silver: Upgrade to Silver status by collecting 450 Status Points within a year and retain it by collecting 405 Status Points for every succeeding year, with at least half of these points gained from qualifying flights. This status allows members two complimentary one-time lounge passes, priority airport standby, and discounted business class fares.
Gold: Gold status is achieved after accumulating 900 Status Points in a span of 12 months, at least half of which are earned from qualifying flights. To retain the status, a member must collect 810 Status Points for the succeeding year. Members get to enjoy access to airport lounges, complimentary frequent flyer seating, a hotel or car rental voucher, and so much more.
Elite: The Elite status is earned with 1,500 Status Points, 900 of these from qualifying flights, within a one-year period. Renewal for this status requires 1,350 Status Points, with 810 of these points earned from qualifying flights, during the succeeding year. On top of the Gold status advantages, Elite members get a hotel voucher, a car rental voucher, complimentary car parking, Elite partner card, Elite threshold gifts, and other privileges.

Booking Fees & Charges

There are some fees that you might encounter when flying with Air New Zealand, such as the $35 short-haul or $60 long-haul fee for refunding booked tickets.

Redeem on Upgrades

As an Airpoints member, you can choose to use the points you accrue for cabin class upgrades. There are different kinds of upgrades that you can take advantage of, including OneUp Upgrades, Recognition upgrades, Elite Short-Haul Recognition upgrades, and others.