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How to Book Air New Zealand Airpoints Awards

Andy Shuman

Air New Zealand is a global airline based in Auckland. It flies to four cities in the United States: Honolulu, Los Angeles, Houston and San Francisco. Airpoints, the airline’s frequent flyer program, is revenue-based.  What you earn is based on the cost of the flight, and the cost of an award ticket is tied to its cash price. The program values one Airpoints Dollar to one New Zealand dollar. You can redeem for any available seat on any flight.

In addition, you can use Airpoints Dollars to pay for seat assignments and extra bags. Members can also request Oneup award upgrades by submitting bids that will be considered by the airline. Guaranteed upgrades are only available to Elite members.

The Star Alliance partner award chart featured fixed rates, but closely mirrors the cash price of tickets. There is limited availability for these seats.

Airpoints also offers companion award tickets.  These tickets, however, can’t be used if a member is redeeming Airpoints Dollars for their own flight.

Air New Zealand offers a terrific product called Skycouch, which turns an economy three-seat row into a flat surface that can more comfortably accommodate a couple or families with small children. Skycouch can be booked as an award ticket.

Economy class Skycouch from Air New Zealand

When Should You Use Air New Zealand Airpoints Dollars?

The revenue redemption scheme used by Air New Zealand is unusual for an international frequent flyer program. Finding award sweet spots in a revenue-based program is not easy, since it typically boils down to finding the lowest fare. The lower the fare, the fewer points you will spend.

In some limited circumstances, it might make sense to book an award seat on a Star Alliance partner in business or even first class. One of those routes is between the U.S. and South Pacific Islands. Tickets to Fiji, for example, cost 715 Airpoints Dollars in coach, 1,090 in business and 1,380 in first class.

For most destinations, though, this strategy wouldn’t apply, since business and first class usually cost two to three times more than economy.

Air New Zealand’s Star Alliance award chart

Fares and awards are calculated in one-way segments. Only Air New Zealand award flights can be booked online.

Partners Bookable Online:

Partners Bookable by Phone:

When to Book by Phone:

See below for our phone booking tips.

How to Search for Air New Zealand Airpoints Dollars Award Seats Online

Searching and booking an award seat on Air New Zealand is easy. Search like you would for a regular cash ticket. You don’t even have to log in. Go to the Air New Zealand website, enter your flight information and click “search.”

On the next screen, you’ll see a week of flights and their cost. Click on the day you want in order to see the flight details. Make your selection and click “continue.”

At this point, you’ll be prompted to log in. If you have enough points to buy the ticket, you will see the option: “continue with Airpoints.” Click it and proceed with the booking.

Air New Zealand, like many other Australian and New Zealand companies, charges a small fee for using credit cards. Unless you are booking a domestic flight, or a flight between New Zealand and Australia, you will also have to pay taxes.

Phone Booking Tips

The Air New Zealand call center is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Since awards are revenue-based, the airline’s agents don’t normally have to deal with complex itineraries and confusing rules. However, if you’re booking a partner airline, it might be a good idea to perform an online search first and see what flights are available for your destination. Unfortunately, all flights booked by phone are charged a fee, even if you can’t book online.

Important Award Booking Considerations