Best Value for Points When Crossing the Pacific

🎧 Always Turn Left: Your Ultimate Playbook to Conquering Transpacific Flights with Points

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If crossing the Atlantic is the litmus test of your points strategy, then crossing the Pacific is the stress test. It’s longer, more expensive, and less forgiving when you get it wrong. Cash fares for business class between the U.S. and Asia routinely stretch between $6,000 and $12,000 roundtrip - and first class can spike north of $20,000.

For the leisure traveler, redeeming points on Pacific routes is the difference between a once-in-a-lifetime splurge and an affordable repeatable trip. For Business owners, it’s the benchmark of whether their card spend turns into international expansion or just gets cashed out at 1.5%.

Done right, Pacific redemptions deliver some of the highest ROI in all of award travel. Done wrong, they drain balances into bad cent-per-point value. Here’s the complete guide.

Why the Pacific Is Different

1. Distance Matters

Transpacific flights clock in between 6,000 and 8,000+ miles one-way. That’s double a hop to Europe, which means airlines justify charging double the points.

2. Cash Prices Are Brutal

• Economy: $1,000–$2,000 roundtrip.
• Premium economy: $2,000–$3,000.
• Business class: $6,000–$12,000.
• First class: $12,000–$20,000+.

This makes business and first class across the Pacific the highest-yield redemptions available.

3. Availability Bottlenecks

Unlike Europe, there are fewer carriers, fewer frequencies, and fewer award seats. Planning matters.

Star Alliance Sweet Spots

1. ANA Mileage Club: The Crown Jewel

ANA offers one of the best deals in all of award travel.

• Cost: 75K–90K miles roundtrip business U.S.–Japan on ANA metal.
• First Class: 150K miles roundtrip.
• Pros: Outstanding hard product, top service.
• Cons: Must book roundtrip, surcharges ~$300–400.
• Example: JFK–Tokyo roundtrip business for 75K + $340. Cash price: $7,500.
• ROI: ~9.5 cents per point.

For Businesses: $500K annual spend at 4.2% optimized earn yields 21,000 points/month. In just 4 months, that’s enough for an ANA roundtrip business ticket worth $7,500. ROI: ~15% annualized return.

2. United MileagePlus: Simplicity at a Price

• Cost: 80K+ one-way business to Japan or Korea.
• Pros: No surcharges, huge partner network.
• Cons: Prices higher than ANA, space limited.
• Example: SFO–Tokyo for 80K + ~$50. Cash price: $6,800.
• ROI: ~8.4 cents per point.

3. Asiana Club (w/ Partners): Value Before It’s Gone

Asiana’s chart still beats peers, but the merger with Korean Air will erase it. If you can still use it:

• Cost: 62.5K one-way business U.S.–Japan.
• First: 80K one-way.
• ROI: 10–12 cents per point.

Oneworld Sweet Spots

1. Cathay Pacific Asia Miles

• Cost: 70K–85K one-way business U.S.–Hong Kong.
• First: 110K–125K one-way.
• Pros: Excellent hard product, solid availability via Asia Miles vs. partners.
• Cons: Taxes/surcharges ~$200–300.
• ROI: 7–9 cents per point.

2. American AAdvantage: The Partner Play

• Cost: 60K–70K business one-way U.S.–Japan/Korea on partners.
• First: 80K+ one-way.
• Pros: No surcharges, sweet spot on Japan Airlines.
• Cons: Space tough to find.
• Example: LAX–Tokyo on JAL business, 60K + $50. Cash price: $6,500.
• ROI: 10.7 cents per point.

3. Alaska Mileage Plan: Still Sweet for Asia

• Cost: 60K business one-way on Cathay Pacific or JAL.
• First: 70K one-way on Cathay Pacific.
• Pros: Best first-class deal across the Pacific.
• Cons: Limited availability post-merger.
• ROI: 12–15 cents per point.

SkyTeam Sweet Spots

1. Korean Air SKYPASS (Harder to Access, Still Strong)

• Cost: 62.5K business one-way U.S.–Seoul.
• First: 80K one-way.
• Pros: Great hard product, direct flights.
• Cons: Limited partners, fewer transfer options now.
• ROI: 8–11 cents per point.

2. Air France/KLM Flying Blue: Reliable, Not Cheap

• Cost: 90K+ one-way U.S.–Tokyo.
• Pros: Easy transfers from Amex/Chase/Citi/CapOne.
• Cons: High surcharges (~$300+), dynamic pricing.
• ROI: 5–6 cents per point, lower but dependable.

Non-Allied & Specialty Players

1. Singapore KrisFlyer

• Cost: 107K one-way business U.S.–Singapore.
• First Suites: 143K one-way JFK–Singapore.
• Pros: Iconic product, bucket-list trip.
• Cons: High mileage costs, surcharges ~$300.
• ROI: 6–8 cents per point, but prestige product.

2. Hawaiian Airlines

• Cost: 40K–50K business to Hawaii, 65K–85K to Asia/Oceania.
• Pros: Useful for West Coast departures.
• Cons: Limited availability.

3. Qantas Frequent Flyer

• Cost: 90K+ business one-way to Sydney.
• Pros: Rare availability, transfers from all majors.
• Cons: High taxes/surcharges.

Business ROI: The Multiplier Effect Across the Pacific

Europe looks good on paper. Asia looks insane. Here’s why:

• A marketing agency spends $1.2M annually on cards.
• At 1.5% cashback: $18,000.
• At 4.2% optimized earn: ~50,400 points/month, or 604,800/year.

That balance covers:

• 8 ANA roundtrip business tickets to Tokyo (75K each).
• Cash equivalent: ~$60,000.

That’s a 5x improvement over cashback and a return north of 10% on the same spend. For Small and Medium Size Businesses, this is corporate mobility without blowing up budgets.

Pitfalls to Watch

• Availability droughts: Asia is harder than Europe. You need flexibility.
• Dynamic pricing creep: United, Flying Blue, and others push over 100K one-way.
• Roundtrip rules: ANA requires roundtrip bookings, which reduces flexibility.
• Fuel surcharges: Cathay, ANA, and Singapore tack on $200–400.
• West Coast vs. East Coast: Best deals skew West Coast. From New York, you’ll need more points.

Burn vs. Buy

• If premium economy fares are ~$2,000–$2,500, and business awards are pricing at 90K+ points one-way, the cents-per-point math may drop below 2.5¢. In that case, buy cash and save your points for ANA, JAL, or Cathay first class.
• If you can cross the Pacific in business for under 70K points one-way, burn every time. That’s 8–12¢ per point - unbeatable.

Future of Pacific Awards

Expect tightening availability as demand to Asia rebounds, especially premium cabins to Japan. ANA’s chart will likely devalue within the next 24 months. Cathay remains strong but constrained. The smart play is to book now, not wait.

For Business owners, the Pacific should be the north star redemption in your optimization plan. If your points strategy can unlock Asia, everything else - Europe, domestic, Caribbean - is already a solved problem.