Some amazing business class fares are available from Australia to Europe right now, flying with the well-regarded Hainan Airlines.

Tickets are available from Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Cairns to destinations like London, Paris, Rome, Madrid and Brussels, and are as low as $3000 return. Here’s Melbourne-Paris as an example:

All routes are via Shenzen, Xián or Changsha in China. Depending on your itinerary, there could be a long layover in one of these cities. This might be an opportunity to explore the city (Australians can now get transit entry into China for a few days without a Visa) or make it a stopover (these are free).

Open jaw bookings are also available (arrive in one city, return from another).

Tickets are available for departures from 21 August until the end of the year, as best as I can tell.

The flights are operated by A330s and 787s with comfortable seats in either 1-2-1 or 2-2-2 layout. Hainan is generally reported to have good service and dining on board.

As Hainan is a Virgin Australia partner, you can earn Velocity Points and all-important status credits on the flights between Australia and China (check out the earn table here). The flights between China and Europe can be credited to other Hainan partners, like Etihad or Alaska.

You can search and book the fares on Hainan’s website here, but as date options are limited, play around on Google Flights first to find the dates with the cheapest fares (note that the fares are often a few hundred dollars cheaper on Hainan’s site compared to what’s quoted on Google Flights. An odd quirk.)

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Two months ago, Singapore Airlines announced that it will launch the world’s longest commercial flights later this year, with non-stop services between Singapore and New York using the new Airbus A350-900ULR (ultra-long-range) aircraft.

Flights will begin on 11 October 2018, to Newark Liberty International Airport. The route will initially be served three times a week, departing Singapore on Monday, Thursday and Saturday. Daily operations will commence from 18 October after an additional A350-900ULR aircraft enters service.

The aircraft will be configured in an all-premium, two-class layout, with 67 Business Class seats and 94 Premium Economy Class seats.

While paid tickets for the new route went on sale almost immediately, Singapore Airlines didn’t release any award seats – until now.

Saver-level award seat availability in both classes is now wide open. To book, you’ll need 92,000 KrisFlyer miles in business class or 70,000 miles in premium economy one-way, plus modest taxes and fees.

Singapore Airlines A350 business class

Singapore Airlines A350 premium economy

Clocking in at around 18 hours, this flight isn’t for the faint-hearted – but at least you’ll be travelling in comfort.

It’s possible these seats can be booked using Velocity Points, but they’re not showing up on Velocity’s website, so it may require a call to Velocity’s contact centre. It’s also possible Singapore Airlines is restricting access to these seats to KrisFlyer members.

Want more Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles? Earn the equivalent of 1.5 miles per dollar spent with the Amex Explorer Credit Card: my favourite credit card. 

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Etihad Airways is offering cheap business class fares from Jakarta to Rome, going for around $2036 return, with availability wide open from September 2018 to May 2019.

If you have the flexibility to make your own way to Jakarta (or get a travel agent to arrange connecting flights from/to Australia), this is a great opportunity to arrive in Europe in style.

While the flights are operated by Etihad’s older A330 and 777 aircraft, business class is still a very comfortable experience. All seats are lie-flat with direct aisle access.

Etihad A330 business class 

By my calculations, you’ll earn 15,600 Velocity Points (plus a status bonus, if you’re eligible) and a whopping 400 status credits for this return trip.

The easiest way to search for eligible dates is via Google Flights – use the calendar to find the days with the cheapest fares then simply click through to Etihad to book. A travel agent may also be able to assist.

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Hawaii is a notoriously tricky destination to get to using Qantas Points.

Qantas rarely releases premium award seats on its sole route between Sydney and Honolulu, as it’s usually easy to fill the A330 aircraft with paying passengers.

However, from 20 August to 26 September 2018 and again from 7 December 2018 to 15 April 2019, Qantas is switching to a larger Boeing 747 on this route – and, during this period, it’s released a whole bunch of premium economy and business class award seats.

You’ll need 72,000 Qantas Points in business class or 54,000 in premium economy for a one-way ticket ex-Sydney (potentially more if you’re connecting from another city), plus Qantas’ usual hefty taxes and fees.

Business class seats

Premium economy seats

This is a very rare opportunity, so I expect the seats will be snapped up quickly.

If you’re interested, don’t delay booking!

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Great value business class fares to South America are available right now flying with Qantas and oneworld partner LATAM.

The cheapest fares are from Australia’s east coast capitals and Adelaide to Santiago, costing around $3700. The price goes up for departures from other cities (e.g. for Perth it’s around $4600).

Other destinations in South America are also available for a modest extra cost. For example, Melbourne to Buenos Aires return can be found for around $3800, which I think is a fantastic deal.

These fares are for departures between Wed 1 Aug 2018 and Fri 30 Nov 2018 and can be booked at qantas.com.

You have a couple of options for flying the longest leg between Sydney/Melbourne and Santiago.

LATAM operates both routes with a 787 Dreamliner, which sports a 2-2-2 layout in business class.

The Melbourne flights are direct but Sydney-Santiago has a brief stop in Auckland.

LATAM 787 business class

LATAM 787 business class

Another option is a Qantas 747 from Sydney to Santiago direct, featuring the familiar Skybed seat we also see on Qantas’ A380s, and a 2-2-2, 2-2 or 2-3-2 layout depending on where you are on the plane.

Qantas 747 business class seats

Domestic connections within Australia are operated by Qantas, and flights from Santiago to other destinations in South America are operated by LATAM.

You’ll earn a stack of Qantas Points and status credits with these flights. To see how many, check out Qantas’ handy online calculator.

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American Express is offering card members $200 back when they spend $1,500 or more on flights with Etihad Airways.

This is a great opportunity to save money if you’re planning on booking a flight to Europe, the Middle East, Africa or even North America, via Abu Dhabi.

To take advantage of this offer, you must save it to your card, then spend $1,500 or more, in one or more transactions, online at www.etihad.com/en-au or via the Etihad Airways app by 7 August 2018 for flights departing Australia.

This opportunity is limited to the first 5,000 cards that save the offer. You can save it via the Amex app.

Payments must be for flights departing Australia, and paid for in Australian Dollars.

Etihad partners with Virgin Australia, so you may be able to earn Velocity Points and status credits with your flight.

Great Amex offers like this pop up all the time. If you’re not yet an Amex card member and are considering it, check out the reviews of our favourite Amex cards here.

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