Asia Miles
| Company type | Loyalty program |
|---|---|
| Industry | Frequent-flyer program |
| Predecessor | Cathay Pacific Loyalty Programmes Limited |
| Founded | February 1999 in Hong Kong |
| Headquarters | Hong Kong , Hong Kong |
Area served | Global |
| Owner | Cathay Pacific |
| Website | asiamiles |
Asia Miles is a frequent-flyer and loyalty program introduced by Cathay Pacific in February 1999. Participants accumulate miles through transactions made with affiliated credit cards and various partners, including airlines, hotels, dining establishments, financial institutions, retail outlets, and technology companies. Membership is complimentary for individuals aged two years and above.
In addition, Cathay Pacific manages the Marco Polo Club, a paid frequent-flyer scheme with four membership levels, applicable to Cathay Pacific and other Oneworld carriers. Enrollment in Asia Miles is automatic for Marco Polo Club members. By 2020, Asia Miles had surpassed 11 million members and partnered with over 800 organizations globally.
History
Established in Hong Kong in February 1999, Asia Miles and its operating entity, initially known as Cathay Pacific Loyalty Programmes Limited, later adopted the name Asia Miles Limited.
In January 2015, an incident involving the theft of 4.7 million miles and rewards valued at HK$100,000 occurred across 121 accounts; authorities apprehended four individuals connected to the breach. This event prompted the implementation of enhanced online security protocols and compensation for those affected.
Cathay Pacific acquired the budget airline HK Express as a fully owned subsidiary in July 2019. Following this acquisition, HK Express integrated into Asia Miles after discontinuing its own reward-U program, converting its points at a ratio of eight reward-U points to one Asia Mile.
Starting January 2020, Asia Miles transitioned from a time-based expiration policy to one based on account activity, enabling members to maintain their miles by redeeming or earning within every 18-month period.
Partner airlines
As a founding member of the Oneworld alliance, Cathay Pacific’s Asia Miles extends partnerships beyond alliance carriers to include several non-Oneworld airlines.
As of , the airline partners outside Cathay Pacific and its subsidiary HK Express encompass:
- Air Canada
- Air China
- Air New Zealand
- Alaska Airlines
- American Airlines
- Austrian Airlines
- Bangkok Airways
- British Airways
- Finnair
- Gulf Air
- Iberia
- Japan Airlines
- Jet Airways
- LATAM
- Lufthansa
- Malaysia Airlines
- Philippine Airlines
- Qantas
- Qatar Airways
- Royal Jordanian
- S7 Airlines
- Shenzhen Airlines
- SriLankan Airlines
- Swiss International Air Lines
Other partnerships
Asia Miles maintains collaborations with more than 800 partners spanning sectors such as dining, hospitality, telecommunications, and retail for both earning and redeeming miles.
Since 2016, the program has introduced co-branded credit cards beginning with a collaboration with Standard Chartered Hong Kong. This initiative expanded to include partnerships with American Express in Hong Kong as well as banks like China CITIC Bank, Cathay United Bank, and BNU across mainland China, Taiwan, and Macau.
Miles expiration
Originally, Asia Miles points expired after three years. However, since January 2020, miles remain active provided members engage in earning or redeeming activities at least once within an 18-month timeframe.