UPDATED: Qantas continues to roll this offer out and it has now been extended for bookings made until 30th April for flights before 30th June. With borders opening and closing at a moments notice this remains the best way to book a flight. I have been using it for flights between my new home in Melbourne to my old home in Sydney.
TIP: You can still cancel a flight even after checking in.
Qantas Classic Awards frequent flyer flights are one of the best ways to book a domestic or international flight. They provide a flexible booking at a fraction of the price. Normally changes can be made for 6,000 points however Qantas is now allowing you to cancel frequent flyer flights without any cancellation fee.
With uncertainty about when Australian state borders will be open, now is a great time to take advantage of this generous offer. If you have enough points you can make multiple bookings that can be cancelled for free!
If you have a Classic Flight Reward booking (using Qantas Points) and wish to cancel your trip, you can do so by 31 October 2020 and we’ll waive the cancellation fee. The total Qantas Points used and any taxes, fees and carrier charges paid will be refunded.
In this post:
Multiple Frequent Flyer Booking Hack
Normally when you are booking flights you need to be clear about when you are leaving and when you are returning. This is because the cost of changes and cancellation can become prohibitive. If you cancel the cheap Qantas Red e-Deal ticket your forfeit the full ticket value!.
One of the advantages of having a lot of frequent flyer points means you can now book multiple flights now and fine tune the details later, without paying any penalty.
I have just booked a trip from Sydney to Alice Springs and there are a number of tips I unearthed
Book Each Qantas Classic Awards Sector Individually
The key to this hack is to book each sector individually. This allows you to cancel a leg without affecting the rest of your trip.
If you are unsure of your dates you can book multiple departure and arrival dates. This is particularly relevant when we don’t know when the borders are going to be opened. For my trip I booked the first available outbound trip and multiple return trips, knowing I can cancel any of them for free.
I am an advocate of having a large points balance available so you can make multiple bookings. Qantas is normally quick to refund points once you cancel a booking.
Book Classic Awards Only By Looking For the Classic Logo
While you have lots of choices available you need to search for classic awards. In the example below you can get a classic award for 18,000 points with more benefits than a flex fare! Classic awards are the equivalent of the more expensive Flex fare when it comes to cancellation fees.
You will need to be flexible on the dates you choose as they are not available every day.
Choose The Most Direct Flights
While you can get points on most days for a huge premium you can also often get indirect classic award flights. These flights require more time, more points and more taxes. They always have a stopover and are not as convenient as a direct flight, unless you want to visit more lounges.
Qantas Domestic Business Class vs Economy Class
As a platinum flyer I don’t value short haul domestic business class flights in Australia. Platinum provides priority check in, lounge access, additional baggage and seat selection. Qantas will often provide an empty seat next to you.
Business class is a bit over twice the number of points than economy (18k vs 41.5k). So it’s only worthwhile if you have plenty of points and don’t have status.
Qantas Hotels Accommodation Vouchers
An interesting hack from making separate bookings is you get a $30 Qantas Holiday voucher for each booking. The vouchers can be used anywhere not just on this trip. Making three bookings provided $90 worth of vouchers. They are valid for 72 hours and are transferable to family or friends. I imagine if you cancel the bookings the vouchers are still valid,
Summary
With uncertainty around when you can travel Qantas Classic Frequent Flyer Bookings are a great way to organise your next trip. They can be cancelled easily with no penalty. A no brainer.
