Etihad Guest: The Complete Beginner’s Guide

Here’s why life is better as an Etihad guest…

Etihad Airways is an Abu-Dhabi-based airline with an extensive flight network that connects Australia to Europe and beyond. Despite not being a member of any major airline alliance, Etihad has an impressive list of codeshare partners. This list includes a longstanding partnership with Virgin Australia, making Etihad a popular airline amongst many Australian-based Velocity members.

Etihad Guest overview

Etihad Guest – the airline loyalty program tied to Etihad Airways – rewards its members for not only flying with Etihad and its codeshare partners, but for simply signing up for the program.

With a generous sign-up bonus after you take your first flight, a strong network of international partner airlines, and ways to easily earn and redeem points in the air and on the ground in Australia, Etihad Guest has positioned itself as a program worth knowing about.

From using your Guest miles to book Virgin Australia flights to snapping up aspirational first and business class seats, becoming an Etihad Guest member could make a lot of sense.

How to join Etihad Guest in Australia

It is completely free to become an Etihad Guest member. You’ll just have to put a few minutes aside to complete the following steps:

1. Go to the sign-up page on the Etihad website
2. Enter your personal details
3. Accept the terms and conditions
4. Click ‘sign up’
5. Check your email and activate your account

Once you’ve activated your account you can log in to discover opportunities to earn and spend your miles.

Your initial activation email from Etihad Guest will have your new membership number – we recommend jotting this down to have on hand for future bookings.

Etihad guest enrolment bonus

Unlike other frequent flyer programs, Etihad Guest rewards members with points simply for signing up for the program.

You’ll be awarded 500 bonus miles when you enrol and take your first flight as an Etihad Guest member, giving you a head start to lock in Silver status.

Etihad Guest membership tiers and benefits

When you join Etihad Guest, you’ll instantly adopt Bronze status, meaning that you can earn and redeem points as a frequent flyer member.

You’ll need to climb the tier ladder to begin accessing elite benefits, with Silver, Gold, and Platinum status levels each offering a host of frequent flyer-specific perks.

Beyond these levels, Etihad also had a less published ‘invite-only’ tier called Etihad Guest Exclusive, which we won’t cover for the purposes of this beginner’s guide.

Status can be earned by reaching the required number of Tier Miles or Tier Segments within your membership year.

Here’s a breakdown of the requirements and benefits associated with the Etihad Guest elite tiers.

Etihad Guest Bronze

This is the free entry-level membership status that allows members to earn and redeem Etihad Guest miles for flights.

How to earn:
Sign-up

How to retain:
No requirement

Key benefits include:

• free inflight WiFi to chat on message apps
• purchase lounge access with miles
• seating and meal preferences (offered where possible)

Etihad Guest Silver

Welcome to Silver status – this is where the elite benefits kick in when members begin to fly and earn enough Tier Miles or Tier Segments.

How to earn:
25,000 Tier Miles or 20 Tier Segments

How to retain:
20,000 tier Miles or 15 Tier Segments

As well as 25% bonus miles on Etihad and select partner flights, key Silver benefits include:

• priority check-in
• one piece of additional baggage (or 10kg where applicable)
• one free Economy Standard seat selection
• guaranteed economy seat (at least 48 hours in advance)
• 25% discount on instant upgrades with Guest Miles at the airport
• access to the Al Reem Lounge and selected Etihad-network lounges

Etihad Guest Gold

In addition to all the Silver status benefits, Etihad Guest members can enjoy some more exclusive perks.

How to earn:
50,000 Tier Miles or 40 Tier Segments

How to retain:
40,000 Tier Miles or 30 Tier Segments

As well as 50% bonus miles on Etihad and select partner flights, key Gold benefits include:

• two free Economy Standard seat selections and discounts on Economy Preferred and Economy Space seats
• guaranteed economy seat (at least 24 hours in advance)
• one piece of additional baggage (or 15kg where applicable)
• 50% discount on instant upgrades with Guest miles at the airport
• 50% off onboard WiFi
• car rental tier match with Avis and Budget
• dedicated call centre
• access to Etihad and partner business class lounges worldwide for the member and one guest

Etihad Guest Platinum

Introducing Etihad Guest Platinum status, the top tier where elite members can expect some particularly generous benefits. On top of all the Gold perks, Platinum members will gain access to more travel-enhancing perks.

How to earn:
125,000 Tier Miles or 60 Tier Segments

How to retain:
100,000 Tier Miles or 48 Tier Segments

As well as 75% bonus miles on Etihad and select partner flights, key Platinum benefits include:

• gift instant Gold status to a friend
• guaranteed Economy Seat (at least 12 hours in advance)
• one piece of additional baggage (or 20kg where applicable)
• free Economy Space seat for members and discount for other guests
• up to 10 free Economy Standard and Preferred seats for other guests on a booking
• free onboard WiFi
• access to Etihad and partner first class lounges worldwide for the member and one guest

Etihad Guest Tier Miles & Tier Segments explained

On top of standard miles (used to redeem for rewards), Etihad Guest members can earn tier Miles, which are the equivalent of status credits. Tier Miles and Tier segments are used to get you to your status goals by climbing the tier ladder.

Tier Miles are generally earned by flying, so they aren’t as easy to amass. The further you fly, the more Tier Miles you’ll pick up. Earning Tier Segments, on the other hand, depends on how frequently you fly.

The video below goes into more detail about Tier Miles and Tier segments.

How to earn Etihad Guest miles in Australia

Despite Etihad Guest being an overseas program, there are still a variety of ways for Australain-based travellers to amass enough miles for an aspirational redemption.

The key to growing a healthy miles balance is to take advantage of Etihad’s many air and ground partners.

Transfer via American Express Membership Rewards

Etihad’s partnership with American Express Membership Rewards offers a simple and effective way to earn Guest miles in Australia.

Amex Membership Rewards members can convert points at a value of 2:1 (where 2 Membership Rewards points equal 1 Guest mile). This means that transferring the minimum 1,000 Membership Rewards Points will equate to 500 miles.

As such, members can earn a stack of Guest miles with an Amex card, once by earning and transferring across a credit card sign-up bonus, and then ongoing via an everyday spend.

The following American Express cards offer transfers to Etihad Guest:

Transfer via other bank rewards partners

While we don’t have access to any direct Guest miles-earning credit cards here in Australia, it is also possible to transfer credit card points to Etihad Guest miles from CBA Awards, Diners Club Rewards and Citibank Rewards (prestige members only).

When it comes to miles earn, most of these cards don’t compare to American Express Membership Rewards, with the Citi Prestige Mastercard earning 0.66 miles at major petrol stations, supermarkets and retailers.

Fly on Etihad Airways

Flying with Etihad is an easy way to earn miles when travelling to the other side of the world.

The number of miles you earn on Etihad flights will depend on your Guest status, the number of miles flown and fare booking class, with more miles on offer for premium cabin tickets.

Etihad has a handy Miles Calculator that can help you work out how many miles you’ll earn on your flights.

Using the calculator, we can see that an Etihad Guest Gold member travelling from Sydney to Abu Dhabi would earn 13,511 miles on a business value fare.

Fly on Virgin Australia and other partner airlines

Etihad isn’t part of a major global airline alliance, but it has a strong network of its own airline partners.

Again, the number of miles you’ll earn depends on the cabin class, booking class and tier segments travelled.

Here’s a list of Etihad’s current airline partners:

The image below outlines how many Guest miles you’ll earn on Virgin Australia flights.

To earn miles Guest miles when flying with these airline partners, you’ll need to provide your Guest number when making a booking and present your Etihad Guest card at check-in.

Earn miles from hotel stays

With over 300,000 partner hotels worldwide, it’s possible to earn Guest miles just about wherever you stay.

Etihad partners with major brands like Accor, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Marriott and Hilton to make earning miles on a hotel stay easy.

For example, a $160 stay (one night) at Pullman Sydney Hyde Park would earn 1,000 Etihad Guest miles.

Transfer from hotel loyalty programs

Marriott Bonvoy

You can transfer your Marriott Bonvoy points to Etihad Guest, with 3 Marriott Bonvoy points converting to 1 Etihad Guest mile.

Plus, you’ll also get a 25% bonus for every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points you transfer.

Accor Live Limitless

Accor Live Limitless offers member transfers to Etihad Guest miles at a favourable rate of 2:1. A minimum of 4,000 Reward points must be transferred, delivering a yield of 2,000 miles.

IHG One Rewards

Members of IHG One Rewards similarly have the option to transfer their hotel reward points to Guest miles, albeit at less value than via Marriott Bonvoy. 10,000 IHG One Rewards points convert to 2,000 Guest miles.

Hilton Honors

Hilton Honors members will need to transfer 10,000 Hilton Honors Points to earn 1,000 Guest miles, which is the least idea conversion rate of all the major hotel programs.

Earn miles with car hire

Etihad partners with Avis and Budget so members can earn points on the road as well as in the sky. Here’s how many miles are up for grabs:

Purchase Miles

Etihad’s BuyMiles initiative allows you to top up your miles balance and reach rewards sooner. You can buy up to 100,000 miles each year (Platinum members can purchase 150,000 miles).

Buying miles doesn’t usually make sense as a strategy to get maximum value out of frequent flyer programs, but purchasing Guest miles can occasionally make sense if you’re just short of reaching a particularly aspirational redemption.

Pool your miles with family

Etihad offers a Family Membership option that allows up to 9 participating members to pool their miles into one Etihad Guest account.

Similar to Velocity’s Family Pooling feature, an Etihad Guest Family Membership allows members to build a miles balance quickly. However, Etihad does not offer the ability to transfer Tier Miles as we see with Velocity Frequent Flyer.

There are some strict rules around who can apply for a Family Membership, with eligible family members confined to brothers, sisters, father, mother, spouse(s), children, grandchildren, grandparents, parents-in-law, stepparents, stepchildren, step-siblings, step-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and household help (one only).

You can visit this link to find out more and set up a Family Membership.

How much are Guest miles worth?

As with most frequent flyer currencies, the value of Etihad Guest miles depends on how you redeem them.

You’ll usually extract maximum value from your miles when you use them to redeem for a first or business class reward seat as opposed to using them to purchase products, which almost always offers poor value.

A one-way business class seat onboard an Etihad flight from Sydney to Abu Dhabi will require 110,000 miles. If you were to book with cash, the same flight would currently cost over $8,000, meaning you’re getting a decent 7 cents value per 100 miles. This value would go up for a first class redemption and down when booking an economy seat.

Be aware that Etihad can pass on hefty carrier charges, particularly for first and business class awards. While Etihad’s charges aren’t as exorbitant as we see with Emirates, for example, they’re still worth being wary of.

As such, it’s important to consider the cost of carrier charges when determining the value of your intended flight redemption. In cases where return carrier charges edge closer to the actual ticket price it may be smarter to save your miles and purchase a normal cash fare.

How to redeem Etihad Guest miles

The best way to redeem Etihad Guest miles is to secure a reward seat at the pointy end (or upper deck).

Passengers onboard the Etihad A380 can expect lofty things from its premium cabins, including the multi-room Residence, the Apartment and a solid business class offering.

Related: Etihad Promo Code, Discounts and Deals

Unfortunately, Etihad hit members with a harsh program devaluation in March 2023, meaning Guest members now need more miles to redeem flights across most of Etihad’s network.

The table below outlines the number of Guest miles you’ll now need to redeem an Etihad GuestSeat.

It’s worth noting here that the rates on Etihad’s award chart list the minimum miles. Thanks (or not) to Etihad’s dynamic pricing, your redemption could cost even more depending on demand and availability.

Etihad business class

Redeeming your Guest miles for an award flight from Melbourne to Abu Dhabi may be a good use of points for Australian-based travellers, especially on Etihad’s new ‘next level’ business class onboard the airline’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

A business class redemption can be secured for 110,000 miles in business class, or if travelling onwards to London (in business class) on the same booking, you’ll need 180,000 miles overall.

Business class upgrades

As well as outright experience bookings, it’s also possible to redeem miles on an upgrade to business class or even first class, subject to availability.

On the same Abu Dhabi-Melbourne flight, you’d require 48,556 miles for a business class upgrade from the most flexible economy tickets.

For confirmed business class tickets on a London-bound flight, an upgrade to first class costs just 39,000 miles from Abu Dhabi.

If you’re planning to use miles for an upgrade, it’s worth noting that upgrades from Economy Sale to business class are not available, nor are any upgrades from economy class to first class.

Etihad A380 first class

Hailed as one of the greatest first class products in the world, the A380 features nine First Apartments set across a single aisle.

Unfortunately, the redemption rates for first class are much higher post-devaluation. For example, a first class award redemption from Abu Dhabi to Paris has increased from 85,294 to 140,000 Guest miles.

When award seats become available, Australians can look to lock in a one-way jaunt in Etihad’s A380 First Apartment between London and Abu Dhabi in the following ways:

• Etihad: 140,000 miles (plus carrier charges/taxes)
• Velocity Frequent Flyer: 107,000 pts (plus carrier charges/taxes)
• Air Canada Aeroplan: 107,000 Aeroplan miles each way (plus minor taxes only)
• American Airlines: 107,500 American AAdvantage miles each way (plus carrier charges/taxes)

It’s worth noting that although the cost in Velocity Points cost is less, passengers will be slugged notoriously high carrier charges (which can be in excess of $400) effectively putting a huge dampener on the redemption value.

Air Canada Aeroplan on the other hand, doesn’t offer any carrier charges (rather, only passing on applicable taxes), which represents far better value for travellers who have access to a stash of Aeroplan miles.

The Residence

For the first time, Etihad plans to eventually offer The Residence as an optional extra for premium guests to further enhance their first-class experience (previously, this has only been bookable as a very pricey separate cabin class).

This dreamy upgrade offering sits between first class and private jet-like luxury, with a secluded three-room suite at the pointy end of the upper deck housing a two-person sofa, dining room and lockable bedroom.

Guests in The Residence will also have access to a spacious private bathroom, complete with a shower (of course)!

Virgin Australia redemptions

Etihad Guest previously offered some worthy sweet spots, with Virgin Australia, with Sydney to Queenstown in business class previously costing 13,800 Guest Miles (plus carrier charges).

Now, thanks to the distance-based chart, the same redemption costs a whopping 30,000 miles (plus carrier charges) – more than double!

The same unpleasant increase applies to the former Brisbane to Port Vila sweet spot in Virgin Australia business class.

These same redemptions now cost 35,500 points in Virgin Australia’s own program, Velocity Frequent Flyer, but while Etihad’s updated award rate is still cheaper, it’s nowhere near as outstanding as it once was.

Previously, Etihad Guest operated a different award chart for each airline partner, with award bookings for all partner airlines only able to be secured over the phone to the Etihad Guest call centre – a less-than-ideal process.

In somewhat good news, the Etihad Guest overhaul has resulted in the ability for frequent flyers to redeem Etihad Guest miles for Virgin Australia and American Airlines flights online.

It is a win for Australian -based flyers to have access to online redemptions onboard Virgin Australia flights.

Here are the Etihad Guest miles you’ll need to fly on Etihad’s partner airlines:

An upside to the previous program’s quirky award charts is that they hid many niche sweet spots favoured amongst savvy frequent flyers.

Etihad guest members can also access some Virgin Australia sweet spots, offering these cheap redemptions for Australian-based travellers.

Shop with your miles

The Etihad Guest Rewards Shop allows frequent flyers to burn their miles on products across a range of retail categories including electronics, travel and fashion.

However, redeeming miles for good typically offers a very poor value proposition compared to reward seat redemptions.

How many Etihad Guest miles do I need for a free flight?

You can secure a short haul economy redemption from Abu Dhabi with 7,000 Etihad Guest miles (plus carrier charges). This would look like flying to Bahrain, Dammam, Doha, Muscat or Riyadh.

An easy way to calculate where your miles will take you would be to use the Etihad Guest Miles Calculator and filter the ‘Spend Miles’ option ‘By miles’.

Bear in mind that the concept of a ‘free flight’ really depends on how much you’re forking out in carrier charges.

Stay rewarded: When do Etihad Guest miles expire?

Similar to Qantas Points, Etihad Guest miles expire after 18-months of account inactivity. As such, preventing your miles from expiring is as simple as earning or redeeming at least one mile in this period.

Etihad Platinum members benefit from no expiry on their miles, but this isn’t really anything to brag about as those with Platinum status would have to be active travellers to retain their status anyway.

All other members can pay to extend their miles, which may be worth it to save a balance if the expiry date crept up like an unwanted deadline.

However, the best way to stop your Etihad guest miles from expiring is to earn or redeem at least one mile every 1.5 years – an achievable task.

How can I claim missing Guest miles?

So you’ve taken a fight and can’t see your Etihad Guest miles – it happens. The way to claim miles depends on whether you flew with Etihad or one of its partner airlines.

Missing miles from Etihad-operated flights can be claimed online by logging into your account, navigating to the bottom of the homepage and clicking ‘Claim missing miles’.

Alternatively, you can also email [email protected]. Be sure to include a copy of your boarding pass and Etihad Guest number.

Partner airline claims can only be completed by emailing a copy of your boarding pass to [email protected]. You’ll also need to provide other details, such as your Etihad Guest number, flight number, booked fare class, booking reference and ticket number.

Sharable miles: How to transfer Etihad Guest miles

Miles spare? Why not share. Similar to Qantas Family Transfers, Etihad Guest has a ‘sharable miles’ feature that allows members to transfer their miles to each other.

Transferring miles to a friend can help them enjoy an upgrade or reach their next redemption goal.

To give Etihad guest miles:

• Log into your account and select Transfer Miles
• Add the recipients Etihad Guest account number and email address
• Select the amount you’d like to give. A 10% service fee will be added to your transaction

Note that you’ll need a minimum balance of 1,000 miles to transfer to another Etihad Guest member.

To receive Etihad Guest miles:

You can ask any friend or family member with an Etihad Guest membership to transfer a share of their miles to you.

Simply give them your Etihad Guest number and email address and they will be able to proceed with the transaction. Their miles will automatically be added to your account – the perfect gift idea if you ask us!

BusinessConnect: Etihad’s business rewards program

Etihad BusinessConnect is Etihad’s own business program that operated separately to Etihad Guest, with benefits geared towards small and medium businesses.

Similar to the business-focused Virgin Australia Business Flyer and Qantas Business Rewards programs, BusinessConnect allows members to earn Etihad Guest miles for themselves, as well as the business, each time they travel for work.

All you need to sign up is an active ABN – sole traders are eligible to register and travel – making it quite an accessible business rewards program.

One thing to keep in mind is that BusinessConnect requires two travellers to be connected to the account.

Unpacking the Etihad and Virgin Australia partnership

The Velocity Frequent Flyer partnership with Etihad Airways makes an Etihad Guest membership compelling for many Australian-based travellers.

The tie up unlocks the ability to earn and redeem Velocity Points when flying to Europe, the Middle East, Africa and other destinations across the Etihad Airways network, which is a big win for Velocity members travelling overseas.

As such, Velocity members can redeem points on Etihad’s exceptional Business Class product on the widebody Airbus A350-1000, Boeing 777 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft, offering aspirational redemption opportunities.

Reward Seats from Australian cities into Europe cost 139,000 Velocity Points (plus carrier charges), but it’s also possible to aim higher.

The return of Etihad’s flagship A380 aircraft – and the ability to use Velocity Points to book First Class product ‘The Apartment’ – is what we’re talking about here.

The Apartment is definitely one of the most exclusive first class products in the sky and a worthy goal for any Velocity Frequent Flyer member.

In saying that, it’s worth noting that Reward Seat Carrier Charges on Etihad Airways-operated flights are significant, and they apply per segment flown.

As such, it would make sense to weigh up the cost of carrier surcharges payable before booking an Etihad redemption with Velocity Points to ensure the redemption is worthwhile.

How does Etihad Guest stack up against Velocity Frequent Flyer?

Etihad Guest members based in Australia will likely make use of the Virgin Australia partnership. As Australia’s second largest frequent flyer program, Velocity Frequent Flyer offers Australian-based travellers the ability to earn and burn points with ease.

The two programs complement each other nicely, but choosing which is best for you comes down to your individual travel and spending habits.

For example, if you earn most of your points on the ground, then directly earning Velocity Points with a points-earning credit card could make more sense.

However, if you’re frequently jetting off to the other side of the world, Etihad’s extensive network and a long list of partner airlines could help you earn more points.

The table below shows how Etihad Guest stacks up against Velocity Frequent Flyer at a glance:

How to contact Etihad Guest in Australia

The quickest way to get in touch with Etihad Guest is by contacting the 24 hours call centre. Here’s how:

• 1300 532 215 (from Australia)
• +971 600 555 666 (from overseas)

You can find contact details for specific countries and regions here. Alternatively, you can also email [email protected].

Summing up: Is Etihad Guest worth joining?

Etihad Guest offers some great-value redemptions on both their own airline, as well as Virgin Australia and other partner airlines.

The fact that members can transfer American Express Membership Rewards points to Etihad Guest is a big win for Australian-based travellers who can also access ways to earn points on the ground thanks to Etihad’s many partnerships.

While it is now a lot easier to use Etihad Guest miles to book award seats on Virgin Australia, the devaluation has seen a massive increase in the cost of partner airline redemptions, effectively removing sweet spots.

In saying this, having The Residence – one of the most exclusive first class offerings in the sky – certainly gives Etihad the extra edge in allowing frequent flyers to shoot for the stars (or in this case, sky showers).

Premium travel goals aside, the fact that Guest miles can easily be earned in Australia with certain American Express credit cards also makes it a practical program for enthusiastic travellers in Australia.

Become an Etihad Guest member today and get 500 welcome bonus miles with your first flight.

FAQ – Etihad Guest

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