Master Guide on the Best Miles Programs for Filipino Frequent Flyers
For the purposes of this article, I will be assuming you’ll be flying on one of Philippines two major carriers, Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific.
If you’re a Cebu Pacific frequent flyer, unfortunately you don’t have much choice. I’d highly suggest you sign up for the GetGo program as you get a 6% rebate in the form of points for every Cebu Pacific flight you take. You merely need to spend 2500 PHP annually to break even on the 150 PHP program.
To top off your account there are numerous cards from different banks including BDO, CitiBank that offer GetGo points as a transfer partner.
Where should Filipinos Credit their Philippine Airlines Flight?
With the recent partnership with Etihad & ANA, frequent business flyers on PAL now have a choice on which airline to credit their miles.
Let’s take a closer look and compare all three.
How do I credit my flights?
Simply input your frequent flyer details when you’re booking your ticket in the “___” box. If you book through a 3rd party website or travel agent, there will also be a place to input your details
Where do I Sign Up?
You can sign up for Philippine Airline’s Mabuhay Miles here:
ANA’s Mileage Club here:
Etihad’s GuestMiles here:
Interestingly enough, only Philippine Airlines charges a 150 PHP fee to join. Etihad and ANA both do not charge any fees to sign up.
Winner: ANA & Etihad. No airline in 2016 should charge a fee to join a rewards program, especially when you don’t receive any benefits at the general level.
Elite Status Requirements and Benefits
Philippine Airlines requires fliers to reach 25,000 miles before granting “Elite” status, which gives the cardholder additional luggage, business class lounge access in Cebu & Manila, and priority check in.
Etihad also requires 25,000 miles before granting silver status, which also gives the cardholder additional 10 kg luggage, lounge access, and priority check in.
However, if you fly internationally quite often, Etihad Silver elite members get the benefit of having access to a much larger lounge presence, as Etihad has partnered with over 25 airlines, while Philippine Airlines only has two.
ANA requires 50,000 miles before granting star alliance gold status, which grants users extra 20 kg of luggage, lounge access for you and one guest, and priority check in. I find star alliance lounges to be among the best in the world, and has an extensive network that allows you to receive benefits whenever you fly on one its __ airline partners including Singapore Airlines, Eva Air, and Air China.
Winner: Etihad if you are a moderate flyer, ANA if you can manage the 50,000 miles a year.
Miles Crediting
All three airlines give relatively the same amount of frequent flier miles for each specific class. What you actually earn is the number of miles flown * fare class of ticket. Regular economy fares all earn at a 100% ratio.
I’ve compiled a master chart that details the amount of miles you’d earn on each airline for flights on Philippine Airlines.
As you can see, pretty much all three airlines reward the same amount of miles. However Etihad omits quite a few fare classes, and ANA classifies a few economy fares as budget economy.
Winner: Philippine Airlines
Earning Miles through Credit Cards
Philippine Airlines does partner with a vast amount of local banks including BDO, CitiBank. Thus, it’s quite possible to rack up a lot of miles without ever stepping foot onto a plane.
Similarly, Citibank does partner with Etihad allowing you to earn Etihad guest miles for domestic & international purchases on PremierMiles cards.
ANA has currently no credit card partners in the Philippines, making it difficult to earn any miles besides flying.
Winner: Philippine Airlines by a slight margin
Mileage Redemptions
Philippine Airlines Mabuhay Miles are a relatively a poor value for international flights, especially for premium travel, however, they do occasionally run getaway sales which has select routes at 50% off. Keep in mind these award sales come with quite a few restrictions, but present some extremely lucrative mileage redemption opportunities.
The major drawback is you’ll need to physically go to a PAL office, which are primarily located in Manila and Cebu, to redeem an award ticket.
Etihad Airlines has quite the convoluted award chart filled with numerous miles sweet spots. In addition, if you want to fly in Etihad’s Apartment, Etihad’s own award program require the least amount of miles.
For non-Etihad rewards, you’ll need to call their hotline to book an award, and some agents are known to be quite clueless about partner redemptions
ANA has an extremely strong mileage program, with an added bonus of being able to book most of your awards online. Its star alliance partners have airline products that are far superior to ones back home.
Thai Airways First Class – A Star Alliance Partner
Its award chart is among the best for flights in economy & business class, but one way awards are not allowed.
For Example: A round trip ticket to the United States in business class will run you 93,000 miles, while Philippine Airlines will cost 134,000 miles (Over 44% more!).
Read More: The Ultimate Guide on ANA Miles
Fly to the US in style with Eva Airways Business Class
Winner: ANA
Overall Verdict
Choosing the right frequent flyer program is tough.
If you have fly only occasionally, I’d suggest crediting PAL flights to Mabuhay Miles program as they do have domestic redemptions that won’t cost an arm and a leg.
If you fly moderately (around 25,000 miles annually) and plan on traveling internationally, Etihad Airways is worth a look, as their mid-tier elite status is superior to PAL. I’d recommend pairing your flying with spending on the Citi PremierMiles card so you can earn Etihad Guest Miles while
However, there are no current cards in the Philippines that have miles that can be converted into ANA miles. So I’d suggest crediting to ANA only if you’re among the 1% of flyers who earn 50,000+ miles a year solely through flying.
In addition, you can book Etihad award over the phone and in some cases online, saving you hour
Etihad’s guest miles program has quite a few interesting redemption sweet spots, notwithstanding its amazing Etihad Apartment.
Read: The Ultimate Guide for Etihad’s GuestMiles Programs for Filipinos