Qantas brings Classic Plus to New Zealand: What loyalty change means for Kiwi travellers

Qantas has released details of how its one million loyalty scheme members in New Zealand can cash in on the major revamp of the programme.

Kiwis will now have access to more reward seats with the launch of Classic Plus, a new way for members to use their Qantas Points to book flights.

The new scheme was rolled out in Australia in April, and was one of the biggest shakeups of the Qantas Frequent Flyer programme in 35 years.

While it got mixed reviews when launched in Australia, it makes available more flights on which to book seats with points.

“Classic Plus is one of the biggest ever expansions of the Qantas Frequent Flyer programme and will make it easier for Kiwis to travel to places like London, Tokyo, New York and Singapore with Qantas using points, even during peak periods,” the airline said today.

Classic Plus reward seats can be booked from today on Qantas international flights departing New Zealand for travel from July 1.

The airline said today that while usually requiring more points than the existing Classic reward seats, Classic Plus represented some of the best value across the frequent flyer programme with much wider availability.

Classic Plus reward seats are also eligible for upgrades. The points required to book Classic Plus reward seats vary like normal airfares, which means they’ll be lower during off-peak periods or when booking early, and higher during peak periods.

During sales and promotions, Classic Plus reward seats may drop below the existing Classic reward seat on the same route.

The airline has built up a big loyalty base in New Zealand, helped by what was regarded as a generous points scheme when its own planes started flying domestically here in the early 2000s. Its subsidiary, Jetstar, replaced the red-tailed planes in 2009 on domestic routes and it too offers Qantas points.

Qantas Loyalty chief executive Andrew Glance said New Zealand has the biggest population of Qantas Frequent Flyers outside of Australia.

“Today’s expansion creates more opportunities for Kiwis to fly where they want, when they want, and more often, using their points,” he said.

“This new product goes above and beyond our commitment to five million Classic Reward seats and offers members more choice.”

Qantas loyalty partners include BNZ Rewards, Accor Hotels, Avis and Budget Car Rental, Airbnb, as well as thousands of hotels worldwide.

Today’s announcement comes as the Qantas Group expands in New Zealand. Earlier this week Jetstar announced two new transtasman routes (with more on the way) and more domestic flights. Under Qantas International boss Cam Wallace - ex Air New Zealand - it will also expand its transtasman flying this year and is likely to reinstate its Auckland-Perth service next year.

Air New Zealand is also revamping its Airpoints loyalty scheme, aimed at giving its high tier customers more benefits.

Last month it rolled out some changes to information members see in their accounts and allowing them to access them on devices of their choice.

The changes are part of a migration from its old IT system to the new technology to provide customers with a more seamless digital experience.

The other main change at this stage is the simplification of their tier review date and increasing the group size of Sharepoints members from five to 10 and removing the requirement of them living in the same household.

Grant Bradley has been working at the Herald since 1993. He is the Business Herald’s deputy editor and covers aviation and tourism.