Cathay Pacific boosts Marco Polo Club 'club point' earn rates

Members of Cathay Pacific’s Marco Polo Club scheme will soon earn more ‘club points’ – the airline’s equivalent of status credits – on a variety of Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon fares and flights, with the program’s Green tier also becoming easier to retain.

For Australian travellers, the most noticeable changes aren’t on flights between Australia and Hong Kong, but rather onward from Cathay Pacific’s hub to a host of other destinations like London, Paris, Taipei, Beijing and Shanghai.

From December 8 2017, one-way flights between Hong Kong and Europe will deliver 70 club points on premium economy W and R fares – up from 55 club points right now – while lower-cost premium economy tickets (E class) and flexible economy fares move from 45 to 55 club points on those flights.

Passengers stuck down the back on mid-range economy M, L and V fares will also see their haul rise from 35 to 45 club points each way, with gains on lower-cost S, N and Q tickets observed in moving from 10 to 25 club points per one-way flight: almost triple the current earn rate.

Shorter flights such as between Hong Kong and both Beijing and Shanghai will offer an additional 5-10 club points per flight on all existing club point-earning fares from first class through to economy, with the quickest routes like Hong Kong to Taipei also delivering similar increases, except on the lowest-cost economy tickets.

The only improvement on flights from Hong Kong to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide is for flyers on those lowest-cost fares (S, N and Q class) which will earn 20 club points as opposed to 10 at present.

Cairns flyers will find a similar increase on those same fares, from five to 15 club points per one-way flight, although the earning rate on all other fare types to these destinations remains unchanged.

Here's a full list of the current and revised club point earn rates based on the distance of each flight:

[Click or tap on the table above to enlarge it.]

The club point requirements to reach Marco Polo Club’s Silver, Gold and Diamond tiers are not changing, however, but members may now find it easier to retain their current status or move up to the next rung, by earning more club points on Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon flights.

That said, base-level Marco Polo Club Green cardholders will be able to retain their status with only 20 club points each year as opposed to 100 club points as now.

Earning rates for Marco Polo Club members travelling with Oneworld partners such as Qantas and British Airways are not changing as part of this revamp: only the earn rates on Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon flights.

Chris C.

Chris is a a former contributor to Executive Traveller.