Rundown of Etihad Airways’ Etihad Guest for Canadians
Etihad Airways is the second-largest airline of the United Arab Emirates. They offer a loyalty program called Etihad Guest which actually has some ties with Canada. As a result, there is some value to be had. Today, I am going to write about the different opportunities that Canadians have with Etihad Guest.
Expiry Policy
But first, one of the most crucial factors is the expiry policy. I say this because it is important to determine whether you think that you can manage to keep up with the necessary activity to keep your account active, as you accumulate your miles for a specific reward redemption.
The expiry policy depends on which elite status level the member is. Note that miles has a hard cap expiry policy whereby miles will expire after a certain date regardless of expiry.
| Tier | Expiry Policy |
|---|---|
| Etihad Guest | 2 years from date of activity |
| Etihad Guest Silver | 2 and a half years from date of activity |
| Etihad Guest Gold | 3 years from date of activity |
| Etihad Guest Platinum | 3 years from date of activity |
Earning Miles
Below are some easier ways for Canadians to earn Etihad miles.
Flying with Etihad Airways
Etihad Guest has a very straightforward way to calculate how many miles you earn. For every 1 mile that you fly, you generally earn 1 mile.
| CABIN | TIER MILES EARNED PER MILE FLOWN |
| Economy Class | 1 |
| Business Class | 1.5 |
| First Class | 2 |
| Residence | 4 |
However, depending on which fare you paid, it will also affect how many miles you earn.
| Economy Class | BREAKING DEALS | 25% |
| Economy Class | SAVER | 50% |
| Economy Class | VALUE | 75% |
| Economy Class | FREEDOM | 100% |
| Business Class | BREAKING DEALS | 115% |
| Business Class | SAVER | 130% |
| Business Class | FREEDOM | 175% |
| First Class | FREEDOM | 250% |
| The Residence | THE RESIDENCE | 400% |
Airline Partners
Not to mix up with its codeshare partners, the following are airlines that you can earn Eithad Guest miles with:
- Air Berlin
- Air New Zealand
- Air Serbia
- Air Seychelles
- Alitalia
- All Nippon Airways
- American Airlines
- Asiana Airlines
- Bangkok Airways
- Brussels Airlines
- Czech Airlines
- Etihad Regional
- Garuda Indonesia
- Gol Transportes Aéreos
- Hainan Airlines
- Jet Airways
- Korean Air
- Malaysia Airlines
- Oman Air
- Philippine Airlines
- Royal Air Maroc
- South African Airways
- SriLankan Airlines
- Ukraine International Airlines
- Virgin Australia
As you can see, that is a fairly significant list which covers airlines from all 3 major alliances.
Car Rental
- Avis
- Budget
- Careem
- Europcar
- Hertz
- Sixt
Hotel
There is an extensive list of hotel partners to choose from that you can earn Etihad miles with:
- Accor Hotels
- Atlantis The Palm, Dubai
- Constance Hotels and Resorts
- Cristal Group
- Danat Hotels & Resorts
- Dusit Hotels and Resorts
- Fairmont Hotels & Resorts
- Hilton Worldwide
- Hyatt Hotels & Resorts
- InterContinental Hotels Group
- Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts
- Mandarin Oriental
- Maritim Hotels
- Millennium & Copthorne
- Minor Hotels
- Marriott International
- The Merrion Dublin
- Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts
- One to One Hotels
- One&Only Resorts & Mazagan
- Preferred Hotels & Resorts
- Radisson Blu Hotels & Resorts
- Raffles Hotels & Resorts
- Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts
- Starwood Hotels & Resorts
- Swissôtel Hotels & Resorts
- Taj Group
- Viceroy Hotels & Resorts
Third Party Booking Sites
Even third party booking sites are in the action.
- Agoda.com
- Kaligo
- PointsHound
- Rocketmiles
Keep in mind that you only really need to take advantage of one earning opportunity just to keep your account active once every 24 months (or more).
Transfer Partners
American Express Membership Rewards
What also makes Etihad more attractive for Canadians is that it is a transfer partner of American Express Membership Rewards, which has the following conversion rates:
- 1,000 Membership Rewards points = 750 Etihad Guest points (increments of 100 thereafter)
Unfortunately, I have yet to see a transfer bonus opportunity. I would really like to see a 1:1 ratio bonus at some point.
E-Rewards
If you already have an E-Rewards account (invitation only), you can convert your miles at the following increments:
- $25 = 500 Etihad Guest points
- $50 = 1,000 Etihad Guest points
- $100 = 2,000 Etihad Guest points
List of Destinations Departing from Canadian Airports
Oddly enough, there is only one Etihad flight departing out of Canada, from Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) to Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH). So if you really want to consider Etihad Guest, then be sure to look at its partners very closely.
Nothing odd about Etihad having only one flight out of Canada. Canadian government has never opened its skies for the Gulf carriers. Along with Air Canada, it has been really strict and has not allowed any more slots to them. UAE has been lobbying for years now for more bi-laterals but hasn’t happened yet.
Maybe I should have used the word, disappointed. Hope to see something open up in the near future!
Wouldn’t this had been better a redemption story? Don’t see many Canadians investing in accumulating these miles, especially flying out of one airport and with no Canadian codeshare partners.
It could make sense if you were looking to accumulate miles for a specific reward redemption where you can fly Toronto to Abu Dhabi on Etihad for a vacation.
You actually gave me some ideas for my future updated post. Thanks!
Expiry policy is a hard expiry 2 years after they are earned. Even if you have activity 23 months down the line, your initial miles will still expire in 24. Your new miles will have two years but that doesn’t help with accumulation. Considering this is even tighter than Asia miles, how is this good? Or are you going to sue then under Ontario law under the new bill?
I am curious to know how this new law will affect the program. The easy way out for them is to cancel the flight to Toronto or move it to Montreal.
You missed the point. Your article is wrong. Your miles expire in 2 years. New activity does not keep your miles alive.
The real easy way out is to ban ON addresses from participating in Etihad Guest. But they won’t do anything until someone takes them to small court
Ack. Yes. Post has been updated.
Etihad announced that they are exiting Canada this year. Not sure of the exact timing but I know some insiders who alerted me to this.
That would be a bummer…