| The following is a sponsored post by Heymax. All opinions remain those of The MileLion. |
Heymax may have started life as an MCC lookup tool, but it’s now become a rewards platform in its own right with its Max Miles rewards currency, awarded for shopping online, buying vouchers and more via the Heymax portal.
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| ๐ New to Heymax? | โญ Existing Heymax customer? |
| Sign up for a Heymax account and get up to 700 Max Miles after first purchase. | Join the raffle and get an easy 100 Max Miles- or up to 12,000! |
| 700 bonus Max Miles |
100 bonus Max Miles |
| New Heymax customers can also join the raffle to bring their total haul to 800 Max Miles! | |
One complaint I often hear about Max Miles is that they can’t be converted to KrisFlyer- something I’m told the team is working on. But I feel that rather misses the point. It’s extremely easy to earn KrisFlyer miles in Singapore, and the programme, while decent, doesn’t offer particularly outstanding value either.
The whole appeal of Max Miles is their versatility, and with 27 airline and hotel loyalty programmes to choose from, using your Max Miles for a single partner would be like going to a buffet and only eating one item.
With Max Miles, you can dodge fuel surcharges, benefit from traveller-friendly policies (such as a flat 2,500 Max Miles for infant tickets, regardless of cabin), and unlock redemption sweet spots like 40,000 Max Miles for First Class to Japan, or 62,500 Max Miles for Business Class to Europe.
In this post, I’ll share with you how to rack up Max Miles quickly from your day-to-day spend, as well as the best redemption opportunities.
There’s also an opportunity to win 5,000 Max Miles for suggesting other sweet spots that I’ve missed, and a sure-win raffle with trips to Japan up for grabs!
| ๐ Contest Winners! |
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Congratulations to the following commenters, who have won for themselves 5,000 Max Miles each:
Your Max Miles will be credited by 16 December 2024. The raffle will take place on 11 December 2024 at 9 p.m, and results published here afterwards |
How do you earn Max Miles?
There’s many ways of earning Max Miles, including:
- Shopping online or making travel bookings at more than 500 merchants including Apple, iHerb, Marriott, Shopee, Singapore Airlines, Trip.com and more
- Buying vouchers for Amazon, Lazada, Deliveroo, foodpanda, Klook, Pelago and many more
- Buying travel essentials like eSIMs or travel insurance policies
- Applying for a credit card
- Signing up for an investment account
For example, you might start your day by taking a Ryde to work, paying for it with Ryde vouchers purchased at 6 Max Miles per S$1 (mmpd). You then grab breakfast at Toast Box, paying with a Toast Box gift card (1.9 mmpd).
At lunch, you order food from Deliveroo, paying with credits (2.25 mmpd). On a slow afternoon, you browse Shopee (up to 16 mmpd) or book a flight for your upcoming trip with Qatar Airways (1 mmpd).
And after work, you head to FairPrice to stock up on groceries (1.5 mmpd), or check out Amazon’s Black Friday deals (1.4 mmpd for gift cards, further stackable with up to 6 mmpd when you Shop with Max).
| โ ๏ธ Important note: Earn rates for Max Miles merchants change regularly, and may be higher or lower than the figures mentioned above. Always check the Heymax website for the latest. |
To put these figures into context, it only takes 7,500 Max Miles to get you from Singapore to Bangkok (on Cathay Pacific via Alaska Mileage Plan), which would work out to S$2,500 of spending assuming an average earn rate of 3 mmpd.
What can you redeem Max Miles for?
There are three main uses for Max Miles:
- Redeem them for gift cards (the rate varies depending on merchant)
- Use them to offset the cost of commercial flights at S$0.018 apiece
- Convert them at a 1:1 ratio to 27 airline and hotel loyalty programmes, with no conversion fees
And it’s those last two options I want to explore in greater detail, because with so many partners, a whole world of possibilities is opened up.
| Heymax Transfer Partners | |
| โ๏ธ Airlines | |
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| ๐จ Hotels | |
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What are my favourite redemptions?
Accor Live Limitless
It may seem a bit strange to open this section with a fixed value programme, which by definition won’t have any sweet spots (because the value of a point is always fixed), but Accor Live Limitless is a solid transfer candidate.
Why? Simple math. Max Miles convert to ALL points at a 1:1 ratio, and 2,000 ALL points are worth โฌ40 for hotel stays, spa treatments and dining at Accor properties worldwide.
Therefore, you get about 2.8 cents per Max Mile. It’s certainly possible to get more with a premium cabin redemption, but this is still pretty good if you prefer hotel stays.
Air Canada Aeroplan
Air Canada Aeroplan could very well be the best frequent flyer programme in the world. What do I love the most about it?
First, there’s no fuel surcharges on any award ticket. This means you can redeem premium cabin awards on airlines like Lufthansa and Turkish and not get hit by hefty cash copayments. The only extra charge you’ll pay is a C$39 (~S$37) partner booking fee imposed by Aeroplan.
Second, you can add a stopover (of up to 45 days) to a one-way award for a flat 5,000 points. For example, you could fly from Singapore to the United States via Japan, stay a week in Japan, and only pay an extra 5,000 points for the privilege.
Third, adding an infant costs just 2,500 points or C$25 (~S$24) per segment, regardless of cabin class. That’s right, even if you’re in First Class, you’ll pay at most C$25, not 10% of the commercial fare!
Fourth, Aeroplan has a ton of award partners. Not only can you redeem awards for Star Alliance members, but many non-Star Alliance ones too, including Air Serbia, Azul, Etihad, Gulf Air, and Oman Air. And while many other loyalty programmes force you to call up customer service to check partner availability, virtually all Aeroplan partners can be searched and booked online.
Fifth, Aeroplan sometimes gets better access to Singapore Airlines award space than KrisFlyer members even. Yes, as unfair as that sounds, I’ve seen numerous cases of this happening. For instance, Aeroplan can see three Business Class seats on the SQ231 flight from SIN-SYD…
…but if you try to book three Business Class seats on the SQ231 flight from SIN-SYD via KrisFlyer, you’ll have to waitlist.
Sixth, Aeroplan award pricing can be even lower than KrisFlyer. See the table below- note how much cheaper it is to book these flights via Aeroplan than KrisFlyer. To be fair, it’s offset by the fact that Aeroplan points are much harder to earn than KrisFlyer miles, at least in Singapore, but if you can accumulate a critical mass of Max Miles…
| โ๏ธ One-way Business Class awards | ||
| Aeroplan | KrisFlyer | |
| Singapore to Europe | 80,000 miles | 103,500 miles |
| Singapore to USA | 87,500 miles | 107,000 – 111,500 miles |
| Singapore to Japan & South Korea | 45,000 miles | 52,000 miles |
| Singapore to Australia | 45,000 miles | 68,500 miles |
So Max Miles conversions to Aeroplan rank very high on my list, and I only wish there were other ways for Singapore-based travellers to rack them up.
Air France-KLM Flying Blue
Air France-KLM Flying Blue does not have a published award chart, so you need to be extra careful about transferring miles speculatively. There’s no guarantee the prices you observe today will be the same tomorrow!
That said, it’s currently possible to book Singapore to Amsterdam or Paris in Business Class for just 70,000 miles and a modest S$276 in taxes. I can even find as many as 4+ award seats on some dates!
Otherwise, you can book awards within Europe from 7,500 miles, which could also be good value when ticket prices are more expensive.
American Airlines AAdvantage
American Airlines AAdvantage offers excellent value First/Business Class awards between Singapore and Japan, which cost just 40,000/30,000 miles each way. Plus, just like Aeroplan, there’s no fuel surcharges (except on British Airways and Iberia awards).
First Class to Japan? Yes, JAL offers First Class service between Singapore and Tokyo Haneda on a seasonal basis, and even though it’s not the A350-1000, the B777-300ER experience is still plenty enjoyable- I’ve written a full review here.
A First Class ticket out of Singapore will let you do the full oneworld lounge safari experience, including the can’t-miss Qantas First Lounge, where the food rivals some of the best restaurants outside.
And even if you can’t snag First Class, Business Class for 30,000 miles is a steal. You can still visit the British Airways Lounge, Cathay Pacific Lounge, Qantas Business Lounge and Qatar Premium Lounge pre-flight.
American AAdvantage also partners with Etihad/Qatar Airways, and Business Class awards to Abu Dhabi/Doha cost just 40,000 miles each way. From there, it’s only a further 62,500 miles to try the legendary Etihad First Class Apartments on the A380 between the Middle East and Europe.
Don’t want to reposition to the Middle East? From February 2025, Etihad will be operating its A380 to Singapore, which means you can book a First Class Apartment for just 50,000 miles! Remember that Etihad only makes First and Business Class award seats available to partner programmes within 30 days of departure though, so you may need to make last minute plans.
And if you’re planning to fly domestic within Japan, AAdvantage redemptions on JAL are a flat 7,500/15,000 miles for Economy/Business (depending on routing, it might be cheaper to redeem Economy via JAL Mileage Bank instead though; see below).
Alaska Mileage Plan
While Alaska Mileage Plan isn’t as compelling as it was a few years ago, I’ve often spoken about the sweet spot for sub-1,500 miles redemptions.
In short, any itinerary that’s less than 1,500 miles long can be redeemed for just 7,500/15,000 miles in Economy/Business, each way.
Here’s some examples of itineraries that would fall into this category:
- Cathay Pacific’s daily fifth freedom flight between SIN and BKK
- STARLUX Business Class awards between Taipei and North Asia, such as TPE to NRT/DAD/HAN
- Domestic Japan flights with JAL, as well as shorter international flights such as TYO to ICN on JAL and Korean Air
- Domestic Australia flights with Qantas, such as SYD-MEL and PER-ADL
- Most Icelandair flights within Europe
- Finnair flights between HEL and LHR- be sure to pick the flight operated by the Airbus A350-900, which comes with the highly-rated AirLounge Business Class seat
Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
JAL Mileage Bank members can redeem Economy Class tickets between Singapore and Japan for just 12,000 miles each way, which is a sensational price.
If you plan to travel within Japan, domestic flights in Economy Class start from just 4,000 miles each way and max out at 10,000 miles. Towards the higher end of this range, you’re better off looking at American Airlines AAdvantage however, which is a flat 7,500 miles.
Qatar Privilege Club
I’ve written about Qatar Privilege Club so often that I hope the sweet spots are familiar by now. But just to recap:
| โ๏ธ One-way Business Class Awards | |
| Destination | Qatar Privilege Club |
| Doha | 50,000 |
| Athens, Bucharest, Sofia, Thessaloniki | 70,000 |
| Barcelona, London, Frankfurt, Paris, Zurich | 75,000 |
| Houston, New York | 95,000 |
| *Assumes QPC Avios redeemed for Qatar Airways, KrisFlyer miles for Singapore Airlines. Not all destinations served by each carrier. |
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Remember that Qatar Privilege Club now charges an “award segment fee” that can cost up to US$250 per leg, so some of the above sweet spots may be less sweet than before.
But the award segment fee does not apply to the following partner redemptions:
| From SIN to | Business Class | Economy Class |
| Koh Samui (PG) | – | 6,000 |
| Kuala Lumpur (MH) | 12,500 | 6,000 |
| Hong Kong (CX) | 22,000 | 11,000 |
| Colombo (UL) | 22,000 | 11,000 |
| Perth (QF) | 38,750 | 13,000 |
| Sydney (QF) | 62,000 | 20,000 |
| Helsinki (AY) | 62,500 | 30,000 |
| Do note that you may need to transfer your Avios to British Airways in order for some of the options above to appear, as the Qatar Airways website does not display all partner awards. Here’s a guide to the process, which is really quite straightforward once you know where to click. | ||
FlyAnywhere
While I’m sure everyone dreams of First and Business Class redemptions, sometimes your needs are more utilitarian.
If so, FlyAnywhere might be the answer. FlyAnywhere allows you to use Max Miles to book commercial air tickets for travel anywhere around the globe, whether domestic or international.
With FlyAnywhere, you book your own flight outside of Heymax, through whatever channel you wish: official website, OTA, or even a brick-and-mortar travel agency. Subsequently, you upload the receipt and get reimbursed for your flight via PayNow at a rate of S$0.018 per Max Mile.
Since you have the freedom to book your own flight, you can use whatever tricks you like to bring the cost down, such as booking through a cashback portal, with a special promo code, or with a special discount (e.g. the British Airways AARP discount). Moreover, since you’re basically buying a commercial ticket, you’ll also be eligible to earn frequent flyer miles and elite status credits such as PPS Value or Elite miles, where applicable.
FlyAnywhere can be used for tickets in any cabin, but its best value is for Economy Class redemptions. For instance, let’s say you want to travel to Bangkok. You can find Jetstar fares from as little as S$142 round-trip, which works out to 7,889 Max Miles.
Alternatively, if you wanted the comfort of a full-service carrier, then a Singapore Airlines ticket that costs S$276 or 15,333 Max Miles, significantly less than the 27,000 KrisFlyer miles you’d need for a regular KrisFlyer redemption (and eligible to accrue miles).
Or here’s another fun example. You can’t redeem ZIPAIR flights with miles…unless they’re Max Miles. This trip, on ZIPAIR’s full flat “Business Class”, would cost just 37,000 Max Miles!
So FlyAnywhere lets you enjoy good value redemptions even when airfares are cheap, addressing the conundrum of only needing Economy, but finding it poor value to redeem miles.
Win extra Max Miles!
If your Max Miles account is in need of a boost, here’s some easy ways of doing so.
Suggest more sweet spots
I’ve tried to cover as many sweet spots as I can, but I’m sure the community knows things I don’t. So now it’s your turn: share your favourite use of Max Miles in the comments, and I’ll pick my 10 favourites to win 5,000 Max Miles each.
Submissions close on 6 December 2024, 2359 hours. I’ll update this post with the chosen winners over the following weekend.
Heymax sure-win raffle
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| Enter the raffle |
And even if you’re stumped, don’t worry- Heymax is giving away 100 Max Miles to everyone who reads this article. Simply submit the email address associated with your Heymax account via the button above, and you’ll get your 100 Max Miles, plus the chance to win:
- 1x prize of 40,000 Max Miles (enough for a First Class flight to Japan via AAdvantage)
- 10x prizes of 12,000 Max Miles (enough for an Economy Class flight to Japan via AAdvantage)
The 100 Max Miles per user giveaway is capped at 1 million Max Miles, so don’t wait!
Submissions close on 6 December 2024, 2359 hours.
Conclusion
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| ๐ New to Heymax? | โญ Existing Heymax customer? |
| Sign up for a Heymax account and get up to 700 Max Miles after first purchase. | Join the raffle and get an easy 100 Max Miles- or up to 12,000! |
| 700 bonus Max Miles |
100 bonus Max Miles |
| New Heymax customers can also join the raffle to bring their total haul to 800 Max Miles! | |
Max Miles are an extremely versatile rewards currency, and unlock access to airline and hotel loyalty programmes that aren’t transfer partners of any bank in Singapore.
The key to maximising value is to strategically transfer your Max Miles to the right programme, depending on where you want to fly to. Don’t forget the FlyAnywhere feature either, which lets you enjoy good value Economy Class redemptions on any carrier you fancy- even budget airlines.
Be sure to share your favourite Max Miles redemptions in the comments below, and submit your name for the raffle to win bonus Max Miles!
Lifemiles redemption for Aseana to Japan or more options of China cities as alternative to CX
AA for sure. It is much easier to search for award availability on aa.com across different airlines, and book directly from their website.
My favorite has to be 16.5k Avios + $67.20 VIA Qatar Avios for Singapore to Bangkok on Cathay Pacific Business Class.
One world safari lounge and even better when QR gives bonus miles for transfer!
I like redeeming for Hyatt as it’s one of the more valuable hotel loyalty currencies, and otherwise difficult to earn in SG’s context. Easily gets >2 cents value for me (usually way more)
Alaska Mileage Plan! Study in Aus and hence the domestic flights for miles really do help alot when travelling domestically in Aus to visit other states !
AaAdvantage for sure. Where else can you redeem Business Class at such low cost! Even better with the A380s operating in SG, the best couple seats in Business Class. This makes it competitive against SIA now, given the small quantity of A380s we have here.
I have used Heymax to rack up Hyatt points to redeem for expensive cities… Some of the Hyatt sweet spots such as Hyatt House House Tokyo Shibuya at category 4 (12k -18k) can easily get 3-4cpm or hyatt NYC/Maldives where prices can be through the roof or even category 1 /2 properties during holiday/peak period.
Stacking ALL conversions with Accor plus dining discounts is pretty nice imo
I’m surprised WOH redemptions didn’t make it to your list. WOH worth more than other hotel points per point there. Maybe even more than fixed value ones?
Woh is a great option too, which I’ve personally used a lot! But the point purchase limit is an issue, you’re capped at buying 55k points a year pre bonus.
As I was suggesting the WOH in the comment above and saw your comment about the limitation, I noticed that I could still buy full Hyatt points of 55k + bonus 25% (current promo) despite I’ve purchased the 55k points during non promo period. Not sure if this is only my account bug but in total this year I can buy up to 123k hyatt points. Perhaps there are different buckets during promo and non promo period.
that’s interesting- i’ll need to make a note to test it! how i got around the restriction, somewhat, is to buy 55k for myself and give a further 55k from another account to me.
One of my favourites would be using 21,000 Qatar miles for first class one way within Middle East, unlocking access to Al Safwa lounge priced at 600 QAR for access. And of course, Hyatt points for the off-peak category 1 hotels in Japan and Europe.
Definitely short-haul redemptions, I have an upcoming trip planned to Bangkok Jan and was thinking of waiting for Dec’s Spontaneous Escapes to book my flights. Now that I know 7,500 Max Miles can get me there from Singapore to Bangkok on Cathay Pacific via Alaska Mileage Plan, I might as well use the extra Max Miles I have earned easily from just buying things online. A no-regrets move at the end of 2024, and I look forward to earning and redeeming more Max Miles in the coming year!
Alaska Mileage Plan sub-1500 miles sweet spot is great value on high demand routes between Taipei and Japan, redeemed a Starlux Business Class flight for 15k miles when revenue ticket was close to 1k. But Mileage Plan / AAdvantage has some really interesting uses as well when you really need a flight (something to do with married segments), there are days when HND-JFK Business Class award on JAL is not available but when repositioned to FUK-HND-JFK the award becomes available!
How about redeeming for Turkish Airlines miles and smiles for the asia-europe business class sweet spot?
unfortunately that sweet spot is long gone after TK’s huge devaluation earlier this year: https://milelion.com/2024/02/08/turkish-airlines-milessmiles-big-devaluation-coming-soon/
As a new user to Heymax and a fresh graduate entering the Miles community, I do appreciate articles like these to navigate the game of miles and value. As a newbie, I do not have the opportunity to have enough miles to redeem for rewards. Nonetheless, I do look forward to accumulating Max Miles to redeem a comfy (and maybe luxurious) flight on a 5-star airline to Japan! 12,000 max miles for an economy class in JAL sounds like a steal, or even accumulating to around 40,000 to 45,000 max miles to finally being able to enjoy Business Class seats… Read more »
Hmmmm 15k of AS miles can also be used for QR F intra middle east or KE J prestige suites 2.0 (short haul)
And also 18k of Avios slightly extends the redemption to LHR from WAW/VNO/OSL/RVN/etc. (something 15k of AS miles cannot do because its slightly over 1500 miles)
Or 28k TK miles for TK J IST-DXB in A350/B787 (winter period) sounds quite good too!
The Alaska Mileage Plan with an itinerary thatโs less than 1500 miles is the best usage definitely. There is no way to earn mile to this mileage plan in Singapore or Taiwan. Therefore, converting from Max Mile is one of the best choices. Because I’m Taiwanese, I explored many itineraries within 1500 miles that start/end/stopover in Taiwan. Let’s use Starlux as an example. We can redeem with 15000 miles for one-way business class. TPE – all cities in Japan except Hokkaido DAD – TPE (stopover up to 15 days for free) – OKA With the Korean Air, we can plan… Read more »
My favoirite way to maximise Heymax is to use this tgt with Krisflyer. I’ve redeemed Krisflyer miles from Singapore to Istanbul as it’s a sweet spot of 56.5k for Business saver. Further which, I redeemed 7.5k economy from Aircanda flying via Turkish Airline to Eastern Europe (Prague, Budapest etc). Furthermore as SIA and Turkish airlines are part of star alliance, my luggage is connected all the way to my end destination. I could have also add 5k for more for Air Canada for a stop over within Europe to cover more country/cities. Overall still cheaper than redeeming direct to Europe… Read more »
AA for value for money JAL domestic redemption! We all love jap food! And yen is cheap nowadays~ =D
My personal favourite Max miles redemption goes to ALL (Accor) for sure. Have been reading Milelion for years and introduced to a lot of friends for chionging into the miles game. Thanks to Aaron, Mileslion & Heymax for opening the door to us of the free 20000 Max miles in the last campaign (Airwallex) and the solid follow up posts about maximising the value for Max Miles redemption. Been an Accor member for quite some time (got a free Accor Plus Silver from scratch by Amex Highflyer card). Without any hestitation, I simply convert my Max miles to ALL points… Read more »
Favourite redemption: Looking forward to accumulate for First Class JAL Japan via AAdvantage!Thank you for the article.
I noticed that a few retailers’ vouchers have been out of stock for some denominations. This had been ongoing for some time- shopee, best denki, Klook, Ryde etc.
Is HeyMax running short of funds to purchase more vouchers?
Yeah this is the same issue I am facing
One can further take advantage of free hotel stays through stopover programs with the following airlines, an offer usually absent from Asian carriers: Turkish Airlines: Passengers with a connection period of at least 20 hours can enjoy a free stay. Business class passengers may stay two nights at no charge in a five-star hotel, such as the well-regarded Renaissance Polat Istanbul Hotel, which typically costs around $150 per night. Etihad: The “Stopover on Us” package in Abu Dhabi offers a two-night stay where the first night is at a discounted rate and the second night is complimentary. This stay includes… Read more »
Sweet spot suggestion: use it to extend activity based points program. E.g. avios (36 months), hyatt (24 months).
Could have been leftover from when there was a points sale and there hasn’t been any valid destinations to redeem for or accumulating for a bigger party flight itinerary, or just waiting for hotel status challenges to refresh to maximise the award stay.
No more burned/expired miles! Only devaluations hehehe
Sweet Spot Suggestion: Singapore to Helsinki on Finnair Business Class (62,500 Avios)
Redeeming 62,500 Avios for a one-way Business Class ticket from Singapore to Helsinki on Finnair is a fantastic sweet spot for these reasons below:
AA ftw! –
(heymax)imum Availability
(heymax)imum Affordability
(heymax)imum Connectivity
My sweet spot would be World of Hyatt points, though I must say itโs heavily dependent on how the Hyatt points are spent. I recently booked the soon to open Hyatt Centric KL for 3,500 points (Cat 1, off peak price). This normally retails for about $160 so thatโs equivalent to almost 4.5 cents per mile, which is way higher than any business class flight redemption.
World of Hyatt points are incredibly difficult to accumulate in Singapore, apart from actually staying at Hyatt properties, so HeyMax is providing a sorely needed option for Hyatt fans.
Aeroplan is a wonderful way to use. Specifically within North America.
My own person sweet spot: Toronto to New York/other similar destinations in US. I used 17,000 Heymax miles for a business class redemption. The economy ticket would have been $400 cash so this made sense and itโs business class (albeit not an impressive one, compared to SIA).
Sweet spot: Qatar Privilege Club to Koh Samui at only 6,000 miles per way!
My sweet spot would be redeeming World of Hyatt points with Cat 7 properties, which seem to provide the most value. I redeemed 40,000 points for one night at the Alila villas Uluwatu, which would have cost upwards of $1300sgd after taxes.
Sweet spot suggestion: Business Class on Cathay Pacific from Singapore-North American destinations. 1. Redeem your Max Miles on Qatar Privilege Club for QR Avios. 2. Transfer miles from QR Avios to AY Avios (Finnair) at a ratio of 1:1. 3. Redeem AY Avios on CX Cathay Pacific flights (One World Partner) for 85k one way business class to all American destinations within CXโs network. This will yield savings as SQ Krisflyer is charging between 107k-111.5k for American destinations while QR Avios charges 95k and AC Aeroplan charges 87.5k. Note: Be sure to check and ensure seat availabilities using AAadvantage before… Read more »
1) Iberia Avios between USA and Madrid – 34,000 Avios for business class during off-peak periods. Can transfer to Iberia Avios from British Airways / Qatar Airways Avios
2) Royal Air Maroc between North America and Casablanca – 44,000 Etihad Guest Miles for business class
My favourite sweet spot:
1. Look at “featured” on heymax’s app. See what’s available to maximise max miles on my spend.
2. Recently also bought Swensen’s vouchers through the app. Brought my family for a nice birthday meal. Got 638 Max miles for $150 vouchers.
More sweet spot suggestions: 60k air canada aeroplan can get one way business class in Turkish/Oman/Gulf Air from Istanbul to Phuket/Bangkok/Hanoi.
40k Aadvantage miles can get Qatar business class one way from SG to the middle east (or 50k for first), or 42.5k from India to Europe. Aadvantage can also be used for Qantas/BA Club suite redemption from SG to NZ (or other places in SW Pacific) for 40k/50k in business/first.
All the A options are A-team level: Aeroplan, Accor and AAdvantage~
Between Aeroplan and AAdvantage, they cover most of the options available in a Singapore-centric world looking at Star Alliance and One World and a very wide variety of accommodation options under the Accor group.
As an undergrad student, heymax has been a game-changer for me. Without the annual income to qualify for a miles card yet, I was still able to step into the miles game through heymax, in fact, I have accumulated a decent amount of Max Miles thus far. While I have yet to redeem them, I am saving them for a business class ticket (most likely, through Qatar) for my semester exchange next year haha. Imagine travelling for school in style, so exciting!
My sweet spot is the Air Canada Aeroplan miles. I will be migrating to Canada next year and have been wondering how I can start racking up my Aeroplan points and convert krisflyer points to Aeroplan . I read Aaronโs article and Iโm so happy to have found a way to start earning Aeroplan miles even while here in SG! I signed up for HeyMax through this campaign and I was stoked when even my Expedia booking could earn me some max miles ๐ The best part is I can convert max miles 1:1 to Aeroplan.
Arguably not as good as the 2 US programs mentioned in the article, but United Airlines mileage plan also has nice spots such as the excursionist perk, and possibility to do the rare SYD-LAX hop at a fairly reasonable cost for business class?
re: excursionist perk- https://www.reddit.com/r/awardtravel/comments/1gzwo23/united_excursionist_perk_devalued/
Thanks for the article. I will register and start using Heymax now!!
Use HeyMax miles to redeem AA miles for Biz class ticket to Japan! AA reward ticket is based on the region, not the distance. Only need 30K miles for a Biz class ticket from SG to Japan!
What has not been addressed is the financial stability of heymax. The truth is that if the platform goes bust, members can kiss their Max Miles goodbye. So, best not to keep too many miles and redeem sooner rather than later. I wonder if the heymax team can comment on this.
My personal favorite HeyMax redemption would be: FlyingBlue (KLM)
As an Indonesian based in Singapore, FlyingBlue offers lots of redemption opportunities to Indonesian cities via Garuda (CGK) that SQ does not fly to – such as: Palembang, Semarang, Jogja, Solo, all for less than 20k miles in business.
BONUS: Sydney and Melbourne business class redemptions are also great value from DPS – 33k miles for SYD and 31k miles for MEL. These are way cheaper than the 68.5k miles SQ is charging – and there are lots of affordable repositioning flight to DPS.
I’ve been a huge advocate for FlyAnywhere for transit flights. I’m fairly new to the miles game, having just redeemed my first J flight with the Mrs for our honeymoon. Sometimes, short 2-3 hour flights, especially in Europe can add up in terms cost but there is no viable way for me to reduce this cost up until down. I’ve mostly only been Krisflyer but I’ve utilised max miles mainly for FlyAnywhere. Earlier in the year, as SIA J flights were mostly waitlisted, we decided to fly to Shanghai via J, then transit to Jeju for the first leg of… Read more »
FlyAnywhere was what got me seriously interested in learning more about Heymax! It takes me awhile to accumulate miles the normal way so its nice to have the option to potentially get a better deal on economy tickets for my short haul flights AND earn miles on top of that for my long haul business class redemption pool ๐
My favorite way to redeem Max Miles is flying first class to Tokyo during cherry blossom season. Thereโs something magical about lounging in luxury, sipping champagne mid-flight, and knowing I’m headed straight for foodie heaven.
super convenient to redeem via flyanywhere. The freedom to choose any flight is great.
I love the flyanywhere because my schedule isn’t fixed and I can go wherever the winds takes me or the deals are good!
Sweet spot suggestion: rounding off during bonus transfer miles period. Recent qatar 25/35% bonus miles period, was intending to transfer in exactly 250k for 4 J seats to Europe using avios.
Abit of weird math but I figured the best way to avoid orphaned avios was to transfer 192k, getting 48k from the 25% and the remaining 10k from the 100k bonus. Getting that 2k in would have been hard without spare max miles lying around. Especially since HSBC qatar rates are unfavourable leaving me with citi as the only option.
Have the winners of the 5k Max Miles received your max miles in your account already?