In my survey of Oneworld Alliance airline routes for high earning elite status qualifying Tier Points in British Airways Executive Club and low ticket prices, there were some Business Z Class airfare deals I found four days ago on Malaysia Airlines out of Bangkok to Mumbai, India ($495 round trip) and Bangkok to Kathmandu, Nepal ($476 round trip). Today I finally started to write up these deals, but the fares are now in the $700s.
Anyway, both Malaysia Business Z tickets earn 360 Tier Points round trip for BA Executive Club elite status. Keep an eye out for another sale down to sub-$500 fares.
Executive Club Bronze takes 300 Tier Points in membership year + 2 BA operated and marketed flights.
BA Silver at 600 Tier Points + 4 BA flights is equivalent Oneworld Alliance Sapphire elite to AAdvantage Platinum 50,000 EQM / $6,000 EQD.
The reason Mumbai and Kathmandu are high earning BA Tier Points tickets is the flight segment distance from Malaysia Airline’s hub in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia KUL airport is 2,028 miles to Kathmandu KTM, Nepal. The flight distance from KUL is 2,251 miles to Mumbai, India BOM airport. Bangkok to Kuala Lumpur is 754 miles.
- Flight distances over 2,000 miles in Oneworld airline Business Class earn 140 Tier Points in Asia and the Americas.
- Flight distance segments shorter than 2,000 miles in Oneworld airline Business Class around Asia earn 40 Tier Points per flight segment.
- Bangkok – Kuala Lumpur = 40 Tier Points each way.
- Kuala Lumpur to Kathmandu or Mumbai = 140 Tier Points each way.
360 Tier Points for $476 ticket is an earn rate $1.33 per Tier Point.
Only $800 to earn 600 Tier Points in a British Airways Executive Club membership year.
Langkawi – Penang Malaysia Airlines Island Resort Mileage Run
Google Maps – Langkawi, Malaysia in Andaman Sea off coast of Thailand-Malaysia border.
Checking out other options available today revealed an interesting four segment Malaysia domestic flight for $203 for Business Class between the British-colonial island of Penang PEN with George Town and hotel resort populated Langkawi LGK island via Kuala Lumpur.
This business class ticket earns 160 Tier Points in British Airways Executive Club. That is a low $1.27 per Tier Point with a short day time flight schedule of 3 to 4 hours between two island resort destinations in Malaysia.
Malaysia Airlines Penang PEN – Kuala Lumpur KUL – Langkawi LGK – KUL – PEN
$202.60 USD (906.82 MYR) round trip MH Business Z Class Fri Feb 3 – Fri Feb 10
PEN – KUL = 201 flight miles and earns 40 Tier Points in MU Business Z class.
KUL – LGK = 282 flight miles and earns 40 Tier Points in MU Business Z class.
What makes this fare especially attractive for a mileage run is the option to fly and return the following day.
Penang to Langkaw Malaysiai Business Class
Maximize hotel stay credit bouncing between George Town, Penang and Langkawi chain hotels.
Holiday Inn Resort Penang Thu Feb 2 = $44.17 USD.
This cheap hotel stay would meet two of my IHG Rewards Club Accelerate 2017 tasks to stay at two Holiday Inn brand hotels for 5,600 points and 12,000 points for a stay outside of Americas in the Jan 1-April 15 promotion period.
Starwood Hotels 3 resorts on Langkawi
Westin Langkawi Flexible cancellation rate = 765 Malaysian Ringgit = $170.92 USD night.
The Andaman Luxury Collection Resort Langkawi nonrefundable rate = 920 MYR = $205.55 USD night.
Both hotels are SPG Category 5 hotel. Westin Langkawai is only 16,000 points peak season for that one week in Jan-Feb. Andaman is 12,000 points or both hotels are Cash & Points 6,000 + $110.
The best value hotel deals here are simply to pay $171 or $205 nightly rate rate and earn points/promotion credit in Marriott/Ritz-Carlton/Starwood winter promotions. Starpoints are worth a lot more than $10 to $16 per 1,000 points at plenty of other properties. Unless you are swimming in point thee hotels are a low redemption value for one night stays.
A week or two weeks in Malaysia bouncing between beach resorts could be a relaxed and cheap way to pick up British Airways Executive Club elite status with a couple of round trip tickets earning 320 BA Executive Club tier points for $406 and a one week islands vacation. Or 640 tier points for $812.
In an 8-day trip pick up all the tier points for British Airways Silver elite and only need 4 BA flights to attain mid-tier Executive Club Silver elite for under $1,000.
That is a small fraction of $6,000 EQD needed with American Airlines ticket spend to earn AAdvantage Platinum in 2017.
Personally, I have canceled two planned trips to Malaysia already in the past 16 years. Most recently a $389 San Jose, California Kuala Lumpur round trip on Delta Airlines in November 2015. Perhaps this Business Class deal on Malaysia Airlines as a fast-track to British Airways Executive Club elite status will make Malaysia my charm on the third planned trip.
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