Hawaiian Airlines serves destinations in North America, Asia and the South Pacific from Hawaii. Although a merger between Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines would bring Hawaiian into the Oneworld alliance, the airline doesn't currently belong to a major airline alliance. Instead, it has various partnerships, some of which allow you to redeem points and miles for Hawaiian Airlines flights.
In this guide, I'll discuss some of the best ways to redeem points and miles for flights operated by Hawaiian Airlines. Don't worry if you don't currently have points or miles with some of the loyalty programs discussed, as I'll discuss which transferable points you can transfer to each program.
Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles
It only seems right to start with HawaiianMiles when discussing how to book Hawaiian Airlines flights with miles. HawaiianMiles publishes award charts for a variety of award types. You'll see discounted award amounts on some of these charts, which are only available to Pualani Platinum and Pualani Gold elite members, Premier Club members, and select Hawaiian Airlines cardmembers. Meanwhile, the upgrade amounts are only available on paid tickets.
For example, here's the one-way award chart for neighbor island flights within Hawaii:
I found many dates offering flights from Honolulu to Maui for 7,500 miles in economy and 15,000 miles in business class. The taxes and fees are a modest $6.
Meanwhile, here are the one-way award charts for flights between the continental U.S. and Hawaii:
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I found Main Cabin 1 award pricing on many dates for flights between the continental U.S. and Hawaii. First Class 1 award space is more difficult to find, but I did spot it on some dates (especially if you're willing to fly in a recliner seat instead of a lie-flat seat). Taxes and fees are also just $6 for these awards.
You can earn Hawaiian miles by transferring American Express Membership Rewards points and Marriott Bonvoy points.
Related: Save money: How you can book flights to Hawaii using points and miles in 2024
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JetBlue TrueBlue
You can redeem JetBlue points for Hawaiian-operated flights. JetBlue TrueBlue doesn't publish an award chart for Hawaiian Airlines, but based on my searches, award rates are consistent on a particular nonstop route.
For example, you can expect to redeem 7,500 points for a one-way economy flight from Honolulu to Maui or 14,000 points for a one-way business-class flight.
You can redeem 20,000 points in economy class or 50,000 points in business class for a flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu.
I couldn't find any dates with business-class award availability from Boston to Honolulu. However, I consistently found economy awards bookable for 37,900 points on this nonstop Hawaiian route.
You can even redeem 20,000 JetBlue points to fly in economy class on the once-weekly Hawaiian-operated flight from Honolulu to Tahiti.
You can earn JetBlue points via many methods, including JetBlue credit cards and transfers from American Express Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou Rewards.
Related: Best hotels and resorts in Hawaii
American Airlines AAdvantage
Based on the standard AAdvantage partner award chart, you can redeem American Airlines miles for Hawaiian Airlines flights that aren't between the continental U.S. and Hawaii. AAdvantage awards that include one or more segments operated by Hawaiian Airlines can also include American Airlines flights and flights operated by other AAdvantage partners.
You can redeem 7,500 miles and pay $5.60 in taxes and fees to fly one-way in economy within Hawaii on Hawaiian-operated flights.
You can also fly one-way in economy between Hawaii and anywhere in the contiguous 48 U.S. states and Canada for 22,500 miles plus $5.60 in taxes and fees. However, you'll only get this award pricing if your award includes at least one flight operated by an AAdvantage partner (such as a flight within Hawaii operated by Hawaiian Airlines).
You can redeem American miles to fly Hawaiian Airlines one-way in economy from Hawaii to Japan for 32,500 miles plus $5.60 in taxes and fees.
On the once-per-week Hawaiian Airlines flight from Hawaii to French Polynesia, you can redeem 37,500 American miles plus $5.60 in taxes and fees to fly one-way in economy.
You can earn American miles via many methods, including AAdvantage credit cards, Bask Bank and transfers from Marriott Bonvoy.
Related: Best uses of American Airlines AAdvantage miles
Delta Air Lines SkyMiles
You can redeem Delta Air Lines miles for Hawaiian Airlines flights within Hawaii. For example, you could redeem 7,500 miles plus $6 for a one-way economy flight from Honolulu to Kona.
You can also redeem Delta miles for multisegment itineraries that include a Hawaiian-operated flight within Hawaii. For example, you could redeem 26,000 miles plus $6 for a one-way economy flight from Los Angeles to Lihue via Honolulu. Delta operates the flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu, while Hawaiian Airlines operates the flight from Honolulu to Lihue.
However, you won't be able to use the TakeOff 15 feature on this award booking since it includes a segment that Delta doesn't operate. You also can't redeem Delta miles for other Hawaiian Airlines flights, such as those to Asia, the continental U.S. or the South Pacific.
You can earn Delta miles via many methods, including Delta credit cards and transfers from American Express Membership Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy.
Related: Things you need to know about Delta SkyMiles
United Airlines MileagePlus
Like Delta SkyMiles, United MileagePlus only allows its members to redeem miles for Hawaiian Airlines flights within Hawaii. So, you could redeem United Airlines miles for a one-way intra-Hawaii economy flight for 12,500 miles and $5.60. Every intra-Hawaii route I checked that was bookable through United MileagePlus cost 12,500 miles and $5.60, which is less appealing than most other loyalty programs discussed in this guide.
Award rates are much less consistent when you add a Hawaiian-operated leg to an award ticket with United-operated flights. On one date I checked, I could redeem 27,500 miles for a two-stop saver award in economy from Houston to Maui or 70,000 miles for a one-stop award. In either case, United would operate the flight(s) from Houston to Honolulu, and Hawaiian Airlines would operate the flight from Honolulu to Maui.
You can earn United miles via many methods, including United credit cards and transfers from Chase Ultimate Rewards, Bilt Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy.
Related: How to get maximum value from the United MileagePlus program
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
You can redeem Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points based on the program's award chart for Hawaiian Airlines. You'll want to fly nonstop, as you must pay separately for each segment.
Unfortunately, you can't redeem Virgin points to book Hawaiian-operated flights online. Instead, you'll need to call to check award availability, determine taxes and fees, and book.
You can earn Virgin points by transferring American Express Membership Rewards points, Capital One miles, Chase Ultimate Rewards points, Citi ThankYou Rewards points, Bilt Rewards points and Marriott Bonvoy points.
Related: The best time to visit Hawaii for good weather, smaller crowds, deals and more
Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
Japan Airlines Mileage Bank offers a distance-based award chart for Hawaiian Airlines flights.
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For a one-way flight between Honolulu and Maui, you'd pay 12,000 miles and 800 Japanese yen (about $5.50). But since the straight-line flight distance between these destinations' airports is about 100 miles, you'd pay just 12,000 miles plus 1,600 yen (about $11) to fly round-trip.
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But, while you'd pay 23,000 miles and 800 yen to fly one-way between Honolulu and Tokyo, you'd pay 45,000 miles and 7,300 yen (about $50) to fly round-trip between these two airports.
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Perhaps the biggest issue with booking Hawaiian Airlines flights with Mileage Bank is that the only major transferable currency that transfers to Japan Airlines is Marriott Bonvoy points.
Related: These are the best islands in Hawaii, according to frequent visitors
Velocity Frequent Flyer
You can also redeem Velocity Frequent Flyer points for Hawaiian Airlines flights. However, not all flights have available reward seats, and you must call the Velocity membership contact center to check availability and book.
You can check the award cost for a specific nonstop route on the Velocity website. But here's a look at the Velocity award chart for flights operated by Hawaiian Airlines:
To get an idea of routes you can book and the level of taxes and fees, you can see the following three award redemption examples on the Hawaiian Airlines partner page on the Velocity website.
You can earn Velocity points by transferring Marriott Bonvoy points.
Bottom line
You have ample options for booking Hawaiian Airlines flights with points or miles. In addition to the options discussed in this guide, you can redeem points or miles to book Hawaiian Airlines flights through many credit card travel portals. Doing so may provide more value when booking intra-Hawaii flights, which are often inexpensive.
You can also book Hawaiian Airlines flights through Korean Air SkyPass and China Airlines Dynasty Flyer. However, I didn't discuss these programs in this guide because it will be difficult for most U.S.-based travelers to earn enough rewards from them, as neither is a transfer partner of any major U.S. transferable currencies.
Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
