How to Redeem Korean Air SkyPass Miles has changed a bit, since Korean Air recently updated their Web site. As part of the update, it's also no longer possible to hold awards until a few days prior to departure date, which was a crazy good perk while it lasted. You could hold Korean Air First Class award seats, while keeping your Chase Ultimate Rewards points in your Ultimate Rewards account, and then just a few days before, if Cathay First Class or Singapore Suites award availability opened up, book an alternative last minute award instead and not ticket the Korean SkyPass award, keeping all your Chase Ultimate Rewards points intact.
It was too good to last, and the new system auto generates a date about a month away, by which you must ticket or lose your held reservation.
To redeem for SkyPass awards, go to the new Korean Air SkyPass Redeem Awards site.
Here's what else you need to know about redeeming Korean Air SkyPass Miles:
Redeeming Korean SkyPass Miles for Flights on Korean Air
- One way awards permitted for half of the roundtrip price
- 1 stopover allowed on a one way award
- 2 stopovers allowed on a roundtrip award
- An award for an infant under 2 years old requires 10% of the adult award redemption cost
- Peak season travel requires more miles, so avoid peak season if at all possible. Peak season dates for international and Americas travel is below. Note that 2015 dates are in the far right column.
Redeeming Korean SkyPass Miles for Flights on SkyTeam Partners
- No one way awards (or if one way, the same roundtrip price applies)
- No infant or child mileage discounts
- 1 stopover allowed on the roundtrip award
- 1 open jaw only permitted at destination (permitted in addition to the 1 stopover)
- Blackout dates apply for some partners, for example China Airlines has the following blackout dates:
- From Asia to North America: December 20, 2014 – January 4, 2015
- From North America to Asia: December 10, 2014 – January 4, 2015
- Departures from Amsterdam: December 11, 2014 – December 27, 2014
SkyTeam Partner Award Chart Changes
Award regions and the award charts changed as of September 21, 2014, but at least Korean has the decency to provide a 1 year grace period, until September 20, 2015, when you can either use the old award chart or use the new award chart.
Old Award Regions:
| Area | Country |
|---|---|
|
Northeast Asia |
Korea, Taiwan, East Russia, Mongolia, Japan, China (including Hong Kong) |
|
Southeast Asia |
Guam, Laos, Macao, Malaysia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Brunei, Saipan, Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia, Thailand, Palau, Philippines |
|
Southwest Asia |
Nepal, Maldives, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan,Uzbekistan, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, Central Russia |
|
Oceania |
Nauru, New Zealand, New Caledonia, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Kiribati, Tonga, Tuvalu, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, French Polynesia, Australia |
|
North America |
United States (excluding Hawaii), Canada |
|
Mexico, Hawaii, Central America |
Guadalupe, Guatemala, Grenada, Nicaragua, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Martinique, Mexico, Montserrat, Barbados, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Belize, British Virgin Islands, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, St Kitts-Nevis, Aruba, Haiti, Antigua and Barbuda, Antilles, El Salvador, Honduras, US Virgin Islands, Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba,Trinidad and Tobago, Puerto Rico, Hawaii |
|
Latin America 1 |
Guyana, Venezuela, Suriname, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Peru, French Guiana |
|
Latin America 2 |
Bolivia, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Paraguay |
|
Europe |
Georgia, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Latvia, West Russia, Romania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Belgium, Belarus, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Moldova, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Cyprus, San Marino, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland, Spain, Slovakia, Slovenia, Armenia, Ireland, Iceland, Azerbaijan, Andorra, Albania, Estonia, United Kingdom, Austria, Ukraine, Italy, Gibraltar, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Turkey, Portugal, Poland, France, Finland, Hungary |
|
Middle East |
Bahrain, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Oman, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Israel, Qatar, Kuwait |
|
North Africa |
Libya, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia |
|
Central and South Africa, |
Ghana, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Namibia, Nigeria, Republic of South Africa, Niger, Liberia, Lesotho, Rwanda, Reunion, Madagascar, Mayotte, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, Burkina Faso, Benin, Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Senegal, Seychelles, Somalia, Swaziland, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Equatorial Guinea, Zaire, Zambia, Central African Republic, Djibouti, Zimbabwe, Chad, Cameroon, Kenya, Comoros, Côte d'Ivoire, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Togo |
Old Award Chart from the U.S./Canada:
Departure |
Arrival |
Economy |
Business |
First |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
USA/Canada |
Central & South Africa, Indian Ocean |
80,000 |
120,000 |
160,000 |
|
Middle East/Near East |
80,000 |
120,000 |
160,000 |
|
|
North Africa |
50,000 |
80,000 |
100,000 |
|
|
Europe |
50,000 |
80,000 |
100,000 |
|
|
Latin America 2 |
50,000 |
110,000 |
– |
|
|
Latin America 1 |
35,000 |
75,000 |
– |
|
|
Mexico/Hawaii/Central America |
35,000 |
75,000 |
– |
|
|
USA/Canada |
25,000 |
45,000 |
– |
|
|
South Pacific |
110,000 |
185,000 |
260,000 |
|
|
Southwest Asia |
100,000 |
170,000 |
230,000 |
|
|
Southeast Asia |
90,000 |
155,000 |
200,000 |
|
|
Northeast Asia |
80,000 |
140,000 |
180,000 |
New Award Regions:
Area |
Country |
|
|
Asia 1 |
Korea, Japan |
|
|
Asia 2 |
Guam, Taiwan, East Russia, Laos, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Macao, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Brunei, Saipan, Singapore, Uzbekistan, Indonesia, China, Central Russia, Kazakhstan, Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkmenistan, Palau, Philippines, Hong Kong |
|
|
Asia 3 |
Nepal, Maldives, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, India, Pakistan |
|
|
Oceania |
Nauru, New Zealand, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Samoa, Solomon Islands, American Samoa, Kiribati, Tonga, Tuvalu, Papua New Guinea, French Polynesia, Fiji, Australia |
|
|
North America |
Mexico, United States (including Hawaii), US Virgin Islands, Canada, Puerto Rico |
|
|
Central America |
Guyana, Guadalupe, Guatemala, Grenada, Nicaragua, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Martinique, Montserrat, Barbados, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Belize, British Virgin Islands, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, St. Kitts-Nevis, Suriname, Aruba, Haiti, Antigua and Barbuda, Antilles, El Salvador, Honduras, Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago, French Guiana |
|
|
Latin America |
Venezuela, Bolivia, Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, Uruguay, Chile, |
|
|
Europe |
Georgia, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Latvia, Romania, Luxembourg, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Malta, Monaco, Morocco, Mordovia, Belgium, Belarus, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Cyprus, San Marino, West Russia, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland, Spain, Slovakia, Slovenia, Armenia, Iceland, Ireland, Azerbaijan, Andorra, Albania, Algeria, Estonia, United Kingdom, Austria, Ukraine, Italy, Gibraltar, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Turkey, Tunisia, Portugal, Poland, France, Finland, Hungary |
|
|
Middle East |
Bahrain, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Oman, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Israel, Qatar, Kuwait |
|
|
Africa |
Ghana, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Namibia, Nigeria, Republic of South Africa, Niger, Liberia, Lesotho, Rwanda, Libya, Reunion, Madagascar, Mayotte, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, Burkina Faso, Benin, Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Senegal, Seychelles, Somalia, Swaziland, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Equatorial Guinea, Zaire, Zambia, Central African Republic, Djibouti, Zimbabwe, Chad , Cameroon, Kenya, Comoros, Côte d'Ivoire, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Togo |
|
Departure |
Arrival |
Economy |
Business |
First |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
North America |
North America |
25,000 |
45,000 |
|
|
Central America |
35,000 |
75,000 |
||
|
South America |
50,000 |
110,000 |
||
|
Europe |
50,000 |
80,000 |
100,000 |
|
|
Middle East, Africa |
80,000 |
120,000 |
160,000 |
|
|
Asia 1 |
80,000 |
140,000 |
180,000 |
|
|
Asia 2 |
90,000 |
155,000 |
200,000 |
|
|
Asia 3 |
100,000 |
170,000 |
230,000 |
|
|
Oceania |
110,000 |
185,000 |
260,000 |
|
NOTES
- USA-Tahiti by Air France : Economy 60,000/Business 90,000 miles
- Redemption miles, operating routes and flight schedules can be changed without prior notice in accordance with partner airlines’ policies and circumstances. Please check more details at Korean Air Service Centers.
Modest Changes for SkyPass Awards from the U.S. on SkyTeam Partners
As you can see, some awards, notably between the U.S. and Central America, have actually gone down. Others, such as the U.S. to Europe, the U.S. to the Middle East, and U.S. to Australia/Oceania, have remained the same. But a few awards have gone up. For example, these awards, because China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mongolia are now in the Asia 2 region instead of being grouped with Japan and Korea:
- U.S. to China / Hong Kong goes up from 80K/140K/180K for Economy/Business/First respectively to 90K/155K/200K SkyPass miles
- Similarly, U.S. to Taiwan goes up from 80K/140K/180K for Economy/Business/First respectively to 90K/155K/200K SkyPass miles
- Alaska Airlines
- Emirates
- Etihad
- Hawaiian
- Single carrier must be flown for the entire itinerary
- No one way awards (or if one way, the same roundtrip price applies)
- No infant or child mileage discounts
- 1 open jaw only permitted at destination
- Make sure you provide the full name exactly as in the passport of the person traveling, even when putting an award on hold. The agents I've spoken with maintain that the name must be exactly as in the traveler's passport, and any change or addition, such as adding a middle name, would require a redeposit of the award.
- Also ensure that the credit card you use to pay the taxes and fees on the ticket is one you'll still have with you when you travel, since Korean has been known to request to see it at time of check-in.
- Transfers from Chase Ultimate Rewards to Korean SkyPass are generally instant, but note that you are only permitted one transfer per day, so plan accordingly.
Need Help with a SkyPass Award Booking?
Want help with your Korean SkyPass award? TravelSort hotel clients may use my Award Booking Service to book Korean SkyPass awards. Note that I am currently accepting new clients booking a minimum of $3500 in hotel stays or cruises, for the itinerary where award booking assistance is needed. See How to Become a TravelSort Client.
Have you used Korean Air SkyPass awards or flown Korean Air recently?
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