In September we know that Alaska Mileage Plan will change the way it displays the award leaderboard end of the year. Alaska added the following note to its website in September:
“Starting late December, the way you view the online prize rankings will change. We’ll have a simplified prize leaderboard to show you where the award levels start based on where they’re going to start. With this change, similar to prizes on Alaska, partner reward levels may vary depending on many factors including route, distance, or demand. continue to enjoy great value for your miles.As always, the best way to see prices and availability for routes you’re interested in flying is to search for dates. and your specific travel destination.”
Now, with just a few days left until 2022, the new award rankings will be announced. Here is the current North American awards rankings on Alaska Mileage Plan award chart page:
The contiguous U.S., Alaska, and Canadian entry rates are no higher than we’ve seen previously for Alaska-run awards (see chart in our article on Alaska). Alaska Airlines First Class Reward Changes in early 2022). And Alaska has begun pricing American-run awards based on distance.
There is no maximum price listed. So the reward rate you will see when doing a live rewards search will start at the rate listed and expand from there.
Related: Maximize points redemption with Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
As a frequent award-goer, I worry more about international awards rankings. The Alaska rewards chart previously allowed you to enter your origin and destination regions before showing you the rates (listed as starting rates for some carriers). Rates vary by airline operating, with some charging much lower rates than others when traveling between the same areas.
Now, the chart of prizes listed online is much less useful. Here is the international award rankings:
Yes, that’s it. Now, the Alaska rewards chart page only lists the starting reward prices for flights originating from the US or Canada. If you want to originate elsewhere, the site says, “For award levels to and from destinations outside the US and Canada, search for your desired destination and date to see prices.”
According to the terms in the new prize chart, “the ‘starting from’ amount represents the estimated minimum prize price on one or more of our partner airlines.” The terms also state that you cannot stop accepting the prize “within international regions (e.g. Inner Asia or Inner Europe).”
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On the bright side, the starting rate for some Best Alaska Mileage Plan sweet spot does not appear to be affected. I hope that Alaska has grown tired of adding new partners to its prize pool and we won’t suddenly start seeing higher prize prices for some of our favorite partners.
In some quick awards searches, I found you can still fly business class on Cathay Pacific from New York to Hong Kong for 50,000 miles.
You can still fly business class on Fiji Airways from the US to Australia for 55,000 miles.
And you can still book business class tickets on LATAM from Miami to Buenos Aires with a distance of 45,000 miles.
It is possible that these reward ratios will remain the same and the Alaska Mileage Plan only changes the way the rewards graph is displayed, but there are no guarantees.
Regardless, these changes mean that the Alaska Mileage Plan has unlocked the ability to charge higher reward prices for partner rewards that used to have a fixed reward rate. And that might not be good for prize travelers. If you have a stock of Alaska miles, consider redeeming them early for some of the show’s best award tickets.
