Etihad Guest is a frequent flyer program of Etihad Airways. It is another World Class Airlines from UAE after Emirates Airways. You can fly Etihad Airways from 8 Indian Cities to Abu Dhabi and worldwide. So, there will be enough opportunities to earn Etihad Guest miles and spending of these miles in India. Here is your ultimate guide to Etihad guests.
Note: Changes are coming to Etihad Guest, the frequent flyer program of Etihad airways from June 2024.
Sign-up
Etihad Guest is free to join. Also, you earn 500 Bonus Etihad Guest Miles once you take your first flight.
Register here.
Etihad Guest Elite Tier: Eligibility
Once you sign-up for Etihad Guest, you become an “Etihad Guest Bronze” member. But as you earn more tier miles or take more flights, you are upgraded to a higher tier. There are 4 Etihad Guest Tiers, of which three are elite tiers:
- Bronze
- Silver
- Gold
- Platinum
Tier-wise Eligibility Requirement
Etihad Guest Tier-wise eligibility is different for attaining and retaining a tier. The below table lists the tier-wise eligibility for Etihad Guest:
| Tier | Attaining Tier | Retaining Tier |
| Bronze | Joining | NA |
| Silver | 25000 Tier Miles or 20 Tier Segments | 20000 Tier Miles or 15 Tier Segments |
| Gold | 50000 Tier Miles or 40 Tier Segments | 40000 Tier Miles or 30 Tier Segments |
| Platinum | 125000 Tier Miles or 60 Tier Segments | 100000 Tier Miles or 48 Tier Segments |
Once you reach a tier, you remain in that tier for 12 base and two bonus months. Interestingly, Etihad has a lower requirement for retaining a tier. Usually, airlines have the exact Tier eligibility requirement. But Etihad keeps it marginally low. That is beneficial for travellers who don’t have extensive travel plans.
How to earn Tier Miles or Tier Segments?
For Etihad Airways, Tier miles are calculated based on the miles flown, adjusted for cabin class and fare type. At the same time, the Tier segment means the number of flights taken. But the number of tier segments increases based on the Cabin Class you fly in, irrespective of fare type.
Also, Tier Miles or Tier Segments are only earned on Etihad Airways Flights and not on Partner Flights on which you earn regular miles.
Here is how earning Tier Miles and Tier segment works (Example, New Delhi to Abu Dhabi 1417 Miles):
| Cabin Class | Fare Type | Miles Earning Eligibility | Total Miles Earned (Tier Miles) | Tier Segment Earned |
| Residence | The Residence* | 400% | 5668 | 5 |
| First | First* | 275% | 3897 | 3 |
| Business | Choice Plus | 200% | 2834 | 2 |
| Choice | 175% | 2480 | 2 | |
| Value | 130% | 1842 | 2 | |
| Economy | Choice Plus | 100% | 1417 | 1 |
| Choice | 75% | 1063 | 1 | |
| Value | 50% | 709 | 1 | |
| Sale | 25% | 354 | 1 |
Based on the above table, it is clear that if you take economy class, it would take 20 tier segments to attain a tier and just four flights to attain a Silver if you fly in The Residence.
How to earn Etihad Guest Elite Tier in India?
In India, usually, you can earn an Etihad Guest Elite tier by flying. But you can also earn it based on co-branded cards. Etihad Airways has a tie-up with SBI Credit Cards for issuing Co-Branded Credit Cards in India. But here also, the requirement for earning an Elite tier is a bit different.
Related: Etihad Status Match Offer
Here are the credit cards with the requirement of earning Elite Tier:
| Credit Card | Annual Fees | Initial Tier (1st 6M) | Tier Extended (Next 6M) | Retain Tier (Spending Based) |
| Etihad Guest SBI Card | INR 1,449 | Silver | Silver | INR 10 Lac |
| Etihad Guest SBI Premier Card | INR 4,449 | Gold | Gold | INR 10 Lac for Silver INR 20 Lac for Gold |
Irrespective of the above credit cards, you must take at least one flight with Etihad Airways within six months from the card issuance date to retain the tier. Else you will be downgraded to Bronze. But you can attain tier based on spending.
These Etihad and SBI credit cards give 1 Tier mile on every INR 50 spent, making it easy to earn Tier miles. Combining them with regular flights can help you attain a higher tier easier.
Related: How to earn an Airline Elite Status in India?
Etihad Guest Elite Tier: Benefits
Every Tier, including the base tier of Etihad Guest, has benefits. Here are the Etihad Guest Elite Tier-Wise Benefits:
Etihad Guest Bronze Benefits
As an Etihad Guest Bronze member, you get the following benefits
- Upgrades with Miles at Airport
- 10% Onboard Wi-Fi Discount
- Lounge Access with miles at Abu Dhabi
Etihad Guest Silver Benefits
Once you attain or retain the Etihad Guest Silver tier, you get the following benefits:
- 25% Bonus Etihad Guest Miles on Etihad Airways and Select Partner Airlines
- Guaranteed Economy Seat if Booked before 48 hours
- 25% Discount on Upgrades with miles at Airport
- Priority Check-in (Economy at Abu Dhabi and Business at other Airports)
- One Free Economy Standard Seat Selection
- 25% Discount on onboard Wi-Fi
- 30% Discount on a seat in economy space
- Complimentary Lounge Access at Abu Dhabi International Airport for self
- 10KG Baggage Allowance (Except US & Canada)
- 23KG Baggage Allowance When Travelling to US or Canada in Economy
- 32KG Baggage Allowance When Travelling to US or Canada in Business or First Class
- 7% Discount on Baggage Fees
Etihad Guest Gold Benefits
As an Etihad Guest Gold member, you get the following benefits:
- Dedicated 24*7 Contact Centre
- 50% Bonus Miles on Etihad Airways and Select Airline Partners
- Guaranteed Economy Seat if booking before 24 hours
- 50% discount on upgrades at Airport
- Priority Check-in at Premium Business counters
- Fast Track Immigration and Baggage Delivery at select airports
- Priority Boarding
- Two Free Economy Standard Seat Selection (on the Same Flight)
- 50% discount for two seats in Economy Space
- 75% Discount on onboard Wi-Fi
- Self and one guest Business Class lounge Access at Abu Dhabi Airport
- Self and one guest Premium lounge Access at other airports
- 15KG Baggage Allowance (Except US & Canada)
- 23KG Baggage Allowance When Travelling to US or Canada in Economy
- 32KG Baggage Allowance When Travelling to US or Canada in Business or First Class
- 10% Discount on Baggage Fees
- Avis Budget Tier Match
- Chauffeur service for business class and first class redemption
Etihad Guest Platinum Benefits
For Etihad Guest Platinum members following benefits are available:
- No Miles Expiry
- Dedicated 24*7 Contact Centre
- 75% Bonus Miles on Etihad Airways and Select Airline Partners
- Guaranteed Economy Seat if booking before 12 hours
- Guaranteed Business Seat if booking before 48 hours
- 50% discount on upgrades at Airport
- Priority Check-in at Premium Business counters
- Fast Track Immigration and Baggage Delivery at select airports
- Priority Boarding
- 9 Free Economy Standard Seat Selection (on Same Flight)
- One Free and 50% discount for nine seats in Economy Space (Same Flight)
- Complimentary via 100% Discount on onboard Wi-Fi
- Self and one guest First Class lounge Access at Abu Dhabi Airport
- Self and one guest Premium lounge Access at other airports
- 20KG Baggage Allowance (Except US & Canada)
- 23KG Baggage Allowance When Travelling to US or Canada in Economy
- 32KG Baggage Allowance When Travelling to US or Canada in Business or First Class
- 15% Discount on Baggage Fees
- Avis Budget Tier Match
- Chauffeur service for business class and first class redemption
How to earn Etihad Guest Miles?
There are multiple ways to earn Etihad Guest Miles, and you may also be eligible for Bonus Miles on Transfer during promotions.
Here are the options to earn Etihad Miles:
- Flying Etihad and its partners
- Spends on SBI and Etihad Co-Branded Credit Cards
- Buying Etihad Guest Miles During Promotions
- Earn Miles on Hotel Stays at:
- Convert Credit Card Points to Etihad of:
- Renting a Car with Avis or Budget
Related: Etihad Hyatt Promotion
Miles Expiry
All Etihad Guest Miles expire at the end of the 18th month from the month miles were earned. But if you are a platinum member, then your miles don’t expire. But if you are downgraded from platinum, your miles will expire at the end of the 18th month from the month your status was downgraded.
Spending Etihad Miles
Even though Etihad is not part of any alliance, it has partnerships with around 20 airlines.
Recently (Mar 23), Etihad changed the miles required to book reward seats. Also, you can now book American Airlines, Virgin Australia and Etihad Airways tickets online.
Now Etihad has a fixed award chart. Which is as below:
These miles are minimum, and you must pay dynamic miles, based on demand and availability.
For Example, From Delhi to Abu Dhabi, is 1417 miles, for which you will need to shell out 13000 miles which is far better than Emirates. Also, you can redeem guest miles on partner airlines, but stopover or open jaws may not be available on all partner airlines.
There are other ways to spend Etihad Guest Miles, such as Renting a card or booking a hotel, but you are most likely to get more value out of miles by using it for flying.
Chauffeur service
As an Etihad Gold or Platinum member and booking a Business Class or First Class Reward seat, you’re eligible for a Chauffeur-driven card. It is different from Emirates Airways, which does not provide reward seats.
Bottomline
Etihad Guest is a decent frequent flyer program from Etihad Airways. There are multiple ways to earn guest miles and elite status in India. Also, with a fixed award chart now, you can make your plans better on spending guest miles. There are few better offerings than Emirates Airlines, such as Chauffeur Service on Business Class or First Class redemptions.
