Etihad Airways is a popular airline. To make a name out in the world of Aviation with a hub in UAE, already dominated by Emirates, tells you the story. It is one of the few International airlines to have a co-branded credit card in India, which makes India one of the focus countries. Etihad has flights from ten airports in India and carries a million passengers every three months. There are many ways to book Etihad, including award flights from India. Even though Etihad isn’t part of any alliance, there are major airline partners with which you can book an Etihad award flight, including the Etihad itself.
Where does Etihad fly?
Etihad flies to 70 Destinations on all continents except South America and Antarctica.
You can fly Etihad from the following Indian Cities:
- Ahmedabad
- Mumbai
- Kozhikode
- Kochi
- Hyderabad
- Bengaluru
- New Delhi
- Thiruvananthapuram
- Chennai
- Kolkata
Etihad flies to the following cities in North America:
- Chicago
- Washington DC
- New York
- Boston
- Toronto
One of the advantages of using Etihad is that you can clear Immigration at Abu Dhabi itself if you are flying Flight EY101 to New York or Flight EY131 to Washington.
Etihad also flies to the following cities in Europe:
- Amsterdam
- Athens
- Barcelona
- Brussels
- Copenhagen
- Dublin
- Düsseldorf
- Frankfurt
- Geneva
- Istanbul
- Lisbon
- London
- Madrid
- Malaga
- Manchester
- Milan
- Moscow
- Munich
- Mykonos
- Nice
- Paris
- Rome
- Saint Petersburg
- Santorini
- Vienna
- Zurich
Apart from the above, you can travel to all major cities in Asia & the Middle East. However, Etihad does not fly to Bali & New Zealand.
Etihad Airline Partners
Etihad has a total of 22 airline partners:
- Air New Zealand
- Air Serbia
- Air Canada
- Air Europa
- Air France
- All Nippon Airways
- American Airlines
- Asiana Airlines
- Brussels Airlines
- EL AL
- Garuda Indonesia
- Gulf Air
- Hainan Airlines
- KLM
- Korean Air
- Malaysia Airlines
- Oman Air
- Royal Air Maroc
- Saudia
- Scandinavian Airlines
- SriLankan Airlines
- Virgin Australia
Of these 22 airline partners, we look into the best partner airlines you can book.
Air Canada Aeroplan
Air Canada has a hybrid award chart with the miles needed to book a flight based on the region and distance travelled. And India and Abu Dhabi, the hub of the emirates, are part of the Atlantic Zone. So, several miles would be reasonable.
However, there is some problem with Air Canada Aeroplan fetching Etihad Award seats. I recommend checking Etihad’s website for guest seat availability and calling Air Canada for further confirmation.
| Route | Economy | Business | First |
| Ahmedabad-Abu Dhabi | 12500 | 25000 | 40000 |
| Mumbai-Abu Dhabi | 12500 | 25000 | 40000 |
| Kozhikode-Abu Dhabi | 12500 | 25000 | 40000 |
| Kochi-Abu Dhabi | 12500 | 25000 | 40000 |
| Hyderabad-Abu Dhabi | 12500 | 25000 | 40000 |
| Bengaluru-Abu Dhabi | 12500 | 25000 | 40000 |
| New Delhi-Abu Dhabi | 12500 | 25000 | 40000 |
| Thiruvananthapuram-Abu Dhabi | 12500 | 25000 | 40000 |
| Chennai-Abu Dhabi | 12500 | 25000 | 40000 |
| Kolkata-Abu Dhabi | 25000 | 45000 | 65000 |
If you are interested in travelling to Europe on Etihad using Aeroplan points, it would cost you a minimum of 45K points for business class and 65000 for First Class. One of the advantages of using Aeroplan points would be lower fuel surcharges. You can use the below award chart for flights within the Atlantic Zone.
Air France & KLM
Etihad recently became a partner with Air France. Air France seems to have the best award availability for Etihad among partners. However, you can only book the Etihad Economy & Business Class Award.
Air France doesn’t publish any award chart for its partner airlines. However, Etihad Awards have fixed the flying miles requirement.
| Route | Economy | Business |
| Ahmedabad-Abu Dhabi | 11000 | 21000 |
| Mumbai-Abu Dhabi | 12000 | 22500 |
| Kozhikode-Abu Dhabi | 14000 | 24500 |
| Kochi-Abu Dhabi | 14500 | 25500 |
| Hyderabad-Abu Dhabi | 13500 | 24000 |
| Bengaluru-Abu Dhabi | 14000 | 25000 |
| New Delhi-Abu Dhabi | 12000 | 21000 |
| Thiruvananthapuram-Abu Dhabi | 15500 | 27000 |
| Chennai-Abu Dhabi | 15500 | 27000 |
| Kolkata-Abu Dhabi | 18000 | 31500 |
The best way to travel from India to Abu Dhabi on an Etihad premium cabin is by flying Blue Miles. One can fly from Kolkata to Abu Dhabi in 31500 Flying Blue miles. However, taxes can go up to 10K for business class.
You will pay the additional flying blue miles if you connect further from Abu Dhabi. The flying blue miles from Abu Dhabi to the destination will be added to the cost. For Example, from Delhi to Abu Dhabi, it costs 21000 fly blue miles, and from Abu Dhabi to Rome, it will cost 40000 fly blue miles, and then you will pay a total of 61000 fly blue miles. That’s a bit expensive if you consider Aeroplan Points.
A good thing about using Flying Blue Miles to book the Etihad Award is that you can easily book it online. However, cancellation charges are EUR 70.
American Airlines
American Airlines has a fixed award chart for booking Etihad Award flights. You can’t transfer credit points to American Airlines in India. However, opportunities exist to earn these miles. You can always transfer Marriott points to American Airlines in a 3:1 ratio; however, a bonus of 5K miles isn’t applicable.
Due to its simple award chart, you can figure out how many AA miles you need to book an Etihad award. You can travel from anywhere in India to Abu Dhabi in Etihad business class with 30K miles. It is expensive compared to Flying Blue. However, taxes are just INR 1600 instead of INR 10K when using Flying Blue Miles.
If you want to travel to Europe on Etihad Business Class, you need 42,500 miles. Even the US has just 70K miles. That is so sweet. However, you may not always find award availability online for the US route, so check availability on Etihad and call American Airlines to book an award flight.
Another good thing about American Airlines is its calendar. You can save so much time with this.
Pro Tip: Use the American Airlines shopping portal to earn aa miles.
Asiana Airlines
At first, I was not going to add Asiana Airlines to the list. However, the miles requirement is as good as America’s. For Example, you can travel from India to the US in Etihad Business Class for 150000 miles. However, you must book a round trip, and taxes can be high.
Hainan Airlines
What is Hainan Airlines doing here, you would ask? Do you know Hainan Airlines partners with a few international airlines like Etihad, Alaska, Virgin Australia and TAP Portugal? Then, you can also transfer your HDFC points to Hainan Airlines Fortune Wings Club at a 1:1 ratio for Infinia and DCB.
It has a fixed award chart, too. However, the distance in the award chart is in Kilometer. Booking a one-way Etihad Business Class award between BOM-AUH would cost a minimum of 35K Hainan Wings Club points. And I’m not sure about taxes; however, they should be around what Flying Blue charges. You can’t book the Etihad Award online, and you should call (86-898) 950717 at least 14 days before your travel to reserve an award ticket on Etihad Airways. I recommend giving a call before transferring points if you want to. A better option for HDFC cardholders would be Flying Blue.
Virgin Australia
Virgin Australia’s frequent flyer program is only for residents of Australia, New Zealand and nearby countries. So, travellers from other countries won’t be able to register. How what I have observed with Virgin Australia is that it has one of the best online availability for its partners. Just look at its partners; you will notice it partners with all popular airlines as part of each airline alliance.
It even has a fixed award chart. So, it is easy to determine the number of Velocity Points required.
If you want to fly from Sydney to Abu Dhabi on Etihad using Velocity Points, it would cost 104,000 points for Business Class.
Etihad Guest
Recently, Etihad updated its award chart. And existing sweet Spots were removed. You now have to pay dynamic Etihad miles to book an Etihad award.
Even though Etihad has an award chart, I have prices that are even lower than these and higher. The award chart is pretty bad unless Etihad Miles is raining in your account. The longest flight for Etihad from India will be from Kolkata to Abu Dhabi, 2142 miles. And based on the award chart, it would cost you 50K Etihad miles.
Even cancellation charges are expensive for seats booked with the lowest miles. The only thing is that Etihad doesn’t release all its inventory available to its airline partners, especially First Class.
If you would book Etihad Paid Business Class tickets, then book them through American Express Platinum Concierge, as you will get a complimentary upgrade to first class.
| Route | Economy | Business |
| Ahmedabad-Abu Dhabi | 13000 | 30000 |
| Mumbai-Abu Dhabi | 13000 | 30000 |
| Kozhikode-Abu Dhabi | 17000 | 45000 |
| Kochi-Abu Dhabi | 17000 | 45000 |
| Hyderabad-Abu Dhabi | 17000 | 45000 |
| Bengaluru-Abu Dhabi | 17000 | 45000 |
| New Delhi-Abu Dhabi | 13000 | 30000 |
| Thiruvananthapuram-Abu Dhabi | 17000 | 45000 |
| Chennai-Abu Dhabi | 17000 | 45000 |
| Kolkata-Abu Dhabi | 22000 | 50000 |
Etihad Miles Transfer Partners
There are several partners of Etihad in India. Etihad partners with all major banks that offer points transferability. It even has Co-Branded credit cards with SBI. You can transfer points of the following credit cards & hotels to Etihad:
- Axis Bank-5:2 & 1:2
- HDFC Bank-2:1
- American Express-2:1
- HSBC-2:1 & 1:1
- Marriott-3:1
- Accor-2:1
- Hilton-10:1
- IHG-5:1
- Shangri-La-1:1
How many miles do you need for Etihad Business Class?
Here are some routes from Abu Dhabi and how many partner miles you need for Etihad Business Class
| Route [From Abu Dhabi] | Aeroplan | Flying Blue | AA Miles | Asiana Miles | Fortune Wings Club | Velocity Points | Etihad Guest |
| Delhi | 25000 | 21000 | 30000 | 55000 | 35000 | 38000 | 30000 |
| Mumbai | 25000 | 22500 | 30000 | 55000 | 55000 | 38000 | 30000 |
| Chennai | 25000 | 27000 | 30000 | 55000 | 55000 | 38000 | 45000 |
| London | 45000 | 51000 | 42500 | 55000 | 105000 | 53000 | 70000 |
| Johannesburg | 45000 | 49000 | 55000 | 60000 | 135000 | 65000 | 70000 |
| Chicago | 90000 | 90500 | 70000 | 60000 | 220000 | 104000 | 110000 |
| Toronto | 90000 | 86500 | 70000 | 60000 | 220000 | 92000 | 110000 |
| Seoul | 60000 | 53000 | 40000 | 60000 | 135000 | 65000 | 75000 |
| Tokyo | 80000 | 63000 | 40000 | 60000 | 175000 | 78000 | 100000 |
| Sydney | 110000 | 93500 | 80000 | 82500 | 220000 | 104000 | 110000 |
| Paris | 45000 | 48500 | 42500 | 55000 | 105000 | 53000 | 70000 |
| Zurich | 45000 | 44000 | 42500 | 55000 | 105000 | 53000 | 60000 |
Lowest Charges
When booking any award, you must also consider the fuel surcharge you must pay. Here is the surcharge level you may pay to book an Etihad award.
| Booking Using | Surcharge Level |
| Aeroplan | Low |
| Flying Blue | Medium |
| AA Miles | Low |
| Fortune Wings Club | Medium to High |
| Asiana Miles | Medium to High |
| Velocity Points | Medium |
| Etihad Guest | Medium to High |
Bottomline
Etihad flies to several destinations worldwide, with multiple partner options to book the Etihad Award flight. Aeroplan points, flying blue miles & AA miles stand out to book the Etihad award. For Asiana Miles, you must book a round trip with limited partners outside Japan & South Korea.
