Redeem / book Cathay flights via ba.com

[NewTraveller]

Trying to book return flights from HK to Tokyo, a route that is serviced by BA and various other airlines. However, I can’t seeem to book this either using Avios or with cash via BA.com?

Bonus points for anyone who could think of a clever way to make this an avios redemption.

Thanks!

[NewTraveller]

Should read *serviced by Cathay and various other OneWorld airlines*

[meta]

Popular route so difficult to get. How far in advance are you looking? JAL usually releases extra inventory two weeks before the flight.

[NewTraveller]

Thanks. They are for November.

So even for cash tickets, some partner flights aren’t available on BA?

[yonasl]

Cash prices can vary a lot depending on the website you use. A JAL fight may be more expensive with BA directly and a CX option not even displayed on BA’s website.

[marcolau]

Check the availability via AS and verify on BA afterwards – it has availability calendar where you can get a overall picture of the availability each month.

AA is also possible but most likely will show weird routing (e.g. via SE Asia) and thus trigger multi-carrier award chart (much more expensive), hence it’s not recommended on this occasion (unless that’s what you want).

HKG-Japan routing (on CX and JL) is so popular (particularly amongst those in Hong Kong) that seats are all taken soon after the seats are released. Your best bet are at the start of redemption schedule, or much closer to the intended travel dates (e.g. 1-2 months out). At times seats may popped up out of expectation so check regularly for availability – nothing is guaranteed though.

If cash ticket is persued instead, best if seach via Google Flights for availability, then book direct with the operator. There’s several operators other than CX/JL that run HKG-TYO pair as well.