Fly to Hong Kong, China and Japan for less. And Get Oneworld Elite status.
Accumulating enough Avios in Malaysia isn’t easy, especially when CIMB is pretty much our only credit card transfer partner, and you’d need to spend a lot to build up a meaningful balance.
But did you know that you can buy Avios miles directly from the FFPs themselves, without having to fly or spend on credit cards?
Most of the time, buying miles isn’t worth it. But once in a while, miles go on sale at such a low price that it makes buying revenue ticket look stupid.
And that time is now. One Finnair Avios usually costs 9.6 cents per mile (CPM), but until 20 Nov 2026, Finnair Avios is offering miles at 50% discount or 4.8CPM. This is the lowest price we’ve seen in years (the last one was 4.97 CPM in November 2024).
There’s also a little trick. If you switch the purchase currency to USD and purchase 120,000 Avios, the effective cost per mile can go even lower to 4.30 CPM. Note though, this is likely a currency bug/mis-pricing. Finnair has since patched the bug with JPY, and this USD one probably won’t last long.
But does that mean you should go all in and buy as many Avios as possible? Not quite. We recommend having a redemption plan rather than tabung miles speculatively. Ideally, buy only when you’re ready to redeem, as miles can be devalued at any time. Check out our sample redemptions below and play with the redemption function on the website, before taking the plunge.
What is Finnair Avios, and how do we convert them to Qatar/British Avios?
Avios is a shared currency across Qatar Airways Privilege Club (QAPC), British Airways Club (BAC) and Finnair Plus (FP). While redemption rates across these FFPs are similar, miles required and surcharges can differ. For example, booking Cathay Pacific through QRPC can avoid fuel surcharges, unlike BAC.
Avios can be transferred between these FFPs for free, with British Airways serving like a transfer hub.
This current promotion is for Finnair Avios. There are some sweet spots that you can redeem using Finnair Avios, but we recommend transferring it to Qatar Avios, as it will particularly useful for Malaysian miles chasers. We’ll explain more below.
Different discount tiers, up to 50%
To get the lowest cost per mile, the sweet spot is purchasing exactly 120,000 Avios for USD 1,302 (RM5,281). Thanks to Finnair’s milestone bonus, you’ll receive an additional 3,000 Avios, bringing the total miles to 123,000 Avios.
Buying 123,000 Avios at RM5281 works out to be 4.30 CPM (RM0.043 per Avios).
If RM5,281 is too much to fork out at once, smaller amounts can work too, although the CPM will be slightly higher. Here’s how the cost compares across different purchase tiers:
| Avios Amount | Discount Tier | Cent Per Mile (USD) | Cent Per Mile (Ringgit) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 – 4,000 | – | 2.80 | 11.37 |
| 5,000 | 30% | 1.96 | 7.96 |
| 6,000 – 10,000 | 30% | 1.70 | 6.91 |
| 11,000 – 19,000 | 30% | 1.60 | 6.48 |
| 20,000 – 49,000 | 35% | 1.48 | 6.02 |
| 50,000 – 84,000 | 40% | 1.37 | 5.55 Minimum |
| 85,000 – 99,000 | 50% | 1.14 | 4.63 Okay |
| 100,000 – 119,000 | 50% | 1.09 | 4.41 Good |
| 120,000 Tier Bonus +3000 Avios | 50% | 1.06 | 4.30 Excellent |
We recommend purchasing at least 50,000 Avios (RM2,775), which works out to 5.55 CPM. Anything less would likely offer poor value, and you’re better off skipping this promotion.
Make sure you decide how many miles you want before purchasing. When redeeming flights for the whole family though, even 100,000 Avios may not stretch as far as you think. The maximum purchase limit is 200,000 Avios.
What are the Sweet spots for Avios?
Fly to Hong Kong on Economy and Business (50%+ discount on CX)
One of the best sweet spots for Malaysians is redeeming Qatar Avios for Cathay Pacific flights. Why? Well you need “fewer” miles and more importantly, pay no fuel surcharge (YQ) compared to redeeming through Asia Miles or Enrich Points.
Here’s how the math works out if you buy Avios at 4.30CPM vs the revenue ticket prices at Trip.com (return divided by 2), from now till April 2027:
+ RM96(no YQ)
RM1,307
+ RM234(no YQ)
RM4,143
+ RM324(with YQ)
RM1,460
+ RM494(with YQ)
RM3,666
There’s also plenty of award availability over the next few months. We’ve dug through the available redemptions. Have a look-see for yourself:
Inbound HKG-KUL redemptions are also widely available, making this an even sweeter deal if you hold Enrich Gold (oneworld Sapphire) status or above.
When flying inbound (even in Economy), you can access Cathay Pacific’s excellent lounges at HKIA, including the newly renovated The Bridge and the popular The Pier Business Class Lounge.
Fly to Japan and Korea for Cheap
From HKIA, Cathay Pacific’s home base, there are plenty of destinations to choose from. Here are some of our top picks:
| Route | Metal | Miles Required | |
| Economy (QRPC) |
Business (QRPC) |
||
| HKG-KIX | Cathay Pacific | 11K no YQ |
22K no YQ |
| HKG-HND | Cathay Pacific | 11K no YQ |
22K no YQ |
| HKG-ICN | Cathay Pacific | 11K no YQ |
22K no YQ |
Fly to Doha, Europe and USA
If you don’t mind transiting through Doha, you can also experience Qatar Airways’ renowned Qsuite Business Class on your way to London or New York:
| Route | Metal | Miles Required | |
| Economy (QRPC) |
Business (QRPC) |
||
| KUL-DOH | Qatar Airways | 25K + RM346 |
50K + RM720 |
| KUL-DOH-LHR | Qatar Airways | 37.5K + RM611 |
75K + RM1,106 |
| KUL-DOH-JFK | Qatar Airways | 47.5K + RM830 |
95K + RM1,478 |
10% Finnair Tier Points Bonus – Get OneWorld Status
As part of this promotion, you’ll also earn Finnair Tier Points (something like Enrich Elite Points) equivalent to 10% of the Avios purchased.
For example, buying 150,000 Avios earns you 15,000 Tier Points, enough to qualify for Finnair Silver (Oneworld Ruby). This gives you priority check-in and boarding on Oneworld airlines, although no access to lounges. Priority check-in is particularly useful at KLIA during busy holiday seasons.
Here’s a quick summary of different Finnair membership tiers:
| Finnair Plus Basic | Finnair Plus Silver | Finnair Plus Gold | Finnair Plus Platinum | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tier points needed | – | 15,000 | 45,000 | 80,000 |
| Priority check-in and boarding | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Free seat selection | 50% off Finnair flights |
✔ Selected OW airlines |
✔ Selected OW airlines |
|
| Finnair Lounge | €30 or 4,800 Avios | ✔ + 1 guest |
✔ + 1 guest |
|
| oneworld Business Class and frequent flyer lounge | ✔ + 1 guest | ✔ + 1 guest | ||
| oneworld First Class lounge | ✔ + 1 guest |
With a maximum purchase of 200,000 Avios, with 10% tier bonus, you can earn up to 20,000 Tier Points, which isn’t enough to qualify for Gold.
For most casual travellers, Finnair Silver (similar to Enrich Silver) is probably good enough, as it comes with priority check-in across oneworld airlines. This can be a huge time-saver, especially at KLIA during peak travel periods, potentially saving you 1 to 2 hours of queuing just to check in your bags!
If you’re aiming higher, Finnair has one advantage: its qualification period follows your membership anniversary year instead of calendar year.
For example, if your membership year starts in October 2026, you have until October 2027 to earn additional Tier Points towards Gold or even Platinum. We won’t dive too deeply into this, but it’s certainly achievable with some planning.
How to buy Finnair Avios at 4.3CPM?
To qualify for this promotion, your Finnair Plus account must meet two requirements:
- Your account must have been created before 30 October 2026.
- You must have at least 50 Avios in your account at the time of purchase
These restrictions are probably there to prevent fraudulent purchases by unauthorised miles resellers.
The first requirement will likely rule out many readers who don’t already have a Finnair Plus account. But hey, there’s no harm in creating one now. You never know when the next great Avios promotion.
As for the second requirement, don’t worry, you can always transfer from QRPC/BAC anytime to qualify for the purchase.
Here’s the step by step guide:
- Go to the official Points.com miles purchase link here.
- Click on “Buy Avios”
- Set Select Currency to “USD”.
4. Scroll down to find “Click Here to Buy Avios” blue button.
5. Select the amount of Avios that you want, and make payment.
Which card should I use for this purchase?
Since the purchase is in USD, the following overseas spending cards are recommended:
| MPR | Buy 120k Avios | Total miles | FCY Fee | Effective CPM (blended) |
|
 UOB PME |
0.83 | RM0.043 (RM5,160) |
123,000 Avios + 4,283 KF/Asia Miles |
2.25% (RM116.10) |
4.15 |
 UOB VI PB |
1.00 | RM0.043 (RM5,160) |
123,000 Avios + 5,160 KF/Asia Miles |
2.25% (RM116.10) |
4.12 |
 Maybank Platinum Charge |
0.71 | RM0.043 (RM5,160) |
123,000 Avios + 3,664 KF/Asia Miles |
2.25% (RM116.10) |
4.17 |
 CIMB TWE |
0.67 | RM0.043 (RM5,160) |
123,000 Avios + 3,457 Seafood |
1.25% (RM64.50) |
4.13 |
We have DP on “recurring transaction” issue for CIMB cards in our community, but Peter tested his CIMB card on Points.com as of Oct 2026, and he managed to get the CIMB Bonus Points. To be totally safe though, UOB/Maybank cards are recommended here.
Factoring in the miles earned via credit cards, the effective cost per mile (blended) can even go as low as 4.12CPM. Not only are you buying Avios at a great price, but you also earn a healthy stack of KrisFlyer/Asia Miles along the way 🙂
Conclusion
Avios is now on sale at 4.30 CPM, the lowest price in years, with the added opportunity to secure oneworld Ruby status and work your way towards Gold/Platinum.
Combined with the Qatar Avios + Cathay Pacific (no YQ trick), this offers exceptional value for Cathay Pacific redemptions to Hong Kong, Japan and Korea. Of course, you can also redeem flights to Doha, Europe and the US if you don’t mind transiting through the Gulf.
At this price, we may not see another deal quite like it anytime soon. As always, do the math and have a plan before jumping in. See you in the next one.