The Best New Zealand Reward Cards

If you’re comfortable putting everyday expenses on a credit card and can consistently repay your balances, you might get a good value from rewards cards. But choose carefully.

For economy flights to New Zealand, a fee-based Chase card can provide great redemption options. You might also find a good deal using Air New Zealand’s transparent award chart.

1. Air New Zealand

One of the most rewarding ways to earn miles is with Air New Zealand. This Air Alliance carrier has routes throughout the Pacific and also serves a number of European destinations.

Koru membership (or premium Airpoints qualification) is a must for those looking to maximize their points and miles spending in New Zealand. The benefits include lounge access, upgrades, priority seating and an additional free bag for a companion.

Getting to New Zealand with award miles can be a challenge, but finding seats isn’t impossible if you have the right card and a flexible travel schedule.

Many Australian credit cards allow members to earn Air New Zealand points directly. These cards typically have a higher point conversion rate than the airline’s official loyalty program.

2. Star Alliance

Air New Zealand’s loyalty programme, ‘Airpoints’, is a coveted frequent flyer program that has significant relevance to Australian travellers. You can earn and redeem Airpoints with their partner hotels, car rental companies, and some retailers. One Airpoints Dollar equals $1 New Zealand dollar.

Silver members enjoy discounts on long haul Business class fares, while Gold and Elite members enjoy priority travel benefits including airport lounge access, upgrades, complimentary frequent-flyer seating, and hotel and car rental vouchers. Elite benefits also include priority reservation waitlist and priority airport standby.

Several airlines in the Oneworld alliance fly to Auckland, though American Airlines is only open to LAX via SFO until fall 2022 (though they do have award space open from AKL on their AAdvantage programme). You can also use UR points on Cathay or Qantas to get to NZ, and American and Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer to Singapore Airlines as well.

3. Hilton Honors

Hilton Honors has seven hotels in New Zealand, including the Auckland waterfront hotel that’s right along Princes Wharf. Overnight stays here earn members around 2,000 Hilton Honors base points, and Platinum and Diamond members get free breakfast each day.

Hilton also partners with many frequent flyer programs, allowing members to redeem their Hilton Honors points for free flights. However, at a conversion rate of 10 Hilton Honors points for one frequent flyer mile in most programs, this option doesn’t offer good value.

Hilton has four elite status tiers, from the entry-level Member tier to Silver, Gold and Diamond. Members can also gift Elite status to others. Hilton Honors co-brand credit cards are the fastest way to amass a healthy balance of points, with some offering new cardmember welcome offers and tangible benefits for relatively small (or no) annual fees.

4. Mr & Mrs Smith

One part action film, one part romantic comedy, Mr & Mrs Smith stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie as the eponymous couple in Suburbia. It’s riddled with bullets, bodies and bodices but still managed to be entertaining enough for viewers to keep them watching late night TV.

IHG has partnered with boutique hotel brand Mr & Mrs Smith to offer its IHG One Rewards members the opportunity to earn and redeem points at select hotels within the collection. The collaboration began on 29 October with a limited selection available for booking and will continue to grow, with new hotels being added weekly.

Mr & Mrs Smith doesn’t manage the hotels; it gets a commission for every reservation made and then shares Rewards New Zealand that with the hotel. It’s similar to how LHW and SLH operate, though Mr & Mrs Smith has less stringent requirements.

5. Marriott Bonvoy

Earning and maintaining hotel elite status is one of the best ways to make a trip more rewarding. But it can be hard to quantify how much value a program’s elite benefits add.

Marriott has a massive global footprint with 30 brands, including the luxury Ritz-Carlton, Sheraton and Westin, as well as more affordable options like Residence Inn, TownePlace Suites and Element hotels. It also offers a unique PointSavers redemption option that lets members book award stays at discounted rates.

Marriott offers a variety of credit cards, including two co-branded cards with Chase that both offer lucrative welcome gifts and points transfer features. You can also earn Marriott points through some American Express consumer and small business cards. In addition to standard points redemptions, Marriott points can be redeemed for hotel gift cards and high-end products like Dooney & Bourke bags.