There's no easier way to earn a huge welcome bonus than with the Hawaiian Airlines® World Elite Mastercard®: Forget spending a few thousand dollars, you can get 70,000 miles with one quick, $1 purchase … at least for now.
Yes, it's really that simple. All you need to do is make a single purchase within 90 days of opening the card (whether it's a cup of coffee or a new refrigerator), pay the $99 annual fee, and voila … you've got 70,000 HawaiianMiles. That's not even the best part: Thanks to Hawaiian and Alaska Airlines' recent merger, you can easily turn those HawaiianMiles into far more valuable Alaska miles!
This is the epitome of a limited-time opportunity. Not only is it the biggest and best bonus we've ever seen on this card, but this Hawaiian card will likely disappear altogether sometime later this year when Hawaiian and Alaska officially combine loyalty programs.
So if you've got a good use for Hawaiian Alaska miles – and trust us, there are plenty – don't let this chance pass you by. They're some of the easiest miles you'll ever earn!
Take it to the next level: How to Quickly Earn 140K Alaska Miles (& Why You Should)
Hawaiian Airlines® World Elite Mastercard®: Card Overview
- Welcome offer: Earn 70,000 bonus HawaiianMiles after making your first purchase within the first 90 days.
- There is an alternate offer from Barclays for the same 70,000 bonus miles that requires spending $2,000 on purchases in the first 90 days. This makes this new offer (from the Bank of Hawaii) a much better deal.
- 50%-off companion discount: Receive a one-time, 50%-off companion discount for roundtrip (economy) travel between Hawaii and North America on Hawaiian Airlines.
- Earn 3x miles on eligible Hawaiian Airlines purchases, 2x miles on gas, dining, and eligible grocery purchases, and 1x miles on all other purchases.
- Free checked bag: Get two free checked bags when you use your card to purchase eligible tickets directly from Hawaiian Airlines.
- $100 companion discount: Get a $100 companion discount every year for roundtrip travel between Hawaii and the Continental U.S. on Hawaiian Airlines.
- Transfer miles: Cardmembers can receive HawaiianMiles from friends and family without fees using the “Share Miles” feature.
- No foreign transaction fees.
- Annual fee: $99, which is not waived in the first year.
All information about the Hawaiian Airlines® World Elite Mastercard® has been collected independently by Thrifty Traveler and has not be verified by the issuer.
Learn more about the Hawaiian Airlines® World Elite Mastercard® (for full disclosure, this is not an affiliate link).
Hawaiian Airlines World Elite Mastercard Benefits
Welcome Bonus Offer
Earn 70,000 bonus miles after making a purchase of any dollar amount in the first 90 days of opening your card and paying card's $99 annual fee in full.
Buy breakfast, a newspaper, a pack of gum, or spend any amount of money on your new card, and you'll earn the 70,000-mile bonus. It's that easy. And considering you can instantly kick these miles over to Alaska, it makes this bonus even better.
There's nothing in it for us: We don't get a dime if you get approved for this credit card. We just think this is an outstanding credit card offer that you should know about.
Share Miles
Beyond the big bonus, this is a sneaky-good feature that could come in handy.
Hawaiian is one of the few airlines that gives you the option to “Share Miles,” which allows any HawaiianMiles member to send their miles to any Hawaiian Airlines co-branded credit cardholders at no cost.
So if you're racking up points with a spouse or travel pal in two-player mode, you could each get this card, combine your bonuses under one Hawaiian account for a total of 140,000 miles, and then send them all to a single Alaska Mileage Plan account.
Read more: A Sneaky Way to Pool Your Alaska Miles … For Free!
Two Checked Bags Free
You'll get two free checked bags on eligible Hawaiian flights, but only when you use your card to purchase tickets directly from the airline.
50%-Off Companion Discount
You receive a one-time, 50%-off companion discount for roundtrip coach travel between Hawaii and the continental U.S. on Hawaiian Airlines.
$100 Companion Discount
You also get a $100 companion discount for roundtrip travel between Hawaii and the Continental U.S. on Hawaiian Airlines each account anniversary year.
Earning Hawaiian miles
You'll earn 3x miles for every dollar spent on eligible Hawaiian Airlines purchases, 2x miles on gas, dining, and grocery store purchases, and 1x miles for every dollar spent on all other purchases.
$99 Annual Fee
The card has a $99 annual fee that is not waived in the first year. And remember: You'll have to pay that $99 fee straight away in order to get your big bonus.
What Can You Do with Hawaiian Miles?
Let's get one thing clear: You don't really want HawaiianMiles.
While having a big stash of them is by no means a death sentence, the real reason this offer is so exciting is because you can easily turn this big bonus into insanely valuable Alaska miles instead.
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles are some of the best miles on the planet, thanks to low award rates booking partner airlines like Japan Airlines, Aer Lingus, and more. The airline tacks on a nominal amount of taxes and fees on award tickets: often under $20 each way. And it also has some excellent features you won't find with many other airline programs, like the ability to add a free stopover to any award ticket.
Whether you want to fly within the U.S., abroad to Europe, or even book lie-flat seats to far-flung destinations in Asia and beyond, Alaska miles should be on your radar.
Read more: Alaska Miles are Insanely Valuable & Easy to Earn … But Not For Long
Business Class to Europe from 45K
Perhaps the best example is using Alaska miles to book lie-flat, business class seats to Europe.
For example, you can book Aer Lingus business class to Ireland and other destinations in Europe for just 45,000 Alaska miles and just $19 in taxes and fees one-way. You'll see higher rates when departing from the Midwest or West Coast, but they're still a solid deal, too.
Plus, you can stop in Dublin for a taste of Guinness straight from the source on your way to another European destination. Sometimes, adding a connection can even result in paying fewer miles for your trip.
Aer Lingus flies from several North American gateways, including Boston (BOS), Los Angeles (LAX), Las Vegas (LAS), Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP), Miami (MIA), Newark (EWR), New York City (JFK), Orlando (MCO), Philadelphia (PHL), Seattle (SEA), San Francisco (SFO), Toronto (YYZ), and Washington D.C.-Dulles (IAD).
Read next: 5 Things I Loved Flying Aer Lingus Business Class (& 2 I Didn't)
But Aer Lingus isn't the only option for getting to Europe in style. If you ask us, Condor business class is criminally underrated and one of our favorite ways to get to Europe – especially without paying the huge surcharges you'd face flying many other carriers.
From East Coast cities like Boston (BOS) and New York City (JFK) as well as Toronto (YYZ), it'll cost you just 55,000 miles to get to Frankfurt (FRA) in a lie-flat seat. Even longer flights from Miami (MIA) cost the same amount.
That's right: Just 55,000 Alaska miles one-way for a brand new Condor business class seat across the pond. And unlike many other airlines on the list of Alaska Mileage Plan sweet spots, finding the award availability to book Condor business class is typically quite easy.
Starlux Business Class for 75K
Using Alaska miles to book a business class flight with the Taiwan-based Starlux Airlines is one of the best deals to get from the West Coast to Taipei (TPE) and other destinations in Asia. A one-way business class flight from San Francisco (SFO), Seattle (SEA), Los Angeles (LAX), or Ontario (ONT) to Taipei on Starlux is still just 75,000 miles each way.
Finding the award availability needed to actually book can be hit-or-miss, but this is an unbelievable deal to get to Asia in business class. Considering these flights typically cost $3,000 (or more) one-way, 75,000 Alaska miles. In fact, it's the only way to book these flights with miles, period.
Short-Haul U.S. Flights from 4.5K Miles
Alaska previously had an award chart for flights within North America (typically on either Alaska Airlines itself or American Airlines). Now, it's been rebranded as the “Americas” – including North America as well as both Central America and South America.
The longer the flight, the more miles it may cost you. That's not a major change from how Alaska previously priced these awards. But the amount you'll pay for those flights has changed.
Other than lumping in flights to, from, or within Central and South America into this same pricing rubric, the big change is that the shortest flights now cost fewer miles: as low as 4,500 miles in economy and 9,000 in first class for flights under 700 miles in distance. Under the old system, those same flights used to cost at least 5,000 miles and 17,500 miles, respectively.
Here's a look at a short flight from Phoenix (PHX) to Las Vegas (LAS) as an example.
When these short flights are looking expensive, being able to turn to your Alaska miles to book for less is always a great workaround.
Read next: How to Find & Book the Best Alaska Airlines Miles Deals
Bottom Line
Earning 70,000 miles after making a quick purchase and paying a modest $99 annual fee is pretty unbeatable – especially when you can turn those into Alaska miles. It's so incredible, in fact, it won't be a possibility for much longer!
So now's a great time to apply for this card … while you still can. You simply won't find an easier way to earn a big pile of ultra-valuable miles!