Turning Hawaiian Miles Into Alaska Miles

There has been a lot of digital ink spilled on whether or not to transfer miles to Hawaiian Airlines before the 20% transfer bonus ends in a few days. This may be surprising since Hawaiian miles are some of the least useful miles on the market, and 20% isn't all that exciting of a bonus. That is especially true when you have 50% – 100% offers out there. It is still getting play in the miles and points space because of the pending Alaska Airlines & Hawaaian Airlines merger though. The thinking is that the merger is much more likely after it cleared the justice department hurdle. If everything goes as planned then Hawaiian Airlines miles would become Alaska Airlines miles at some point in the future, which are way more valuable. There are some things we need to consider before we go all out turning Hawaiian miles into Alaska miles though.

Are You A Victim Of FOMO?

Let's get the easy thing out of the way. If you have never earned, used or have any idea what you can do with an Alaska Airlines mile then skip this completely. I don't care what that blogger / Tik Tok / IG person that you admire says about this opportunity. It isn't for you – FULL STOP. Focus on more learning and let this one pass you by. There will always be more opportunities in the future when you are ready for them.

What If The Merger Doesn't Go Through?

The biggest issue we have with turning Hawaiian miles into Alaska miles is that this is NOT a done deal. Saying it seems very likely does not mean the paperwork has been signed. There is always a chance that this thing goes sideways, or that the DOT blocks the merger. No matter how unlikely it seems this merger falling apart is still a possibility.

What happens if the bottom drops out? You are now stuck with Hawaiian Airlines miles that you transferred your Membership Rewards too. Maybe that isn't a huge deal because you wanted to go to Hawaii one day anyway. For others this thought may give them pause. Why? Because Hawaiian miles don't have the type of flexibility and value that Alaska Airlines do. What if you get stuck holding the bag on 100K, 500K or 1M Hawaiian miles? Points that used to be valuable Membership Rewards! Do you have a plan of getting some value from them if that is what you are left with?

What Will The Transfer Ratio Be?

Another unknown, even if the merger goes through, is what rate would the miles transfer at between the two programs. Just because you have 1 million Hawaiian miles in your account, that doesn't mean you will get 1 million Alaska miles at the end of the day. While a 1 to 1 transfer seems most likely they could decide on another option, like 1 to 0.8 miles.

Would you transfer 1 Membership Reward point for 0.8 Alaska Miles? If you say yes to that, then this deal might make more sense for you. If you say no, then this may add some more risk to your plate.

There is no doubt that the transfer bonus helps fight against this potential too. Should you move up your timeline to take advantage to guard against a lower combination rate? Waiting until you know all of the details could cost you value. That leaves us with the classic risk versus reward debate.

When Will You Actually Turn Hawaiian Miles Into Alaska Miles?

Another last question we need to consider is how long with this all take? Are you okay taking a chunk of your Membership Rewards points out of rotation for a year or two? Merging the loyalty programs would likely come a bit further on down the line after the merger happens.

If you have a large stash of Membership Rewards then maybe this isn't a big concern for you. If you are living paycheck to paycheck (miles style) then pulling points out of rotation might be a huge barrier to entry for you. You may have to forgo a future trip or to in order to make this work in hopes that the payoff was worth it in the end.

Will This Lead To An Alaska Devaluation?

I have no idea what kind of liability Hawaiian Airlines has out there in terms of people's mileage balances, but it will no doubt increase the liability on Alaska's books. Alaska has been no stranger to devaluations recently either (even if they aren't all bad). Does this merger spin off a new round of them, making the miles less attractive overall? If it happens it won't be until after it is too late. Would you still be okay with everything above if the miles all of a sudden become less valuable than you expected?

Questions You Need To Answer Yourself

That is a lot to chew on if you are considering turning Hawaiian Miles into Alaska Miles, and you may still be undecided. Here are other questions you will want to run through that may help give you a clearer picture of your individual situation.

• How many Membership Rewards points to you have right now?
• What does your Membership Rewards earning look like in the near future (do you have a bonus or two upcoming)
• What does your travel look like for the next two years?
  • Do you have it all planned out and a lot of it booked?
  • Would you need these points for anything not booked?
• What do your points stashes look like in other programs?
  • Could they fill the Membership Rewards gap that a transfer would create?
• Do you have a useful plan if you get stuck with Hawaiian miles?
• Are you okay potentially taking a less than 1 to 1 ratio?
• Is the 20% bonus worth the added risk, or would you be more comfortable waiting until firmer news comes in?

Am I Turning Hawaiian Miles Into Alaska Miles?

My situation is a little unique because I am already stuck with a stash of Hawaiian miles from a cancelled flight. I had originally used Hawaiian miles to book flights off of Maui for our trip in April. We ended up canceling that flight when something better came up and now I have an 80,000 mile balance in my account. Recently I also burned up a chunk of my Alaska miles stash for a booking to Nassau, Bahamas.

I also have a stash of Membership Rewards that is more than I need over the next two years, especially with those Amex Gold and Amex Platinum no lifetime language offers hitting soon. That has me leaning towards transferring a little bit over, but not a massive amount. I don't like having too much of a stash in any airline's program because they can be torpedoed at any point (oh hi Virgin!). I prefer to keep my points as free agents (transferrable currencies) until I need to use them.

My thinking is that I will transfer enough points to have around 250K in my Hawaiian account. That would be a transfer of around 140,000 Membership Rewards points, when including the 20% bonus and the 80K in my account already. Why that number? Because that is about what it takes to fly two people in lie flat on Hawaiian Airlines from Hawaii to Tokyo. That would be my back up plan should I get stranded with these miles.

Alaska Airlines & Hawaiian Airlines Merger: ToP Thoughts

Often times when something is new we see a value opportunity. That could be a new hotel priced too low in a program, a new rewards program / credit card being too valuable or a new partnership making less valuable points instantly more valuable.

This particular option, turning Hawaiian miles into Alaska miles, comes with more risk than most though. That is because there is so much unknown still. The added risk comes with a bit more value, when considering the soon to expire transfer bonus, but is that juice worth the squeeze? You will have to answer that yourself.