hainan airlines – Seat 31B

It’s Back: $80 Off From Hainan Airlines

November 15, 2015November 15, 2015 TProphet0 comment

Chinese carrier and Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan partner Hainan Airlines periodically has good coupon specials. They’re currently offering a limited number of $80 discount coupons for people who sign up on their Web site. There are surprisingly few restrictions with these codes, and since Hainan already has some of the lowest fares in the markets they serve, this represents substantial savings.

Grab this deal before it’s gone!

You can get your coupon code at this link. There are a limited number of codes available, and you can only get one per day. Since these coupon codes can be redeemed through the end of the year, it’s best to get one now while they’re still available.

Here are the restrictions:

Good only for flights on Hainan Airlines’ own planes, not for their codeshare flights with Alaska and American Airlines. These depart from Seattle, Boston, San Jose and Chicago.
You must book your flight directly on the Hainan Airlines web site.
You must buy your flight between now and 31 December 2015. However, your travel dates can be through 30 June, 2016.

I have written quite a bit before about Hainan Airlines before. They fly new modern aircraft, have generally excellent (although distinctly Chinese) inflight service between the US and China, and together with their partner Hong Kong Airlines, they serve not just China, but destinations throughout Asia. Given that US citizens can now transit China without a visa, and that Hainan Airlines is generous with stopovers, you could potentially see two countries for the price of one at a lower price than you’d find elsewhere.

Hainan Airlines is an Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan partner. If you’ll be flying with them, I recommend that you credit the flights to your Alaska account.

Hainan Airlines: $80 Off!

October 11, 2015October 11, 2015 TProphet3 Comments

Another good offer from Hainan Airlines, one of the newest Alaska Airlines partners, on flights to China. Complete a survey (link here) and receive $80 off! Hainan often has the lowest prices to the cities they serve in China anyway, so this is icing on the cake–and you can also receive Mileage Plan miles.

HOT DEAL: $35 Off From Hainan Airlines!

August 12, 2015 TProphet0 comment

Hainan Airlines is a Chinese carrier and the newest partner of Alaska Airlines. Of the Chinese carriers, I consider them the most reliable with the best inflight service; however, they are also the smallest Chinese carrier so itineraries are less frequent and they don’t serve as many cities as Air China, China Southern and China Eastern (the three major Chinese carriers). Keep in mind that a “small” carrier in China is still roughly the size of a major US carrier. If you want to make a rough comparison, you could consider them something like the Southwest Airlines of China (except they do offer first class, unlike Southwest).

Hainan has been steadily expanding service to the US, most recently between Shanghai and both Seattle and Boston. They also fly between Beijing and both Seattle and Chicago. Within the US, Hainan codeshares with both Alaska and American Airlines, but Hainan is only a partner with Alaska. You won’t get any mileage or elite benefits through American. They also also offer a lot of connections throughout Asia via their subsidiary Hong Kong Airlines. Now that you can transit China visa-free, it’s really worth considering them as an option. This is especially true now that they are an Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan partner (although only Hainan-operated flights qualify for Alaska Airlines mileage plan credit).

On their Facebook page, Hainan is currently offering a $35 off coupon – and given that their flights are often the least expensive anyway, there is even more reason to try them.

HOT! Save $80 On China Flights With Hainan Airlines

January 9, 2015January 9, 2015 TProphet1 Comment

Hainan Airlines is offering an $80 promo code on flights to China. You can click here to get your own promotion code, and in fact, you can get up to 3 of these per day (maybe, I was only able to retrieve two). The promotion codes can be redeemed throughout the entire year for flights on Hainan Airlines. There are a limited number of promotional codes available. Go grab some right now if you think you might travel to China within the next year.

They fly nonstop to Beijing from Seattle, Chicago, Toronto and Boston and onward from there to most major Chinese cities. If you’re coming from another city, they can sell you a flight that includes connections on American Airlines. Given that Hainan typically has some of the lowest fares to China from the West Coast, this could be a steal of a deal. On a typical fare of $800 between Seattle and Beijing, you will save 10%.

Hainan isn’t a member of any frequent flier alliance, and they do not offer miles and points with any US airline. However, the value of points you can earn from Delta, their primary competitor on this route, is now negligible on low fares. You can earn points in Hainan’s own program, which isn’t particularly good, but can offer good value if you redeem the points for flights with their partner Hong Kong Airlines.

How’s the service? Very good, actually. They have the highest SkyTrax rating (for what it’s worth) and fly new modern aircraft with excellent inflight entertainment. Crews are friendly and the food isn’t bad. Hainan Airlines has to meet all the same safety standards as any other airline operating within the United States, so I wouldn’t worry about that either. I have helped many friends from Seattle fly to China on Hainan and most people have been surprised in a good way.

Most people need a visa to visit China. Here’s how to apply by yourself and save agent fees!