Emirates Finally Unlocks Premium Economy Reward Seats

From today, Emirates frequent flyers can finally redeem their Skywards Miles to book Emirates flights in Premium Economy. The change is a long-awaited development, coming nearly five years after the first Emirates aircraft fitted with Premium Economy was delivered.

Skywards Members can now use their Miles to purchase a Classic Reward across the entire Emirates Premium Economy network, starting from 15,000 Miles one-way. Passengers can also request an upgrade from Economy to Premium Economy, starting at 7,020 Miles one-way.

The change has “been in development for some time,” says Dr Nejib Ben Khedher, DSVP at Emirates Skywards.

“We’re thrilled to announce the introduction of flight rewards on Emirates’ highly coveted Premium Economy cabin…The offer will initially be available exclusively to our Skywards members, with plans to extend to other airline partners in the future,” he adds.

So, for Qantas Frequent Flyers eyeing Emirates Premium Economy, these redemptions are not yet available using Qantas Points. Hopefully, this will shortly change.

This marks a significant shift for Emirates, which has until now been actively blocking redemptions in Premium Economy due to consistently high demand for the cabin. For many airlines, Premium Economy is the most profitable cabin on board, often priced at two to three times the cost of Economy, despite requiring only slightly more space. With customers willing to fork out for the mid-tier cabin, it’s no wonder Emirates has been so slow to act.

How Many Skywards Miles For Premium Economy To/From Australia?

Emirates Premium Economy reward seats start at 15,000 Skywards Miles one-way, with upgrades from 7,020 Skywards Miles, also one-way. Naturally, these are for Emirates’ shortest routes, and you will need more miles to redeem to/from Australia.

For now, it appears Emirates is only offering Premium Economy redemptions at the highest Flex Plus rates. Emirates has not yet clarified whether Saver or Flex rates will become available.

The easiest way to find out how many Skywards Miles are required for a redemption is normally via Emirates’ Miles Calculator tool. Although the calculator is not yet updated to show upgrade rates from Economy to Premium Economy.

Are Emirates Premium Economy Redemptions Good Value?

Although Premium Economy is typically one of the worst cabins to redeem miles for, the value on Emirates isn’t terrible. One piece of good news in terms of value is that Emirates will add the same as the carrier charges for Premium Economy as they already do for Economy.

In the example below, a Premium Economy Flex Plus redemption from Sydney to Dubai requires 86,000 Miles plus $355.03 AUD. That’s the same as Economy on this route, and thankfully not the absurd $1244.73 co-payment slapped onto a Business Class redemption for the same flight.

Interestingly, those 86,000 Miles required is nearly triple that of Economy, and a touch over half the requirement for Business Class on the same route. While it’s not a steal, Emirates is offering a relatively fair value proposition compared to other airlines in Premium Economy.