When it comes to traveling to Australia and New Zealand, booking flights isn't always simple. You're facing several options of airlines to fly there, destinations to search, and points and miles you could earn to give you a chance at those coveted award deals.
For years, we've told travelers to do things like target Brisbane (BNE) for the lowest fares and rates, or to target American miles to fly business class Down Under. And both of those strategies still hold true for your 2027 travels and beyond.
But a surprising new method has emerged in the last year: If you want the best deal on flights to Australia or New Zealand, you need to make Delta SkyMiles part of your strategy.
Like any good flight booking strategy, earning SkyMiles shouldn't be your whole playbook. You should always try to have a full and diversified toolbox (to mix a few metaphors) to book big trips like this. I'll explain later why American Airlines miles should also play a prominent role in your quest for cheap award flights.
But increasingly, SkyMiles flash sales to Australia and New Zealand have become more than a rare occurrence – they're almost common.
This year alone, our team of flight deal analysts at Thrifty Traveler Premium has discovered four different unadvertised flash sales (one in January, one in April, one in May, and one in July) to Australia and New Zealand – the most of any year by far, and featuring the lowest rates we've ever seen, too.
How low? I'm so glad you asked.
Look … I don't know how to use Photoshop: This screenshot is 100% the unedited, real thing. 25,400 Delta SkyMiles and $134 roundtrip was enough to get you to Brisbane (BNE) and back in 2026 or 2027 when we sent this deal last month. (The true rate is 30,000 SkyMiles roundtrip, but it goes down to 25,400 with the Delta SkyMiles credit card 15% off discount!)
Where could you find rates like these? You'll find roundtrip rates flying to Auckland (AKL), Sydney (SYD), or Brisbane (BNE) on this deal under 50,000 SkyMiles roundtrip from more than 100 U.S. cities!
Here's another screenshot from the flight deal alert we sent to our Thrifty Traveler Premium members. In it, you'll see that the rates ranged from 30,000 to 50,000 roundtrip, with Main Cabin rates coming in at 20,000 more roundtrip (still a screaming deal!)
Absent from this alert was Melbourne (MEL), but it wasn't entirely missing from our members' inboxes, as we sent another alert just last week.
The lowest fares we found to MEL in this most recent deal weren't from the West Coast … they were using your SkyMiles all the way from New York (JFK) or Newark (EWR), starting at just 34,000 SkyMiles roundtrip (with cardholder discount).
Those 40,000-mile rates from NYC followed what was already a stellar deal we sent just a few weeks earlier, highlighting a nearly nationwide sale to MEL starting at just 50,000 SkyMiles roundtrip from Los Angeles (LAX) and 70,000 roundtrip from everywhere else.
After seeing those 25,400-mile rates, these 70,000-mile rates might be enough to make you blush, but remember the context here. Many of these same flights will run you around $1,000-$1,300 roundtrip or 80,000 points or more in basic economy.
The only other good deals we've found to Australia or New Zealand in the past year are flying American Airlines or Qantas using AA miles. When AA runs a sale, you can book roundtrip flights to SYD, MEL, or BNE for 70,000 miles roundtrip in Main Cabin – a tremendous deal when considering you get the much more inclusive Main Cabin fares (think seat assignment, free changes/cancellations, and a checked bag).
The last time we saw that deal pop up was in March, with the best availability this winter. And if you go back to October of last year, we found an even better deal flying to AKL using AA miles.
Just 50,000 miles roundtrip was enough for Main Cabin Auckland (AKL) flights when this came out, close to 10 months ago.
American and AA miles are certainly competitive on these routes, so earning American miles is also a smart strategy for booking flights Down Under.
But is it better than earning Delta SkyMiles? As always, I would recommend earning a healthy stash of both AA miles and SkyMiles so you can book the next deal, no matter which program runs the sale. (We'll always alert our members to deals from either points program.)
If you just want to go one direction with your miles earning, I'd recommend the SkyMiles route right now. The sales have been more frequent and have offered lower rates for peak-season travel in the past year – a trend we hope continues for the long haul!
For a long time, Delta SkyMiles were far easier to earn than AA miles. While AA has closed the gap (a little bit) with some new ways to earn with credit card sign-up bonuses, Delta miles are still easier to earn, Delta's rates to Australia and New Zealand are lower, and Delta's sales are more frequent.
Delta SkyMiles needs to be part of your Australia/New Zealand flight-booking strategy. Period.
Bottom Line
If you want to book flights to Australia or New Zealand this year or next, Delta SkyMiles needs to be part of your strategy, thanks to low fares and increasingly common SkyMiles Flash Sales.
American Airlines miles are the next best thing and are another solid strategy to get Down Under on your next trip, and, of course, the best strategy is to earn both!
