SFO deal radar May 30 — Cathay Changsha $812 + Korean Air Cebu $869, Aeroplan deadline midnight tomorrow
Two new SFO fares from May 29: Cathay Pacific to Changsha at $812 RT (Q class, via HKG, late Aug–Sep) and Korean Air to Cebu at $869 RT (T class, via ICN, visa-free for US citizens). Full deadline table for the five windows closing today/tomorrow — including Aeroplan buy-points 90% bonus, Flying Blue 80% buy, Southwest 45% buy (today only), Capital One → Qantas +20%, and HeyMax Cash For Miles shutdown — all leading up to the Aeroplan award chart devaluation at midnight May 31 ET that raises SFO → Asia business class 13–17%.
Two new fares landed last night: Cathay Pacific to Changsha at $812 and Korean Air to Cebu at $869, both roundtrip all-in from SFO. They drop on the busiest deadline day of this cycle — five windows close by midnight tomorrow, including the last chance to book Aeroplan Asia business class at current rates before a 13–17% price jump takes effect June 1.
What closes today and tomorrow — full action table
| Deadline | Item | Key detail |
|---|---|---|
| 🔴 Today — May 30 | Southwest Rapid Rewards: buy miles, 45% off | ~1.65¢/pt effective; useful for domestic and Hawaii |
| 🔴 Today — May 30 | Amex MR → Hilton Honors +20% transfer bonus | 1 MR → 2.4 Hilton pts; Hilton pts worth ~0.5¢ each — low-value, last call |
| 🔴 Tomorrow — May 31 | Aeroplan 90% buy-points bonus | ~1.44¢/pt effective at top tier; 500K pt account cap |
| 🔴 Tomorrow — May 31 | Flying Blue buy miles, 80% bonus | ~1.69¢/mile effective; Paris/AMS hub for transatlantic awards |
| 🔴 Tomorrow — May 31 | Capital One → Qantas Frequent Flyer +20% | Useful for Oneworld partners: JAL, Cathay, American from SFO |
| 🔴 Tomorrow — May 31 | HeyMax Cash For Miles: submit transfers | Platform shuts feature June 1; 17 partners removed |
| 🔴 Book by midnight May 31 ET | Aeroplan award chart devaluation | SFO → Tokyo/Seoul/HKG/Shanghai biz: 75K → 85K pts (+13.3%); SFO → Singapore/Bangkok biz: 87.5K → 102.5K pts (+17.1%) |
| 🟡 June 1 only | Bilt → TAP Air Portugal, up to 125% | Platinum tier + $150 Bilt Cash; 100K Bilt pt cap; single-day window |
New fares — posted May 29
CX SFO → Changsha (CSX) — $812 roundtrip
Cathay Pacific posted this on May 29 at $812 roundtrip, all taxes included. 4
Route: SFO → Hong Kong (HKG) → Changsha Huanghua (CSX) → HKG → SFO, all Cathay Pacific metal. Fare class: Q. Travel window: late August – September 2026, Monday–Thursday departures and returns. Advance purchase: 7 days minimum. Stopovers: two allowed at $100 each. Booking: Priceline (via TFD affiliate link). Miles accrual: Alaska MileagePlan — ~14,638 miles flown / 3,659 EQMs / 3,659 redeemable miles; American AAdvantage does not accrue on this fare class.
Visa note: US citizens need a Chinese visa in advance — allow time.
The $812 price sits in the same Cathay Pacific Q-class fare family that has covered Nanjing, Qingdao, Haikou, and several other Chinese cities over the past week. Changsha is a tier-2 Chinese city best known as the capital of Hunan province; SFO–China roundtrips normally run $1,200–$1,800 at this time of year, though that baseline has not been independently verified against live Google Flights data for the August–September window.
As of this issue (Day 2 from post date), this fare sits within TFD's freshness window. The Flight Deal's standing caveat applies: fares posted more than two days ago are likely gone. Verify availability on cathaypacific.com or ITA Matrix before booking.
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KE SFO → Cebu (CEB) — $869 roundtrip
Korean Air posted this on May 29 at $869 roundtrip, all taxes included (Expedia shows $868.93). 5
Route: SFO → Seoul Incheon (ICN) → Cebu (CEB) → ICN → SFO, all Korean Air metal. Fare class: T. Travel window: late August – September 2026, Monday–Thursday departures and returns. Advance purchase: 3 days minimum. Stopovers: not permitted. Booking: Expedia (via TFD affiliate link). Miles accrual: Delta SkyMiles — ~15,048 miles flown / $752 MQDs / 3,762 redeemable miles.
Visa note: US citizens do not need a visa for the Philippines.
Cebu is the Philippines' second-largest city and a gateway to the Central Visayas diving circuit. SFO–Philippines roundtrips typically run $1,300–$1,800, putting this fare at a meaningful discount — though that baseline is an estimate and hasn't been verified against live pricing for this travel window. Korean Air is a SkyTeam member; the T fare class typically allows no changes and no refund.
Also Day 2 from post date, so within TFD's freshness window. Verify on koreanair.com or Expedia before booking.
Aeroplan devaluation — book before midnight May 31 ET
Air Canada confirmed the Aeroplan award chart changes, effective June 1. 6 Frequent Miler flags May 31 as the last day to book at current rates. 2
The SFO-relevant changes:
| Route band | Cabin | Current (through May 31) | New (June 1+) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO → Tokyo / Seoul / Hong Kong / Shanghai (5,001–7,000 mi) | Business | 75,000 pts | 85,000 pts | +10,000 (+13.3%) |
| SFO → Tokyo / Seoul / Hong Kong / Shanghai | First (partner) | 110,000 pts | 120,000 pts | +10,000 (+9.1%) |
| SFO → Singapore / Bangkok (7,501–11,000 mi) | Business (partner) | 87,500 pts | 102,500 pts | +15,000 (+17.1%) |
| Atlantic zone (2,001–4,000 mi) | Business | 45,000 pts | 40,000 pts | −5,000 (−11.1%) |
The Atlantic business decrease is one of the few changes that moves in the traveler's favor. For SFO departures, the Japan / Korea / Hong Kong / Shanghai and Southeast Asia business class increases are what matter — a SFO → Tokyo roundtrip in business class goes from 150,000 points to 170,000 points starting June 1.
The sequence if you want to lock in current rates: award space must be selected and ticketing must confirm before June 1 00:00 ET. Buying points on May 31 and booking on June 1 gets you the old cost-per-point but the new (higher) award price.
Aeroplan 90% buy-points bonus — expires May 31
The buy-points promotion runs through May 31 with up to 90% bonus miles. At the maximum tier, effective cost is approximately 1.44¢ per Aeroplan point. 7 Reported tier structure: 80% bonus for purchases of 3,000–7,000 miles; 90% bonus for 8,000+ miles. Per-account cap is 500,000 points during this promotion.
Note: the official Aeroplan/Points.com purchase page was inaccessible during research for this issue — the tier details above come from secondary sources. Confirm exact tiers and your targeted offer in your Aeroplan account before purchasing.
Points buy deals — today and tomorrow
Flying Blue: buy miles, 80% bonus — expires May 31
Air France–KLM Flying Blue (SkyTeam) is running an 80% buy-miles bonus through May 31. 3 Effective cost is approximately 1.69¢ per mile. Flying Blue uses a dynamic award pricing model; Paris (CDG) and Amsterdam (AMS) are the main hubs for transatlantic partner redemptions.
Southwest Rapid Rewards: buy miles, 45% off — expires today
Southwest Rapid Rewards is offering a 45% discount on purchased miles through today, May 30. 3 Effective cost is approximately 1.65¢ per point. Southwest points have no blackout dates and no seat restrictions, which makes them straightforward to use for domestic routes and Hawaii. This is worth acting on only if you're short of a specific redemption threshold; buying speculatively at 1.65¢ doesn't leave much margin above typical redemption value.
Transfer bonuses expiring tomorrow
Capital One → Qantas Frequent Flyer +20% — expires May 31
Capital One miles transfer to Qantas Frequent Flyer (Oneworld) at a 20% bonus through May 31. 1 The bonus has been running since May 1. Qantas miles are usable for partner awards on Japan Airlines, Cathay Pacific, and American Airlines departing SFO — the main value path for Bay Area travelers. No specific SFO sweet-spot pricing was confirmed this cycle; check the Qantas award chart for specific routes before transferring.
HeyMax Cash For Miles — submit transfers by May 31
HeyMax (a Singapore-based miles aggregation platform) is closing its Cash For Miles feature on June 1 and removing 17 partner programs. 8 Redemption requests must be submitted by May 31. No official HeyMax announcement was found during research — verify in your HeyMax account before assuming the deadline. If you have pending Cash For Miles balances, submit them today.
Bilt → TAP Air Portugal, up to 125% — June 1 only
Bilt's June Rent Day transfer bonus runs June 1 only: midnight ET through 11:59 pm PT, capped at 100,000 Bilt points transferred per account. 9 10
| Bilt tier | Bonus | + $150 Bilt Cash buy-up | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 25% | +25% | 50% |
| Silver | 50% | +25% | 75% |
| Gold | 75% | +25% | 100% |
| Platinum | 100% | +25% | 125% |
TAP Air Portugal is a Star Alliance member; its miles can be used for United and Air Canada partner redemptions. Frequent Miler notes that TAP's own US–Portugal business class pricing (100,000 miles one-way) is steep enough that waiting for a future bonus targeting a program with better award pricing may be the better play. 9 Economy redemptions to Portugal can come in significantly lower for Blue members.
Active fares — age-adjusted status
Verify all of these on the booking platform before assuming availability.
| Route | Airline | Price | Post date | Age today | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO → Key West (EYW) | American Airlines | $290 BE / $400 RE | May 28 | Day 3 | Verify — past 2-day window |
| SFO → Sarasota (SRQ) | Delta | $276 BE / $386 RE | May 28 | Day 3 | Verify — past 2-day window |
| SFO → Nanjing (NKG) | Cathay Pacific | $812 RT | May 27 | Day 4 | Borderline — spot-check advised |
| SFO → Mumbai (BOM) | SAS | $868 BE / $968 RE | May 27 | Day 4 | Borderline — spot-check advised |
| SFO → Haikou (HAK) | Cathay Pacific | $811 RT | May 26 | Day 5 | High staleness risk |
| SFO → Qingdao (TAO) | Cathay Pacific | $811 RT | May 25 | Day 6 | High staleness risk |
| SFO → Kunming (KMG) | Korean Air | $745 RT | May 24 | Day 7 | Likely expired |
| SFO → Fort Myers (RSW) | United | $237 BE / $347 RE | May 24 | Day 7 | Likely expired |
Source for all listings: TFD SFO category page. 11
The Key West and Sarasota fares were posted May 28 and covered in yesterday's issue. Both are now Day 3 — outside TFD's stated 2-day freshness window. Check aa.com and delta.com directly.
Haikou (HAK) remains the only CX China-series city where US passport holders can enter without a Chinese visa — a 30-day exemption applies for arrivals transiting through Hong Kong rather than a mainland port of entry.
The SAS BOM fare was posted independently of the now-closed SAS anniversary sale; it is a separate deal on a different routing.
Off the board
- CX SFO → Ningbo (NGB) and Hangzhou (HGH) $811: Both are Day 8 from May 23 post dates. Treat as expired. 11
- CX SFO → Xiamen (XMN) and Xi'an (XIY) $811: Both dropped to TFD's SFO page 2 and are confirmed expired.
- SAS anniversary sale fares (Warsaw, Prague, Brussels, Milan): The sale closed May 26. All fares are gone.
Ongoing transfer bonuses — no immediate urgency
| Program | Bonus | Expires | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chase UR → Southwest Rapid Rewards | +30% | June 5 | Rare 30% rate; useful for domestic and Hawaii |
| Rove → Aeroplan | +25% | June 6 | ⚠️ Points transferred after June 1 land in the new (higher-cost) award chart |
| Citi ThankYou → Preferred Hotels & Resorts | +30% | June 13 | — |
| Citi ThankYou → Wyndham Rewards | +25% | June 13 | Wyndham covers Vacasa rentals at ~15K pts/night |
| Chase UR → Marriott Bonvoy | +55% | June 30 | Marriott pts value ~0.7–0.8¢ each |
Source: 1
The Rove → Aeroplan +25% bonus is worth flagging specifically: transferring after June 1 means award bookings against the post-devaluation chart. If you intend to use Rove-sourced Aeroplan points for the routes affected by the June 1 increases, the ticketing window closes at midnight May 31 ET — not the transfer bonus window.
Cover image: Changsha, China, via The Flight Deal 4
참고 출처
- 1Frequent Miler: Current point transfer bonuses for May 2026
- 2Frequent Miler: Last Chance Deals
- 3Miles & Points Daily: May 30, 2026
- 4The Flight Deal: Cathay Pacific SFO–Changsha $812 RT
- 5The Flight Deal: Korean Air SFO–Cebu $869 RT
- 6Air Canada: An update on the Aeroplan Flight Reward Chart
- 7Upgraded Points: May 2026 Point and Mile Purchase Promotions
- 8neodrop.ai: SFO deal radar May 29
- 9Frequent Miler: Bilt Rent Day for June: 25%–125% transfer bonus to TAP Air Portugal
- 10TAP Air Portugal: Bilt Rewards
- 11The Flight Deal: San Francisco category page
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