How to book Air India Maharaja Club awards

What can you book with Maharaja Points?

Maharaja Club lists two kinds of reward: award flights and cabin upgrades. [3] Award flights can be redeemed on Air India-operated flights, Air India Express codeshare flights and Star Alliance partner airlines, and a member with enough points for the sector can book them for personal travel at any time. [3] Redemption of points for Air India Express codeshare flights took effect on 22 May 2026. [5]

Several limits sit alongside those options. Award flights cannot be redeemed on mixed itineraries that include both Air India and Air India Express travel [3], multi-city bookings with Maharaja Points are not available [5], and award booking is not available on Star Alliance codeshare flights [5].

Cabin upgrades are redeemed on Air India flights, and the points needed are set by travel segment rather than by a flat chart. [3] Members request an upgrade on the Air India website or through the Customer Support team [3]; tickets bought with cash, with cash plus points or with Maharaja Points on Air India-operated flights can be upgraded with points, while upgrades on Air India Express codeshare flights cannot be made with points [5]. The programme's FAQ also lists cabin upgrades on Star Alliance partner flights as a way to redeem points. [5]

How much does a Maharaja Club award cost in points?

Air India directs members to the Points Calculator, where you enter the airline, cabin class, tier, origin and destination and then pick the Redeem or Upgrade tab to see the points required. [5] Air India states that the number of points needed for an award flight may be modified, withdrawn or restricted at its discretion, with or without prior notice, so a quote is a live figure for the itinerary in front of you rather than a fixed price list. [3] The calculator itself notes that fares depend on the time of booking and on seat availability. [4]

The same inputs produced a range for the Value fare award and a single figure for the Prime fare, which is why the calculator is best read as a quote for one set of conditions. [4] Upgrades are permitted only to the immediate higher cabin class, and any taxes on an upgrade are payable by the member. [4] For a multi-leg journey, points are calculated as the sum of the points for each leg. [4]

Can you book Star Alliance awards online with Maharaja Points?

Self-service redemption starts on the Air India website or app: the member signs in to the Maharaja Club account, selects payment with points or cash plus points, and confirms with a one-time password sent to the registered mobile number. [5] Air India treats one-time-password verification on the registered mobile number and email as mandatory for logging in and for redeeming points. [3] Members can also redeem through Air India city booking offices or by contacting the Customer Support team, but only from the mobile number registered on the account and after clearing the security measures in place at the time of the request. [3]

Redeeming for someone else has its own condition: the member whose points are used must have flown at least two Air India or Air India Express flights under different booking references, and both flights must have been credited to the account. [3] [5]

Star Alliance award requests for international travel are accepted at Air India booking offices, at call centres and on the Air India website, subject to availability in specified classes, and a reservation that is not ticketed within the time limit is cancelled. [3] Star Alliance's own guidance points the same way, saying award availability depends on seats and that bookings must be made through the frequent flyer programme's booking channels. [2] A few tasks sit with a person rather than the website: an infant under two cannot be added during an award booking and must be added afterwards by contacting Customer Support [3] [5], and cancellations are handled by the call centre and Air India booking offices [3]. For Air India Express award flights, add-on services and web check-in sit with Air India Express channels. [5]

What do award cancellations and changes cost?

A convenience fee applies to every award booking on Air India and Air India Express flights, is charged per customer per ticket, applies whatever the payment method, and is not refundable. [5] Air India's published amounts are below. [5]

Air India classes Africa, Bahrain, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China, Israel, Kuwait, Oman, SAARC, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Thailand and the UAE as short-haul, and Australia, Canada, Europe, Japan, South Korea, the USA and the UK as long-haul for this fee. [5] The terms also note that a convenience fee applies to award bookings and may vary by booking channel. [3]

On cancellation, points are refunded according to their original validity and returned to the same Maharaja Club account; if the cancellation happens after the points have expired, they are not refundable. [3] A member who does not see the refund should contact Customer Support within 15 days of the ticket cancellation. [3] On a change, the member pays any difference in Maharaja Points, the difference is not returned if the new fare is lower, applicable rebooking charges are collected, and the change fee is charged in cash. [3] Refunding and reversing an award carries a penalty in the points used for the flight, and moving the travel date carries a monetary penalty set by Air India before the no-show window. [3]

An award ticket is valid for one year from the date of issue, has no monetary refund value, and is issued only for a confirmed reservation. [3] Award flights on Air India are issued in special booking classes: First in O, Business in I, Premium Economy in E and Economy in X. [3]

Exceptions and limits

• No-shows. A member with a confirmed award who does not travel is treated as a no-show, and both the award flight and the points used for it are forfeited; if the flight has already departed, only the taxes can be refunded, through the customer support team. [3]
• Partly used tickets. A partly utilised award flight is non-refundable, but after deduction of points for the sectors flown, the unutilised sector can be used for rebooking under the applicable terms. [3]
• Cash plus points. For tickets partly bought with cash and points, cancellation and change rules follow the revenue ticket policy; a cancellation penalty comes out of the cash first and then the points, and a rescheduling penalty is charged in cash only. [3]
• Capacity and blackout dates. Award travel is subject to capacity controls, not every seat in a cabin is available for awards even when it is for sale, some programme partners impose blackout periods, and all rewards are subject to embargo dates published by Air India. [3]
• Points validity at ticketing. Points must be valid when the award flight or cabin upgrade is issued, and points that have expired cannot be revived. [3]
• Children and infants. An award for a child over two and under 18 costs the same points as an adult, points cannot be redeemed for a child travelling alone, and unaccompanied minors aged 2 to 12 cannot travel on award tickets or cabin upgrades. [3]
• Partner-issued awards. Air India states that it is not liable to make changes or cancellations for award bookings issued by partner airlines, and that routing and destinations for partner reward travel are set by the individual partner airline. [3]
• What cannot be combined. Award bookings cannot be combined with Upgrade Plus, Fly Prior or upfront upgrades, and NeuCoins cannot be combined with Maharaja Points for award flights. [3] [5] Award bookings accept credit cards only, including American Express, Visa, Mastercard, Diners Club and Discover. [5]

Frequently asked questions

Can I book a Star Alliance award on the Air India website?

Yes — Air India lists its website alongside booking offices and call centres as a channel for Star Alliance award requests on international travel, subject to availability in specified classes and to ticketing within the time limit. [3] Star Alliance notes that award seats depend on availability and that bookings go through your programme's own channels. [2]

How many Maharaja Points do I need for an award flight?

The number depends on the route, cabin and tier you enter in the Points Calculator, which shows the points for award flights and for upgrades. [5] For a one-way Delhi–Guwahati economy trip at Red tier, the calculator showed 6,000–9,500 points on a Value fare and 12,500 on a Prime fare. [4]

Can I use my Maharaja Points to book a ticket for a family member?

Yes, provided the member whose points are used has flown at least two Air India or Air India Express flights under different booking references, both credited to the account. [3] Points themselves cannot be transferred to another account. [5]

Do award tickets include taxes?

No. Applicable taxes and fees must be paid separately on award bookings, and the person travelling on the award is responsible for those charges. [3] [5]

Can I cancel an award and get the points back?

Yes, if the points are still valid: they return to the account they came from at their original validity, and a cancellation made after the points have expired is not refundable. [3]

Related pages

Programme: Air India Maharaja Club. Guides: partner award booking channels, searching Star Alliance award space, airline phone booking fees compared. Terms: partner award, award redemption fee, glossary.

Sources

Sources accessed on 18 October 2026. Other frequent flyer programmes' award rules, including the terms of Star Alliance partner programmes, are not covered here.

1. Star Alliance — Earn and Redeem Miles, checked 18 October 2026
2. Air India Maharaja Club terms and conditions, checked 18 October 2026
3. Air India Maharaja Club Points Calculator, checked 18 October 2026
4. Air India Maharaja Club FAQs, checked 18 October 2026