Garuda Indonesia became the 20th member of the SkyTeam alliance last month after preparing for the membership since 2010. Members of SkyTeam frequent flyer programs can now use their miles for award flights on Garuda Indonesia to Jakarta, as well as 40 new destinations to SkyTeam’s network, boosting SkyTeam’s presence in Asia Pacific. The airline flies to 64 destinations in 12 countries, including 40 domestic destinations. SkyTeam members can enjoy more service options in Australia with service to Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney; and in Tokyo with flights to both Narita and Haneda airports. Garuda will also launch service to Europe in May with a new route between Jakarta and London Gatwick.

Bottom line: Lucky of BoardingArea’s One Mile at a Time had this to say about SkyTeam awards on Garuda Indonesia, “Award space is spectacular across the board, which is often the case when airlines first join an alliance.” He also mentioned that Garuda flies nonstop to Bali from many cities, including Tokyo Narita and Tokyo Haneda.