Bits: ‘Buy Avios’ bonus, more on Kimpton / Accelerate, new JAL London service

News in brief:

Up to 30% bonus when you buy Avios

Iberia Plus has launched a new ‘buy Avios’ promotion which runs until 30th July.

The offer is:

10% bonus when you buy 2,000 to 15,000 Avios

20% bonus when you buy 20,000 to 80,000 Avios

30% bonus when you buy 85,000 to 100,000 Avios

At the top end, you will be paying €1,800 for 130,000 Avios.  Given the weak £, this works out at 1.22p per Avios based on £1,593.  You would need to add a 3% foreign exchange fee to this price if your credit card has one.

I would not usually be a buyer at this price unless I had a very specific redemption in mind which I knew would be worth more than I am paying.  Don’t forget that BA had a 50% flash sale just three weeks ago and such offers appear to be more common than they were.  I don’t see why a 20% bonus – which is what most people would get given the price ranges – is too exciting.

The exact rules for who can buy Iberia Plus Avios are always confusing.  You MUST have been an Iberia Plus member for 90 days before you can transfer Avios from Iberia to BA via ‘Combine My Avios’.  I think you also need to have earned at least one Avios point in your Iberia account before you can buy points although that may have changed.  Thanks to Andrew.

More on Kimpton Amsterdam and IHG Accelerate

I wrote yesterday that IHG Rewards Club was denying credit for their Accelerate promotion to guests at the new Kimpton De Witt hotel in Amsterdam.

Whilst every other Kimpton hotel globally is part of the Kimpton Karma scheme, De Witt Amsterdam is part of IHG Rewards Club.  You can earn and redeem IHG points with the hotel, so it was bizarre that it did not count towards the major Accelerate promotion this quarter.

IHG has now told me that this is a mistake and that it will be corrected.  My Accelerate home page has not yet updated, but I will give it time.  You don’t need to start moving bookings away from Kimpton De Witt due to the lack of Accelerate credit.

This means that my stay in Paris next week will trigger 11,200 bonus Accelerate points for ‘staying in two overseas countries’.  Which is nice.

New Avios redemption option to Tokyo

Japan Airlines, a BA partner in the oneworld alliance, has announced a second daily flight from Heathrow to Tokyo from 29th October.

The flight will depart Heathrow at 09.30, landing at Haneda at 06.25.

JAL has said that the service will feature the new Sky Suite product in Business Class.  This uses the herringbone layout favoured by Cathay Pacific, Qatar Airways and – on refurbished planes – American Airlines.

You can redeem Avios points for flights on JAL although you cannot use a British Airways American Express 241 voucher.  You should also remember that partner redemptions always charged at peak day pricing, irrespective of whether BA is charging peak or off-peak prices at the same time.

That said, if you are redeeming for just yourself and on a British Airways peak day, I would be very tempted to seek out this new JAL seat over a British Airways Club World service.  I am guessing that the cabin is not as dark as the PR photograph implies ….

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2024)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.