Bits: 20% off Best Western, pointless Aer Lingus hotel portal, new Avios Southend-Glasgow route

News in brief:

Get 20% off Best Western UK with Mastercard

Last week we covered the launch of the new Avios partnership with Best Western.  That article also covered how to get a Best Western status match.

You will earn either a flat 500 Avios points per stay or you can convert Best Western Rewards points at the ratio of 5:1.

It turns out that Best Western runs two special offers for its UK hotels which can get you extra savings as well as earning Avios:

For Mastercard holders, for stays until 18th December, you will save 20% on Best Flexible refundable rate via this link although bookings made under this offer are non-refundable

For American Express holders, for an open-ended period, you will save 10% on Best Flexible refundable rates via this link although bookings made under this offer are non-refundable

Check prices carefully, because some properties seem to have their own non-refundable rates which undercut the promotional offers.

Aer Lingus launches a pointless hotel booking portal

Despite its IAG ownership, Aer Lingus seems to exist in its own world.  This is sometimes good – Aer Lingus has a long-haul business class seat which is far superior to BA Club World (and which we are reviewing soon) – and sometimes just odd.

Last week the airline launched its own hotel portal.  This is a white-label version of booking.com, as is clearly displayed on the site.

Can you collect AerClub Avios via this site? No.  Can you spend AerClub Avios via this site? No.  Can you use any booking.com special offer codes or deals via this site?  No.  Is there any point whatsoever to this product?  No.

Southend Airport launching Glasgow

London Southend Airport has announced that a new route, to Glasgow, will launch on 29th October.  This is in addition to the previously announced Dublin and Manchester routes.

It will be operated by Flybe, bookable here, via the Stobart Air franchise.  This means that you can earn and redeem Avios on Southend to Glasgow at the standard Flybe rates.

I had a day out at London Southend last year (read here) and was pleasantly surprised by what I found – if you work in the City or Canary Wharf, with easy access to the airport trains, it is worth considering.

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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.