Avios sale – the 2nd list of ‘50% off hotel’ deals is now live

The fifth deal in the Avios sale launched today at noon.

For 48 hours, until noon on Friday, you will be able to book selected hotels using your Avios points for 50% off the standard rate.

(Don’t forget that, until noon today, you can still book flights to Amsterdam, Barcelona, Dublin, Jersey, Lisbon, Madrid, Nice and Rome for just £1 of taxes.  Click here for full details on that deal.)

The list of cities available will be:

• London
• Venice
• Edinburgh
• Guernsey
• Florence
• Milan

You will be able to book for stays up to 30th September.

Is this a good deal?

This is a great deal, because you are getting a 50% discount on what is already a competitive price.  Be very clear about this bit.

However, because Avios is reducing BOTH the ‘pay with Avios’ and ‘pay with cash’ rates, it does NOT necessarily make sense to pay with Avios.

If you do the maths, you will see that your Avios are being valued at 0.57p each.  This is not great, to be honest.  I would recommend, unless you are Avios-rich and cash-poor, that you pay cash for your room and save your Avios for a better-value redemption.

How to book

There were some issues with the hotel booking websites when this offer ran last week.

In theory, you can book either via avios.com or ba.com, using their ‘spend your Avios on hotels’ links.

Last week, the avios.com booking page was flakey and did not display many of the participating hotels.   The ba.com booking link is here, you may want to try both.

The participating hotels are often not clearly marked – you need to work it out by looking at the price they want and then comparing with Expedia.

Cancellation

The small print says “Amendments and cancellation are permitted subject to the Avios cancellation and amendment terms where a fee as stated on avios.com will apply.”  This appears to be a £25 fee for cancellation with 72 hours of arrival with all Avios and cash returned, although PLEASE clarify this before booking.

Good luck – there should hopefully be some good deals available.

(One final point.  Redeeming Avios for a chain hotel via avios.com, or paying for one via Expedia, is likely to mean that you will not earn hotel points from your stay.  You may also not receive any status benefits.  You should bear this in mind when booking, especially if your status would otherwise get you free breakfast or free internet.  For what its worth, Hilton is generally seen as the best chain for giving you your status benefits when booking via a third party.)

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (March 2025)

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:

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

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

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review

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.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

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, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

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.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 8th April 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Business Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to 120,000 points. You receive 80,000 points when you spend £12,000 within three months and a further 40,000 points if you spend on the card between Month 14 and Month 17. Points convert 1:1 into Avios and many other programmes. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 8th April 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Business Gold is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 60,000 points. You receive 40,000 points when you spend £6,000 within three months and a further 20,000 points if you spend on the card between Month 14 and Month 17. Points convert 1:1 into Avios and many other programmes. Click here to apply.

American Express Business Platinum

Up to 120,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

Up to 60,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

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