Bits: Qatar Airways sale from £315, get a 50% bonus on buying Flying Blue miles

Two quick things today which did not justify a full post of their own:

Qatar Airways economy and business sale

Qatar has been running special deals all week as part of their ‘Global Promotion Week’.  Out of the UK, they are offering Dubai for just £320 in economy (£315 from Manchester and Edinburgh) amongst other offers.

Business class prices start at £1,665 to Dubai, although deals such as £1,800 to Singapore are better value on a ‘£ per mile’ basis.

Remember that you earn British Airways tier points and Avios points when you fly with Qatar.  These deals are only bookable until Monday and you must travel before 15th June 2015.

The link to book is here.

Get a 50% bonus when buying Flying Blue miles

Flying Blue, the Air France / KLM loyalty programme, is running a bonus promotion for anyone who is looking to top up their account:

Did you know you can give your Award Miles balance a big boost towards that next award by visiting our Buy Miles section and buying extra Award Miles today? It’s quick, easy and best of all you will receive a bonus of 25%. And if you purchase 40,000 Award Miles or more you will even receive a bonus of 50%! So make sure you buy before 31st December 2014 to take advantage of this exclusive bonus.

This offer is the best we have seen all year for anyone who wants to buy a large number of Flying Blue miles – 50% is very good by their standards.

The company has also raised the annual purchase limit to 74,000 miles (excluding the bonus) until the end of the year.  The maximum number you can buy via this promotion is therefore 74,000 plus a bonus of 37,000, giving a total of 111,000 for €1,850.

Is that a good deal? Well, Flying Blue is not exactly well regarded amongst European frequent flyer programmes. However it does have regular ’50% discount’ sales on some routes.

At the end of the day, I don’t imagine anyone except an existing Flying Blue member topping up an account getting excited by this.  It is also worth remembering that Flying Blue is an American Express Membership Rewards partner if you need a few thousand extra miles.

The ‘buy miles’ page is here.

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How to earn Flying Blue miles from UK credit cards (April 2025)

Air France and KLM do not have a UK Flying Blue credit card.  However, you can earn Flying Blue miles by converting Membership Rewards points earned from selected UK American Express cards.

These cards earn Membership Rewards points:

• American Express Preferred Rewards Gold (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 20,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 20,000 Flying Blue miles. This card is FREE for your first year and also comes with four free airport lounge passes.

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.

• The Platinum Card from American Express (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 50,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 50,000 Flying Blue miles

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 Rewards credit card (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 10,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 10,000 Flying Blue miles. This card is FREE for life.

Membership Rewards points convert at 1:1 into Flying Blue miles which is an attractive rate.  The cards above all earn 1 Membership Rewards point per £1 spent on your card, which converts to 1 Flying Blue mile.

The American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card earns double points (2 per £1) on all flights you charge to it, not just with Air France and KLM but with any airline.