Bits: 10% off Qatar Airways flights, Qatar adds Adelaide, Melia sale, BA seat fees

News in brief:

10% off Qatar flights, new Adelaide service launching

Qatar Airways has revamped its website as you can see here.  To celebrate, you will save 10% (base fare only, taxes excluded) on Economy and Business Class fares until 18th October using code NEWLOOK2015 at qatarairways.com.

Qatar has also announced flights to Adelaide in Australia.  This follows the recent addition of Sydney from 1st March and is the result of a new deal agreed with the Australian Government.

Flights will start on 2nd May and operate daily using the new Airbus A350 pictured below.  It will be a two class aircraft with no First Class.

Qatar, as a BA partner, is available for Avios redemptions via ba.com.

Melia ‘40% off’ hotel sale launched 

Hotel group Melia, which includes the lifestyle chain ME, has launched an Autumn sale with discounts of up to 40%.  You need to book by 27th October for stays until 28th February.

Full details are on this page at melia.com.  Grand Melia Rome is pictured below.

British Airways quietly increases seat selection fees

Finally, note that British Airways has sneaked up its seat selection fees over the last couple of weeks.  

There is no published list of prices at ba.com so it is difficult to make a straight comparison.  However, it seems that short-haul seat selection has crept up by £3 to a minimum of £10.  It is substantially more – over £20 – on longer routes.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 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.

American Express Business Platinum

50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

20,000 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.