Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

HfP ‘Credit Cards’ page updated for March 2017 – what are the best deals this month?

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UPDATE – APRIL 2024:  This article is now out of date, but don’t worry.  We produce a monthly directory of the top UK travel credit card offers – please click HERE or use the ‘Credit Cards’ menu above.  Thank you.

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It’s time for our monthly round up of what is coming and what is going in the world of UK airline and hotel credit card sign-up deals.

Our updated directory of all 23 UK travel credit cards can be found by clicking the ‘Credit Cards’ tab at the top of the site or – for email, Flipboard, Apple News or mobile readers – by clicking here.  This article is a summary of the recent changes, and will hopefully be a useful starting point for new readers.

What’s changed this month?

The bonus on the two British Airways American Express cards dropped down to its usual level on 8th February.  The deal was not extended, despite the fact that ….

…. the two Virgin Atlantic cards have increased their bonuses.  This was an interesting tactical move, knowing that the BA offer was going to be reduced.  More details on those below.

That’s about it …. things have got very quiet.

One thing which I didn’t mention elsewhere is that HSBC has added new benefits to its HSBC Premier credit cards (only available to HSBC Premier current account holders):

£20 of free Uber credit whenever you spend £500+ on flights

10% off hotels at Expedia when you book via a special link

12 months of Expedia+ Gold membership (see our article on that here)

10% off hotels at Agoda when you book via a special link

The only one of these I value is the Uber one, although it purely depends on your personal spending pattern.  £500 would cover the taxes on a BA Club World Avios redemption.


Want to earn more points from credit cards? – April 2024 update

If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current 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 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 card

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

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

You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard

15,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review

Earning miles and points from small business cards

If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

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

American Express Business Platinum

40,000 points sign-up bonus 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

Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa

Huge 30,000 points bonus until 12th May 2024 Read our full review

For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback on your spending.

Barclaycard Select Cashback Business Credit Card

1% cashback uncapped* on all your business spending (T&C apply) Read our full review

Comments (111)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Ammar says:

    OT – I am trying to buy internal/domestic flights in Indonesia for jakarta to Lombok with Batik Air/Lion Air, The price comes up as 2200000 IDR, which according to xe currency is about £135 pounds but when I tried paying with my MC, i got a fraud dept message stating the company was trying to charge me £176 pounds, not sure how the exchange could be so far out – any thoughts???
    I confirmed it with the Lloyds Avios Fraud Prevention team when I had to unblock the account and decline the transaction

    • Anon says:

      Try setting the currency on the airline website to the one you’d prefer to pay in, is that closer?

  • Polly says:

    PLAT ? Anyone know how you get a bonus for adding a person onto your plat card? Is it worth phoning in to ease, or do you get an email invitation?

  • simon says:

    seriously, when are we going to get the level of perks that Americans get with cards. Its enough to make me think of moving there!

    • Rob says:

      When interchange fees go up to huge levels, forcing up the prices of goods in the shops!

      I am shocked Americans still put up with it. Why does Wal-Mart accept paying 0.3% to Visa in the UK but 1.75% in the US? We are talking literally hundreds of millions of $.

      • Alan says:

        Although it is making hee-haw difference to prices here thanks to the payment intermediaries still charging retailers (apart from the large ones like Tesco, etc) a big percentage…

  • Graham Walsh says:

    Looking for my next credit card. I’ve maxed out my Amex Gold this year to get the bonus points that will come at the anniversary in May. I’m still using my Virgin Black to max out the miles so I’ll use them for flights on next year’s holiday which I’m planning on Dubai. As Dubai hotels aren’t that cheap, what is the best hotel card to get so I can use hotel points to pay for the accommodation?

    Am I better off sticking with Amex so I can use in either Hilton, SPG or Club Carlson?

    Also any recommendation for hotels with a beach in Dubai? AI would be good too. I know I’m here now, but don’t get to see a beach when working!!

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

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