Bits: BA drops Kos, good BA luxury European deals, upstairs on a BA 747
Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission. See here for all partner links.
News in brief:
British Airways drop Kos
British Airways has decided to cancel the Kos route next year. This is unfortunate, because tickets have been on sale for 5 months ….
The service was due to run between 5th May and 29th September 2018.
Cash passengers will be offered a re-route via Vienna, changing onto the Austrian Airlines service to Kos. There is also an option to fly to Athens and then change to an Aegean service. In both cases, business class passengers will be downgraded to economy for the second leg as they are ‘one class’ flights.
Note that Vienna is an 80 tier points route and Athens – like Kos – is a 160 tier points route. If you have booked in Club Europe then it is easier to go via Athens if you want to be sure of your tier points. BA should ‘make you square’ if you go via Vienna but it is likely to require a few emails back and forth.
Avios passengers will not be re-routed. Your Avios will be refunded and you will have to make other arrangements at your own cost.
Passengers who are on a codeshare and not travelling on BA-issued tickets (ie a ticket number which does not start 125-) will also not be re-routed and will have to claim a refund from the airline with which they booked.
British Airways launches short haul Club Europe holidays sale
If you are planning a short break over the Winter, BA Holidays has launched a ‘Club Europe holidays’ short break promotion.
The special deals are listed here on ba.com.
These offer excellent value for money compared to the cost of booking flights on their own. You will also get at least 80 tier points each – more for longer routes – which makes this a cheap way to help your plans to earn or retain your British Airways Executive Club status.
This article lists the BA Club Europe routes which earn 160 tier points return.
You need to:
book by midnight on Monday 23rd October
travel between 1st November 2017 and 18th March 2018
These are the headline prices being promoted by British Airways Holidays, although there is no guarantee this price will be available on the dates you want. All hotels are four or five star.
- Bilbao business class flights + 3 nights hotel £272 pp
- Paris business class flights + 3 nights hotel £284 pp
- Amsterdam business class flights + 3 nights hotel £286 pp
- Istanbul business class flights + 3 nights hotel £299 pp
- Athens business class flights + 3 nights hotel £420 pp
- Palermo business class flights + 7 nights hotel from £308 pp
- Larnaca business class flights + 7 nights hotel from £585 pp
- All inclusive Malaga business class flights + 7 nights hotel from £421 pp
- Palermo business class flights + 7 nights hotel £308 pp
- Malaga business class flights + 7 nights hotel £370 pp
- Mallorca (Palma) business class flights + 7 nights hotel £374 pp
- Larnaca business class flights + 7 nights hotel £585 pp
- Krakow business class flights + 3 nights hotel £311 pp
- Berlin business class flights + 3 nights hotel £340 pp
- Prague business class flights + 3 nights hotel £345 pp
- Vienna business class flights + 3 nights hotel £353 pp
- Budapest business class flights + 3 nights hotel £383 pp
Take a look at BA Holidays here for more details.
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:
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
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
25,000 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.
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
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.
Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa
Huge 30,000 points bonus until 12th May 2024 Read our full review
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.
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
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
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
Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.
xcalx 
Rob 
Kinkell 
Graham Walsh 
TripRep 
Leo 
RussellH 
Alan 
W 
Roger 
Genghis 
Worzel 
Bill 
BP 
Andrew 
Adrian 
Crispbag 
Comments (130)