Free champagne on British Airways this Christmas if you sit in 25D

British Airways has fully embraced the Christmas spirit this year.  Not content with giving 2,000 Avios to everyone travelling between 22nd and 27th December, it is also now giving out free champagne.

Everyone sat in seat 25D (geddit?) on a short-haul flight between 22nd and 27th December will be offered a free glass of champagne.  The offer will be extended to everyone travelling with the person in 25D.

To guarantee your champagne, you want to be sitting in 25D on the outbound flight from Heathrow or Gatwick.  Staff have been given leeway not to offer it on the return flight if the Club Europe champagne supply – from where the champagne will come – is running low.

If you’re really lucky, you will get a ‘From me to you’ card as well, signed by the crew.

There is also an opportunity to get lounge access at Heathrow and Gatwick.  One customer per hour, plus travelling companions, seated in 25D will be offered free lounge access.  It isn’t clear how this will be arranged, especially if you are not checking in any luggage at a desk.  However, your odds of getting this if you are sitting in 25D are pretty good, especially at Gatwick which has fewer short-haul departures.

Is it worth moving down to 25D for a free glass of champagne?  Potentially yes.  However, pick your aircraft:

The A319-100 does not even have a 25D, only a 25ABC, as it is the last row.  If you are on one of these, forget about it.

On an A320-200 there are 28 rows, so you are close to the loos but not right at them.  The queue probably won’t snake back to your seat.  Probably OK. 

An A321-200 is your best bet, as with 35 rows you are nowhere near the back.

I don’t think the offer is running out of London City. Even if it was, the Embraer 170 fleet does not have a row 25.  The newer Embraer 190 fleet does, but it is the very last row and you are next to the loo.  Give it a miss.

You can check out all of BA’s short-haul seat maps on this page of ba.com.

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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:

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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