Last day to book economy Avios redemptions for 50% fewer points

Until midnight tonight, 17th June, over 90 British Airways long-haul routes can be redeemed at 50% off, but in Economy only.  

Unfortunately taxes, fees and carrier charges are NOT reduced and will set you back around £350 per person (£275 for the Middle East).

This offer is for flights from or to London Heathrow and Gatwick between 1st September 2018 and 31st May 2019.  In reality, despite what the rules say, regional departures seem to work OK too.  If you live near Inverness this means that you can wipe out the Air Passenger Duty by starting from there as it is exempt.

One way redemptions are allowed.

You cannot combine this offer with a British Airways American Express 2-4-1 voucher or a Lloyds Avios Rewards upgrade voucher.

Avios part payments are excluded from this offer, but Avios plus cash is included.  The reduced Avios price will automatically be applied when booking.

Here are some typical off-peak prices for return World Traveller (economy) flights including taxes with this offer:

• Bermuda for 13,000 Avios + £367.16 (peak 20,000 Avios)
• Seychelles for 16,250 Avios + £369.61 (peak 25,000 Avios)
• Hong Kong for 19,500 Avios +£341.35 (peak 30,000 Avios).

Of course, even at half price most of these deals remain poor.  Should I want to go to Dubai, for example, it will cost me 13,000 Avios + £259 on an off-peak date.  Cash tickets can often be had for £295 to £325 which means that the redemption is still a bad deal unless you need the flexibility to cancel if needed.

That said, do the maths.  If you are travelling in high season it may still make sense.  Whilst economy redemptions are usually not great value long-haul, this offer would make sense if a cash ticket would otherwise set you back £550 – £600 or so. This would value your Avios points at 1p each which is fine by us.

You must book by tonight for travel between 1st September 2018 and 31st May 2019 to redeem for 50% fewer Avios – and 0% fewer taxes.

The special offer page for the deal is here.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (January 2021)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

There are two official British Airways American Express cards:

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points, such as:

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

If you have a small business, we especially recommend Capital On Cap’s Visa card which comes with a generous bonus worth 10,500 Avios:

(Want to earn more Avios?  Click here to visit our home page for our latest articles on earning and spending your Avios points and click here to see how to earn more Avios this month from offers and promotions.)