British Airways launches new Luxury Flights and Holidays sale

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• Anna says:

  8 Mar8 March 12:51

  Re flights to Nassau – there is no F cabin on the direct flight from LHR so I assume this deal would route you via Miami which is obviously a lot less convenient and requires an ESTA and a connecting flight on another airline (usually AA or Cayman Airways), so there might be a different baggage allowance as these don’t have long-haul type F either on that route.

  The direct flight is also the flight for Grand Cayman, so if booking in J you need to check whether the routing is via Miami if you want to fly direct.

  • Anna says:

    8 Mar8 March 13:35

    Having said that, I can’t find anything under £9k for an F return to Nassau, even in the height of hurricane season.

• ChrisC says:

  8 Mar8 March 13:03

  I just priced up a trip I already booked for July in the January Sale and it’s now £600 more so sometimes it pays not to wait.

  I see though that there are some F tickets for £200 more than Club on some dates as well.

  ex-INV is no longer the bargain it was (so no real saving once you account for the positioning flights and a possible hotel but possibly worth it for some if they need the TPs)

  YMMV

  • Anna says:

    8 Mar8 March 13:26

    Likewise, the same Caribbean package I booked for August for £2600 is now over £3000. I consistently find the best deals for the school summer holidays are to be had in the autumn sale, and you still only need to pay the balance 5 weeks before you travel so no different from a package booked later.

  • Sandra says:

    9 Mar9 March 10:35

    Ditto, same dates, hotel & flights increased by £400 since I booked a few weeks ago in the last sale.

• Zain says:

  8 Mar8 March 13:23

  Helsinki is also under £300 for 160 TPs.

• Gavin says:

  8 Mar8 March 13:58

  Mexico City in First for £1888 – bargain!

  • Matt says:

    8 Mar8 March 14:31

    Haha I don’t think I’m quite living the typical HfP readers’ affluent lifestyle as I’d never describe a £1900 flight as a bargain!!

    • TigerTanaka says:

      8 Mar8 March 14:42

      You mean they let non-merchant bankers read this blog?

      • Roberto says:

        8 Mar8 March 15:00

        Is that rhyming slang?

      • Alex Sm says:

        9 Mar9 March 08:25

        Even barrowboys read it sometimes in packed tube and commuter trains or after an overnighter…

      • Rachael says:

        9 Mar9 March 10:29

        yep there is a nurse practitioner in here, trying to get the best bang for her buck !

    • TGLoyalty says:

      8 Mar8 March 14:58

      Everything’s Relative.

      Return Trip earns 420 TP and 38,802 as a Gold member aswell

    • Anna says:

      8 Mar8 March 15:09

      I don’t consider myself affluent but under £2k for 11 1/2 hours in F seems like good value to me! If I was in the market for a holiday in Central America just now I would definitely consider it. Mexico City has fabulous archaeological sites.

      • Dan says:

        8 Mar8 March 15:22

        I agree with this, but worth considering that £2k is probably around 10-15% of the average annual take home pay for the average worker in the UK. Clearly this site attracts a slightly more affluent reader, perhaps; but I still agree that a £2k flight for something that can be done in economy for a quarter of the price – is not a bargain as such.

    • andrew young says:

      10 Mar10 March 00:09

      Yeah, I gave up reading Flyer Talk, to many pretensions gits whining because there is no plate for the bread roll.
      I ‘m a stonemason, 62 years old and still have to work out in all weathers. But I use what loaf I have to get the best bargain for our holidays. My limit is £1250 each for CW.

  • Bev says:

    8 Mar8 March 16:52

    Our household take home pay is less than £2k a month, however I find a 11 hour flight under £2 in a premium cabin a bargain. It’s all down to how much you have in disposable cash.

    • Anna says:

      8 Mar8 March 18:24

      Exactly, if you’re using points for your accommodation and not eating out much treating yourself to J or F is absolutely doable. Even more so if you use avios for, say, 2 pax and cash for 2.

      Some people think nothing of paying £50 or £60 a month for the latest phone, I pay £10 for mine and have more holiday money. Apply that reasoning to a few more household outgoings (shop at Aldi instead of Waitrose) and there are your premium cabin flights paid for!

      • Shoestring says:

        8 Mar8 March 18:32

        my mobile has gone up to 65p/ month I think!

        however, I think there are LH flights where it’s easy to arrange timing to give you comfort in Economy – eg UK—> East Coast USA – probably a whole world better in premium economy with a decent lounge before you go but you get the gist

        same idea, being save money where it’s easy to save money & not be too hung up about Business or First

      • Shoestring says:

        8 Mar8 March 22:20

        ie 6 hrs in Economy LHR-New York in the daytime is very bearable

        as are virtually all European flights from LHR

        no need to ‘waste’ money on Business Class for these short hops if it’s your own money or points (same thing, really) – particularly if you manage to work in 2 hrs in the lounge first through other methods

      • Spurs Debs says:

        9 Mar9 March 22:03

        Shoestring it might be bearable if you haven’t got a knackered back/hip but the thought of being scrunched up for 6 hours horrifies me. Going to New York beginning of April I saved my points and got 4 club class return reward seats. Used my 241 . For me it’s worth it but I can see why it wouldn’t be for a younger more able bodied person or even an older more able bodied lol
        Either way I’m well happy I haven’t got to struggle.

      • Nick_C says:

        10 Mar10 March 00:14

        And of course its not 6 hours. The flight time is typically 7.5 hours, and you will usually be on the plane for at least 8 hours westbound.

  • Chris Cannon says:

    8 Mar8 March 17:23

    Gavin. When were the dates for this? Would love to go for that price

    • Gavin says:

      9 Mar9 March 07:39

      I didn’t check but the sale page says £1888 for jan/feb next year

• Anon says:

  8 Mar8 March 16:28

  Not a lot of difference in CW and F fares to BOM (outside of the sale it’s around £2k CW and £2.3k F I think)

• RR says:

  8 Mar8 March 17:01

  OT if I may, I have received an email form LLoyds that I have received a companion voucher, but I can’t login into my Avios account that I haven’t used for a year, since moving it to BAEC.

  Are there guidelines how one book the trip online?

  • Matthew says:

    8 Mar8 March 17:40

    Can’t anymore – you’l have to call BA to use it.

    • Czechoslovakia says:

      8 Mar8 March 22:51

      I did it twice on avios.com last week? One voucher that was got the hard way, the second the bonus Lloyds freebie. Although I have my avios account set up for aer Lingus, and can actually log in. Btw, why are my Lloyds avios cards still working? Thought they should’ve been killed off already?

      • Czechoslovakia says:

        8 Mar8 March 22:53

        Ah, too much wine. Upgrade vouchers I meant, sorry.

      • Keith says:

        9 Mar9 March 07:10

        I’ve still got my trusty Lloyds cards! My year started again this month too. I’m pretty glad because I have hotels to pay for in the US coming up in May

      • Mikeact says:

        9 Mar9 March 08:02

        Quiet please.

  • roberto says:

    8 Mar8 March 17:41

    Call Avios and they will book it over the phone. They will move the miles from BAEC at the same time. Quite painless.

• Chris Cannon says:

  8 Mar8 March 17:12

  I need to make a points run in the absence of a Qatar sale. Anyone got a table of destinations and points earned? I need to find an affordable CW/F run that banks me 320+ TP. Quite fancy first out of T5 actually…..

  • roberto says:

    8 Mar8 March 17:44

    2 x 160TP runs LHR to HEL is about £600 currently. Pick the AY 350 if you have not tried it , its a lovely piece of kit – Not F I grant you ( nor out of T5 of course ) but cheap enough and you can do it over a weekend either nested or not depending or where you want to sleep Saturday night.

    • Lee says:

      9 Mar9 March 09:14

      How would you nest a trip like that? Need to learn 🙂

  • Jake Mc says:

    8 Mar8 March 22:31

    Tel Aviv is between £1.5 to £1.7k in first- availability all year round.
    Earns 420 tier points from T5.

    There might be some routes in business that earn 320 TP but I think Israel would be a good destination and first is always worth a try (if you haven’t before)

  • Shoestring says:

    8 Mar8 March 22:36

    Chaps – the thing that always floors me is why a TP run has to be so meaningless, often the stuff that gets talked about is just turnaround – why wouldn’t you factor in a few days of fun somewhere you like?

    Other than the fact you earn shedloads of money by being in London doing your job, I guess 🙂

    • Jake Mc says:

      8 Mar8 March 22:44

      Agree. Has to be some value to be had in a 2-3 day trip somewhere appealing.

      Ahhh the beauty of a day rate.

      • Patrick says:

        9 Mar9 March 08:23

        Luxembourg return can be had for 158 during the sale, gives you 80 TP. Nice destination for a weekend too…

• Avios Newbie says:

  8 Mar8 March 17:46

  I’ve got 80k points and wanted to know realistically where can I travel business class. Before anyone goes there… I have visited the BA avios calculator but my hunch tells me that it’s not realistic…

  • Shoestring says:

    8 Mar8 March 17:52

    Lots of places in Europe!

  • Anna says:

    8 Mar8 March 18:26

    Realistically you could go one way to the US, Caribbean or Middle East but you’d have to find an airline which doesn’t charge a fortune for one-way return flights. Or try avios plus cash, there is good value to be had on expensive routes.

    • Anna says:

      8 Mar8 March 18:29

      Or a couple of returns to the Canaries? Not Club World but a decent length flight to drink plenty of Champagne in CE with lounge access and lots of luggage included.

    • Alex Sm says:

      9 Mar9 March 08:40

      A more philosophical question in this regard: is this realistic to expect that so-called legacy airlines many of which have already effectively adopted many features of LCCs, would any time soon streamline their pricing for one-way flights as 1+1=2 (not as current 3+3=2) and abandon this stupid Sat night rule?

      • Lady London says:

        9 Mar9 March 18:25

        British Airways said many many years ago, they had abandoned the Saturday night rule.
        There was barely, ever, any evidence of it. And they’ve definitely not abandoned it.

        Apparently TAP has reasonable prices in J longhaul. But you have to be prepared for irrops apparently.

  • Nick_C says:

    9 Mar9 March 06:32

    Surely you can pick up another 20k Avios easily enough?

    Have you exhausted all the Amex sign up bonuses? Eg, a self referral from Amex Gold to SPG gets you 9000 (referral) + 11000 (sign up bonus for spending £1k in 3 months, converted from Bonvoy points to Avios) for £75 card free, refundable Pro rata on cancellation.

    Do you have friends you can refer?

    100000 Avios will get you to NYC or ORD return in J on off peak days.

    • Avios Newbie says:

      9 Mar9 March 22:49

      Thanks for the tips. Will try them out!

  • xcalx says:

    9 Mar9 March 11:40

    Transfer Avios to Iberia and enjoy business Madrid to Puerto Rico (64,000 return Plus ~ £130 taxes )
    an ideal destination to pick up cruises in the heart of the Caribbean.

  • Avios Newbie says:

    9 Mar9 March 22:55

    Thanks Rob!

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