SWISS, Lufthansa and Etihad launch UK flight sales – here are the best business class deals
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There is a lot of sale activity going on at the moment. Qatar Airways has launched a sale with some interesting deals from elsewhere in Europe, which I will look at tomorrow. The British Airways sale which we covered here is also continuing, as is the Virgin Atlantic one.
If you want to fly direct from the UK, here are a couple of other options.
Your best option to maximise your miles when paying is American Express Preferred Rewards Gold. This offers double points – 2 per £1 – when you when you book flight tickets directly with an airline. Our review of Amex Gold is here.
SWISS
If you enjoyed Anika’s review of SWISS business class last weekend, you might be interested in their deals, all from the UK via Zurich. Headline fares in business class include:
- Delhi £1,558
- Hong Kong £1,919
- Johannesburg £2,004
- Mumbai £1,597
- Sao Paulo £1,771
- Tel Aviv £758 (check it is a long-haul aircraft!)
You need to book by 22nd September. You can travel until the end of June 2020, except for Christmas / New Year and between 16th February and 30th April 2020.
SWISS is a member of Star Alliance so any miles you earn will need to go into the Lufthansa / SWISS Miles & More scheme or one of their other partners.
Lufthansa
As you’d expect, Lufthansa – sister airline to SWISS – is having an identical sale with identical dates. You can book here.
Headline deals from the UK include:
- Hong Kong £1,919
- Bangkok £1,725
- Cairo £1,007
- Mumbai £1,584
- Beirut £787
- Bengaluru £1,619
Etihad
Meanwhile, over at Etihad, you have the following business class deals. You need to book by 12th September for travel between 15th September 2019 and 30th June 2020.
Headline deals, which will get you travel in the fanastic Business Studio which we reviewed here, include:
- Abu Dhabi £1,500
- Bangkok £1,961
- Singapore £2,254
Tickets include an optional free Abu Dhabi stopover:
“Explore Abu Dhabi with a free two-night stopover. Simply book a multi-city flight via Abu Dhabi. When your flight is booked, tell us which of our premium hotels you’d like to stay at for free and we’ll do the rest for you.”
Prices from Manchester may vary slightly, in a bad way. You can book on the Etihad site here. You can learn more about Business Studio on their site here.
How to maximise your miles when paying for flights (December 2024)
Some UK credit cards offer special bonuses when used for buying flights. If you spend a lot on airline tickets, using one of these cards could sharply increase the credit card points you earn.
Booking flights on any airline?
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold earns double points (2 Membership Rewards points per £1) when used to buy flights directly from an airline website.
The card comes with a sign-up bonus of 20,000 Membership Rewards points. These would convert to 20,000 Avios or various other airline or hotel programmes. The standard earning rate is 1 point per £1.
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 14th January 2025, the sign-up bonus on ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold is increased to 30,000 Membership Rewards points. This converts into 30,000 Avios. Click here to apply.
You can apply here.
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold
Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
Buying flights on British Airways?
The British Airways Premium Plus American Express card earns double Avios (3 Avios per £1) when used at ba.com.
The card comes with a sign-up bonus of 30,000 Avios. The standard earning rate is 1.5 Avios per £1.
You do not earn bonus Avios if you pay for BA flights on the free British Airways American Express card or either of the Barclaycard Avios Mastercards.
You can apply here.
British Airways American Express Premium Plus
30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review
Buying flights on Virgin Atlantic?
Both the free Virgin Atlantic Reward Mastercard and the annual fee Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard earn double Virgin Points when used at fly.virgin.com.
This means 1.5 Virgin Points per £1 on the free card and 3 Virgin Points per £1 on the paid card.
There is a sign-up bonus of 3,000 Virgin Points on the free card and 18,000 Virgin Points on the paid card.
You can apply for either of the cards here.
Virgin Atlantic Reward Mastercard
3,000 bonus points, no fee and 1 point for every £1 you spend Read our full review
Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard
18,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review
