Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

Good new American Express cashback deals: TFL, Harrods, John Lewis, Fenwick etc

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American Express has launched a number of new cashback deals to help cut the cost of your Christmas shopping.

These are a very generous group of offers.  However, if my own family cards are anything to go by, it seems that they are not appearing to everyone.

This is what I had across my cards:

Transport for London – 10% off contactless travel 

The offer runs to 31st December.  It does not include Heathrow Express or Heathrow Connect / TFL Rail when paid via contactless payment.

John Lewis – £10 cashback when you spend £50

Expires 29th December. Waitrose shoppers may want to buy a £50 John Lewis gift card instore which can then be used in a Waitrose.  Excludes John Lewis Opticians.

American Express Harrods cashback deal

Harrods – £30 cashback when you spend £100 (expires 24th December)

Debenhams – £10 cashback when you spend £50 (expires 31st December, so it can be used during the sale too)

Fenwick and Bentalls – £5 cashback when you spend £20 (expires 24th December)

If you’re a big fan of tuna baguettes, Upper Crust also offered me £2 back when I spend £5 before Christmas Eve!

And …..

Pullman Berlin cashback deal

There is also a new Accor hotels deal available.

It is offering £50 cashback when you spend £350 at selected luxury hotels in Europe before 28th February.

It is very select group of hotels included.  The only countries covered are the UK, Netherlands, France, Austria, Germany and Switzerland.

If you were planning to stay at a Sofitel, Pullman or MGallery then your luck may be in.  Sofitel Heathrow and Pullman London (Kings Cross) are excluded, however.

Pullman Berlin, which I reviewed earlier this year (our Pullman Berlin review is here and see the photo above) and liked a lot, IS included.

Remember that Amex charges a 3% FX fee when you use your card abroad so, if you have a card from another provider with 0% FX fees, remember to factor in the FX fee when working out how much you will save.

The rules do not say if cumulative spend counts.  It usually does with American Express hotel promotions, but until we get feedback from other readers you shouldn’t rely on it.

The Accor website is here if you want to scope out your options.  If you don’t want to earn Le Club AccorHotels points, you can take Avios directly instead.  Credit to Iberia Plus and not British Airways Executive Club as the rate is twice as high – you can use ‘Combine My Avios’ to move them across to BA afterwards.

PS.  If you missed it, take a look at our recent article on the top 10 reasons to apply for the free (in year 1) American Express Preferred Rewards Gold credit card.


Want to earn more points from credit cards? – April 2024 update

If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current 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 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 card

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

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

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard

18,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review

Earning miles and points from small business cards

If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:

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

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

Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa

Huge 30,000 points bonus until 12th May 2024 Read our full review

For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback on your spending.

Barclaycard Select Cashback Business Credit Card

1% cashback uncapped* on all your business spending (T&C apply) Read our full review

Comments (168)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Lev441 says:

    I have most of the above across my various cards as well as a weird one on my platinum card.. Bloomingdales (US stores) – spend £100 get £25 back..

    • BJ says:

      They deliver to the UK. They did the offer last year too so it must have been a success given they are back again this year.

  • Alex says:

    I’ve had Harrods, Selfridges and Harvey Nichols in the past but nothing this time round… Surely it’s not because I tend to actually use them

  • M Corrêa says:

    I don’t have the TFL one.. others are there

  • Nick says:

    Also don’t forget that the Amex £5 back when you spend £10+ in-store at a participating Shop Small business starts this Saturday 7th until the 22nd.

  • ahop says:

    OT: BA 241 required spend ‘by’ a date. As per standard expectations does Amex include the given day itself or should spend be completed before this day ticks over.

    • Polly says:

      It must have converted to avios to count as a spend towards the 241. I noticed the spend counter doesn’t update until this has actually happened. So, be vigilant….

      • ahop says:

        Very useful to known Polly – I best put it through a few days before the date then!

        • Polly says:

          Yes, l always allow 5 days before deadline date, as a precaution, and it’s highlighted in my diary!

  • SultanOfCroydon says:

    Also good to combine the Amex card offers with BA Exc Club, which is currently offering double the usual avios rates for spend with most partner retailers.
    Every Little Helps…

  • Susan says:

    Reliable Amex targeting, 2x London gyms. Would be great for countering all those London based restaurants – if I didn’t ruddy live in rural Scotland.

  • Ian McDowall says:

    No John Lewis for me. But I have tfl.

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

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