Book British Airways Club World from £991 in the new BA Luxury Sale

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• Nick says:

  23 Oct23 October 05:53

  LHR-MIA in First at £1,989 is, I believe, comparable with the lowest fare they had at any time last year for March this year. Also, then, the comparable fares were not available for flights during the 2020 Spring holidays. They are currently for 2021.

• Martin says:

  23 Oct23 October 06:33

  Anyone know the latest time before flying you can cancel please. Is it 24 hours? My flight is 72 hours away at 655 and just double checking. I was waiting as late as possible hoping it would be cancelled fir a cash refund. One is cash and one Avios thank you.

  • Stu N says:

    23 Oct23 October 07:51

    Yes – 24 hours. If you’re within 48 hours of departure it’s extremely unlikely to be cancelled, other than weather or technical problems, so I’d can it at that point. You wouldn’t want to be in a situation where you try to cancel online at t-25 hours, it doesn’t work and you have to phone BA…

    • Martin says:

      23 Oct23 October 09:19

      Thank you..

• KS says:

  23 Oct23 October 06:51

  Must have meant to say Dubai, slightly odd comparison to make otherwise (flight to Miami v Holiday in Dubai?).

  • Planeconcorde says:

    23 Oct23 October 07:49

    +1 it’s not a direct comparison. Suspect cut-n-paste error from an old article.

  • Rhys says:

    23 Oct23 October 08:36

    Good spot, thanks!

• Cheshire Pete says:

  23 Oct23 October 06:52

  Not a bad package to NY with BAH! Although still not quite as good as the last New York package back in early September. We got £1250 in CW & 5 nights at the IC in Times Square with Resort Fee paid and upgrade on arrival! I’m still not expecting to go, but an easy win with a £350 deposit. Also that was from Manchester via Heathrow. Not checked yet if adding this makes the price go down further, as it did last time!

• rowpott says:

  23 Oct23 October 06:52

  In the current crisis I would recommend caution when booking a BA holiday package. Book with confidence flights can be cancelled shortly before departure and get a voucher. BA holidays have to be cancelled weeks before departure. Also ringing BA holidays is a nightmare with wait times often over 45 mins.

  • tony says:

    23 Oct23 October 07:00

    Cancel with 7 days notice. And if government guidance changes, you can cancel right up to flight departure. https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/incident/coronavirus/latest-information#tcschange

    • ChrisC says:

      23 Oct23 October 10:11

      Any holiday booking made since June is 3 weeks before to cancel and get a voucher.

      As per Section 2iii of the holiday T&CS

      Cancel up to departure is only if the U.K. government imposes quarantine in the 7 before you depart.

  • Harry T says:

    23 Oct23 October 07:36

    On the other hand, you give BA substantially less money up front and acquire greater consumer procreation.

    • Billy says:

      23 Oct23 October 08:22

      I’m all for consumer procreation

    • Brian says:

      23 Oct23 October 08:36

      What is consumer procreation?

      • Harry T says:

        23 Oct23 October 09:14

        It is Apple’s regular morning autocorrect sabotage.

        • Nick says:

          23 Oct23 October 12:51

          Or your unwillingness to proofread before sending. Two sides to every coin 😛

• Harry T says:

  23 Oct23 October 07:35

  These aren’t in the same league as the sub-£1000 flights that were released a few weeks ago to Cape Town, Maldives, US etc. The exLUX US fares, although not as directly comparable, were substantially cheaper too (£682 in some cases). Shame.

  • Colin says:

    23 Oct23 October 08:08

    Yes Harry – agree. I snaffled one of those on the day they became available (BRU/SFO returning IAD/LUX) for next July at £890pp including a night beforehand at BRU to make it a BA Holiday package. The sickening thing was the scandalous seat selection fees BA were looking on the two long haul elements from/to LHR at well over £200pp. I declined and will take the chance that I `might` be seated next to my partner come online check-in. Those seat selection fees are the main reason I always try to book AA/DL/UA etc before BA but those ex BRU/LUX fares were just too good to miss under book with confidence.

    • Harry T says:

      23 Oct23 October 09:16

      I booked two flights for next August, departing from LUX and returning to BRU. Wanted to make it a holiday but no dice with BAH (don’t work ex LUX). They only cost £682 each though (currency conversion) and I’ve upgraded each leg to First for a total of 80,000 Avios. We will get something like 25,000 Avios back too.

      The seat selection fees are bananas but there is a good chance the seating algorithm will put you next to your family if on the same PNR.

  • Rhys says:

    23 Oct23 October 08:39

    What were you expecting! Ex-London fares have never really matched ex-European fares. Less APD and more competition on connecting flights.

    • Harry T says:

      23 Oct23 October 09:15

      I know, Rhys, but the fares Ex LUX and returning to BRU were still historically low. Regardless, the 747 sale ex UK was much better than this current one.

  • Optimus Prime says:

    23 Oct23 October 08:46

    Agreed, though due to random cancellations and quarantine bingo, positioning flights are riskier than ever.

• Paul says:

  23 Oct23 October 08:02

  There are some great deals here, but does anyone honestly think that holidaying in North America in the first half of next year is going to be a sensible proposition? I’d absolutely love to believe it was true, and I realise the book with confidence deal helps mitigate any risk, I just can’t really get into planning a trip I’m so confident I won’t get to take… am I being unduly pessimistic?

  • Bs says:

    23 Oct23 October 08:10

    I don’t think it’s going to happen. Even if a vaccine is found to work tomorrow. I would love to be wrong though!

  • ChrisW says:

    23 Oct23 October 08:11

    I’m guessing this BA sale ends just before 3 November! ; P

  • Rhys says:

    23 Oct23 October 08:40

    As the article notes, fares are available into October 2021.

• Johnny Tabasco says:

  23 Oct23 October 08:15

  It’s not just a case of whether or not it’s a sensible proposition or not,
  more a case of it being totally pointless! USA in the first half of next year ? Behave.

  It’s amazing how many posts from people I see boasting about a great deal they have just booked, for a trip that is blatantly not going to be happening!

  There was one the other day about a family Christmas trip to Orlando in December. A question about hotel points and upgrades, the normal stuff….and you’re just thinking ….are you genuinely serious? For the most part of for those who are not so hardy 2020 is a write off and so will be most of next year (sadly!).

  • Number9 says:

    23 Oct23 October 08:36

    Instead of thinking it’s boasting, maybe people are just trying to have something to look forward to and do something normal. I’m sure everyone on this site knows the reality of the situation. You can’t blame people for hope.

    • Johnny Tabasco says:

      23 Oct23 October 08:56

      Sure, can’t argue with that. Personally I’d argue a bit more realism is needed this year of all years.

      I simply don’t understand the point of booking a trip that deep down, you know full well won’t be happening.

      • Steev says:

        23 Oct23 October 09:27

        Totally agree. Why book something to look forward to when it is blatantly obvious that the travel will not be permissible? The excitement is then more than offset by the disappointment.

        • Andrew says:

          23 Oct23 October 10:28

          And the hassle of getting your money back or annoyance that your money is tied up in a company in the form of travel credit. I think people were right to jump on the Avios sale and take a punt, even if the trip has a slim chance of going ahead because it was unusually cheap and there’s less of a financial commitment in terms of how much you’ve paid out now and in terms of a refund on request. These sale fares are nowhere near cheap enough to take a punt on.

      • Jonathan says:

        23 Oct23 October 10:45

        I don’t think a trip to USA in May next year is out the question. Coronavirus almost certainly won’t have disappeared but do you really think we’ll still be having lockdowns & travel bans in 6 months time?!

        At some point the economic realities will have to trump health concerns for an illness that is miles away from apocalyptic in severity. Those economic concerns are also driving huge investment in medical & testing technologies so things like widespread point of care testing, anti-vitals like remdesivir & a vaccine (probably with development expedited using challenge trials) will shift the balance in favour of opening up business & travel.

        For what it’s worth, I work in frontline healthcare & am in favour of current restrictions but I don’t for one minute think the global economy will be allowed to grind to a halt for more than 12 months.

        • Johnny Tabasco says:

          23 Oct23 October 11:32

          ‘ do you really think we’ll still be having lockdowns & travel bans in 6 months time?!’

          Well, im sure we all said that 6 months ago too.

        • Anna says:

          23 Oct23 October 11:35

          The sticking point for travel to the US may well be insurance. No-one in their right mind takes a trip to America if there’s any chance their insurer would turn down a medical claim.

        • Andrew says:

          23 Oct23 October 11:38

          Totally agree JT – I remember in March when this first started, it seemed out of the question that a trip I had booked to New York in September would be cancelled…

        • Garyc says:

          23 Oct23 October 13:56

          Humans have a habit of over estimating the level of change in the short term (but over estimating it in the long term) and I think consequences of Covid are no exception.

          Pre Covid I was flying to the US around 10 times per year, yet I am not hopeful I will be able to make a trip in the next year, let alone 6m. Policies in the US and Europe have failed spectacularly to control the spread of the virus, so yes I do expect there to be varying levels of lock down as least as tough as we see now for 6m+.

          The vaccine road is a long one. Even if one of the candidates has decent efficacy, the logistics of manufacture and rollout will make things very protracted. Any immunity may be short lived. A sizeable number of people may refuse to take a vaccine. So even with a vaccine, there is no binary lifting of restrictions and a binary return to normal.

          And even if trave, is possible, entry restrictions and quarantine periods are lifted, desire is likely to be subdued. The US is the last place to go if there is any doubt about the provision of rock solid health care insurance. Plus a large number of people, I suspect, will simply not want to run the risk of getting sick 5000 miles from home.

          I hope I am wrong, but I don’t expect to be back in the US until 2022.

        • Rob says:

          23 Oct23 October 17:18

          Oddly, your biggest issue with CV and the US is getting out.

          Realistically, since this disease takes quite a while to get from infection to hospitalisation, anyone on a regular 7-10 day holiday would be OK. If they were clear on arrival they are highly unlikely to be so ill within 7-10 days to require hosptialisation.

          However … what happens if the US starts testing on exit? You could be stopped from boarding a flight and then forced to sit in a US quarantine centre whilst your health deteriorates and you may get to the point of being hospitalised. Bottom line – fine to visit for a short trip if there are no tests to leave, riskier if there are.

        • Jonathan says:

          23 Oct23 October 14:52

          The difference in March was that many thought it would blow over in 3 months. The difference with next year is that we will no longer think it will disappear in 3/6/9 months if we hunker down rather that the cost of continuing along the current path becomes unsustainable.

          Priorities change from throwing money at economic stimulus to ride out a short, sharp shock to investing in solutions to allow life to start to return to normal. All this talk of vaccines taking 5 years to come to market is based on a very different financial & ethical landscape.

          In my university hospital you’ve got staff from every research field putting their usual stuff to one side to work on the Oxford vaccine trial. The government has also been funding the manufacturing of millions of doses a month for the past 3 months. They’ve passed legislation to allow vastly greater numbers of people to administer vaccines (think medical students, physios etc.). The safety data is there, the immune response is the same as for other successful vaccines it’s now just a case of allowing enough time to show the required difference in infection rates between those who had the real vaccine vs placebo. Ironically this was severely hampered over the summer as the level of Covid circulating was too low to infect enough of the placebo cohort. As prevalence increases the results of the trials will be seen earlier.

          Challenge trials also give you results much faster but there has been a hesitancy to go down that path. I think there’s now a recognition that the ethics favour a few volunteers taking controlled risks to potentially benefit society as a whole. As said above, there was too much optimism at the start & too much pessimism now.

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