NEW AVIOS ROUTES: British Airways returns to Sharm El Sheikh and extends Malta

Two new British Airways routes have just been added, and they are available now for Avios bookings.

First up is Egypt. British Airways is returning to Sharm El Sheikh this Winter.

This will be a London Gatwick route. Flights start on 3rd November and there will be four flights per week initially, dropping down to three per week from December.

It is a day flight in both directions, leaving Gatwick at 8am (lands 3.20pm) and leaving Sharm at 4.20pm (lands 8pm).

Flights will initially operate on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

There is a snag though … British Airways is operating this flight on a short haul A320 aircraft.

The outbound flight has a ‘block time’ of 5 hours and 20 minutes. The inbound flight is blocked at 5 hours and 50 minutes.

This is a l-o-n-g time to spend on an A320 in Economy, given the leg room on British Airways short haul aircraft. Leg room isn’t much better in Business, of course, but at least you have the empty middle seat.

One upside is that this will be a relatively cheap way to pick up 80 tier points each way in Business in British Airways Executive Club.

Avios and cash seats are now bookable on ba.com.

Gatwick to Malta flights are now loaded for the Winter

The second ‘new’ route is the loading of Malta flights from London Gatwick for the Winter 2023 season, ie November onwards.

Flights operate six days per week, with Wednesday being the odd one out.

Like Sharm, Malta also offers 160 tier points for a return flight in Club Europe. Remember that this would double to 320 tier points if you booked via BA Holidays and stayed for 5+ nights before the end of the year.

Again, Avios and cash seats are now bookable at ba.com.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2025)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous 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 Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

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

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

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

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

American Express Business Platinum

50,000 points when you sign-up 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

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