British Airways launches more ‘Avios only’ flights for late 2023 and Easter 2024

British Airways recently launched ‘Avios only’ flights, copying a successful Qantas initiative.

Selected flights in the schedule are withdrawn for cash sale with every single seat opened up for Avios redemption.

The second batch has now become available for booking.

There is a subtle change for this second round of ‘Avios only’ flights.

For the first batch, only OUTBOUND flights were ‘Avios only‘. There were no dedicated return flights, although BA told us that they had increased Avios availability over the following week to hopefully allow everyone to get back.

This time, there is a dedicated outbound flight and a dedicated inbound flight. YOU DON’T NEED TO BOOK BOTH but you shouldn’t have problems getting back on the dedicated return date even if all other flights that week have no Avios availability.

Here are the options. Note that there is a concentration of flights over next Easter which will be attractive to many.

The Avios pricing for these flights is the same as usual – there are no surcharges or special conditions.

You can use British Airways American Express 2-4-1 vouchers or Barclays Avios Upgrade vouchers if you wish. The usual cancellation rules apply (£35 per person fee or the Reward Flight Saver fee paid, whichever is lower).

I still think that British Airways isn’t making the most of these offers. If it really wants to make a splash, let’s open up a full Boeing 777 to the Middle East over October half term. This would get people talking. It could also tie these flights into a special event, such as a European pride festival.

I also think there is also potential to do a deal with local hotels to offer special rates to anyone who books these flights. You could add a drinks reception midweek with BA representatives for all of the passengers, irrespective of where they stay.

It is still early days for ‘Avios only’ flights, however. If you want to book one of these trips, I would jump in quickly as the first batch sold out within 24 hours.

PS. The hotel image above is the Hyatt Regency Palais de la Méditerranée hotel, Nice which we recently reviewed

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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.