Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

BA route news: Agadir launches, Kos added at Heathrow, Riga and Belgrade extended to summer

Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission.  See here for all partner links.

Three bits of British Airways route news:

British Airways launches flights to Agadir, Morocco

The BA Euroflyer network at London Gatwick continues to grow, with more aircraft joining the fleet next year.

One of the new routes it will be launching is to Agadir in Morocco, just across the water from the Canary Islands. It is the first time British Airways has flown to Agadir in over a decade.

The flights will operate four times weekly and start on 31st March 2024.

Flight timings are different every day. On Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays it is a morning departure, between 6am and 9am, whilst the Saturday flight is in the afternoon, at 15:25.

If you’re wondering what Agadir has to offer, Tom Stoddart, CEO of BA Euroflyer, says:

“Agadir is a coastal destination that enjoys 300 days of sunshine per year, so we know it will see strong demand from our leisure customers and particularly those seeking holiday packages. It offers beaches, golf courses and water sports alongside the opportunity to experience cultural landmarks, such as Agadir Kasbah.”

Flights are now available to book (including Avios redemptions) on the BA website. Club Europe tickets would earn 160 tier points return.

BA Euroflyer, if you’re not familiar with it, is – in theory – identical to the BA Heathrow short haul operation from the point of view of the passenger. Service, meals (in Business), lounges, elite privileges …. all as you’d expect. The ‘low cost’ nature of the airline is purely in terms of what the staff and service providers are paid.

British Airways A320

British Airways launches Kos flights from Heathrow

Services to Kos in Greece are currently operated from London Gatwick by BA Euroflyer.

This will not change, but additional Kos services will operate from Heathrow next year. Image below.

There will be one flight per week, on a Saturday.

It will operate from Heathrow Terminal 5. The first flight will be on 18th May and the last on 28th September.

It is down for a 6.10am departure, landing at 12.15pm. The return leaves Kos at 1.15pm, arriving at 3.25pm.

Flights are bookable now at ba.com for cash or Avios. For some reason only Economy flights are currently available.

British Airways extends Belgrade and Riga flights into summer 2024

Belgrade and Riga are two new routes added for the winter 2023 flying season at Heathrow.

They appear to be going well, because both will continue into the summer. Neither will end on 30th March as originally planned.

Belgrade will operate three times per week from 31st March, on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday.

Riga will also operate three times per week, and also on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday. This is a change from the current days of operaton.

Tickets for the new services, for cash or Avios, are now available at ba.com.


How to earn Avios from UK credit cards

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (May 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 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

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 Card

30,000 Avios and the famous annual Companion Voucher voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express Credit Card

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.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card

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 Card

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.

The American Express Business Platinum Card

50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

The American Express Business Gold Card

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.

Comments (42)

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

  • whiskerxx says:

    Should I assume that Belgrade and Riga are from Heathrow – as there is no mention of it in the article?

  • Jordan D says:

    Ah for the GB Airways days of being a BA operation with a full route network across Morocco. Be nice if Fez came back too.

  • David S says:

    Aircraft coming from cutting or thinning existing routes ? We fly regularly to FAO and noticed that on many days in May / June BA are down to one flight a day from each of LHR and LGW. Flights on this route are always crammed and so expensive without frequency reductions. Some flights are over £700 in CE this coming year.

  • r* says:

    Is it confirmed which routes will be operating from T3 for next year yet?

  • sayling says:

    6:10 departure gave me a bit of a shudder… much as I love Kos.

    The island, not the lounge-less airport, which also makes me shudder a little

    • Richie says:

      1.15pm for the return is also a bit early.

      • sayling says:

        True – given this is a leisure focused flight, and most hotels chuck you out around 11:00, an hour or so later would have been nicer

    • zapato1060 says:

      I dont see the big issue in early flights. You (shock horror) get up earlier. Less traffic in and getting to the airport. You get to your destination earlier too, the place you intended to visit in the first place.

      • TGLoyalty says:

        But you’re so damn tired you fall asleep at 7pm … personally ideal departure times are 9/10 am flight out and 3pm onwards flight back

      • sayling says:

        I don’t like mornings/ getting up at the best of times – getting up early for a first shift meeting is bad enough, but getting up at stupid o’clock on a day off, to get to the airport in time and join lots of different queues (to join other queues) in order to get to an hotel I can’t check in to because you arrive too early… I’d rather not endure.

        Inevitably, I will, but the idea still makes me shudder.

        (I should probably add some form of hashtag about first world problems and all that…)

  • alittlegreenman says:

    Is the Euroflyer LGW winter 24-25 timetable sorted yet does anyone know?

  • jeff says:

    A… ga… dir dir dir

  • zapato1060 says:

    Funnily enough Ryanair released news today of what looks to be a complete takeover of Morocco including domestic flights between cities. Big move.

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

The UK's biggest frequent flyer website uses cookies, which you can block via your browser settings. Continuing implies your consent to this policy. Our privacy policy is here.