Which Finnair long-haul routes have ultra-low taxes when using Avios?
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Early last month, Finnair adopted Avios as its loyalty currency. We covered the story here.
You CANNOT yet move Avios back and forth between Finnair Plus and British Airways Executive Club, but this should be possible from late May / June.
This doesn’t stop you redeeming Avios for Finnair flights, of course.
You have ALWAYS been able to redeem Avios for Finnair flights on ba.com because both airlines are members of the oneworld airline alliance.
What has changed is that BA and Finnair have agreed to charge exactly the same for Avios flights on Finnair. In many cases this has led to a decent reduction in the cost of flights.
Finnair is more useful than you might think. Helsinki is ‘on the way’ to Asia from much of Europe, meaning that a connection there is not a lot slower than flying direct. (It is slower than it was, however, due to the ban on using Russian airspace.)
Finnair has NO ‘carrier surcharges’ on many of its long haul flights. This makes them exceptionally good value if you want to avoid taxes and charges.
There are some exceptions. To North America, Finnair is part of the BA / AA / Iberia / Aer Lingus joint venture. To Japan, Finnair is part of the BA / Japan Airlines joint venture. Finnair is obliged to charge higher surcharges on these routes under the terms of the joint venture agreement. Surcharges are also higher to Shanghai, possibly due to the China Southern codeshare deal.
For other long haul routes, you’re laughing.
Finnair now has guaranteed award availability
Finnair now guarantees a minimum number of award seats for Avios redemption on each flight. This should make it significantly easier to redeem Avios on Finnair.
Finnair is offering:
- 4-6 award seats on shorthaul European flights (two in Business where it exists, four in Economy)
- 8 award seats on long haul flights (two in Business, two in Premium Economy and four in Economy)
These should be bookable via ba.com so there is no need to wait until you are able to transfer Avios into Finnair Plus.
What do Avios redemptions cost on Finnair?
Here is the new reward chart. Remember that the same chart applies whether you book on finnair.com or ba.com.
Note that there are no peak / off-peak prices.
These are one way prices from Helsinki. Connections are charged separately except for ‘Northern Europe’ – I discuss this below.
Where are the best redemption routes for low taxes?
Here is a list of Finnair long haul routes from Helsinki. Pricing is for Business Class, return, flights.
Finnair also flies to Doha from Stockholm and Copenhagen. Taxes are even lower than the number shown below, and getting to those cities should be cheaper than getting to Helsinki.
I have highlighted those where the taxes and charges are under £100 return.
| Destination | Avios (Business, return) | Taxes & charges |
| Bangkok | 125,000 | £59 |
| Chicago | 125,000 | £526 |
| Dallas | 125,000 | £526 |
| Delhi | 110,000 | £55 |
| Doha | 110,000 | £72 |
| Dubai | 110,000 | £69 |
| Hong Kong | 125,000 | £77 |
| Los Angeles | 125,000 | £526 |
| Miami | 125,000 | £526 |
| Nagoya | 125,000 | £381 |
| New York | 125,000 | £526 |
| Osaka | 125,000 | £382 |
| Phuket | 125,000 | £59 |
| Seattle | 125,000 | £526 |
| Seoul | 125,000 | £57 |
| Shanghai | 125,000 | £286 |
| Singapore | 125,000 | £79 |
| Tokyo | 125,000 | £382 |
Where are the biggest savings over direct British Airways flights?
Our list of Avios pricing by route when flying on British Airways from London is here.
Here are the routes with the biggest overall Avios and cash savings compared with a PEAK British Airways Club World return flight from London:
Bangkok
- BA – 220,000 Avios + £550
- Finnair – 125,000 Avios + £59
Delhi
- BA – 200,000 Avios + £450
- Finnair – 110,000 Avios + £55
Doha
- BA – 180,000 Avios + £350
- Finnair – 110,000 Avios + £72
Dubai
- BA – 180,000 Avios + £350
- Finnair – 110,000 Avios + £69
Hong Kong
- BA – 220,000 Avios + £550
- Finnair – 125,000 Avios + £77
Singapore
- BA – 240,000 Avios + £600
- Finnair – 125,000 Avios + £79
British Airways does not fly to Nagoya, Osaka, Phuket or Seoul.
I cannot stress enough how good value Singapore is. Even if you have a British Airways American Express 2-4-1 companion voucher, you should save it for another trip and pay full Avios to go with Finnair.
Of course, don’t forget ….
There are snags, of course:
- you need to get to Helsinki, which will cost you in cash or Avios (BA has dropped it but Finnair flies from Heathrow, Manchester, Edinburgh and Dublin, various low cost carriers also fly it)
- if your flight to Helsinki is on a separate ticket, you will need to build in a big gap to ensure you don’t miss your connection – but Finnair will through-check your luggage if both flights are with them (according to the comments below)
- if your flight to Helsinki is on the same ticket, you get protection from a missed connection but will also have to pay long-haul UK Air Passenger Duty
- you can’t use a British Airways American Express 2-4-1 companion voucher or Barclays upgrade voucher on Finnair
Avios bookings made on the Finnair Plus website allow a free connection in ‘Northern Europe’. This is defined as Bodø, Copenhagen, Gdansk, Gothenburg, Oslo, Riga, Stockholm, Tallinn, Trondheim, Vilnius, Visby, Warsaw and all flights within Finland.
This would allow you to book, say, Copenhagen to Helsinki to Singapore for the same cost as Helsinki to Singapore. This will benefit some people as Helsinki is a longer and pricier flight from the UK than many cities on the list above. You can’t book this until transfers into Finnair Plus are allowed – you won’t get a free connection if you book at ba.com.
What’s the new Finnair Business Class seat like?
The new Finnair ‘no recline’ seat is now on virtually all routes. I won’t go into it again but you can read my review here. Rhys is off to Nagoya soon to test it on a long haul route. Image above.
Conclusion
Finnair offers exceptional value for a solo traveller or a couple without a BA Amex voucher on long haul business class flights to much of Asia, the Middle East and Delhi.
You have to factor in a transfer in Helsinki, but it’s a great city for a 24 hour stopover (if you want one, image above), the redeveloped airport is lovely and the lounges in the non-Schengen area are excellent – if you are British Airways Gold you can visit the Platinum Wing which we reviewed here, and have a sauna whilst you wait.
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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.
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