‘The Travel Brief’, the weekly Head for Points travel trade newsletter
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Welcome to The Travel Brief, your weekly trade round-up of UK business travel and travel loyalty news as well as the latest reviews and features from the Head for Points team.
If you are not a subscriber, you can sign up here to receive this free newsletter in your inbox every Monday. Please forward it to any colleagues who you think may be interested.
The latest UK business travel news:
Loganair confirmed it will switch to Avios from today (Monday) ….
…. and it later released its Avios pricing – which looks pretty good
Air Canada adds flights from Edinburgh to Montreal
A new luxury Marriott Autograph Collection hotel opens in Mayfair
Rotana joins Global Hotel Alliance, adding 80 properties
Belfast will be the first place outside the US to get a ‘Tempo by Hilton’ hotel
Iberia launches a new route to Orlando – Avios and Amex 2-4-1 vouchers accepted ….
…. as well as two new routes to Brazil
Which 25 routes from Heathrow airport had over 1 million passengers in 2024?
Where will British Airways fly the A380 in Summer 2025?
Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle returns to British Airways First Class and other champagne news
A good Etihad business class deal to Johannesburg launches, albeit only for the (UK) summer
Ryanair launches ‘Ryanair Prime’ – is it worth £79? Image below.
Stories we recommend from other sites:
Singapore Airlines to increase London Gatwick service to daily (Business Traveller)
Blackstone taking 22% stake in Glasgow, Aberdeen and Southampton airports for £235m (Travel Weekly)
Park Tower Knightsbridge hotel plots £100m refurbishment (Boutique Hotelier)
Dakota Newcastle hotel opens this [last] weekend (Business Traveller)
Our latest reviews:
Our reviews section will return next week.
Big news for some – pay HMRC with American Express:
Payment intermediary Bluechain now lets you pay your HMRC bills with an American Express card – and there’s a HfP special offer for joining
The latest UK travel loyalty news:
NEW: Earn and redeem Avios on Garuda Indonesia flights
New Marriott Bonvoy / American Express hotel cashback deals launched
Which 37 airlines can you earn Avios on?
Juneyao Air no longer an Avios partner
What do you do if British Airways suspects you of selling Avios and closes your account?
How to earn Avios with NH Hotels and nhow – with a triple Avios offer running
REGISTER NOW: Accor launches a 2x and 3x points promotion across Europe – click here to register
When should you transfer hotel loyalty points to frequent flyer miles?
ENDS SOON: Get 60,000 or 120,000 points with Amex Business Gold or Platinum – & no bonus rules
American Express has brought back the biggest sign-up bonus ever seen in the UK for a payment card.
This 120,000 Membership Rewards points deal on Business Platinum, which closes on 8th April 2025, matches the biggest we’ve ever seen. If you only sign up for one payment card mileage promotion all year, this should be it (assuming you have a small business, buy to let etc).
There is also a 60,000 points option on ‘free for a year’ American Express Business Gold.
All restrictions on receiving a sign-up bonus have been removed as long as you hit the spending target. If your application is successful and you spend the required sum, you qualify for the bonus. Full stop.
American Express Business Platinum now offers up to 120,000 Membership Rewards points. You receive 80,000 points when you spend £12,000 within three months and a further 40,000 points when you make a single transaction between Month 14 and Month 17.
American Express Business Gold – which is free for your first year – now offers up to 60,000 Membership Rewards points. You receive 40,000 points when you spend £6,000 within three months and a further 20,000 points when you make a single transaction between Month 14 and Month 17.
To find out more, read this article which runs through the deals in detail.
You can apply for Business Platinum here.
You can apply for Business Gold (first year free) here.
Head for Points receives a commission if you apply via our links – thank you.
Thank you for reading
Please drop me a note at rob@headforpoints.com with any feedback.
If you are booking a hotel this week, click here to read our summary of the best bonus points offers for April from the big chains.
See you next Monday,
Rob, Rhys, Sinead and Katie @ Head for Points
PS. If you were forwarded ‘The Travel Brief’ by a colleague, you can sign up for a free email subscription by filling in the form here.
