-
Since the move of virgin to dynamic pricing, am I right in thinking the best value more money rewards credit card for those happy to fly in economy is the BA blue free amex, giving a companion voucher which can only be used in economy?
Depends on where & when
eg VS LHR-LAX return next October 18k +£284 or push the boat out for 25.5k + £304 to come back in Premium while 87k+ £650 gets you UC both ways
Thats pretty good and with 50k (and a voucher worth 75k) easily obtained from a £12k spend on their + credit card
Virgin reward prices are still sorting out and a lot of LAX flights aug-oct have just dropped and while some flights are still silly points there are bargains to be had esp compared to BA with their flat rates for a few seats
Yeah, definitely found some use for my current points balance with New York etc. but thinking with dynamic pricing long term it’s hard to have a goal of how many points to save up for a redemption which is disappointing. Even saver tickets can vary quite a lot!
Apart from using points for a last minute redemption, points for economy is usually not good value.
Even if there are some sweet spots, unless you have family or business to visit frequently, its difficult to build a strategy around them.
Instead focus on getting cashback and using cashback cards and put that money towards the cash price.Apart from using points for a last minute redemption, points for economy is usually not good value.
Even if there are some sweet spots, unless you have family or business to visit frequently, its difficult to build a strategy around them.
Instead focus on getting cashback and using cashback cards and put that money towards the cash price.I thought this initially but the best cashback card is the platinum cashback Amex which is 0.75% then 1.25% with a fee
I’ve got 1p of value for an avios from economy in the past fairly regularly then let’s say you use the free ba amex companion voucher that gives 2p of value per avios. Was just wondering if there were any better cards
Apart from using points for a last minute redemption, points for economy is usually not good value.
Even if there are some sweet spots, unless you have family or business to visit frequently, its difficult to build a strategy around them.
Instead focus on getting cashback and using cashback cards and put that money towards the cash price.I thought this initially but the best cashback card is the platinum cashback Amex which is 0.75% then 1.25% with a fee
I’ve got 1p of value for an avios from economy in the past fairly regularly then let’s say you use the free ba amex companion voucher that gives 2p of value per avios. Was just wondering if there were any better cards
That may be true vs the cash price of the specific flight you were on, but when comparing with cashback cash you should factor in that cashback cash is usable on every flight on earth including all low cost carriers, usable for part payment, hotels, non-travel spending, etc, etc, so the value-of-flexibility premium is through the roof vs using Avios in economy.
If you’re determined to only fly economy AND you spend a lot, use the Lloyds card and get 1% cash.
If you’re determined to only fly economy AND you spend a lot, use the Lloyds card and get 1% cash.
I see what you mean but only problem with this is the card works out at £15 a month. Only breaking even if you put through £1500 a month through the card
Since the move of virgin to dynamic pricing, am I right in thinking the best value more money rewards credit card for those happy to fly in economy is the BA blue free amex, giving a companion voucher which can only be used in economy?
That very much depends on where you want to go. If you are planning to fly to India or US outside of peak times then Virgin in economy is actually cheaper on points than before the move to dynamic pricing, and often cheaper than BA in economy, but only on select routes and dates.
For shorthaul economy, Avios is many times more useful than Virgin miles as the latter is only useful on KLM and Air France. Having said that, I’ve redeemed Virgin usefully on Air France in Europe.
Traditionally, another great value way to use points for economy is for short-notice flights. Virgin’s changes have completely killed the value of this kind of redemption, whereas bargains are still to be had on Avios/BA even in peak periods. I was contemplating a quick European jaunt in the post-Christmas period and there were some surprising options on BA available for flights a week or so in advance, when cash prices were high. Similarly, I’ve booked myself, friends and relations on same day flights with Avios and saved a ton of money. If you think this might be of use to you, Avios is a useful currency to hold, Virgin much less so.
I’m not tempted by cashpack cards. Although the numbers can look attractive, the temptation (and likely the reality) is you spend the cashpack on everyday items like groceries. I want my rewards ring fenced to holidays. If you run a business, or put any employer expense spend on a cashpack card, there are potential ethical, tax and contractual issues in receiving cashback. There are no such issues with pseudo-currencies like Avios and Virgin miles (AFAIK).
Since the move of virgin to dynamic pricing, am I right in thinking the best value more money rewards credit card for those happy to fly in economy is the BA blue free amex, giving a companion voucher which can only be used in economy?
That very much depends on where you want to go. If you are planning to fly to India or US outside of peak times then Virgin in economy is actually cheaper on points than before the move to dynamic pricing, and often cheaper than BA in economy, but only on select routes and dates.
For shorthaul economy, Avios is many times more useful than Virgin miles as the latter is only useful on KLM and Air France. Having said that, I’ve redeemed Virgin usefully on Air France in Europe.
Traditionally, another great value way to use points for economy is for short-notice flights. Virgin’s changes have completely killed the value of this kind of redemption, whereas bargains are still to be had on Avios/BA even in peak periods. I was contemplating a quick European jaunt in the post-Christmas period and there were some surprising options on BA available for flights a week or so in advance, when cash prices were high. Similarly, I’ve booked myself, friends and relations on same day flights with Avios and saved a ton of money. If you think this might be of use to you, Avios is a useful currency to hold, Virgin much less so.
I’m not tempted by cashpack cards. Although the numbers can look attractive, the temptation (and likely the reality) is you spend the cashpack on everyday items like groceries. I want my rewards ring fenced to holidays. If you run a business, or put any employer expense spend on a cashpack card, there are potential ethical, tax and contractual issues in receiving cashback. There are no such issues with pseudo-currencies like Avios and Virgin miles (AFAIK).
Very good take here and totally concur. Lots of people on this site can be too rational in saying Cashback (1%) is often best as you can spend on whatever you want.
Rewards are for nice/exciting things like travel and getting a ‘free’ flight OR a good deal on a holiday trumps getting money off your weekly shop any day of the week
I had the same dilemma a couple of years ago as my travel plans shifted when the kids started going on their own holiday (so we started travelling more in Europe rather than Asia / US so economy reward flights suited us well)
I moved from Amex to Barclaycard and then back to Amex after a two year break to capitalise on the sign up bonuses
1. Cancelled the Amex and took out the Barclaycard Avios Plus card for the 25k sign up bonus
2. Then downgraded to the standard Barclaycard after I received the sign up bonuses (with the free card giving 1 avios per £1 plus the upgrade voucher which I used as well + making life simple with everyone accepting the barclaycard card unlike Amex)
3. Then after a 2 year wait have just taken out the Amex BA Premium Plus which was offering 60k sign up bonus. But have kept the free barclaycard for places that don’t accept Amex
So in total gained 85k bonus miles in 2 years and paid very little fees plus still travelled ecconomy short hall (which are good value redemption’s given higher cost post covid of flying)
Very good take here and totally concur. Lots of people on this site can be too rational in saying Cashback (1%) is often best as you can spend on whatever you want.
Rewards are for nice/exciting things like travel and getting a ‘free’ flight OR a good deal on a holiday trumps getting money off your weekly shop any day of the week
Eh? Too rational? So you prefer magical thinking?
If you can get more than 1% of value with travel rewards then obviously it makes sense to earn the points.
If you’re looking at 1% or less, then getting 1% shopping cashback is the same or better. You simply put the money saved on shopping towards the holiday cost when the time comes.
Very good take here and totally concur. Lots of people on this site can be too rational in saying Cashback (1%) is often best as you can spend on whatever you want.
Rewards are for nice/exciting things like travel and getting a ‘free’ flight OR a good deal on a holiday trumps getting money off your weekly shop any day of the week
Eh? Too rational? So you prefer magical thinking?
If you can get more than 1% of value with travel rewards then obviously it makes sense to earn the points.
If you’re looking at 1% or less, then getting 1% shopping cashback is the same or better. You simply put the money saved on shopping towards the holiday cost when the time comes.
Of course if you are getting less than 1% value from your points; then probably best to re-visit your strategy and look for alternatives (with cashback being one of them).
My point is if the benefit is marginal – flights, hotels etc. gives a better/outsized feeling of happiness/satisfaction than a money off a supermarket shop.
Eh? Too rational? So you prefer magical thinking?
If you can get more than 1% of value with travel rewards then obviously it makes sense to earn the points.
If you’re looking at 1% or less, then getting 1% shopping cashback is the same or better. You simply put the money saved on shopping towards the holiday cost when the time comes.
You can’t be sure when collecting Avios or Virgin Miles or hotel points what money they will save you when you are redeeming. I pretty much refuse to redeem for values less than those suggested by Rob, which means the return on a premium credit card from Virgin Atlantic/Avios/Marriott will be better than 1% in my case if I can keep that up.
What muddies the waters is the cost of premium cards. These are the cards that should comfortably beat 1% working on Rob’s points valuations. You need to put a lot of spend through to justify the card on points value alone, so then need to be assuming some benefit from things like upgrade vouchers or status nights.
For a sub£2k/month spender ARCC or Amex Gold (for first year) is going to match or beat cashback cards or the blue BA card from Amex. For regular high spenders the BAPP might make more sense.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
Popular articles this week:
