Can I mix and match travel class in same booking using BA Amex 241 voucher?

[tonythehoolet]

Hi, have been though the excellent articles on the site explaining the nuances of booking using the 241 voucher on tight availability routes, but nothing that I can find that will help with my scenario. I am trying to engineer a way of getting my party of 4 in a premium cabin to and from Bangkok next year but dont have enough Avios for us all to fly business both legs. I have 400K avios plus my BA Amex 241 voucher. Offpeak premium econ on this route is 100K return per seat but only 2 seats freed up per flight so I cant book us all in prem econ. Off peak business is 200K return per seat.

In principle I therefore have enough Avios to fly 2 of us there and back in business (200K total incl use of 241) and 2 in prem econ (200K total)

1. Assuming I can get the seats that are free (and thanks to HfP for guidance on how to maximise chances of this) can I book multiple classes in the same redemption booking to accomplish this? If so can I do this online or do I need to call an agent?
2. If there is only business class availability outbound then my scenario is to book us all out on business class (300K for the four of us incl 241) and then just book 2 of us back in business (100K extra using 241). The other 2 in the party will need to return under a separate cash booking. Again, is having a different number of passengers outbound vs return feasible/allowable on a redemption booking using 241? If so I assume this can only be done via an agent.

Would appreciate any guidance – thank you!

[Rob]

You can mix and match cabins outbound and return but not in the same direction on the same booking.

This means for eg that if you had 2 x 241s in your name and wanted to book for you + 3, everyone needs to be in the same class on the same leg. You can, however, book a different cabin out and back.

In your case, with only 1 x 241, it’s easy. Book you + 1 in business and make a totally separate booking for two other people in PE.

If mixed cabins are involved out and back you need to call.

This ‘separate cash booking to return’ idea is a non-starter because few airlines sell cheap one way long haul tickets. You’d find a return to be far cheaper than a one way.

[NorthernLass]

As per what Rob says, but also bear in mind that this is a very popular route and you’d need a strategy to maximise your chances of getting 2 x CW and 2 x PE on separate bookings on the same date.

[tonythehoolet]

Thanks Rob. Availability is v tight on this route. I am prepared for the whole book at midnight 255 days out scenario etc. but was worried that by the time I finished booking no 1 (business) then availability may have disappeared for booking no 2 (prem econ) esp. given how painful the BA website can be at the moment (they are halfway through migrating between an old interface and a new one) so hoped to get it all done in one place, but clearly this is not possible. THanks for clarifying

What about my second scenario where four people go out in business on a single booking but only 2 return (because I’ve run out of Avios)? Will the redemption rules allow this? I take your point about one way singles being expensive but obv. this is easly fixed by booking a Bangkok originating return ticket and only using the first leg.

Thanks

[NorthernLass]

Have you looked at fewer avios/less cash options, or boosting your avios? I’m not sure you’re actually going to be saving any money if you end up buying return cash tickets for the inbound leg and don’t even fully use them.

[The real Swiss Tony]

Rob Burgess wrote:

This ‘separate cash booking to return’ idea is a non-starter because few airlines sell cheap one way long haul tickets. You’d find a return to be far cheaper than a one way.

I would disagree with this for the precise route in question. I’ve been able to pick up one way flights from BKK to the UK for under £1k in business using good airlines like Oman. Looking at next month, you can get Turkmenistan Airlines for £920, Hainan for £960 or perhaps more realistically Etihad for £1185.

Drop that down to premium economy and there’s Shenzhen Airlines for under £500 (daytime flight) or Eva non stop day flight for £730.

And if you’re being really adventurous, I see Oman will fly you from Phuket to London on 20th March in Economy for just £167.

[tonythehoolet]

NorthernLass wrote:

Have you looked at fewer avios/less cash options, or boosting your avios? I’m not sure you’re actually going to be saving any money if you end up buying return cash tickets for the inbound leg and don’t even fully use them.

Thank you. Yes, I can explore the cash + avios option for the return if it looks like the right answer as this wont tie me to redemption seats. I can generally boost my Avios by 90K per month as I fly with BA 2-3 trips per month so 2 x singles using this method may end up being cheaper than buying BKK-LON returns and discarding a leg.

My preference is to lock in what I can now and if that means sorting out these 2 x Bangkok-LON tickets at a later date then I’m fine with it – my adult daughters can cope with sitting at the back of the plane, especially if they are not paying!

My outstanding unknown though is whether I can do a redemption using the 241 and AVIOS that gets me four seats out (business) but only two seats back, thereby using my full 400K Avios and 241 voucher. Do you know if the rules allow this?

Thanks for any advice on this point

[NorthernLass]

I think this is technically within the rules, I’ve posted about something similar on @squishsquash’s post today. It would need to be on 2 bookings though, even if you get an agent who agrees.

[The real Swiss Tony]

Thank you. Yes, I can explore the cash + avios option for the return if it looks like the right answer as this wont tie me to redemption seats. I can generally boost my Avios by 90K per month as I fly with BA 2-3 trips per month so 2 x singles using this method may end up being cheaper than buying BKK-LON returns and discarding a leg.

I think the point being made here is that on a redemption you can pay fewer Avios and more cash. If you look to reduce a cash ticket using avios you will get terrible value and still be in the problem of buying an expensive one way BA ticket. The cheap prices I quoted were on other airlines.

[tonythehoolet]

NorthernLass wrote:

I think this is technically within the rules, I’ve posted about something similar on @squishsquash’s post today. It would need to be on 2 bookings though, even if you get an agent who agrees.

Thank you. It looks like for either of my preferred options (2 in business class and 2 in prem econ both ways, or 4 out in business class and 2 back in business class) I cant avoid making 2 bookings. Just need to hope I can get both done before the seats are taken by others. I may need to replicate my Glastonbury ticket booking tactics with multiple browser tabs opened when the booking window commences!!