LGW – TPA direct vs LHR – MIA – TPA tier points vs aggro

[direttore]

I have an upcoming business trip to Tampa.
Normally I drive from Cornwall to Sofitel T5 and go wherever I need to go.
Gatwick is further for me and a pain in the arse if I decide I want to go to London afterwards.

But seems Gatwick is direct and Heathrow is not.

In Club World, will I earn any more tier points by dealing with the inconvenience of 2 flights and sticking to Heathrow?
Or is it better to fly direct to and from Gatwick?

[BA Flyer IHG Stayer]

You will earn TPs based on flight segments flown.

Check the TP calculator

https://www.britishairways.com/travel/flight-calculator/public/en_gb

[Froggee]

Yes you would earn more tier points as you would get the same points for Heathrow to somewhere-other-than-Tampa as you would for Gatwick to Tampa but you would also earn tier points for your internal US domestic flight.

I think you’d be crazy nuts to take an extra flight if you didn’t need to as that is way more hassle than driving for an extra hour and a longer train journey if you do need to go into London.

Having said this, everyone is different. You may crave the tier points, the Gatwick fleet is supposedly tired and you may love sitting in planes and airports way more than driving,

[Richie]

BTW NQY airport has flights to Dublin, would that save some driving?

[direttore]

Thanks guys.

Richie wrote:

BTW NQY airport has flights to Dublin, would that save some driving?

Yes, but still an hour on a good day. And the parking is outdoor. Which is less than ideal for my convertible.

BA Flyer IHG Stayer wrote:

You will earn TPs based on flight segments flown.

Check the TP calculator

https://www.britishairways.com/travel/flight-calculator/public/en_gb

Thanks. Obvious, but I never thought about it til now.

Froggee wrote:

Yes you would earn more tier points as you would get the same points for Heathrow to somewhere-other-than-Tampa as you would for Gatwick to Tampa but you would also earn tier points for your internal US domestic flight.

I think you’d be crazy nuts to take an extra flight if you didn’t need to as that is way more hassle than driving for an extra hour and a longer train journey if you do need to go into London.

Having said this, everyone is different. You may crave the tier points, the Gatwick fleet is supposedly tired and you may love sitting in planes and airports way more than driving,

Yeah, you’re right that extra flights are hassle. Never thought of it like that.
But the extra 80 tier points would be great. And I’ve just seen from LHR there is 1st available for 200 quid more than club. So another 70 TPs there as well as a new experience I’ve not tried before.

[Joecooljoe]

Miami is massive and you’d have to collect and recheck bags if you were taking them. Miami immigration can be an issue and tampa was good when we did it (sample size of 1 for tpa tho).

If you miss the connection, I imagine there are lots of flights to tampa, there is a lovely flagship lounge so it wouldn’t be end of the world (and there is normally a free seat or two in first on aa ; especially on those short routes).

Miami is often a380 with old cw so check that, gatwick will nearly always be an old 777 but only 4 rows of club.

If I needed the tier points I’d definitely do it, if I was with my family I definitely wouldn’t, and if it was cheap enough vs direct I probably would. I often drive past Heathrow to get to Gatwick to save a few quid but it’s 90 mins vs 60 mins for me.

Hope that helps and enjoy tampa, we loved it

[Joecooljoe]

You could always fly direct from lhr with virgin..

[The real Swiss Tony]

In the past, TPA has been an absolute dream in terms of immigration. In Club we would typically walk into an empty immigration hall and get a very friendly welcome from the CBP. Haven’t been through since before the pandemic and there are more flights from Europe now, so it may be different but I see today the Lufthansa flight was an hour before BA.

[dougzz99]

The LGW flight is on B777 with old CW, the most clapped out of BA’s planes. Miami has a mix of A380 with old CW and B777 mostly with CS. As you say MIA also has F which is very nice. MIA is just too big to compete with TPA for convenience. I can’t comment of immigration as I have GE and that makes it a doddle at any airport. Baggage waits at MIA are not great. The A380 is unreliable, with MIA seemingly the most problematic BA A380 route, perhaps timing, perhaps the easiest one to mess with because of rebooking options with AA from any east coast gateway. I’d always do LHR-MIA-TPA as I’m TP needy, for business with greater need to be there at the right time I’d perhaps look at the B777 options rather than the A380. MIA has a great Flagship lounge, and proper Flagship dining if you’re in F.
You obviously need to check, but I’m not sure the MIA <-> TPA connections are timed that well with the MIA <-> LHR. I did it late last year and barely made the TPA flight having waited an age for bags in MIA, and the lack of proper TSA-pre channel at the security gate nearest to the BA arrival. The homebound was a several hour wait in MIA, which at least does have the nice lounge. Sorry to ramble on but one last negative about the MIA-LHR on the A380 is the gate becomes an overcrowded zoo, in what feels like a dingy basement. You always seem to be there longer than is necessary as departure always seems to slip with the A380’s dubious time keeping, in BA’s unrealistic turn-round times.

[Ihar]

I would do First from LHR – the LGW planes are old-Club, and First is always a treat, especially if you haven’t tried it! The Concorde Room is a great place to chill out for an hour or two (with a few glasses of LPGS). If BA hols are doing double tier points see if you can book with them (either your hire car or even 1 night in a cheap hotel you don’t need!). Cheap way to get a chunk more tier points!

[BA Flyer IHG Stayer]

For the double TP offer 1 night ‘in a cheap hotel you don’t need” won’t qualify for the offer. You need 5 nights.

[tomahawk]

The other alternative if you are going for 5 nights is to hire a car at Miami and drive to Tampa. This can then qualify as a holiday and travelling in first would get you 840 tier points. We did this recently and it took 4-5 hours. Maybe not everyones cup of tea but if, like me, you like road trips……

[Lux]

Tomahawk’s suggestion is a smart one.

I used to fly into Tampa a lot, although not since covid, and would much prefer using that to MIA (the lounge wasn’t up to much back then, and I know the wine was left out for a week!). What’s the equipment flying MIA-TPA? (I looked – it’s a 737 – the one time I made that connection, it was a small regional turboprop that added to the misery as we dodged cumulonimbus clouds.)

But if you want the additional points, well, that’s a different calculation.