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Hi all
First time here but I think I’ve got it right but can someone help
I have a companion voucher but only 55000 points for 2 people to Chicago
In my calculations I can either
Pay 49000 and £3630 so cost to me £3630
Or boost my avios by 133000 costing me £1231 but then it’s only £750 therefore total cost to me £1981
Am I missing something?
Welcome, the best usage of your pts Will be flying business class so that should be your aim.
Here you can check how many Avios you need
https://www.headforpoints.com/2024/08/29/how-many-avios-do-i-need-to-fly-to-2/
Have you exhausted all the credit cards to get more points cheaply?
https://www.headforpoints.com/2024/01/01/what-amex-sign-up-bonuses-are-you-still-eligible-for-3/
Last thing would be boosting. Read all the articles and good luck.
Are those Avios boostable? I.e.how many have been earned recently?
Yes took the AMEX card, was declined for Barclays, dont know why as Ive good credit
Yes avios 44000 i earned from amex is boostable by 133000 for £1200 so feels like a steal
It’s not a steal as Avios are worth 1p
Don’t confuse what the flights costs for cash today on BA vs what you would reasonably pay or other carriers which are probably better. Obviously if you’d pay £2k per person for flights it would be a steal to pay
£270 + £750 + £1,231 = £2,251 + companion voucher.
Flights from Dublin cost about £1400-1500 each cash, earn TP and Avios but saving time and £750 is probably still better depending on where you live.
OP could book J Madrid-Chicago with Iberia off-peak would only need an extra 9k Avios and the companion voucher. Taxes are lower too. A detour yes, but savings are substantial.
Can you delay your trip until you can collect more avios? Even go on a cash booking and use the companion voucher at a later date (it’s valid for 2 years).
Buying avios (even by boosting) rarely gives you amazing value, unless you’re planning to travel when cash fares are very high.
How much is the cash price for your flights?
@meta advice is also great and you could possibly spend c£500-600 on flights, hotel and nice dinner in Madrid and still save money vs BA direct.
But it would be two separate tickets so no through routing protection and not without it’s risks.
Can you delay your trip until you can collect more avios? Even go on a cash booking and use the companion voucher at a later date (it’s valid for 2 years).
Buying avios (even by boosting) rarely gives you amazing value, unless you’re planning to travel when cash fares are very high.
How much is the cash price for your flights?
Cash for 2 flights is £5200. So unless I am getting it wrong, £1231 for boost + £750 tax + £300 card bill is a much better deal for 2 flights?
Which dates is that for? Prices can be quite inflated if you book a long time out.
I still feel like that’s a lot of cash to pay on a reward booking where you won’t earn avios or tier points.
As mentioned earlier, you could well get a better cash price on another airline also.
@TGLoyalty you could still book Madrid-Chicago-Madrid-London on one ticket although it has to be over the phone.
Yup but still doesn’t negate the risk of mis connecting on outbound that would be less of saving plus you would need to pay APD though +24hr connection in Madrid should mean SH rather than LH apd.
Just Madrid to LHR on way back wouldn’t be free?
I specifically wrote Madrid to Chicago on the outbound to avoid APD and on the inbound there is no APD anyway.
Given times you’d need to spend a night in Madrid anyway on the way there. Madrid-LHR is not free you are right, so there is extra cost. However, cca £240pp for return to Chicago in real taxes can’t be sniffed at.
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