Either create an account if you don’t have one, or log into an existing account.
Go to My Promotions.
Register for the 2,000 extra Avios promotion.
Purchase a flight through Iberia.com by 31 July 2013. You cannot pay with Avios nor buy a flight then cancel it later.
Avios will be credited to your account between 1 and 15 September, 2013.
This promotion can be used once per customer.
Final Note
Remember, Avios earned through Iberia can be transferred to British Airways Executive Club or Avios.com instantly and without charge. To transfer Avios to Iberia Plus you need to have held your account for over 90 days and since Avios redemption through Iberia have significantly less taxes and charges than British Airways it is a good idea to open an Iberia Plus account even if you have no immediate plans to use it.
British Airways is launching a new route from London City Airport to Granada, Spain. They are giving you the chance to win return Euro Traveller (economy) tickets to Granada for you and nine friends.
How to Win
Answer the following question, what’s great about Granada? in no more than 20 words.
I have written in the past about Heathrow’s old loyalty program WorldPoints. It has now been relaunched as Heathrow Rewards though remains very similar.
Heathrow Rewards allows you to collect points on everything you do at Heathrow including parking and Heathrow Express trains
How to Collect Heathrow Rewards points
You earn 1 point per £1 for spend at shops, bars, restaurants, cafés, Heathrow
Parking and Heathrow Express, and
1 point for £10 for spend at bureaux de change.
Loyalty Bonuses
You earn 100 bonus points when you reach 250 standard points.
When you collect 500 standard points you earn 100 bonus points and an automatic promotion to premium membership.
Premium Membership
Premium members collect double points. So, you will earn 2
points for every £1 spent a shops, bars, restaurants, cafés, Heathrow parking and Heathrow Express, and 2 points for every £10 exchanged at bureaux de change.
The simpliest option is airport shopping vouchers. 500 points = £5 voucher (1 point = 1 pence)
You can exchange Heathrow Reward points for airline miles. Heathrow partners with Virgin Flying Club, British Airways Avios, and Lufthansa Miles and More.
250 points = 250 miles/Avios.
You can book Heathrow Parking with points. 500 points = £10 reward value (1 point = 2 pence)
You can book Heathrow Express tickets online with points. 500 points = £5 reward value (1 point = 1 pence)
While you may be able to get more value from using Heathrow Reward points to book Heathrow Parking, I expect most of the readers of this blog will be more interested in converting these points into airmiles.
1,000 Point Registration Bonus
If you are not a member of Heathrow Rewards then you can enjoy lucrative sign up bonuses.
If you sign up via this link you will earn 1,000 bonus points after you spend £25 in one day at Heathrow before 30 September 2013.
1,000 bonus points can be exchanged for 1,000 Avios or 1,000 Virgin Flying Club miles, or 1,000 Miles and More miles.
If you spend £25 at Heathrow just to earn the points, you will be buying them for 2.5 pence a point. So, this deal is only worth it if you are already planning to spend the required amount anyway.
Bureau de change money orders do not count towards the required £25.
There are three new special offers for Club Carlson members.
These offers are valid for bookings made by 29 September 2013 for stays between 1 August 30 September 2013.
Double Points
Club Carlson Elite members will earn double Gold Points when booking to stay two or more consecutive nights at a participating Radisson Blu, Radisson Blu Edwardian, Park Inn by Radisson, Park Plaza, Country Inns and Suites at any Club Carlson eligible rate.
Use promotional code CCDOUBLEPOINTS.
Half Price Redemptions
Members can book a Standard Award Night for half the Gold Points normally required for standard room redemption.
Use promotional code 50REDEEM.
Free Breakfast
Receive a free buffet breakfast for up to two people at participating Radisson Blu, Park Inn by Radisson and Park Plaza properties
The British Airways 3-2-1 sale has five elements. All must be booked by midnight 24 July 2013.
Free Nights on European City Breaks
Enjoy three nights for the price of two on city breaks to Europe.
Save Up to £100 on European Beach Holidays
Spend over £1500 on a European beach holiday and save £100. Travel between 25 July and 30 September 2013.
Save Up to £150 on Holiday to United States of America
Book a holiday to the USA and save up to £150. Travel between 1 August and 31 December 2013.
Save £250 Per Couple for Dubai Holiday
Get free half board and up to £250 off per couple when staying a minimum 5 nights at One&Only hotel in Dubai. Travel between 1 September and 30 September 2013.
25% Off Car Hire
Save 25% off UK car hire for bookings between 22 July and 31 August 2013.
As I explain in my Understanding Avios and How to Use Avios pages, Avios can be used to redeem for flights on airlines other than British Airways. This very useful for two important reasons.
British Airways can charge outrageous fuel surcharges on their award bookings occasionally making the extra fees more expensive than a cash ticket
There are destinations you want to travel to and airports you want to fly from that British Airways does not serve
This page will highlight several relatively unknown airline partners that can be booked with Avios via Avios.com.
First, a little background to put this into context. Avios is the name of the travel rewards currency for three separate programs, Avios.com, British Airways Executive Club, and Iberia Plus. All three programs have their own separate ways of collecting Avios. Often there is overlay, such as flights with British Airways can be used to earn all forms of Avios. Sometimes there is a unique way of collecting available through one program but not available through the other two, or there may be a special bonus Avios only offered by one program. However, you have collected your Avios the most important fact to understand is, all Avios are equal. You can transfer between the three programs (four if you count the old BMI Diamond Club program) any time you like. The only minor restriction being that an Iberia Plus account must be open for 90 days prior to an Avios transfer.
So, you can collect Avios in your British Airways Executive Club then transfer them to your Avios.com account for an award redemption.
Back to the topic at hand. Avios.com can be used to used to book airlines that aren’t available through British Airways Executive Club.
There is no Reward Saver option for these redemptions, as that redemption type is only available on British Airways metal, so the taxes and charges are variable and (usually) higher.
Here is the link to the list of airlines available via Avios.com.
Air Malta
Fly from UK to Malta direct.
2
18,000 + £62.22
16,000 + £82.22
14,000 + £92.22
12,000 + £112.22
Whether this is a good redemption really depends on how cheap you can get tickets to Malta and how flexible you are. It would require a cash ticket price of £242 to make the Avios required for this redemption to be worth one pence each (the standard valuation I place on 1 Avios). Also, I found availability to be sparse at best.
Aurigny
Fly between the Channel Islands and six UK airports
There is usually no problems with availability on these routes as there multiple daily flights between UK and the Channel Islands.
9,000 Avios + £30.74
8,100 + £40.74
7,200 + £50.74
6,300 + £60.74
5,400 + £70.74
4,500 + £80.74
It would require £120 cash ticket to make the top Avios redemption to make sense, which is very unlikely due to the high level of competition and the capacity of seats that have to be sold each day.
Flybe
Fly from 23 UK airports
to 60 destinations – like Paris and Milan.
The advantage of Flybe is direct flights from regional UK airports to continental Europe. If you fly British Airways from the regions then they will route through London adding time and hassle to your journey, though without adding any extra cost.
Manchester to Paris with Flybe has a higher surcharge than the British Airways Reward Saver so it’s a choice between paying an extra £30-40 for flying direct or paying less and connecting through London.
Monarch
Fly from eight UK airports to 39 destinations – like Tenerife and Palma. Monarch is like Flybe. They fly from regional airports in the UK to popular tourist destinations so often a direct, quicker journey than connecting through London on a British Airways Reward Saver. However, you pay for this with higher taxes and surcharges.
Sample costs for London Gatwick to Palma, Mallorca.
Final Note
To be a member of Avios.com you must have an address in the UK, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands.
British Airways have launched a new holiday planning tool called Picture Your Holiday.
It’s quite an interesting idea. You choose from a collection of pictures for your ideal holiday. For example, a row of champagne glasses, a scene of underwater paradise, a man paragliding through a mountain range, and so on…Then it provides you with several options for your ideal holiday destination based on the choices you made.
This is what British Airways say about their new holiday-planning tool,
“We wanted to develop a way to make choosing the ideal holiday fun, personal and time-saving for our customers. Knowing a growing 1 in 4 people find planning a holiday a time-consuming hassle, we wanted to create a tool that would really bring their holiday to life through creative imagery.
Customers will be able to select various images, according to their preferences, based on life-style pictures which include: tropical beach shots, cultural cities, food and drink, sporting activities, spa treatments, night-life and family activities, spa treatments, night-life and family activities. They can select up to eight photographs that fit their wish list of wants for their holiday. Once they have completed their selection they will then get up to four suggestions on suitable destinations that will inspire them.”
It will, of course, also lead you directly to the British Airways holiday booking engine if you want to book your ideal holiday straight away.
I highly recommend having a play around as it’s always fun to dream of where you want to go next, click Picture Your Holiday.
This website earns a small commission for any holiday booked through our British Airways referral link. We thank you for your support.
2 nights bed and breakfast at a Radisson Blu hotel
Dinner on the first night in the hotel restaurant
Kids stay and eat for free
Term and Conditions
Offer must be booked between 1 July and 31 August 2013 for stays up until 31 August 2013.
Offer is subject to availability at participating Radisson Blu hotels only in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Offer not applicable at Radisson Blu Edinburgh, Radisson Blu Dublin Royal or Radisson Blu London Portman.
Offer 2 – Double Avios with Radisson Blu
Book your stay for two nights or more from now until 15 September 2013 at Radisson Blu, Radisson Blu Edwardian, London or Radisson hotels worldwide and earn 1,000 Avios. The normal earning rate is 500 Avios per hotel stay.
Present your Executive Club card at check-in. (Executive Club members who have not been issued with a card should quote their Executive Club number at check-in, to ensure they are credited with Avios)
The Executive Club number quoted and customer name must match that held in your membership profile
Terms and Conditions
Double Avios won’t be earned on employee rates, family and friend rates, airline crew rates, travel agent rates, hotel employee rates, room rates that are billed on a master bill, tour operator rates, wholesaler rates, or rates booked through online travel companies or other third parties, including but not limited to, Booking.com, Hotwire, Hotels.com, Expedia, Orbitz, Priceline, Travelocity, etc., as well as rooms booked through any other third parties online that require pre-payment.
If you book a Radisson Blu stay through our referral link this website will earn a small commission. We thank you for your support.
Debenhams – Spend £100 or more on one transaction, receive a £20 statement credit
House of Fraser – Spend £100 or more on one transaction, receive a £20 statement credit
Topshop/Topman – Spend £60 or more on one transaction, receive a £15 statement credit
Nando’s – Spend £30 or more on one transaction, receive a £10 statement credit
Offers are valid from 18 to 21 July 2013 and cannot be redeemed online.
How It Works
To take advantage of the Foursquare / American Express partnership you must be an American Express cardmember and registered with Foursquare.
There are many American Express branded cards available in the United Kingdom. For this blog I only focus on cards that award the user with travel-related points, such as British Airway’s frequent flyer currency Avios. I have a list of the current UK travel credit card offers here. It is important to note that you can use any American Express card with the Foursquare offer.
It is best to download the Foursquare application onto your smartphone or tablet and you can do it here. You can download and register with your home computer but you will not be able to check-in as that software requires GPS-based hardware.
Once you have registered with Foursquare you then need to sync your American Express card. This matches your Foursquare account with your American Express card details granting you access to the location-based special offers. You can sync your card here.
Now you have synced your American Express card with your Foursquare account you next need to check-in to a participating location. You do not have to be at the location to check-in. You can check-in from home before you travel. Simply click the explore option on Foursquare then search the location you wish to check-in. If you are already at the location then you can just click check-in and the location-based software should recognise where you are and prompt the location for you.
After you check-in to the location an American Express-branded special offer should appear automatically. Tap the special offer then click “load to card”. You do not need to do anything else. You do not need to show your phone or tablet to anyone in the store. No codes or vouchers are required. Everything is done automatically. Simply pay with your synced American Express card and you will earn the special offer as a statement credit within 3-5 working days.
Earn double base Hilton HHonors points for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights and earn triple base Hilton HHonors points for Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.
How Does It Work?
Under the Hilton HHonors program you earn 10 base points per $1 spend.
So, if you spend $1,038.38 over a 7 night stay you will earn the following points.
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights (3 nights) will receive Triple Points.
Triple Points is always 2 x base points.
Therefore, 2 x base points of 1,483 = 2,966.
2,966
(triple points value) x 3 (total nights that are eligible for triple points) = 8,898 (total triple points for 3 nights)
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights (4 nights) will receive Double Points
Double Points is always 1 x base points. Therefore, 1 x base points of 1,483 = 1,483
1,483 X 4 (total nights eligible for double points) = 5,932 (total double points for 4 nights)
So, the total triple points of 8.898 + total double points of 5,932 = 14,830 points
When Does This Promotion Start and End?
This promotion started on 9 July and ends on 30 September 2013.
How Do I Register
Register your Hilton HHonors number and PIN/password here.
Important Information
The bonus points earned on base points through this promotion do not count towards tier qualification.
No points will be awarded for “no show” situations, even if a credit card s charged for any portion of the reserved stay per the hotel’s “no show” policy.
Points awarded for stays at hotels within the Hilton Worldwide portfolio outside the U.S. will be based on local currency converted to U.S. dollars. Local currency will be converted into U.S. dollars weekly, using a published rate of exchange in effect at time of conversion.
MUST READ
Unfortunately, not every Hilton hotel is participating in this promotion. There is a lengthy list of hotels that have excluded themselves.
So, before you change any travel plans or book any Hilton based on this promotion check the list to make sure you will earn the bonus points.
To get instant platinum status with Le Club Accorhotels then click here.
You need to create a new account with a unique email address (i.e. one not already connected to a Le Club Accorhotels loyalty account).
Who is Le Club Accorhotels?
The hotel brands encompassed within Le Club Accorhotels are,
Sofitel
Pullman
MGallery
Grand Mercure
Novotel
Suite Novotel
Mercure
Adagio
ibis
ibis Styles
Thalassa sea & spa
What are Platinum Status Benefits?
Double Le Club points for each stay
Room upgrade - if available
4pm checkout – if available
Complimentary drink
Complimentary welcome gift
Priority check-in desk
What if I Don’t Plan On Staying With Le Club Accorhotels?
Even if you do not plan to stay at any of those hotels then Platinum status is still useful to status match. This is where you ask another hotel loyalty program to grant a similar status level in their program as you enjoy in a rival program.For example, you can status match Le Club Accorhotels Platinum status to Club Carlson Gold status.
The reason they are receptive to matching other status levels is because they want regular hotel users to switch to their program and regular stayers will be more inclined to switch if they will receive similar benefits to which they enjoy in the program they are leaving.
I have personally used Le Club Accorhotels Platinum status to match to Hilton Gold and Club Carlson Gold. I explain how the process of status matching in this post using Club Carlson as my example.
Final Message
If you do want to take advantage of this link then act now!
These public links do not last very long. If the link is already dead when you read this do not despair too much. These links tend to appear every 3-4 months and be assured I will let you know as soon as another link is available. You could also contact Loyalty Lobby for a private link.
If you want more information about how to book cheap hotel rooms then check out my guide here.
New bonus Tesco Clubcard offer. As we have discussed many times previously Tesco Clubcard points can be exchanged to Avios at a rate of 1 Clubcard point is equal to 2.4 Avios. You have to wait until your Tesco Clubcard points are converted to vouchers, next conversion happening on 20 July, so these deals are more for the long-term Avios collector. A useful way to keep your Avios balance ticking upwards. If you have no Avios redemption plans yet then it is best to wait until Tesco offer a bonus conversion rate. When Tesco will do this is anyone’s guess though.
and
Here is the new offer,
Get 200 Extra Clubcard points when you pre-order Now 85
Get 400 extra Clubcard points when you pre-order Now 85 with either Now Reggae or Now 30 Years
So, if you pre-order two Now 85 CDs at the same time as purchasing Now Reggae you will earn 637 Clubcard points, which can be exchanged for 1,528 Avios.
This is above my personal valuation of 1 Avios = 1 pence but these items will have a resell value you if you are dedicated enough you may be able to make the maths work for you.
You may be able to use codes TDXR-TRMP and TDXR-THNR to get £5 off, though these are targetted so probably won’t work for most people.
Also, remember TopCashBack currently pay 4.5% cashback.
There appears to be an error on the Tesco Direct website. They are offering Diablo 3 as a pre-order for £40 with the following additional bonuses.
Free delivery on all DVDs, Blu-ray, video games and CDs
Get 1000 extra Clubcard points when you pre-order Diablo 3
Get 500 extra Clubcard points when you spend £35 on pre-order games
However, when you click pre-order and go through to the checkout it shows 2,000 bonus Clubcard points. It is unclear if this is an error or intentional. I recommend acting quickly just in case it is an error and Tesco pull the extra points.
This is an amazing deal for Avios alone but particularly as you will easily be able to resell this item if you want to get back some of your original investment.
You may be able to use codes TDXR-TRMP and TDXR-THNR to get £5 off, though these are targetted so probably won’t work for most people.
Also, remember TopCashBack currently pay 4.5% cashback.
American Express Travel is an online portal for booking flights, hotels, car hire, cruises, and travel experiences, similar to Expedia.
There are three reasons to use American Express Travel.
Earn one additional Membership Rewards points for every full pound spent on flights, hotels, car hire and experiences
You can use Membership Rewards points to pay for all or part of a trip
Enjoy special travel offers and savings from a wide selection of our travel partners
It is worth noting that there is usually very limited value to be obtained from reason two. It is normally better value to transfer Membership Reward points to the relevant airline or hotel loyalty program rather than use American Express travel.
What Is This Offer?
You will receive 2,500 bonus Membership Reward points when you spend a minimum of £250 on your American Express Card on eligible prepay flights, hotels, car hire and experiences at travel.americanexpress.co.uk on your first booking in addition to the standard 1 Membership Reward point earned per £1 spent.
Offer starts 13 June 2013 and ends 1 August 2013.
You can’t use Membership Rewards points to count towards the minimum £250 portion of the transaction. However, you can use them for the proportion of your transaction over and above £250 and you will still receive the 2,500 points bonus.
This is a reminder post that American Express’ Shop Small campaign launches today so make sure you have registered all of your American Express cards for the promotion.
You can register your American Express cards here.
You will find the list of participating shops here.
If you have not heard of this promotion or are unsure how it works please read the following guide.
How Does Shop Small Work?
When you make a transaction of £10 or more at a participating merchant from 1 to 31 July 2013, you will receive a £5 statement credit. You can receive one statement credit per merchant at up to 10 different locations, thereby receiving up to a maximum of £50 in statement credits. Participating merchants can be found at amex.co.uk/shopsmallmap
This is an important change from last time. Previously there was no limit so this change has a dramatic effect on the lucrative nature of this deal. It is unclear at this point whether the £50 limit is per account or per card with supplementary cards having their own limit. This will have to be tested once the campaign commences. Still, you can register every American Express card you and/or your partner has. So, if you have five cards you can earn up to £250 worth of statement credits.
The second major change from last time is you will receive £5 statement credit after a purchase of £10 or more. Previously, you earned £5 statement credit after £5 purchase, which, if used correctly, resulted in £5 worth of free stuff. American Express have clearly seen the madness of their ways. You are still getting a 50% discount on your £10 purchase so this is clearly still a very good deal, particularly as this deal covers places that will typically not have discount schemes already in place, such as your local pub!
How Do I Register?
To be eligible for the £5 statement credit, you must register your American Express Card at amex.co.uk/shopsmall and use your registered Card for full payment. Transactions must be made in-store in order to receive the statement credit. Online transactions are excluded from this offer
Make sure you register ALL of your American Express, including supplementary cards, just in case.
What American Express Cards Can I Use?
This offer is open to existing American Express Cardmembers with a UK issued Credit or Charge Card. American Express Corporate Cards and Prepaid Cards do not qualify for this offer
This deal covers all American Express personal cards, such as Platinum, Gold, Starwood, Lloyds TSB, British Airways, Diamond Club, American Airlines, etc. If it’s American Express then you can register it, including supplementary/additional cards.
When Will I Receive The Statement Credit?
Statement credits are generally issued within three to five business days after your qualifying purchase, but may take up to eight weeks to be applied to your account
Keep a record of your purchases so you can always send a chasing email to American Express if it’s taking too long to process your statement credit.
Do I Earn Rewards For My Spend?
The £5 statement credit does not count toward any rewards associated with your Card. This means that if you spend £15, any rewards points will be calculated on a net transaction of £10
Sadly your statement credits won’t earn Avios, Starwood points, American Express membership reward points, etc, depending on your card type. The rest of your purchase will though, and will count towards any minimum spend requirement if you’re chasing a sign up bonus.
What Happens If My Card Is Stolen/Lost?
If your Card is issued directly by American Express and is lost or stolen during the campaign, American Express will automatically update your replacement Card with any campaigns that you have registered for. If your Card is issued by MBNA or Lloyds TSB, you will need to re-register your Card at amex.co.uk/shopsmall.
An important piece of information if your card is unfortunately lost or stolen.
My final note is based on my experience with the Shop Small promotion last time. Not all the participating merchants on the American Express website will actually be participating. So, always check if they do, in fact, accept American Express as a method of payment, and if they plan to add a surcharge.
