The British Airways Seoul service launches – a new redemption route into Asia
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The new British Airways service to Seoul started two days ago.
It has been, amazingly, 14 years since BA last flew to South Korea. The new service will operate six days a week using a 777. It is a four-class service (First, Club World, World Traveller Plus and World Traveller).
The next few days will see a mass influx of travellers to Seoul from the Flyertalk forum.
For a few days last month, BA was selling the Club World cabin for just £777 return, all-in – a massive reduction on the normal £3-4,000 fare, which even in a sale would not drop below £1,999 or so. A massive group of 76 Flyertalk members will therefore be heading out to South Korea over the next few days!
What are the benefits of this new service for the rest of us?
Well, for a start, it is another route into Asia for redemption flights. Despite BA’s presence at Bangkok, Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai etc, seats for Avios redemptions can be tricky to find.
You can, of course, also use BA partners Cathay Pacific and Japan Airlines, plus Malaysia Airlines from Spring 2013 and indirect routes on Finnair and Royal Jordanian. However, if you want to use a BA Amex 2-4-1 voucher, you need to use a BA aircraft.
Reward availability is currently looking good. I looked for the number of days offering 2 Club World seats outbound, and found:
February – 12 days, March – 22 days, April – 23 days (ie every day the service runs except for one!)
So, fundamentally, if you want to go down to Asia this Spring on an Amex 2-4-1, the new Seoul route offers you a real opportunity.
After exploring Seoul, local Asian budget airlines can get you around the region fairly cheaply – although it is a long way down to Hong Kong, for example. The obvious spots for a 2-centre holiday would be Japan (Tokyo, Kyoto), Beijing and Shanghai.
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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2025)
As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards. Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!
In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.
You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:
Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review
Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review
There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:
British Airways American Express Premium Plus
30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review
British Airways American Express
5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review
You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold
Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
The Platinum Card from American Express
80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review
Run your own business?
We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.
Capital on Tap Visa
NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review
Capital on Tap Pro Visa
10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review
There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:
British Airways American Express Accelerating Business
30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review
There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.
American Express Business Platinum
50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review
American Express Business Gold
20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review
Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.
