Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

Get 500 – 1,000 bonus Avios with all short-haul British Airways flights this autumn

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I get the feeling that British Airways is worried about the impact of the Avios devaluation on its leisure business.  When you are earning just 125 Avios points each way for a European flight in economy, it is hardly an incentive to turn to British Airways if another carrier is cheaper or more convenient.

BA has launched a new promotion, aimed at the leisure market, which will give you bonus Avios points for every flight you take this Autumn.

The net result is that you will almost – but not quite – be in the same earning position as you would have been before the devaluation.

You will earn 500 bonus Avios points for every return short-haul flight you take from September 1st to December 13th.

If you are flying to Spain, the Balearic Islands or the Canary Islands, you will receive 1,000 bonus Avios.

British Airways, Iberia and Iberia Express flights count as long as your journey starts in the UK.  Domestic flights are included.

The snag is that you must book your flight by July 31st.  This means that the offer will have limited value to the business market.

You must also pre-register or you will not receive the bonus.  You can register via this link.

This isn’t the greatest offer I’ve ever seen, but it does mean that you will earn at least 750 Avios points for every return flight you take during the period.

Don’t forget to register by clicking here – it is best to do it now before you forget.


How to earn Avios from UK credit cards

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 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 card

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.

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.

Comments (40)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Wyvern says:

    Seems to exclude under 18 HHA members – which is a bit unfair, in many cases a short haul ticket costs the same as an adult one.

  • Andrew says:

    My partner and I have been intensely loyal to BA over the last five years or so. We’ve hardly flown any other airline, both for business and leisure. The changes to BAEC have utterly changed our relationship and feelings about BA – the great loyalty we had has now vanished and it shows in the fact our next two leisure trips are not with BA as we’re defecting to easyJet – certainly my first flights with them for a good 7 or so years.

    I also run a small business and have always booked the lowest BA fares. Last year I was making at least two flights a month with BA from LHR and LCY. With the poor Avios earning rate, I’m now seriously considering shifting my business elsewhere. At the moment the convenience of LCY and LHR are the only things keeping me there, and that’s fairly paper thin.

    • Polly says:

      I agree with you. I use the RFS to fly to dub Y ow so I can enjoy galleries, then always fly back Ryan air to LGW. It’s a nice way to burn some avios too. And to get my kids back and forth on last min trips to family, works v well for us. So Avios have their uses, but like James we earn from amex use, referring each other and tesco. We are not biz work travellers, OH flies Y for work, so the deval has affected us. As I say above, looking at alternative ways to travel, but still using BA F on a 241 annually.

  • jhk says:

    and again not for the dutch customers. last time also i get personal a point deal and than . not for me. i do not know what kind of people are working at ba but it is a drama again. may be partime people working their.

  • Steve says:

    BA should just rename themselves Home Counties Airways

  • oyster says:

    But hoops to jump through; pre-register and limited booking window. They forgot to include a rule requiring Twitter approval from both centenarian parents.

    I can see the internal conversation:
    Marketing:
    “We need to hold on to some of our previous leisure flyers as the devaluation may send them to rivals”

    Finance:
    “Economy customers? What are they?”
    “Run an offer that appears to appease them, but set it up so that hardly any of those peasants get extra Avios and those that do get only a tiny bit extra.”

  • Daniel @ Propeller Travel says:

    As times goes by, I keep feeling that BA simply is not the right proposition if you actually live in the UK. When I used to live in the US or Israel BA was wonderful.. (and it is evident for me still with the 115000 avios promo’s for most of the world but UK, etc) BA fares (even with private net fares) almost twice as some other OW carriers, etc.

    This is of course my personal opinion as a GGL, not my “propeller travel” opinion, but I keep feeling that my CCR card is rarely used since it’s simply economically not worth to book so many times.

  • TrollBasher says:

    MAN based, I tried the revamped CE short haul product last month after a determined effort to stay away from the LHR connection. Returned direct to MAN on Vueling in “Excellence.” Mileage accrued via Iberia Plus. Frankly, for the money, convenience and Mileage opportunity via Iberia, the only downside to choosing Vueling is the inability to accrue BA status.
    This offer does nothing to lure me back.
    A further trip to BCN this month sees me using Vueling both ways, in Excellence. For £280 return, they provide dedicated check-in, fast track, lounge access, priority boarding, row 1 seating with empty seat adjacent, dedicated overhead storage, pre-departure drinks (see, it can be done BA), unlimited free bar and free unlimited choice of food from their buy-on-board menu, 23kg baggage allowance, changes permitted.
    BAEC has turned its back on the regions, though it is high time Vueling was brought in line with the rest of the IAG family and FF programmes were all integrated.

    • Erico1875 says:

      It must be a deliberate strategy by IAG . Iberia and Vuelling expanding into the Regions + by buying Aer Lingus, , if travelling West, they dont want us cluttering up T5.

  • dale says:

    I’m using Virgin Red until they finish in Sept. 2000 Flying Club Miles cleaner newer planes, better in flight service, less crowded. Why would I use BA?

    • Oh! Matron! says:

      Indeed. I was unbelievably annoyed when they pulled the plug on LHR-MAN. Made a mockery of BA’s service. The staff were fantastic!

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