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British Airways launches flights from London Heathrow to Preveza and Bastia

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British Airways has announced two new Summer routes to Preveza (Greece) and Bastia (Corsica) starting from May 2019.

Flights to Preveza will be operating on Wednesdays and Sundays starting on 26th May, departing London Heathrow at 08:20 on Wednesdays (arriving 13:45) and 11:25 on Sundays (arriving 16:50) and returning from Preveza at 14:45 on Wednesdays (arriving 16:10).

This seasonal flight will be operated until 29th September.

British Airways A320

Starting on 25th May there will also be a once weekly flight from Heathrow to Bastia. This flight will be operating on Saturdays leaving Heathrow at 07:40 (arriving 11:00) and returning from Bastia at 11:50 (landing at 13:10). The last flight of the season will be on 28th September.

As new routes, London Heathrow to Preveza and Bastia are wide open for Avios availability and bookable as of now.

To maximise your miles when paying, your best bet is the British Airways American Express Premium Plus card which earns double Avios (3 per £1) when you book at ba.com or via BA Holidays.  You do not get double Avios if you book with the free British Airways American Express card.

Another option is American Express Preferred Rewards Gold which offers double points – 2 per £1 – when you book flight tickets directly with an airline.

On the downside, British Airways has announced that flights to Murcia will not resume next Summer.  There has also been an unannounced cut in the weekend services from Manchester to Ibiza, which drop from four weekly flights to just one.

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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.

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There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

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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.

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There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

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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.

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Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.

Category

British Airways and Avios

Comments (136)

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

  • Russ says:
    18 Oct18 October 13:20

    Shame I was thinking of trying out their business class next year. I see they’re advising customers to get in touch with their credit card provider but what happens if you’ve spent over the max claw back? Do you get shunted to the back of the queue and wait for assets to be sold off or, are they obliged to put you on another carrier? Never really thought about the longevity of an airline before so perhaps I should pay more attention.

    • the_real_a says:
      18 Oct18 October 19:06

      I believe the “limit” is that of the original purchase amount (so in effect no limit) and credit card companies generally refund without any hassles. Coverage for consequential loss is debated however.

      • Shoestring says:
        18 Oct18 October 19:21

        £30K limit

      • the_real_a says:
        18 Oct18 October 21:37

        Yes quite right. £30k it seems… especially applicable when paying deposits for very high value items. The total price of the of item (i.e. timeshare) when paying a deposit is considered the value the item not the deposit amount. Good learning here.

  • Kai says:
    18 Oct18 October 14:49

    OT: Do CE passengers flying out of LCY get any vouchers in lieu of lounge access?

    • Stu N says:
      18 Oct18 October 15:45

      Nope.

      From what I can ascertain, you get the following “perks” flying CE out of City:
      – priority boarding. This means you’re hemmed into a sub-pen at the gate and allowed to start the dash to the plane a few moments before the rest of the passengers
      – a light meal, the value of which depends on time of flight. Quality was decent IIRC and the booze is freely available (not that it’s usually restricted in ET – remember LCY isn’t on “buy on board” and shows no signs of going that way).
      – extra tier points and Avios if it’s a cash booking.

      IMO it’s really not worth it unless you need the TPs.

      • William PH says:
        18 Oct18 October 16:19

        And 2 large suitcases. I recently cancelled a Y redemption and booked one in J from LCY to AMS when I needed to take a lot of kit across – much cheaper than the fees they wanted to charge for extra bags in Y!

        • Shoestring says:
          18 Oct18 October 16:24

          Another perk more useful for LHR than LCY – CE can also check in w/ checked luggage from 5AM whereas ET need to wait for T-3 hrs approx

        • Stu N says:
          18 Oct18 October 22:08

          I always forget about luggage as we never use more than one bag short haul, and never fly less than business long haul*.

          *not being boastful here – I keep the receipt for a WT+ flight we took in 2014 as a reminder of how much we have learned in the last two or three years about premium travel for non-premium prices…

  • Mr(s) Entitled says:
    18 Oct18 October 16:54

    If this is comp under EC261, can I go back and make a claim from Lufthansa for their own, frequent, industrial action? Flight was GER to UK.

    • Shoestring says:
      18 Oct18 October 16:58

      Sure – CAA is encouraging it against Ryanair for the same reasons you would probably win against Lufthansa. CAA considers the airlines have NOT done their best to keep the flights going in these in house strike situations (which are foreseeable and manageable). Be prepared to fight, though. Or consider Bott & Co if you don’t want the hassle.

  • Sam says:
    18 Oct18 October 17:01

    Planning to do a Fri-Sun somewhere reachable via Eurostar in the middle of November. Any particular good SPG hotel redemptions I should be aware of?

    • Lady London says:
      18 Oct18 October 21:04

      Hum. November. Freezing and foggy in a lot of places. However wine, mushrooms and truffles wonderful at that time. Game in season. Sorry I don’t know any nice SPG /Marriott hotels in Piedmont/Alba, or Burgundy. But I wish I did.

  • Alex W says:
    18 Oct18 October 17:51

    OT. I’ve been told it’s best to order Thai Baht before arrival. What is the cheapest way to do this? Can I order it from somewhere in Baht and have it charged to Curve, therefore saving on FX fees? Thanks, sorry if this is a stupid question.

    • Genghis says:
      18 Oct18 October 18:59

      I thought physical cash in Bangkok is best?

      • Shoestring says:
        18 Oct18 October 19:18

        Rule always used to be: take USD banknotes and get them changed locally (in BKK) for the best exchange rate. Can’t see you stand to lose much if you used an ATM (there’ll be a small fee such as 200 Baht) and withdraw (say) £300 a time on a card such as Clarity. All the hotels will accept cards. I wouldn’t get Baht n the UK – crap rate everywhere.

        • mr dee says:
          18 Oct18 October 20:07

          Same for AUD?

        • Alex W says:
          18 Oct18 October 20:15

          Thanks, might take some USD then as 200 Baht is nearly 5 quid a time.
          I was wondering if ordering Baht online can I also PAY in Baht, therefore avoiding any FX fee… I guess not otherwise how would they make any money!

        • Shoestring says:
          18 Oct18 October 21:11

          Mr Dee – in Aus just use the ATM 🙂

        • Shoestring says:
          18 Oct18 October 21:13

          Oh right AUD – should be true same as GBP/ EUR I guess

      • Londonbus says:
        23 Oct23 October 09:14

        Yes. Take £50 notes and change them at SuperRich on Sukhumvit.

        If you must use a Thai ATM then do large withdrawals.

  • Shoestring says:
    18 Oct18 October 18:51

    O/T amongst a lot of the usual dross on FT there is a gem today – BA AGP-LGW £13.50 ow (Malaga-Gatwick) – various dates January through May 2019.

    Decent long weekend for £50 return. Not an error fare. Cheap car hire in off season as well. H/T FT.

  • Lee says:
    18 Oct18 October 20:10

    OT – Marriott 29 ways game
    looks like Marriott has changed their T&C to state per day,

    The total maximum ARV of all prizes is $3,731,553.40USD. Limit one (1) Instant Win Prize per person, per day.

    Another 50 points closer to my next holiday

    • Alex W says:
      18 Oct18 October 20:28

      Hurrah! Thanks for the heads up, another 50 points each for us. Marriott seems to have done more U-turns than I don’t know what.

      • Lady London says:
        18 Oct18 October 21:01

        …than a corkscrew?

        • Stu N says:
          18 Oct18 October 22:15

          Whoop! Just won a second 50pts on my partner’s account.

          Worked out I can play in the time it takes our vending machine to make a cup of tea so persevered on my own account but I’m now back to two plays a day for both of us.

          Thanks for heads-up.

    • Mike says:
      19 Oct19 October 13:16

      Awesome! 1000pts instant win for me today…

  • Lady London says:
    18 Oct18 October 20:24

    Do you think that’s fair @Shoestring?

    • Shoestring says:
      18 Oct18 October 20:34

      I think that’d depend on the size of the airline & it’s ability to sort out crew issues – for Ryanair, BA, Lufthansa: they’re huge and should make back-up/ contingency plans. Also all 3 seem very poor at managing staff to avoid strikes. Also knowing that 95% of people won’t claim, then yes I would look after number 1 even if it was slightly unfair to these huge corporations. Maybe make it fairer by not letting crews go on strike without 15 days’ notice.

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

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