Calling BA at midnight to book reward flight – tips from anyone who has done it?
Discuss today's stories:
-
I’m sat on 2 x two-for-one BA vouchers and looking to book my family of 4 some return flights in Club World for the Easter holidays 2026 to a very popular destination.
Given how inflexible on dates we are I’m aiming to follow the advice from this guide and phone at midnight UK time to a BA call centre that’s open.
Do others have experience of doing this? I have some questions.
– I was thinking it was best to go with the US call centre, 1-800-247-9297 according to this page, anyone called this one for this reason or had success with the Japanese one which is also mentioned in the guide.
– Should I call just before midnight UK and explain the situation so that the call centre agent can grab the flights on the stroke of midnight?
– Do the call centre agents typically know what you’re trying to do and are game for it and helpful in grabbing the flights at midnight or does it take a long winded explanation my end?
– Can I pay the taxes and fees in GBP, with my UK credit card just like I was calling a UK call centre or booking online? (Mindful the taxes / prices could be different in the US)
Any other advice from people who have done this would be very helpful. Thank you
I tried the US number above at midnight UK time last night and they said they can’t deal with Avios or vouchers. They gave me 1-800-452-1201, but that office was closed.
I’m very interested to hear if anyone has had success with the Japan CS or any other countries as at the moment I can’t see how to contact a BA CS at the time allocation is released.
I called the Japanese line a year ago because I got cut off from the USA number on the day I really needed the tickets. The line only opens at 9am JST (midnight GMT) so is not use for grabbing the seats at the stroke of midnight. It only worked for me because IT maintenance meant the website wasn’t taking bookings that night. It was also a VERY expensive phone call from my UK mobile… in the order of £70 I think! Worth it to secure the tickets, but had it been planned some Skype credits would have been a much more cost efficient.
The “How to book the return at T-355” thread is where you’ll find all the current info on the best way of getting your seats.
It’s also helpful to have a Plan B in case you’re not successful.
Hi @NorthernLass, I had a really good read through that thread but couldn’t see any suggested phone numbers apart from the US one that was closed when I called. I see a few others mentioned they had the same issue.
I assume you mean this thread? https://www.headforpoints.com/forums/topic/booking-return-leg-with-companion-voucher/page/63/
Am I missing something? I appreciate your help, you helped me get a flight to SIN around a year ago 🙂
The options are generally Australia, Japan and USA. The 2-4-1 thread has some pro’s and con’s of each option. I.e. I think Japan and aus are closed on sat / sun their time. The phone numbers can all be found from ba.com when logged in. Details I think are in the 2-4-1 thread.
Unfortunately it seems to be a bit potluck at the moment.
I dialled the US at 11.45 on a Sunday evening (16/3), got through, went through the menu options then after ringing for a while it was cut-off and I got the office closed message.
The following evening (17/3) I did exactly the same thing, got through to an agent and everything was done fine.
I can offer no explanation for the difference between the two attempts.
Tbh with you, when I tried last time I called beforehand, say 20 mins before midnight and wasted the agent’s time with other bookings I knew I would cancel the day after but also explained what my plan was and he kindly agreed to help me out.
When midnight struck I told him to go ahead and book the flights I wanted. He was so bloody slow that the two seats in J to TYO at lunchtime were gone and I was quick enough to book the two in the morning. I was quicker than him so I’m not sure it’s worth doing this when in fact with a few clicks you can actually get what you want.
My two penny worth.
@shead, people have definitely posted about calling Japan and Australia, but it does seem rather hit & miss at the moment! The US agents, as noted, are a bit of a gamble, because if you get an unhelpful one, you may have lost the seats by the time you HUACA.
It would be much easier if there was a 24/7 number for all enquiries, like Virgin!
@shead, people have definitely posted about calling Japan and Australia, but it does seem rather hit & miss at the moment! The US agents, as noted, are a bit of a gamble, because if you get an unhelpful one, you may have lost the seats by the time you HUACA.
It would be much easier if there was a 24/7 number for all enquiries, like Virgin!
the best strategy is to probably be online as well as on the phone. As per the experience of Vinz above. Phone is theoretically the quickest possible option, if it works. But plan b’s are important.
@shead, people have definitely posted about calling Japan and Australia, but it does seem rather hit & miss at the moment! The US agents, as noted, are a bit of a gamble, because if you get an unhelpful one, you may have lost the seats by the time you HUACA.
It would be much easier if there was a 24/7 number for all enquiries, like Virgin!
the best strategy is to probably be online as well as on the phone. As per the experience of Vinz above. Phone is theoretically the quickest possible option, if it works. But plan b’s are important.
Totally! And I even explained and instructed the agent beforehand… so useless!
Trying online simultaneously is long-standing advice on here. However, on the most in-demand routes people do seem to have the most success by getting through to an agent about 10 to midnight or 1 am, because a competent agent will reserve the seats immediately, whereas you have to complete the entire online process before you’re guaranteed to get them.
But if you can have a Plan B or C, it can work out well. I always book online, and missed 3 x CW to MIA over Xmas a couple of years ago, but managed to bag F to IAD on my 2nd go-around. It turned out to be one of the best trips we’ve done.
If possible try a website booking while on the phone, you might beat the agent. If you have a partner one could try the phone method while the other goes web.
Practice a dummy booking on the app or computer upto the last screen before you actually book the flights.
The app has some annoying quirks like checking/unchecking the one way box when moving the departure date along.
Also have your AMEX saved as a payment method.(you have to use AMEX if booking companion voucher flights)
You also don’t say what your destination is. If it has multiple flights a day you will probably get on one. Sydney, Seychelles, Cape Town, Maldives and Tokyo seem to be the holy grail flights based on this forum
Please note it isn’t midnight UK time.
It’s midnight GMT
And remember for around 4 weeks of the year the US isn’t aligned with the clock change dates we have so the time difference isn’t consistent
You also can’t expect US agents to stay late as their office closes 8pm US Eastern time.
You also can’t expect US agents to stay late as their office closes 8pm US Eastern time.
My experience (of both the USA and Japan numbers) is that I got through to some very British accents. It’s only two data points, but I do wonder if BA still uses a number of British agents (working at home?) on their international numbers.
You also can’t expect US agents to stay late as their office closes 8pm US Eastern time.
My experience (of both the USA and Japan numbers) is that I got through to some very British accents. It’s only two data points, but I do wonder if BA still uses a number of British agents (working at home?) on their international numbers.
I’ve only ever had Mancunians answer the US number
Thanks everyone. I have 2 x upgrade vouchers to use for a return trip from LGW to BKK for myself and my wife. Looking to book WTP and upgrade us both to CW.
So far I have booked us both the outbound flight using 1 voucher per person (2 seperate bookings). The reason I need to call rather than go online is to add the inbound flight to each booking once allocation is released. I don’t believe you can do that online, or can you?
No you can’t add the return leg online so will need to call.
Assuming you mean Barclays vouchers, for clarity you do not ‘book WTP then upgrade’, you book CW using the upgrade voucher. You could confuse an inexperienced agent using the wrong terminology and end up booking WTP with the voucher – which is not what you want.
You also don’t say what your destination is. If it has multiple flights a day you will probably get on one. Sydney, Seychelles, Cape Town, Maldives and Tokyo seem to be the holy grail flights based on this forum
No flights to the Seychelles with BA. They haven’t flown there for some years.
Rang the US number twice recently for out and return St Lucia at 2345 GMT. Bizarrely answered by the same person who knew exactly what to do, all sorted very quickly.
I have successfully done this in February 2024 – called the US number – spoke to Northern British agent so it had been redirected some way. She knew what I was doing and secured the flights straight away. Not tried recently though.
Please note it isn’t midnight UK time.
It’s midnight GMT
And remember for around 4 weeks of the year the US isn’t aligned with the clock change dates we have so the time difference isn’t consistent
You also can’t expect US agents to stay late as their office closes 8pm US Eastern time.
Will it be possible to call the US office when the clocks change here on 30th March and the UK is in BST? I tried tonight, got through at 11.45. Spoke to a British lady who said I was too early and to phone back at midnight by which time the US office was closed. She could/should have told me as I had explained I had called the US office.
This is where it all gets a bit murky. Regardless of what number you call, if you happen to get routed to someone who is about to finish work in 15 minutes and ask them to do something in 16 minutes time, some will be happy to stay on and help but they are perfectly entitled to say ‘sorry I can’t do that’.
What offices are open when is the key question, the only relevance of BST is that from the UK you would need to be calling at 00:45 instead of 23:45.
It’s been mentioned in the long thread a few times that some US agents are now refusing to do this altogether so it’s very hit and miss atm.
When I look at the contact numbers on the BA website, is now says the BAEC Gold line is 24/7. Is this a typo – or can we now just call the UK Gold line at midnight? (I think it used to close at 8pm)
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
