What’s the deal???
American Express is offering a 40% bonus on transfers from its Membership Rewards (MR) Points to British Airways Avios program until September 27, 2012.
Who cares? I don’t ever plan on flying British Airways!
Me neither! The value of the British Airways Avios program isn’t in BA themselves, but in the fellow members of the oneworld alliance. You can use Avios to redeem flights on these partners.
Is it a good deal?
Yes! If you have MR points and are interested in any of the below examples, then this might be a good deal for you.
What are British Airways Avios good for?
Example #1
A short round trip like any NYC airport to Montreal would normally cost at least $300 even though it’s a one hour flight.
If you use Avios, you can redeem 9,000 Avios and pay ~$58 for the same short flight in Economy on American Airlines.
If you do the math and factor in this 40% transfer bonus, you would only need 6,500 MR points for this $300 flight.
That works out to be 2.7 Cents Per Mile/Point. Not a bad return for your money at all. It clearly beats the lowly 1% cashback that your regular credit cards are always offering.
9,000 Avios + $58 in fees
Example #2
Last minute flights. A round trip flight from NYC to Chicago for Sept. 6 – Sept. 10 costs $393 right now since it’s so last minute. Use your Avios to once again redeem on AA and you will only use 15,000 Avios + $5 in fees.
Expensive last minute LGA-ORD flights
Only 15,000 Avios + $5!
Other Examples
- My sister and bro-in-law’s trip to the Philippines earlier this year… paid for by Avios.
- Joann and my trip to Vancouver in Business Class last year… also paid for by Avios.
- The flight down to Miami for Joann’s birthday… thanks, Avios.
- The outbound flights of our freshly completed Round the World trip to Bali… yup, Avios!
- And in February 2013, we’ll be returning to Vancouver to go snowboarding at Whistler in Cathay Pacific First Class thanks, once again, to… Avios!
How do I get in on it?
- Simply log into your Membership Rewards account at www.membershiprewards.com
- Navigate to the British Airways Transfer Points page (or click here while logged in)
- In Step 2 Transfer Points, click Reverse Calculation and you should see the screenshot below
- You can now enter the amount of MR points you want to convert and it will calculate how many Avios you’ll receive (just multiply your MR by 1.4).
- When you figure out the amount you want, just click Transfer This Amount and proceed with entering your information.
Wrap-Up
It’s pretty obvious that I love the British Airways Avios program and if someone is going to offer me a free bonus that gives me more Avios than I normally earn, I’m probably going to take it.
As I’ve said, Avios are really powerful on direct short-medium haul flights, last minutes reservations, and experiencing a true international premium cabin like Cathay Pacific wholly in the continental US.
If any of those appeal to you, take advantage of the bonus and keep earning those Amex Membership Rewards points!