How Buying British Airways Avios Can Get You Cheap Business Class Flights

Buying British Airways Avios at a discount has always been a great way to redeem cheap Business Class and last-minute Economy flights with Qantas. Of course, you can also use Avios for Business Class with a host of international airlines, notably Qatar, Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines and American Airlines.

Bonus Avios sales often come up twice per year, and until 15 September 2022 you can score a bonus 50% on Avios purchases. Here’s how you can purchase British Airways Avios to book cheaper business class flights.

Offer Details: Score A 50% Bonus On Avios Purchases

The current Avios promotion sees a 50% bonus on purchases of 2,000 Avios or more, until 8:59am AEST 15 September 2022 (11:59pm BST 14 September). Excluding the bonus, you can purchase between 1,000 and 200,000 Avios during the promotion period. That means you can pocket a maximum of 300,000 Avios including the bonus for a total of £3,215 (~AU$5,485).

To take advantage of this offer you will need an active British Airways Executive Club account that holds at least one Avios point. If you have a balance of zero, you must have earned or redeemed Avios in the last 36 months in order to be eligible to purchase more. If you haven’t already done so, you can join for free here. If you’re unsure about how to get some account activity, you can either credit one of your One World flights to your BA Avios account or earn them from hotel stays, car rental, online shopping etc. For some ideas, check out all the ways you can earn Avios here.

Alternatively, you can also convert Marriott Bonvoy Points to British Airways Avios, this might be useful for Australians who collect American Express Membership Rewards. Keep in mind that you will receive a 5,000 points bonus when converting at least 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points. Converting this amount will net you 20,000 Avios + 5,000 bonus Avios for a total of 25,000 Avios.

British Airways sells Avios in British Pounds, Euros and US Dollars. We recommend you register your account in Europe as the price in Euro is better than Pounds and far superior to purchasing Avios in USD.

Tip: No European address? Just use one from your favourite hotel!

Avios Price Comparison

When buying 200,000 Avios points (bonus not included) you will be paying the following rate depending on where you registered your account:

• US Accounts: US$5,523
• UK Accounts: GBP3,215
• EU Accounts: EUR3,601

Why Should I Buy Avios?

Avios are a fantastic tool for redeeming short-to-medium haul flights on OneWorld partner airlines. For example, 12,500 Avios will get you in Qantas Business from Sydney to Brisbane, a route that when booked via Qantas Frequent Flyer requires 18,400 points. While cash tickets typically sell for upwards of A$800, if you purchase Avios with a 50% bonus, that flight costs around A$370 including taxes.

Should I Buy Avios In Advance?

Generally speaking, we wouldn’t advise buying points without a specific redemption in mind. However, being so useful for last-minute redemptions, British Airways Avios might be the exception to that rule. When prices jump for shorter domestic trips, Avios can often be a lifesaver.

How Do I Buy British Airways Avios?

You can buy Avios on the British Airways website. You’ll need to purchase at lest 1,000 Avios, at various increments as specified on the British Airways website. Keep in mind that there is an annual purchase limit of 200,000 Avios, excluding bonuses. To purchase British Airways Avios:

1. Visit the British Airways Purchase and Gift Avios Application here.
2. Log in to your Executive Club account then select the number of Avios you wish to purchase.
3. Complete the payment and your Avios should arrive momentarily.

Transferring Avios To Qatar Airways And Iberia

Avios are the frequent flyer currency of three airlines under International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG), the parent company of British Airways and Iberia and a part-owner of Qatar Airways. As such, Avios can be easily transferred between these three separate (but partnered) frequent flyer programs at a 1:1 ratio. The programs are known as:

• British Airways Executive Club
• Qatar Airways Privilege Club
• Iberia Plus

Qatar Airways requires just 70,000 Avios between Australia and Doha in Business Class, or 90,000 Avios to continue to go all the way to Europe. The same route is compared to Qantas Frequent Flyer, where you’re looking at 159,000 Qantas Points for the same flights to Europe. With a 50% bonus, purchasing 90,000 Avios can cost as little as £975 (AU$1,665). With taxes, you can expect to pay around $2,000 one-way to Europe in Business Class.

As fas as Iberia, their redemption chart reveals Business Class redemptions between zones 4 and 5 to offer the best value. You can fly Business from New York/Boston to Madrid for 34,000 Avios and Los Angeles/Chicago/Miami to Madrid for 42,500 Avios.

To transfer Avios from British Airways to Iberia and Qatar, you must register for accounts with Iberia Plus and Qatar Airways Privilege Club. Do this as soon as possible, as your accounts must have been open for at least three months and have earned at least one Avios. Then, simply follow the steps below:

How To Transfer British Airways To Iberia

1. From your British Airways Executive Club dashboard, click “Manage My Account” and then “Combine My Avios”.
2. Under “Iberia Plus” click “Combine my Avios”.
3. Again select “Iberia Plus” and enter your Iberia Plus number and PIN from the dropdown.
4. Once your accounts are linked, select the number of Avios you want to transfer and in which direction.
5. Confirm your selection and Avios will be transferred immediately

How To Transfer British Airways To Qatar Airways

1. From your British Airways Executive Club dashboard, click “Manage My Account” and then “Combine My Avios”.
2. Under “Qatar Airways Privilege Club” click “Combine my Avios”.
3. Hit “Link Accounts Now” and log in to your Privilege Club account.
4. Once your accounts are linked, select the number of Avios you want to transfer and in which direction.
5. Confirm your selection and Avios will be transferred immediately

Using Avios For Qantas Domestic Redemptions

A favourite Avios redemption among points experts is for Qantas domestic flights within Australia. British Airways Avios are especially useful for last-minute domestic redemptions when cash fares have dramatically increased. Avios can even provide good value for Economy flights, unlike most other frequent flyer redemptions.

Here are some of the ways you could use British Airways Avios for domestic flights with Qantas:

• Sydney to Brisbane/Melbourne: 6,000 Avios in Economy or 12,500 in Business (compared to 8,000 and 18,400 Qantas Points)
• Melbourne to Brisbane: 9,000 Avios in Economy or 16,500 in Business (compared to 12,000 and 27,600 Qantas Points)
• Melbourne to Perth: 11,000 Avios in Economy or 22,000 in Business (compared to 18,000 and 41,500 Qantas Points)
• Sydney to Perth: 13,000 Avios in Economy or 38,750 in Business (compared to 18,000 and 41,500 Qantas Points)