British Airways has extended their flexibile booking policy period.
As with most airlines, you may change reservations without incurring a change-fee or penalty-fee.
This is now extended to any flights you book for travel by 31st August 2022
Any fare difference is still payable
The European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) provided free medical insurance cover for UK and EU nationals.
The Brexit “deal” states that individual cards will continue to be valid until their expiry.
As they last for 5 years. maybe, just maybe, you can still renew online? I’ve requested mine here but it says to allow 10 days…. https://www.ehic.org.uk/Internet/startApplication.do
Gov says the scheme will be replaced with a new “UK Global Health Insurance Card” but as usual no details and at what cost?
To imply that we’ll get global cover is, I suspect just an attempt to put a gloss on the reality
British Airways – Bookings made before midnight on Friday 27th November qualify for 20% discount using the code BASpecial.
Unusually, the 20% discount applies to the entire price including tax and fuel surcharges
The discount is not available via online or offline travel agencies, only via the BritishAirways.com website.
Full details here
British Airways is offering double Avios rewards on all flights but
you MUST register here before you make your booking, to qualify.
Valid until the end of the year, applies to up to 10 flights and must be flights
that have a BA flight number
If you log in to your Emirates Skywards account and choose to redeem miles, the only city pairs offered are those that Emirates fly.
So, you cannot select Edinburgh to Geneva, for example.
What you need to do is to go to this site which is the “Emirates Partner Rewards” site.
However, you must first be logged in to your Skywards Account.
The above link will take you back to the main Emirates site.
From there, choose to Redeem Miles from the bottom of the menu on the left.
Then choose “Partner Airline” below the search engine
There, you can then book easyJet and the process is very simple.
Fares depend on availability and a typical last-minute price for a single ticket is from 28,000 miles to approx 50,000 miles You can add a check-in bag using Skywards miles: Approx 5,000 miles
Yes, Hilton has rebranded and dropped the superfluous two h’s, previously “Hhonors” Other changes?
Part pay for reservations using Points and Money.
A great benefit especially for those of us with only a few points
Release date during February 2017
Pool points with family and friends
This is idea is similar to the Avios Household account
Release date April 2017
And from July 2017 the option to shop through Amazon and from March 2017 Hilton Honors Diamond members
have the ability to take a year’s gardening leave.
Main benefits of Hilton Honors programme are:
The App Check-n ahead
Choose your room
Unlock room with digital key! (being rolled out)
And of course, … points!
More information from Hilton Honors here
We have long recommended Expedia as the best online travel agent and now we recommend you to Register for the Expedia+ Points scheme too.
How many points will I earn?
Hotels, Packages, Activities and some car hire:
Earn 2 points per £1 spent
Airline tickets:
Earn 1 point per £5 spent How many points do I need to obtain discounts?
How many points do I need to obtain discounts?
Receive a voucher for £25 off your next hotel with as few as 3,500 Expedia+ points
This means is that if you spend £1,750 on hotels you will earn £25 against a hotel which equates to approx 1.5% rebate
You’ll need to spend £17,500 on flight-only reservations to earn the same voucher which isn’t such a good deal
Other benefits …
Silver Priority Customer Care 0203 788 4743
Free membership automatically gives you +blue status, followed by +silver status after you spend £5,000 on eligible bookings or staying 7 qualifying hotel room nights,
Silver status earns you 10% more bonus points
and +gold status after spending £10,000 on eligible bookings or staying 15 qualifying hotel room nights.
Gold status earns you 30% extra
For more details and to register visit Expedia here
British Airways is offering some very low fares providing you book by midnight on Tuesday 31st January.
Economy class to Dubai from £299 return, New York from £369 return
Premium Economy fares are exceptional value, costing little more than the normal economy fares. For example, Dubai from £549, Los Angeles from £790 and New York from £612 return
These fares are targeted at leisure trips and may not be suitable for business travel. Fares generally have a minimum stay requirement and a Saturday night-stay requirement
Full details at the British Airways site here.
The BookingBusinessTravel.com service is unique.
We find business travelers the best deal irrespective of agency commission and without bias towards preferred booking systems.
Wherever the best deal is, we’ll offer it. Every time.
Hilton Hotels offer a discount to members of the Hilton Loyalty Club, HHonors™
The percentage discount is typically 2% – 3% but can be as much as 10%
This rate is not available via 3rd part websites (Hotels.com, Booking.com etc) but only via Hilton.com direct or via a travel management company.
Bookings can only be made direct and online and must be via log-in using the HHonors membership number and the guests’ password.
Alternatively, you can sign-up the guest in the booking process. But, if he/she already has a membership and is an avid points collector then that’s not recommended. Ask your traveller for their password.
Book here direct on the official Hilton website here
British Airways is offering triple Avios and Triple On Business Points on your flights – up to 8 flights maximum
The airline provides this example.
Buy an economy return ticket in K,L,M,N,S or V class from London Heathrow to Los Angeles, you would normally collect 5,442 Avios.
With triple Avios offer you would collect 16,326 Avios. That’s enough points for a return ticket to many European destinations
The offer is available for all flights booked and flown up to 11 December 2016
To earn triple Avios you MUST visit this page, enter your executive club number and password to register before making your booking!
The popular hotel-booking site has announced two sale periods with savings of up to 40%
Autumn Sale – Part 1
Booking dates: 5th – 26th Sept 2016
Travel dates: 5th Sept – 6th Nov 2016
Autumn Sale – Part 2
Booking dates: 27th Sept – 6th Nov 2016
Travel dates: 27th Sept – 4th Dec 2016
This must be one of the best fares I’ve seen for a long time!
It’s an example of how European originating tickets are still competitive despite the decline of the pound against the Euro:
Venice – London,
London – Dubai,
Dubai- London,
London to Venice/Milan/Rome at a later date,
From £1,257 return. Business Class throughout!
You need to book by 22nd September 2016
You need to book direct on our British Airways links and use the multi-city search
Book and travel before 31st July 2016 and you could earn up to double the normal Avios (Air miles) that you would normally.
You need to register on the BA website here:
You may or may not be accepted or eligible for this offer. I was declined. But it’s worth checking.
All you need to do is submit your exec number and password.
Flights must be booked and ticketed in the UK and is available to both published AND corporate negotiated net fare return flights, in any class!
Applies to the following destinations:
USA / AMERICAS / CARIBBEAN
Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York JFK, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, Tampa, Washington, Cancun, Mexico City, Calgary, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, Antigua, Bahamas (Nassau), Barbados, Bermuda, Grand Cayman, Punta Cana, Grenada, Kingston, Port of Spain, Providenciales, St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, Tobago, Buenos Aires, Costa Rica, Lima, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paolo.
AFRICA / INDIAN OCEAN
Luanda, Cairo, Accra, Nairobi, Abuja, Lagos, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Mauritius, Maldives.
MIDDLE EAST
Bahrain, Tehran, Amman, Kuwait, Beirut, Oman, Doha, Jeddah, Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Baku, Bangalore, Chennai/Madras, Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Sydney, Beijing, Chengdu, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tokyo, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Seoul, Bangkok, Tel Aviv.
And Moscow!
British Airways has launched another sale, for travel in Premium Economy, Business and First Class.
Fares valid for travel up to and including April 2017!
You cannot combine the sale fares with the free upgrade offer as described in my previous article, from Business to First!
Book before midnight of Tuesday 17 May.
British Airways has introduced some new fare rules and a better advance seat-selection policy.
In short, pay approximately £30 extra to ensure you can choose your seat, make same day change,
and check-in one bag if you wish to.
BASIC FARE
No check-in bag
No seat choice
Changes incur a fee
Not Refundable
Cheapest fares
PLUS FARE
Check-in bag 23kg
Seat choice from 48 hours before departure
Changes: No fee, fare difference may apply
Changes: Free on the day of departure
Not Refundable
Fares are approximately £30 higher than Basic
PLUS FLEX
Check-in bag 23kg
Seat choice at time of booking
Changes: No fee, fare difference may apply
Changes: Free on the day of departure Fully-refundable
Plus Flex Fares are the very expensive last-available seats (Y and B class).
Example PLUS FLEX Fare to Nice (South of France), from Heathrow, £821 – £957 return!
Compare that to the lowest fares from £92 return (BASIC) , £121 (PLUS), up to the highest fares of £538 (BASIC) and £588 (PLUS)
we believe the PLUS fares are very good value
To make reservations online, the lowest fares are only available on British Airways.com and not from any other online agent.
Where’s the catch?
Only valid for new bookings made on/after 5th April to 14th June 2016
If you have already booked – and paid – forget it!
The upgrade offer only applies to bookings made in expensive booking classes:
J, C, D, R, in the Club World fare ladder.
As a guide, Club World return to Dubai, cheapest fares have ranged from £1,600 – £2,600 and the upgrade offer does not apply to these prices.
Here are the approximate fares:
R Class starts at £2,985
D class starts at £3,640
C Class starts at £4,187
J Class starts at £5,181
Valid for travel 5 April – 28 August 2016.
Return travel must be completed by 8 September 2016.
For bookings, please search via our British Airways page or contact your travel agent
British Airways typically announce sales five times a year.
My article, “When do airlines announce sales” here give a guide to when to expect fares to be reduced. It focussed on British Airways because, as they are the dominant carrier in the UK, most airlines follow their patterns. For example, Virgin Atlantic nearly always have the same sale periods, to compete.
The current sale is an early Spring Sale and you must book by midnight 22 March 2016
Remember that an additional £200 can be saved by using part-pay with Avios (air miles) The value in redemptions is 1.3p per Avios if you redeem the maximum 15,000 for a £200 saving
The complete list of British Airways Sale Prices can be found here
Fares are extremely low. For example, Dubai Club World (Business Class) from £1,376 return
Please be aware that the long haul fares are targeting leisure travellers and not generally suitable for booking business travel. This is achieved by the following rules:
Travel from London Heathrow and London Gatwick to all longhaul destinations, must include a Saturday night stay Travel to European Destinations requires a minimum 3 night stay
Travel to most US and Caribbean holiday destinations require that you book at least 2 weeks in advance.
The sale prices apply to weekends only so it’s not really applicable to booking business travel, but some travellers may wish to stay a weekend which is why I am posting this article. The sale launches on Sunday afternoon at 4pm so it really is targeting the leisure market!
Savings of up to 35% and rates start from £59
Applies to stays throughout 2016
Guests must sign up to the Hilton Hhonors loyalty programme to be eligible.
There are two promotional codes:
Bed & Breakfast: PR02FR
Room Only: PR02FB
Applies to bookings made from the Sunday 6th March at 4pm and ends on the 13th March 2016
Bookings must be made online only via this Hilton Official Website link.
Many of you have been waiting for the Boxing Day and January Sales to see if prices drop.
Well, here you are – Christmas has arrived early!
Book between 17th December 2015 and midnight 2nd February 2016!
Most economy fares are valid for departures through to 8th or 15th December 2016
Most Premium and Club World Business Class are through to January 2017!
For the complete list of destinations visit the official BA Sale Page
Fly in Club Europe Business Class from just £150 return to the following European Cities
Departures from Gatwick between 3rd November 2015 and 29th February 2016
Naples
Venice
Malta
Nice
Rome
Innsbruck
Bordeaux
Faro
Marrakech
Alicante
Vienna
Geneva
Seville
Friedrichshafen
Genoa
This is a “flash sale”!
For complete details and bookings visit this British Airways Page and book before midnight Wednesday 14th October
I cannot recommend Club Europe highly enough.
For many of us, economy flights have become something to endure before a holiday but you will, for a change, actually enjoy the journey itself. Fares include fast track check-in and security, food and drink on board and a more comfortable seat lay-out (the middle seat is converted to a table)
The British Airways Sale that was to end yesterday, has been extended
Book before midnight, Tuesday 21st July
The sale prices are for economy (World Traveller) class and Premium Economy (World Traveller Plus)
Most fares are for departures September 2015 through to 2016
Example prices in Premium Economy, Dubai, from £650, Florida from £874
Most fares require a Saturday night, this these will be of more interest to leisure travellers than most business travellers.
More details available directly from British Airways here.
Remember that with many offers, you can book with a deposit now, and pay later.
You will NOT be able to upgrade these economy fares to Premium Economy using Avios
But you CAN upgrade from Premium Economy to Business, providing the seats are available
For 48 hours only, Hotels.com is offering discounts of up to 50%
That’s for bookings made today and tomorrow and the offers are for a selection of hotels in most European Destinations including Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Madrid, Istanbul, Venice Florence, Vienna, Lisbon, Scandinavia.
Thanks to this and their fabulous reward scheme, Hotels.com is fast becoming the most popular hotel-booking site online!
The reward scheme is generous … collect “nights” after your stay and for every 10 nights collected, Hotels.com will give you 1 free night to redeem on future bookings!
Take a look at the offers here. Hotels.com is also featured on our Useful Sites page
The economy class sale ended just a couple of days ago but British Airways has today announced a first and business class sale
Key Points
Especially interesting fares are listed noted below
Dubai £1,598 return
Toronto, Montreal, £1,812 return
Orlando, Tampa, £1,698 return
Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paolo, £2,137
I would not normally highlight business class within Europe , especially for the shortest flights, e.g. London-Amsterdam but for any flight over 1 ½ hours, you will enjoy a hot meal and the trimmings!
The following cities are available for under £200 return!
Angers, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Rome, Genoa, Turin, Alicante, Zurich.
Departures from Gatwick require a Saturday night stay and from City airport, a 3 night stay away.
Again, this is to deter booking business travel at these prices.
But Heathrow departures do not have these restrictions. And, whilst most long-haul flights need to be booked in advance, these fares can be booked last-minute. Ideal for business travellers.
For more information, visit the BA Website or click on our British Airways Page.
The current sale from British Airways is targeted at leisure travellers.
Most business-related travel is excluded by the fare rules.
For example, with a few exceptions, reservations require a Saturday-night stay, a minim three night stay and advance booking of up to 1, 2 or even 3 weeks. And fares are not refundable once purchased (although changes may be allowed for a fee)
Fares are valid for travel throughout the summer and autumn. Some destinations, through to January 2016.
The prices are genuine reductions and are good value.
Unfortunately, travellers will now only receive 25% of the Avios that they would have before the recent devaluation.
For more information, visit ba.com here
Using economy flights to the US as an example, the return airfare for 2 adults and 3 children, flight only, was costing a total of approximately £4,700
Choosing a Flight + Car option and the price was practically identical, depending on the vehicle choice.
The inclusive rate included a People Carrier such as a Dodge Grand Caravan.
In addition, you’ll be rewarded a bonus 9,400 Avios on the booking. That’s in addition to points gained via your credit card.
This deal is only available by booking directly via the genuine British Airways Website.
Remember to choose Flight + Car before you search