There's a 50% AMEX Membership Rewards Transfer Bonus to British Airways Avios but is it worth it? Keep in mind that Membership Rewards points normally transfer to Avios at a 1000:800 ratio, so with the 50% bonus, 1000 Membership Rewards points become 1200 Avios. The transfer bonus is valid until 10/10/16.
Other Transfer Options to British Airways Avios
If you have SPG Starpoints, you can transfer these 1:1 to British Airways Avios and always earn an additional 5000 miles with every 20,000 points transferred, which is better than this 50% AMEX Membership Rewards points transfer bonus since it's equivalent to getting 1250 Avios per 1000 Starpoints transferred. Granted, Starpoints are more valuable than AMEX Membership Rewards points and also harder to earn since Starwood is the only category bonus.
My favorite points currency for transferring to British Airways Avios remains Chase Ultimate Rewards points, since they're so much easier to earn than Starpoints and AMEX Membership Rewards points, thanks to the various category bonuses, such as 5X for all restaurants with the Chase Freedom for Q2 2016, 5X on all Amazon and Whole Foods spend with the Ink Plus and gift cards bought from Staples, 2X on all travel with the Chase Sapphire Preferred, and soon, 3X on travel and dining with the Chase Sapphire Reserve launching later this month. And Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer 1:1 to British Airways Avios. Of course, it's also possible to earn the 50K Avios bonus via the British Airways Visa, if you haven't received a bonus for the card within the past 24 months and also are under Chase 5/24.
Best Uses of British Airways Avios
British Airways Avios have been through several devaluations, so they're generally not good value for international first class or business class awards, such as Cathay Pacific First Class or Qantas A380 First Class. And the most recent British Airways devaluation eliminated 4500 Avios awards for even the shortest U.S. domestic flight flights, such that paid flights can be a better deal–do the math.
That said, I still have Award Booking clients redeeming Avios for certain awards:
- British Airways First Class for two, using the Companion Voucher. This of course incurs significant fees, since the companion voucher is only valid on British Airways metal, which means routing via London with its high APD (Air Passenger Duty) as well as British Airways' own fuel surcharges. But for clients traveling from the West Coast it can be worth it to lock in first class, although first class awards seats are scarcer than they used to be.
- Avios Upgrades: For clients with work trips booked in Economy or Premium Economy, depending on the fare, it can be possible to use Avios to upgrade their flights. Keep in mind the upgrade is one cabin, so Economy upgrades to Premium Economy (World Traveler Plus) and Premium Economy upgrades to Business (Club World).
- Avios + Cash Awards: For clients that don't have many points or British Airways Avios, it can be gratifying to redeem what they do have and pay cash for the rest.
- Intra-Regional Flight Awards: Avios can be great for short-haul economy flights within a region, for example intra-Japan flights on JAL, intra-Australia flights on Qantas, and intra-Asia flights on Cathay Pacific or Dragonair. As always, do the math to figure out whether paid flights are a better deal. As a rule of thumb, you probably don't want to be redeeming your Avios if you're getting less than 2 cents per Avios.
Do you plan to transfer Membership Rewards points to Avios with the 50% transfer bonus?
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