Qatar Airways service from Edinburgh goes daily – more lower tax Avios options

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Back in May, Qatar Airways launched a ‘five time a week’ service between Edinburgh and Doha. It was the first service from Edinburgh to any of the Middle Eastern airports.

Qatar put a brand new Boeing 787 aircraft on the route. I reviewed my recent business class flight on a Qatar 787 in this article and it was very impressive, especially for solo travellers. Qatar has a special webpage on the benefits of its Boeing 787 service which can be found here.

From 1st May 2015, Qatar is increasing the Edinburgh service to daily.

Qatar Airways launches Edinburgh

This has been a great route for Avios redemptions if you live in Edinburgh catchment area. The airline tends to offer four business class seats per flight for Avios redemptions, which is 20% of the cabin.

Taxes are also lower than flying to Doha via Heathrow on British Airways. Edinburgh to Doha in business class is currently 80,000 Avios plus £338 of taxes and charges. British Airways, via Heathrow, would cost you 80,000 Avios plus £568 – an extra £230 per person. If you are flying beyond Doha then the maths will change because you will need to factor the additional Avios required for the second leg.

How to earn Avios points from UK credit cards

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (December 2021)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards. Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways BA Amex American Express card

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up, no annual fee and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending ….. Read our full review

British Airways BA Premium Plus American Express Amex credit card

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the UK’s most valuable credit card perk – the 2-4-1 companion voucher Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points, such as:

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & two airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios:

Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa

The most generous Avios Visa or Mastercard for a limited company Read our full review

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus: