Bits: Virgin Trains cuts Traveller, Amex airport cashback, 20% off ALL Flybe routes

News in brief:

Virgin Trains puts the breaks on Traveller

Hot on the heels of news that the generous East Coast Rewards loyalty scheme will be wound up at the end of February, Virgin Trains emailed members yesterday with restrictions on its Traveller programme.  Non-members can learn more here.

If you were a heavy West Coast user, Traveller was amazingly good value.  Once you spent enough money to qualify, you got free First Class train travel, every Friday / Saturday / Sunday / Monday, across West Coast.  Only peak time Monday and Friday morning trains were blocked.  You could even bring a guest with you for free.

If you worked in London during the week, you could go home for free every weekend.

Virgin Trains is being vague about the exact impact of the changes.  We do know that peak time travel between 3pm and 7pm on Friday is being severely restricted which is, of course, a time when many Traveller members want a free ticket.  Major restrictions on weekend availability are being put in place in February and over Easter as engineering work reduces capacity.

Remember:  Amex airport offers end 31st January

You may well have forgotten that the various American Express cashback deals running at Heathrow, Stansted, Luton, Gatwick and elsewhere are still running.

The deals run until the end of the month.  Full details are in this article.  Deals include:

Café Nero – £5 cashback when you spend £10 at Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton and Stansted

Ted Baker – £10 cashback when you spend £65 at Heathrow and Gatwick

Sunglass Hut – £10 cashback when you spend £30 at Heathrow and Gatwick

Dixons – £10 cashback when you spend £30 at  Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Stansted and Edinburgh

Harrods – £10 cashback when you spend £65 at Heathrow and Gatwick

Fortnum & Mason – £10 cashback when you spend £65 at Heathrow T5

WH Smith – £5 cashback when you spend £10 at Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Stansted and Edinburgh

I managed to get £5 back on a £10 Café Nero spend in Terminal 2 last year and I will try to spend £10 in WH Smith at Heathrow on Monday.  Register via cardmemberoffers.co.uk.

Flybe discount code for 20% off all routes

A Mastercard promotion (although you don’t need to book with a Mastercard) offers 20% off all Flybe flights if you book before 31st January.

You must travel before March 28th.

It is valid on Just Fly and Get More ticket types.  Franchises and codeshares are excluded.  It is valid on return or one-way flights.

Go to flybe.com and enter Flybe promotional code MC20 on the booking page.

Activate your Iberia Plus account with a Heathrow Express booking

If you have opened an Iberia Plus account to take advantage of lower taxes on Iberia redemptions, you will know that you need to ‘activate’ it before you can transfer Avios points across from BA.  This involves earning 1 Avios point in some way.

As well as earning Avios points from Heathrow Express in British Airways Executive Club, they are also an Iberia partner.  You will earn 100-400 Avios in Iberia per ticket depending on what ticket type you book.

The Heathrow Express / Iberia page is here.  Full details can be found on iberia.com here.