Bits: 20% off Best Western, pointless Aer Lingus hotel portal, new Avios Southend-Glasgow route

News in brief:

Get 20% off Best Western UK with Mastercard

Last week we covered the launch of the new Avios partnership with Best Western.  That article also covered how to get a Best Western status match.

You will earn either a flat 500 Avios points per stay or you can convert Best Western Rewards points at the ratio of 5:1.

It turns out that Best Western runs two special offers for its UK hotels which can get you extra savings as well as earning Avios:

For Mastercard holders, for stays until 18th December, you will save 20% on Best Flexible refundable rate via this link although bookings made under this offer are non-refundable

For American Express holders, for an open-ended period, you will save 10% on Best Flexible refundable rates via this link although bookings made under this offer are non-refundable

Check prices carefully, because some properties seem to have their own non-refundable rates which undercut the promotional offers.

Aer Lingus launches a pointless hotel booking portal

Despite its IAG ownership, Aer Lingus seems to exist in its own world.  This is sometimes good – Aer Lingus has a long-haul business class seat which is far superior to BA Club World (and which we are reviewing soon) – and sometimes just odd.

Last week the airline launched its own hotel portal.  This is a white-label version of booking.com, as is clearly displayed on the site.

Can you collect AerClub Avios via this site? No.  Can you spend AerClub Avios via this site? No.  Can you use any booking.com special offer codes or deals via this site?  No.  Is there any point whatsoever to this product?  No.

You don’t even get a free cushion …..

Southend Airport launching Glasgow

London Southend Airport has announced that a new route, to Glasgow, will launch on 29th October.  This is in addition to the previously announced Dublin and Manchester routes.

It will be operated by Flybe, bookable here, via the Stobart Air franchise.  This means that you can earn and redeem Avios on Southend to Glasgow at the standard Flybe rates.

I had a day out at London Southend last year (read here) and was pleasantly surprised by what I found – if you work in the City or Canary Wharf, with easy access to the airport trains, it is worth considering.

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 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 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:

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.

(Want to earn more Avios?  Click here to visit our home page for our latest articles on earning and spending your Avios points and click here to see how to earn more Avios this month from offers and promotions.)