Still bookable – British Airways First Class to Cape Town for £2,026 each, or less

Last week I wrote about the new British Airways ‘241’ First Class trial that is running, called ‘Dream Tickets’.  It has proved popular with Head for Points readers – I’ve heard from around 15 who have booked at £3,600 to £4,000 per couple and I assume there are many more who didn’t get in touch – so I thought I’d give it another mention before it ends.

The first ‘Dream Tickets’ deal is Cape Town.  As you can see on this page of ba.com, you get two First Class tickets to Cape Town from Heathrow in January, February or March for just over £4,000.

Unfortunately, availability on the DIRECT flight back from Cape Town is now very limited.  You can get down OK but, coming back, it is very hard to find dates which don’t require you to change in Johannesburg.  On the upside, you get another 10 tier points for doing this.

If you can find dates where you can get the direct flights in First Class in both directions, you can save £300 per couple by booking here at the BA Holidays premium holidays site.  Book your First Class flights for two people and throw in a car rental on top.  For a seven night stay in March, you will pay around £1,800-£1,900 each.  It is far cheaper than just booking the flight on its own.

The snag is that BA Holidays will usually only price up when you are on the direct BA flights in both directions and there are few days left where you can do this. Do give it a go before booking ‘flight only’ though.

You must book by 18th July for travel between 1st January and 31st March.

To maximise your miles when paying, your best bet is the British Airways American Express Premium Plus card which earns double Avios (3 per £1) when you book at ba.com or via BA Holidays.  You do not get double Avios if you book with the free British Airways American Express card.  Another option is American Express Preferred Rewards Gold which offers double points – 2 per £1 – when you book flight tickets directly with an airline.

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.)