British Airways launches flights to San Sebastián from London City, now bookable on Avios

Slightly closer to home after the big news that British Airways is launching Portland, Oregon is the announcement that BA is also launching San Sebastián next year.

The flights are set to take place over the peak summer season from July to September, twice weekly. Here is the schedule:

BA7335 Monday and Friday, departing London at 9:10am and arriving at 12:10.

BA7334 Monday and Friday, departing San Sabastian 13:13 and arriving in London at 14:25.

The flights will be from London City with BA CityFlyer. The aircraft used is an Embraer E190, with a 2-2 configuration in both Club Europe and Euro Traveller (there is no blocked seat in Club Europe).

Unfortunately – unlike my Portland piece yesterday – I cannot give any personal recommendations for San Sebastián. Do leave a comment if you have any particular recommendations.

The city is nestled in the Basque region of Spain, in the crook of the arm where France and Spain meet. It is just over an hour from Bilbao (home of the Gehry-designed Guggenheim Museum) and just under an hour from the French border.

San Sebastián is famous for its high concentration of bars. Peter Downes, the Aviation Director at London City writes that “As well as the beaches and bars, San Sebastián is a food and cultural capital – home to pintxo delicacies, a multitude of Michelin-starred restaurants and an international film festival. It will also serve as the perfect gateway to popular tourist spots such as the Basque region, Cantabria, Pamplona and the Pyrenees.”

If you’re looking for somewhere to stay, San Sebastián is also home to the Hotel Maria Cristina, which is part of Marriott’s Luxury Collection. For a week night in July you are looking at over €500. A redemption is 70,000 per night, so you are getting 0.7p+ per point.

This flight is now bookable on ba.com here – just make sure that you enter either a Monday or a Friday to see availability! Redemption availability should also be good as these flights have just been loaded into the timetable. Here are the Avios pricing options in economy one-way:

• 6250 Avios + £10.50
• 4500 Avios + £15.50
• 3300 Avios + £35.50
• 2800 Avios + £40.50
• 2500 Avios + £45.50

The ‘traditional’ Reward Flight Saver fare is highlighted in bold and is the best value option of the five if you value an Avios at 1p. This compares with a hand baggage-only fare of £90 one way, or a return for about £120.

This article in our ‘Avios Redemption University’ series looks at how Avios Reward Flight Saver works on short-haul British Airways flights.

You can see more on the British Airways website.

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.)