Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

The HfP chat thread – Saturday 16th January

Links on Head for Points may pay us an affiliate commission. A list of partners is here.

We have decided to run this daily chat thread on Head for Points during the coronavirus outbreak.

Historically, the daily ‘Bits’ articles were the de facto repository for random comments and questions.  With the news flow being lighter, we are running fewer ‘Bits’ articles.

The comments under this article are where you should post questions about travel and, indeed, anything else on your mind.  At this tricky time, and given that many of you are at home, we want the HfP community to have a place to chat.

Please only comment under the main articles on the site if your comment is directly related to the topic of the article.  This has long-term benefits as it keeps the commentary relevant for people who read those articles in the future.

Old chat threads are hidden from the HfP home page.  If you want to look for something in an old thread, click here.  This brings up all the articles in our ‘General’ category which includes the chat threads.

Category

General

Comments (166)

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

  • JohnT says:
    16 Jan16 January 08:51

    IHG credit card, my 5k bonus just posted after a stay on 6th Dec.

    • CraigyC says:
      17 Jan17 January 08:46

      I sent an email and finally got the points last week (a stay at a similar time), they didn’t seem to be aware of the offer and there was some confusion as to it being them or Creation.
      I got 5000 points which appear to be “complimentary”, I wonder if the real ones will also now post!

  • James says:
    16 Jan16 January 08:55

    Just called Amex to see what they could offer if I were to keep my Platinum Card. All they could do was downgrade me or offer a pay monthly deal – no points were offered. I did receive a points bonus in May for keeping my card though, which the lady did remind me of. Will try again in a month or so.

    • Mikeact says:
      16 Jan16 January 08:59

      It’s annoying we have to wait 24 months for bonus renewal ,compared to Aus/Amex..18 months..

      • Louie says:
        16 Jan16 January 11:00

        Except that in Oz it’s 18m without ANY Amex card for a bonus on ANY Amex card. Not like the UK when you can still qualify for bonuses on the BAPP and Platinum cards if you play your cards right. Also no referral bonuses for anyone referring someone who has had an Amex in the last 18m. I do much better from the UK Amex regime than I do the Oz one.

    • Andrew says:
      16 Jan16 January 09:39

      Same experience James – I even went through to the retentions team when the initial Brighton agent couldn’t offer me anything, but still the computer said no. Must be some algorithm which isn’t necessarily just to do with card spend, use or credit rating but myriad factors which calculate if you’re worth paying to stay.

  • Anna says:
    16 Jan16 January 08:57

    Morning all. Probably one for Rob or Ghengis but thoughts appreciated! The Grosvenor House Dubai ticks all our boxes and has very reasonable cash prices compared with the better Jumeirah beach front hotels. 7 nights half board at Easter if booking direct with Marriott is £2295, however with BA Holidays it’s £1470! We are both Bonvoy gold but OH can renew that with Amex Plat this year. Does the chunky price difference make up for not getting Bonvoy points plus any other gold perks?
    I also have £650 worth of FTVs which would bring the BA price down even further. I feel it’s a bit of a no brainer but don’t want to miss anything before I book!

    • Andrew says:
      16 Jan16 January 09:35

      Grosvenor House is very nice and you can use Le Meridien pool and beach which it’s twinned with and across the road/regular mini bus shuttle. And the Marina is out the back with lots of restaurants and the Metro a short walk.

    • Darren says:
      16 Jan16 January 10:11

      The HB credit can also be used at the restaurants in both the Grosvenor and Le Royal Meridien giving plenty of choice.

      • Anna says:
        16 Jan16 January 10:30

        Thanks yes it sounds great. I looked at the Marriott group of beach hotels and they all had reviews saying there was a lot of noise from construction/nightclubs/DJs at beach clubs into the early hours so the GH looks a better bet as you still get beach access.

    • Harry T says:
      16 Jan16 January 10:19

      Bonvoy Gold doesn’t have any real benefits – I can say this with confidence having stayed a lot as both Marriott Bonvoy Gold and then Platinum. If the hotel fits your needs and you can save a lot of money going through BA Holidays, then don’t book direct with Marriott. However it’s worth seeing if you can find cheaper prices for the hotel with an OTA like Booking.com and persuade Marriott to do a BRG, where they give you 25% off the competing rate if you can find an equivalent OTA rate that is cheaper than the best Marriott rate.

      • meta says:
        16 Jan16 January 11:00

        @Anna Marriott has status match. You get Platinum during the status match which would give you free breakfast, possible upgrade and guaranteed late check out at 4pm. Doesn’t matter if you don’t complete the status match, it could be worth it just for that one stay.

        • Anna says:
          16 Jan16 January 12:26

          Hi @meta, my highest status in any scheme is Spire/Ambassador so not sure if I would qualify for status match to Bonvoy Platinum? I’ve looked at all the options for this hotel and the half board offer for 3 of us via BA seems to beat all other pricing options hands down! The accommodation is an apartment with a kitchen as well, which is obviously idea for a family.

          • meta says:
            16 Jan16 January 14:49

            You do qualify for status match. Just need one stay in the last 12 months. I would request status match anyway as you never know, they might give you some benefits.

          • Anna says:
            16 Jan16 January 15:00

            Would that be from Spire then? We don’t do loads of stays even in normal times so I’ve never looked into it. We did one night at a Marriott last March just before the pandemic hit!

          • meta says:
            16 Jan16 January 15:56

            @ Anna yes from Spire. You need one stay at IHG in the last 12 months.

        • Ken says:
          16 Jan16 January 16:33

          Don’t think Marriott status match is currently running.

    • Nick Booker says:
      16 Jan16 January 11:10

      Anna Destination2.co.uk has some good Dubai offer ATM

    • Anne says:
      16 Jan16 January 19:28

      Hi Anna, we were in a similar dilemma for Le Royal Meridien for May and went for the BA option. Saved us over £800 vs Marriott direct for 5 nights LRM and also 5 nights at the W Abu Dhabi.

      I’m also Marriott Gold and when we stayed in Sept 2019 we still got recognised as Gold despite booking via BA then as well, no points of course but we did get 25% off food and drink which was very useful even alongside the half board.

      We didn’t go to the GH but LRM was superb, hence the return visit (hopefully!).

  • Anna says:
    16 Jan16 January 09:02

    Just thought I would also mention that Emyr is still doing the 3 for 2 offer on some DXB properties (Rob mentioned this in his Burj article the other day). I’ve booked 3 nights at the IC Dubai marina with breakfast plus the $100 for something ridiculous like £450 plus got an upgrade to a suite for an extra £18 pn.

  • Aslan says:
    16 Jan16 January 09:32

    Hi all.
    Question about BA cancellations and rebooking. Have a one way cash flight that has been cancelled by BA – do I have to call to move to new date before the original date of departure? If I don’t have a date in mind just yet, can I just leave it and ring up when I do (even if after the original flight was meant to be)?

    Thanks
    A

    • The Streets says:
      16 Jan16 January 09:55

      I’m in a similar position with an outbound flight cancelled less than 14 days away. I think I read somewhere you can keep your booking open with BA even past the original departure date. Going to ring today to see my options

      • Nick says:
        16 Jan16 January 11:01

        If the first flight on a booking has been cancelled, there is no need to speak to them if you don’t want to, you can leave it and rebook later when you know what you want to do. If you rebook now, that counts as your ‘one involuntary change’ and you lose flexibility in future (unless there’s another cancellation), so as always it’s best not to panic!!

        • Jody says:
          16 Jan16 January 15:18

          What if it’s the return flight of a trip that’s been cancelled? I’ve just had an email from BA today that our return flight from Gibraltar has been cancelled, and they’ve automatically booked us on one 5.5 hours earlier, which is no good as it’s a weekend break.

          I know I could cancel, but am I right in thinking I can reschedule for any other date as long as it’s within a year of making the booking? Was thinking we could make it a late summer weekend getaway instead.

          Does everything have to be the same (we’ve booked a Friday to Sunday, does that need to be the same for example?)?

          • kitten says:
            16 Jan16 January 15:58

            you can reschedule the whole thing to any date(s) you like if even one of the flights on your booking is cancelled by them. And not just 3 days before or 14 after as BA will try to tell you. EC261 rerouting rights

          • Jody says:
            16 Jan16 January 17:19

            Thanks Kitten. I know I’ve read that a lot on here the last few weeks, I’ve just got a terrible memory! Guess we’ll decide when we want to go then ring BA. It was a cash booking, so at least they can’t try and tell me I need avios availability!

          • kitten says:
            16 Jan16 January 18:32

            You may have to HUACA

  • Mark Peterborough says:
    16 Jan16 January 10:04

    A quick heads up for anyone thinking about plans for New Year’s Eve – the IHG booking window is now open. We stayed in the Crowne Plaza London City to see the fireworks that brought in 2014 and it was a very short walk ‘home’ afterwards.

    • Anna says:
      16 Jan16 January 10:35

      I love that someone is more organised than me 🤣. I’m only up to the beginning of December with my Xmas shopping trip!

      • ChrisC says:
        16 Jan16 January 11:38

        Just checked out for general interest (AKA boredom)

        30k points or £162 book now pay later (cancel by 4pm 28th December) rate for standard room.

      • xcalx says:
        17 Jan17 January 10:05

        I have had 3 cruises for April 2022 booked since last May.

  • JM says:
    16 Jan16 January 10:27

    Regarding below article:
    hfp2022.headforpoints.blog/2020/07/06/earn-178000-avios-from-amex-bonuses/
    Article based on starting clean with no existing cards… What is best strategy to capitalise on Bonvoy points moving forward (either directly or converting MR). Me and partner both have free BA card currently, but haven’t held Gold or SPG card for 2 years now.

    • Anna says:
      16 Jan16 January 10:36

      Sadly, having the BA card will exclude you from getting a sign up bonus on the SPG or Gold! You could get the Amex Platinum and all the associated benefits, but the fee is chunky.

      • Anna says:
        16 Jan16 January 10:39

        It’s very, very difficult to get an SPG sign up bonus now (barring IT failures which I admit to having benefited from, but it’s not worth risking your 2 year card free clock for). The only way is to not have ANY personal Amex for 24 months, but this can cause other issues like if you need an Amex to pay for a 2 4 1 booking.

      • Alex says:
        16 Jan16 January 11:09

        Is that just the free BA card or both? I thought as BA was its own family of cards you could still get Bonvoy and an MR earning card like gold or plat?

        • Anna says:
          16 Jan16 January 12:30

          Both, as they count as “personal Amex”. What you’re thinking of is that having an MR or other non-avios card won’t affect BAPP, and having an avios or other non-MR card won’t affect MR Platinum. Rob’s article is the best point of reference. Also keeping a spreadsheet like Ghengis recommends is a good way to keep on top of where you are in relation to sign up bonuses.

          • Alex says:
            16 Jan16 January 14:54

            Ah I see, I’ve got BAPP and it’s 2 years without anything else next week – so for me I can only get the platinum, I thought Bonvoy aswell but never mind.

  • The Lord says:
    16 Jan16 January 10:37

    BA have cancelled a fight which was booked using Avios and 241 voucher. Am
    I correct in thinking they will be able to rebook us on a flight at a later date on the same route using Avios and 241 even if there is no Avios availability showing?

    • Anna says:
      16 Jan16 January 10:40

      Yes but you might have to HUACA or be prepared for a bit of a fight as some BA CSAs are trying to deny this right.

      • The Lord says:
        16 Jan16 January 10:47

        Thanks Anna, would they ever rebook you onto a partner airline?

        • Nick says:
          16 Jan16 January 11:03

          Only if they have permanently suspended operations to that destination.

          • QFFlyer says:
            17 Jan17 January 09:48

            Not necessarily, I was rebooked onto QR by BA around a year ago. BA redemption J HKG-LHR was rebooked QR revenue J HKG-DOH-LGW.

      • kitten says:
        16 Jan16 January 16:00

        unequivocal you have this right.dont let BA bully you, con you or wear you down

    • Alex says:
      16 Jan16 January 11:14

      Re-booking on the same route at any date BA seem to be okay, provided it’s within a year of when you first booked it. Re-route on another airline they really don’t seem to want to do, however it is your right if say Qatar still fly on the original booking date. If you’re booked either leg in F call youfirst as I always find them very helpful in explaining your options

      • Darren says:
        16 Jan16 January 14:02

        Would a change to a different destination be possible on another date i.e. full flexibility?
        Let’s say the US remains closed to tourists could a switch to the Caribbean be an option?

        • Alex says:
          16 Jan16 January 15:01

          I haven’t done it personally but I’ve read other comments about people moving from W to E coast of USA and moving Aus to Asia but not sure if any costs involved in this

        • Anna says:
          16 Jan16 January 15:04

          I think there’s a 300 mile rule, so you might be able to change from, say, Miami to Nassau in the Bahamas. It would be nice to think they might start being a bit more fliexible rather than having to give refunds!

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

New to Head for Points?

Welcome!  We’re the UK’s most-read source of business travel, Avios, frequent flyer and hotel loyalty news. Let us improve how you travel. Learn more on our About page.

VAA

Latest comments

Latest Forum Posts

Get 30,000 points bonus with American Express Platinum

Amex Gold

Check reward flight availability instantly for free!

See a whole year of reward seat availability on one page at SeatSpy.com

Booking a luxury hotel?

Our luxury hotel booking service offers you GUARANTEED extra benefits over booking direct. Works with Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, The Ritz Carlton, St Regis and more. We've booked £1.3 million of rooms to date. Click for details.

Get 20,000 bonus points and your first year free with American Express Gold

Amex Gold