Vueling to charge for bringing larger cabin bags and cuts Avios earn rate

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Vueling is IAG’s low cost carrier, operating primarily from a base in Barcelona. It flies a number of routes to and from the UK from regional airports.

You can earn and redeem Avios on Vueling flights as we explain in this article. It is a similar structure to Aer Lingus flights – you can either:

book at vueling.com and get a fixed value per Avios to discount your flight (you can pay 100% of the cost if you wish) or

you can book via iberia.com and redeem via the standard Avios reward charts

Vueling to charge for bringing larger cabin bags and cuts Avios earn rate

Vueling announced two changes this week to its cheapest ‘Basic’ fares.

The first change is to do with Avios. The rate you earn is cut from 3 Avios per €1 to 2 Avios per €1. Optima, Family and TimeFlex fares will continue to earn 4 Avios per €1 spent.

The second change is baggage related.

If you buy a Basic fare, you can no longer bring a larger price of hand baggage into the cabin for free.

Basic fares will come with an allowance for one piece of underseat baggage which must be no larger than 40cm x 30cm x 20cm.

Interestingly, you can check in a larger piece of hand baggage (max 55cm x 40cm x 20cm and under 10kg in weight) for free.

If you want to bring a larger bag into the cabin on a Basic fare, you will to need to pay extra or book a Space One or Space Plus seat. A larger cabin bag will continue to be included automatically with other fare classes.

This policy is being applied retrospectively so anyone who is holding a Vueling Basic ticket will now need to check it in to avoid an extra charge.

Full details can be found on the Vueling hand baggage page here.

How to earn Avios points from UK credit cards

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 BA Amex American Express card

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 BA Premium Plus American Express Amex credit card

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: