Frequent Miler's latest team challenge, Million Mile Madness, is happening now! Follow us as Greg, Nick, and Stephen compete to earn 1 Million SAS miles by flying 15 airlines before November 23rd. Who will complete the challenge with the most Speed, Affordability, and Style?
The addition of Qatar Airways to Avios has made the program even more interesting by adding a fourth airline into the Avios mix (in addition to British Airways, Aer Lingus and Iberia). Qatar is currently running a transfer bonus good for up to 30% when moving points from several rewards points programs into Qatar Privilege Club. Citi Thank You Points (TYP) is one of the included programs.
This bonus has two tiers. If you transfer up to 30,000 TYP in one transaction, you’ll get a 20% bonus (1 TYP-1.2 Avios). If you transfer 30,000+ TYP, you’ll get a 30% bonus (1 TYP-1.3 Avios). These Avios can then be used in Qatar’s program or transferred to British Airways Avios, Aer Lingus or Iberia.
The Deal
- Transfer Citi Thank You Points to Qatar Airways Avios and get a up to a 30% bonus.
- The bonus Avios awarded will be 20% of the number of base Avios on a transfer of 0-30,000 points converted in a single transaction and 30% of the number of base Avios for 30,000+ points converted in a single transaction.
- Expires 11/15/22
Key Terms
- This campaign ends on 15th Nov 2022, 1559hrs Eastern.
- This campaign is open to all Privilege Club members who are customers of participating partners in the prescribed markets and have Rewards Points.
- All bonus Avios earned will reflect in your Privilege Club account by 15th Dec 2022.
- The bonus Avios will be calculated per transaction and not on the cumulative sum of base Avios converted from Rewards Points during the campaign period except Ooredoo Qatar.
- The bonus Avios will not be calculated retroactively under any circumstances. If the Avios are credited to your Privilege Club account after the offer period you will not earn bonus Avios under this campaign.
Best Uses for Avios and Things to Know
Best Uses British Airways Avios
- Business class to Europe from 34K one-way via Iberia. This is probably my favorite Avios redemption and have one booked this year already. Iberia charges as few as 34K miles off-peak for one-way in business class on its own flights from New York, Boston, Chicago, or DC to Madrid during off-peak season. The fuel surcharges are quite reasonable and they also run seasonal promotions (usually during the Winter) where the prices drop down even further.
- Business class South America from 22K one-way via British Airways. I've used this once and availability can be tricky to find. But when you can find it, BA has excellent pricing for shorter distance non-stop American Airlines award flights.
- Long Haul Business Class on Qatar Airways. After Qatar's addition to Avios, BA lowered many of their award prices on Qatar. It's now possible to travel between the United States and Doha in business for only 70,000 Avios with minimal surcharges.
Things to Know British Airways Avios
- Avios Purchases are processed by Points.com and DO NOT count as airfare.
- Avios can be easily transferred between Aer Lingus, Iberia and British Airways
- Avios expire after 36 months of no activity
- British Airways has near-extortionate fuel surcharges when flying on BA metal. It's best to keep Avios for use with partners or the Iberia Plus
Other Transfer Bonuses
| Transfer From | Transfer Bonus Details | End Date |
|---|---|---|
| Amex Membership Rewards | 15% transfer bonus from Amex Membership Rewards to Avianca LifeMiles | 12/31/24 |
| Capital One Miles | 20% transfer bonus from Capital One Miles to British Airways Avios | 12/01/24 |
| Chase Ultimate Rewards | 40% transfer bonus from Chase Ultimate Rewards to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 11/30/24 |
| Amex Membership Rewards | 35% transfer bonus from Amex Membership Rewards to Marriott Bonvoy | 11/30/24 |
| Amex Membership Rewards | 15% transfer bonus from Amex Membership Rewards to Cathay Pacific Asia Miles | 11/30/24 |
(h/t: Dan’s Deals)
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How does this promotion help if I cannot see any availability for Qsuites for summer 2023 which is 9 to 10 months old. And if something pops up, the transfer bonus will take quite a bit of time to show up and may miss the opportunity. Also, taxes and surcharges are too high with BA and I think Iberia too. You end up paying a lot of cash along with miles. Now I am wondering what’s the use of all these points.
if I have avios with BA (and 2 more family members)..would all of us with BA avios would have to transfer them to Iberia to use them? could we do a single booking like we could with British airways?
Officially no, you should be able to book that flight on BA. Personally, I often seem to find more availability on Iberia for the off-peak flights, at least when looking online.
For perspective, the summer promotion was a 40% bonus. Terms still visible at https://www.qatarairways.com/en/Privilege-Club/bank-partners-conversion.html?cid=EMALL341360
Thanks!
Hi Tim, very succinctly written post once again. Short and to the point. Off the top of your head, do you know the miles needed to redeem a USA-SEAsia one-way or RT trip? I tried to go to their website to get this info but encountered technical issues. Thanks.
Here’s the full breakdown: https://frequentmiler.com/complete-guide-to-avios-british-airways-iberia-and-aer-lingus/. Note that this doesn’t include BA lowering the price for Qatar flights. Partner awards from the US-SE Asia are not well-priced, unfortunately.