Avios take 2...

-AA Fleet from DFW Admirals Club, Terminal D

Okay I know the last deal I talked about was also about the Amex/Avios conversion but I can't help myself, this one's too good.  I have a renewed love for this deal.

In my previous post I talked up the basics of how to get an American Airlines domestic flight out of American Express Membership Rewards points.  It all still applies, but there's a few things to note- First, British Airways has updated their site to make this easier!  Now, when you go to search for a flight to book using Avios (their mileage currency, see previous post), it automatically shows the partner airlines!  Good for them...and me.  Secondly, right now there's a 100k Membership Reward point sign-up bonus offer for new Platinum customers, which is definitely worth looking into if you don't already have the card.  As discussed, those points can be put to good use.

Here's the deal:

I was looking into getting a friend a one-way ticket from DFW to LAX for this weekend (as in, in about 4 days).  Needed to do it on the cheap, hopped over to the AA site to see if by chance they had any last minute deals since this is the low season and I know for a fact they're not selling out those flights.  However, not a chance.  AA had the one-ways hiked up to a starting rate in the mid-$300s, with the decent time ones up to $470 (economy, one way!!).

Nope, nice try AA....not happening.

I've done DFW-LAX a lot.  A reasonable fare for this time of year is $135 one way, actual deals are more like $115, and you don't hit mileage run territory until you break under $100.  I know this wasn't a mileage run, but I have my standards....

Seeing these prices, I didn't have high hopes for low mileage redemption either but gave it a look.

Wait.... what?  Yep, they were still selling those $470 tickets for MilessAAver rates.  Sneaky people that they are, going after last minute business travelers.

This, however, is fantastic news for getting a cheap redemption using Avios.  Even better- jumped to the AmEx site to transfer some points to find that they're doing a 30% bonus on Avios transfers through 1/13/13!  Sold.

So, here's how the final numbers all worked out-

-DFW-LAX requires 10,000 Avios and $2.50 in fees.  Amex MR points can only be transferred in multiples of 1000 to Avios, so I converted 8,000 MR points to 10,400 Avios using the 30% bonus.  I'll use the 400 extra for something else, I'm sure.

-Successfully booked the decent timed $470 AA ticket.

-This same ticket would have required 12,500 hard-earned AA miles to book through their regular site, which would have "cost" about $250 in mileage value at the going rate of $.02 per mile.

-With the conversion rate, and using the average redemption value of $.008 per MR point (conservative average value), this ticket "cost" $64 in MR point value, and only $2.50 in actual cash.

-Given that this means I redeemed MR points at $.059 each for this ticket, it's definitely one of the best deals I've heard of lately.  That sign-up bonus they're offering right now could get you a whole lot of flying.

As said above, this has given me a new appreciation for the Amex/Avios/AA ticket system, especially for last minute off season tickets and would probably also be lucrative if you can plan well ahead for the more popular travel seasons while Milessaaver rates are still available. Rumor also has it that due to a glitch in the system, these tickets sometimes come up with complimentary Priority AAccess privileges- short security lines, pre-boarding, etc, but we'll see.  If that's true, this is a clear case of lower cost + better product.

Mission accomplished.

Fly safe,

-CruisingAAltitude

Amex, Avios & AA....

Yes, I'm back in the air and on the road this week, though now for honest-to-god planned holiday travel. While I'm away, I thought I'd put up the following 'retro-deal' post to do with Avios and Amex points because...well, I wrote it and I keep meaning to. Happy Holidays all, real posts to return soon to finish out the Qualifying Mile year.



Miles deal to PHX, or...”What to do with MR Points”:

I recently found myself needing to get to Phoenix from LAX for a weekend.  I wanted to fly American Eagle to stay within my airline and terminal comfort zone but I was feeling cheap and this once willing to forgo the Elite Qualifying Miles (“EQM”) for the flights since they would be minimal.  However, it seemed ridiculous to use the amount of American Airlines (“AA”) miles it would take to travel less than 500 miles each way.  I’d much rather save these for upgrades or long and costly flights.  So, it was time to get creative.  

Luckily, I have some AmEx Membership Rewards points sitting around from my Platinum Card (review to follow) and decided to put them to work.  While the MR points are nice, I signed up for the card mainly for the other travel perks like lounge access, airline fee reimbursement, the Fine Hotels and Resorts program...and the list goes on.  Much has been said about the best uses of MR points and while the consensus is they are best used on international premium fares, I didn’t have any of these on the near horizon.  The deal I found I consider a close second best.  Much has also been made of BA’s change to distance-based rewards for use of their Avios program but in this case that works to the traveler’s advantage.  In addition, until September 27th, 2012, you could transfer MR points to Avios at a 40% bonus.  These deals seem to come up from time to time, with 50% deals being reported on occasion.

British Airways Avios can be used to fly domestically since BA codeshares with AA on routes within the US.  The further twist, however, is that in order for rewards seats to be available using Avios they have to be available as “Milesaver” tickets from AA.  So don’t get big ideas about using Avios to book that already oversold flight for Thanksgiving this year.   

Here’s how I managed to get my ticket to PHX and back on American Eagle for a few MR points and $10:

1) Set up a BA Executive Club account.  This only took a few minutes and gave me someplace to transfer the PR points to.

2) Transfer MR points from AmEx at a 40% bonus.  This requires linking your BA account via the AmEx website.

3) Go to AA.com, put in the dates I wanted and made sure Milesaver tickets were available for the dates.

4) Head over to britishairways.com to book the flight.  There are a few wrinkles to know here since BA’s website isn’t super user-friendly.  First, make sure you’ve signed in and are ‘booking using Avios’.  Then plug in your dates and hit search.  This will bring up an error screen saying BA doesn’t fly that route...well obviously, when’s the last time you saw a BA jet hop from LAX to PHX?  To fix this, select “include partners” option to get the AA flights included.  The rest of the process is fairly straightforward- selecting flights, paying the fee just as you would when booking with AA.   

(Note the AA codeshare flight designation)


Now for the numbers on MR ponts vs AA miles:

1) According to the Executive Club site, their shortest flights require 9,000 Avios each way (flights less than 650 miles).  Note that you can also use their “Avios Calculator” to price your trip in Avios.  With the current 40% bonus, this means it requires 5,400 MR points each way.  The fees are likewise small, only $5 each way.  So, you can get to PHX and back for a total of 10,800 MR points and $10.  Not bad.

2) To compare, a Milesaver ticket through AA would have required 12,500 miles each way- 25,000 total and a similar fee.  On top of that, as discussed below I value my AA miles more highly than my MR point and as such am much more reluctant to part with them.  

In short, using a valuation of 1 cent per MR point (an average of the value these can be redeemed for) and 2 cents per AA mile (a low non-scientific frequent flyer consensus), option 1 “cost” me about $118, while option two would have “cost” $510.

For comparison, the cash value of these tickets on AA.com was $185 + tax and fees at the time I searched.

So, I’m off to Phoenix for $10 and some points I previously didn’t have a pressing use for.  Hotel and airport lounge reviews to follow!

Fly Safe,

~CruisingAAltitude