I become Gold on Monday.

No, it's good for me because:

1. I can easily retain Gold with a few well placed Club sectors within Europe, to places I like (HEL, IST etc).

2. I don't like busy lounges.

3. Dublin actually becomes cheaper for me to redeem off peak, which is when I want to go. Irish family commitments mean a lot of DUB trips this coming year.

4. Surely - better availability on redemptions.

5. I rarely book LH redemptions.

6. I collect quite a few Avios through schemes outside BAEC which haven't been gutted. Well, not yet!


Losses for me are:

1. No cheapo buggering around with silly open jaw/stopover Euro-domestic Avios redemptions. Example: using long stopovers I can get from DUB-LHR on 20 March and LHR-BHD on 23 April for 4500 Avios and £17.50. Now it'll cost me 8,000 off peak and £35.00 single.

[Today I'm doing LBA-LHR and in June LHR-LUX (to say farewell to a T1!). All on the same booking. 4,500 Avios and £17.50. ]

2. Where I do pay for a domestic I'll be shafted with poorer Avios rates. The TPs are no bother, I'll still fly enough to retain Gold.


I'm not really in BAEC to do mad TP Runs as a hobby. I do genuinely have a requirement to fly to see family and friends, and I have plenty of spare time to go to Europe for a weekend once a month from the regions.


As they say - YMMV!!