I have been looking to book a hotel for Manchester in the near future using the Avios rewards programme,when I compare like for like booking via BAEC it shows a dramatic increase in price and avios needed.Some examples below for the exact same dates and rooms.
Ibis Styles Avios Travel 11800 + £30 BA 11450 + £95
Jurys Inn 10100+£60 BA 13000 +£110
Novotel Cent 10500+£25 BA 13300 +£60
HI Exp Oxford RD 11100+£25 BA 11350 +£95
I have found this in the past that booking via BAEC is always more expensive and has far fewer hotels(ok if you want to stay at the airport but not elsewhere).For me, forcing me to book via BA is effectively devaluing my Avios (again)
Sorry, when I posted the formatting went a little astray