One of the great things about FT is that it is full of professionals, who will have far better advice than this.

I'm an amateur also, but I'll chip in. The company I work for doesn't favour BA as much as it did (BA prices seem to be higher for my routes), so I squash my recreational long haul flights into the ~seven weeks between the expiry of my year (and the reset of my points) and the expiry of my *card*. I would be taking them anyway to see family, so this mitigates the cost somewhat.

Congratulations in advance for reaching Silver and hope you enjoy every advantage it brings.