Weirdly I just reviewed all of the options available and opted to boost my balance x 3 after my recent travels to the Far East. I got around 60,000 Avios for just under £500 which may not seem like good value but I have a specific flight I now want to book, and this has worked out cheaper than the cash price for the same flight. Plus I wanted the £35 cancellation flexibility which the cash ticket didn’t provide.

I agree many of the other options are nonsense but I’m looking forward to the next 100% bonus Avios offer, when I plan to buy the maximum available.

For all the complaints the Avios redemptions often get, I’ve managed to make four redemption bookings in the last month or so, all exactly what I want, when I want them. And I work in schools so my availability is generally during the worst periods (school holidays etc).