Jan 2, 2017, 6:09 pm
Last edit by: EsherFlyer
** AA Domestic First on two cabin will earn business TPs and avios for departures on or after 11 January 2017 - see reference posts for more details **
** Note that the practice of AA Domestic 3-class service flights booking into A for 210 TPs when I was no longer available ceased in September 2017. Discussion here. **
Welcome to the thread. This is a continuation of the highly popular 2016 Tier Point thread. We keep track of other prices, as well as useful reference information for those planning tier point runs.
Please read the first few posts in this thread first as it contains lots of information which may answer your question.
This is a community-maintained wiki post. Please add important information to it or correct outdated information by clicking the "Edit" button below!
Current Promotions of Interest
Sale Fares
Advanced Promotion Fares
See here in post # 8 for a 2017 archive of exEU sale fare, and see here in post # 445 for a 2016 archive of exEU sale fares.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This thread lists attractive tier point (TP) runs under £3 per TP grouped within different (departure) geographies
Please note that current availability is not guaranteed and all prices include taxes. Please use the following convention when adding tier point runs to this wiki post:
Date fare checked Price per Tier Point Total Price Total Tier Points Route Booking Classes Booking Channel Credit Notes (if applicable) Airlines
Please remember to:
Please see the links at the bottom of the wiki for archives of runs from previous years.
From Europe
24APR £0.90/TP £400 440 TLL-BA/AY-HEL-LON-GLA-KOI-ABZ ; TLL-BA/AY-HEL-LON-GLA-SDZ-ABZ (see post #1221)
02NOV £1.33/TP £583 440 LHR-HEL-TLL/TLL-HEL-LHR-NCL//NCL-LHR-HEL-TLL/TLL-HEL-LHR IIIIIIIIII Google Flights armouredant 2 nested tickets, both other a Saturday night. BA ticket, BA & AY metal, AY A350 possible LHR-HEL
08FEB £1.33/TP £346 260 JER-LGW-RAK-LGW-RAK I/I/I/I BA.com ramops
14AUG £1.65/TP £593 360 OSL-HEL-AGP-HEL-OSL I-I-I-I ITA Flythe96flag SH J cabin + possible red-eye (!) AY
26JUL £1.81/TP £72.70 40 MAD-FRA Z lan.com Prospero 787 flat bed LA
1JAN £1.85/TP £444 240 JER-LGW/LHR-HEL J/I/I/J ITA Matrix flatlander Available most weekends first half of 2016, fare IM0R
23NOV £1.89/TP £377 200 DUB-LHR-MAD-SVQ r/t I-I-I-I-I-I ITA Lorcancoyle IM0B IB DUB to SVQ BA and IB flights (I2 for domestic under IB code), random dates in December available, A340 on some dates (helpfully pointed out by Temps that domestic Spain is only 20 TPs)
24NOV £1.91/TP £765.00 400 BUD-DOH-SHJ I/A/I/A QR.com Wozza2404 A320 QR
11AUG £2.10/TP £420 200 AMS-LHR-GLA-LSI-ABZ-LSI-GLA-LHR-AMS I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I ITA Matrix --> Priceline.com MrMutton
13NOV £2.56/TP £410 160 LHR-HEL ? BA.com Lorcancoyle wide open as flight+hotel, can reduce with TCB cash back BA
From North, Central and South America
26Jan £1.50/TP £960 640 LGA-CMH-DCA-PHL-RDU-CLT-ATL-MIA-PTY and return I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I ITA Matrix--> BookWithMatrix dot com --> AA.com HPN-HRL other routings available; reverse routing is £40 more - see post 388 AA
10MAY £2.50/TP £203 80 ORF-CLT-ORD I/I AA.com
21MAY £2.08/TP £250 120 YYZ-PHL/LGA-CLT-ORF/PHF I/I/I AA.com
22NOV £1.43/TP £172 120 DCA-(LGA/BOS/PHL)-CLT-RDU (one way, reverse works as well) I/I/I ITA->BWM->priceline.com
From Middle East, Asia and Australasia
23Feb £0.99/TP £356 360 TPE-xKUL-PEN(JHB)-xKUL-TPE Z http://www.malaysiaairlines.com ermen two day min stay, promo fare MH
04JAN £1.10/TP £44 40 KUL-PEN D http://www.malaysiaairlines.com/uk/en.html fitch Works in both directions, rtn £80 if you can make the timnings work MH
11Nov £0.85/TP £307 360 TPE-KUL-SIN-KUL-TPE Z http://www.malaysiaairlines.com neofung
From Africa
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Need a year-end TP run (ex-LON) to make / retain status?
Some tips for searching for the year-end TP run for newcomers, the below is indicative only, but hopefully provides a bit of guidance for relatively straightforward runs ex-LON. The guide to using ITA matrix in post #4 (see here) along with these ideas, might come in handy. Feel free to share results, problems or general questions in the thread as these may not always work and there might be better deals out there...
For overnight trips remember to check BA and Iberia for their flights and hotel option as well, can get hotel for almost no extra cost at times
Need 80 TPs or fewer
Club Europe return somewhere close by is best - DUB, AMS and JER usually cheapest. AMS and JER easier than DUB for an immediate turnaround. The BA.com low fare finder can be very useful.
If you need as few as 45 TPs you might consider booking economy flights and hoping for a proactive online upgrade offer - but they're not guaranteed to materialise (so not one if you have no more time left in your TP collection year). Alternatively, booking a return to one of the 40 tier point destinations with one way in CE and the return in ET (or vice versa if cheaper). Bilbao, Jersey and Amsterdam seems the most cost effective for this.
Need 85-120 TPs
Iberia flights via MAD to regional Spanish airports will get you 120 TPs as the domestic Spanish flights are 20 TPs in business. Under £300 including hotel can be available. Check BIO, GRX, VLC, BCN, SVQ etc. Example here
Need 125-160 TPs
Take a look at the shorthaul plus routes earning 80 TPs each way in business listed in the first post (here) MLA, IST, HEL and RAK are usually available. If time sensitive take a look at BA flight and hotel option to HEL, where you can usually get the last BA flight out on a Saturday, airport hotel and first return Sunday for well under £500.
Alternative options include positioning to JER and flying JER-LGW-XXX (AMS usually works well and avoids switching airports)
Need more than 160 TPs
You'll most likely be heading north then - OSL or VNO via HEL will get you 240 TPs, as will JER-LGW/LHR-HEL e.g. LHR-HEL-OSL for £520. Also the BA fare for LHR-HEL-TLL at ~£235 is still available and would get 200 TPs for a return.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Historic information
2016 Archive
2015 Archive (6 months Jul to Dec)
2015 Archive (6 months Jan to Jun)
2014 Archive
.
** Note that the practice of AA Domestic 3-class service flights booking into A for 210 TPs when I was no longer available ceased in September 2017. Discussion here. **
Welcome to the thread. This is a continuation of the highly popular 2016 Tier Point thread. We keep track of other prices, as well as useful reference information for those planning tier point runs.
Please read the first few posts in this thread first as it contains lots of information which may answer your question.
This is a community-maintained wiki post. Please add important information to it or correct outdated information by clicking the "Edit" button below!
Current Promotions of Interest
Sale Fares
- from AMS/RTM to US ILN4T7S6/INX6T7S6 reported in this post and this post, e.g. NYC - €1,461, ORD - €1,492, LAS - €1,460, needs to be booked by 25 September, see linked post for details
- from PRG to US ILN4T8S6 reported in this post, e.g. IAD - £1,033, MIA - £1,133, ATL - £1,080, needs to be booked by 21 September, see linked post for details
Advanced Promotion Fares
- from DUB to US ILN8C1S6 reported here, e.g. NYC - €1,472, MIA - €1,578, see linked post for details
- froM DUB to US ILN8S4C1 reported here, e.g. JFK - €1,427, MIA - €1,532, LAS - €1,667, LAX - €1,795, HNL - €2,095, this is an advanced purchase fare so no book by deadline, see linked post for details
- from OTP to PHX ILN8R4C1 reported here, e.g. PHX - £1,252, see linked post for details
- from AMS to BKK INCEU60 reported here, e.g. BKK - £1,216, see linked post for details
See here in post # 8 for a 2017 archive of exEU sale fare, and see here in post # 445 for a 2016 archive of exEU sale fares.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This thread lists attractive tier point (TP) runs under £3 per TP grouped within different (departure) geographies
Please note that current availability is not guaranteed and all prices include taxes. Please use the following convention when adding tier point runs to this wiki post:
Date fare checked Price per Tier Point Total Price Total Tier Points Route Booking Classes Booking Channel Credit Notes (if applicable) Airlines
Please remember to:
- Convert currencies to GBP, rounding to the nearest pound.
- Post full routes and full booking classes.
- Note any restrictions on booking in the Notes section.
- List in order of price per tier point within the relevant departure area.
Please see the links at the bottom of the wiki for archives of runs from previous years.
From Europe
24APR £0.90/TP £400 440 TLL-BA/AY-HEL-LON-GLA-KOI-ABZ ; TLL-BA/AY-HEL-LON-GLA-SDZ-ABZ (see post #1221)
02NOV £1.33/TP £583 440 LHR-HEL-TLL/TLL-HEL-LHR-NCL//NCL-LHR-HEL-TLL/TLL-HEL-LHR IIIIIIIIII Google Flights armouredant 2 nested tickets, both other a Saturday night. BA ticket, BA & AY metal, AY A350 possible LHR-HEL
08FEB £1.33/TP £346 260 JER-LGW-RAK-LGW-RAK I/I/I/I BA.com ramops
14AUG £1.65/TP £593 360 OSL-HEL-AGP-HEL-OSL I-I-I-I ITA Flythe96flag SH J cabin + possible red-eye (!) AY
26JUL £1.81/TP £72.70 40 MAD-FRA Z lan.com Prospero 787 flat bed LA
1JAN £1.85/TP £444 240 JER-LGW/LHR-HEL J/I/I/J ITA Matrix flatlander Available most weekends first half of 2016, fare IM0R
23NOV £1.89/TP £377 200 DUB-LHR-MAD-SVQ r/t I-I-I-I-I-I ITA Lorcancoyle IM0B IB DUB to SVQ BA and IB flights (I2 for domestic under IB code), random dates in December available, A340 on some dates (helpfully pointed out by Temps that domestic Spain is only 20 TPs)
24NOV £1.91/TP £765.00 400 BUD-DOH-SHJ I/A/I/A QR.com Wozza2404 A320 QR
11AUG £2.10/TP £420 200 AMS-LHR-GLA-LSI-ABZ-LSI-GLA-LHR-AMS I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I ITA Matrix --> Priceline.com MrMutton
13NOV £2.56/TP £410 160 LHR-HEL ? BA.com Lorcancoyle wide open as flight+hotel, can reduce with TCB cash back BA
From North, Central and South America
26Jan £1.50/TP £960 640 LGA-CMH-DCA-PHL-RDU-CLT-ATL-MIA-PTY and return I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I/I ITA Matrix--> BookWithMatrix dot com --> AA.com HPN-HRL other routings available; reverse routing is £40 more - see post 388 AA
10MAY £2.50/TP £203 80 ORF-CLT-ORD I/I AA.com
21MAY £2.08/TP £250 120 YYZ-PHL/LGA-CLT-ORF/PHF I/I/I AA.com
22NOV £1.43/TP £172 120 DCA-(LGA/BOS/PHL)-CLT-RDU (one way, reverse works as well) I/I/I ITA->BWM->priceline.com
From Middle East, Asia and Australasia
23Feb £0.99/TP £356 360 TPE-xKUL-PEN(JHB)-xKUL-TPE Z http://www.malaysiaairlines.com ermen two day min stay, promo fare MH
04JAN £1.10/TP £44 40 KUL-PEN D http://www.malaysiaairlines.com/uk/en.html fitch Works in both directions, rtn £80 if you can make the timnings work MH
11Nov £0.85/TP £307 360 TPE-KUL-SIN-KUL-TPE Z http://www.malaysiaairlines.com neofung
From Africa
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Need a year-end TP run (ex-LON) to make / retain status?
Some tips for searching for the year-end TP run for newcomers, the below is indicative only, but hopefully provides a bit of guidance for relatively straightforward runs ex-LON. The guide to using ITA matrix in post #4 (see here) along with these ideas, might come in handy. Feel free to share results, problems or general questions in the thread as these may not always work and there might be better deals out there...
For overnight trips remember to check BA and Iberia for their flights and hotel option as well, can get hotel for almost no extra cost at times
Need 80 TPs or fewer
Club Europe return somewhere close by is best - DUB, AMS and JER usually cheapest. AMS and JER easier than DUB for an immediate turnaround. The BA.com low fare finder can be very useful.
If you need as few as 45 TPs you might consider booking economy flights and hoping for a proactive online upgrade offer - but they're not guaranteed to materialise (so not one if you have no more time left in your TP collection year). Alternatively, booking a return to one of the 40 tier point destinations with one way in CE and the return in ET (or vice versa if cheaper). Bilbao, Jersey and Amsterdam seems the most cost effective for this.
Need 85-120 TPs
Iberia flights via MAD to regional Spanish airports will get you 120 TPs as the domestic Spanish flights are 20 TPs in business. Under £300 including hotel can be available. Check BIO, GRX, VLC, BCN, SVQ etc. Example here
Need 125-160 TPs
Take a look at the shorthaul plus routes earning 80 TPs each way in business listed in the first post (here) MLA, IST, HEL and RAK are usually available. If time sensitive take a look at BA flight and hotel option to HEL, where you can usually get the last BA flight out on a Saturday, airport hotel and first return Sunday for well under £500.
Alternative options include positioning to JER and flying JER-LGW-XXX (AMS usually works well and avoids switching airports)
Need more than 160 TPs
You'll most likely be heading north then - OSL or VNO via HEL will get you 240 TPs, as will JER-LGW/LHR-HEL e.g. LHR-HEL-OSL for £520. Also the BA fare for LHR-HEL-TLL at ~£235 is still available and would get 200 TPs for a return.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Historic information
2016 Archive
2015 Archive (6 months Jul to Dec)
2015 Archive (6 months Jan to Jun)
2014 Archive
.
BA Tier Point Runs | 2017 master thread
May 3, 2017, 9:57 am
#1591
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: UK
Posts: 92
Followed everything in the ORC guide, even using the exact wording. They seem to be stuck on the fact that AA is telling BA the flights in the booking weren't taken. Yep.... well aware of that, given it's a request for ORC as they rebooked us on something completely different! Just going back and forth and not quite understanding the request. Hopefully BAMissingAvios can help ^
May 3, 2017, 10:25 am
#1592
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 4,709
I definitely won't be giving up as it'll renew my BA Gold for me. Especially so as I was downgraded to economy and put onto WestJet....
May 3, 2017, 11:22 pm
#1593
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: London
Programs: BA GGL; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 241
Apologies if I missed an earlier mention of what seem to be decent TP prices for Catania flights compared to Malta pricing over summer. Google flights showing (and BA site offering):
160TP Gatwick-Catania return as low as £271 (£1.69 / TP) from May to October.
240TP Jersey-Gatwick-Catania return as low as £349 (£1.45/TP) in May / June /October or £373 (£1.55/TP) from May - October.
Or £1.35/TP if you can travel 3-5 May, 9-11 May or 17-19 May when the JER-CTA return is £323.
160TP Gatwick-Catania return as low as £271 (£1.69 / TP) from May to October.
240TP Jersey-Gatwick-Catania return as low as £349 (£1.45/TP) in May / June /October or £373 (£1.55/TP) from May - October.
Or £1.35/TP if you can travel 3-5 May, 9-11 May or 17-19 May when the JER-CTA return is £323.
3 May 13:55 JER > 14:55 LGW / 16:55 LGW > 21:00 CTA
5 May 12:25 CTA > 14:45 LGW / 17:40 LGW > 18:45 JER
All flights above in I bucket, BA site pricing at £322.58
5 May 12:25 CTA > 14:45 LGW / 17:40 LGW > 18:45 JER
All flights above in I bucket, BA site pricing at £322.58
May 4, 2017, 1:41 am
#1594
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Programs: BA Gold, Mucci
Posts: 2,068
I'm going to throw this out there but I think I've left it too late. I need 370 TPs to renew Gold with an 8 June renewal date.
My restriction is that I can only fly Saturday and Sunday and I'm Dublin based. I can fly 6 and 7 May, 13 and 14 May, 27 and 28 May and 3 and 4 June (19-21 May I am already on a DUB-IBZ-DUB). Well, it could be extended to leave Friday late afternoon and after and back to Dublin for very early morning arrivals on Monday.
I could do one more DUB-IBZ-DUB on 27 and 28 May for 80 more TPs for €233 which leaves me with 290 TPs to get... but is there a better way? I don't care where I go, I just want to spend as little as possible. The usual story. If anyone can assist, I'd be very grateful.
My restriction is that I can only fly Saturday and Sunday and I'm Dublin based. I can fly 6 and 7 May, 13 and 14 May, 27 and 28 May and 3 and 4 June (19-21 May I am already on a DUB-IBZ-DUB). Well, it could be extended to leave Friday late afternoon and after and back to Dublin for very early morning arrivals on Monday.
I could do one more DUB-IBZ-DUB on 27 and 28 May for 80 more TPs for €233 which leaves me with 290 TPs to get... but is there a better way? I don't care where I go, I just want to spend as little as possible. The usual story. If anyone can assist, I'd be very grateful.
May 4, 2017, 2:39 am
#1595
Join Date: Nov 2016
Programs: BA Gold; IHG Plat
Posts: 116
I'm going to throw this out there but I think I've left it too late. I need 370 TPs to renew Gold with an 8 June renewal date.
My restriction is that I can only fly Saturday and Sunday and I'm Dublin based. I can fly 6 and 7 May, 13 and 14 May, 27 and 28 May and 3 and 4 June (19-21 May I am already on a DUB-IBZ-DUB). Well, it could be extended to leave Friday late afternoon and after and back to Dublin for very early morning arrivals on Monday.
I could do one more DUB-IBZ-DUB on 27 and 28 May for 80 more TPs for €233 which leaves me with 290 TPs to get... but is there a better way? I don't care where I go, I just want to spend as little as possible. The usual story. If anyone can assist, I'd be very grateful.
My restriction is that I can only fly Saturday and Sunday and I'm Dublin based. I can fly 6 and 7 May, 13 and 14 May, 27 and 28 May and 3 and 4 June (19-21 May I am already on a DUB-IBZ-DUB). Well, it could be extended to leave Friday late afternoon and after and back to Dublin for very early morning arrivals on Monday.
I could do one more DUB-IBZ-DUB on 27 and 28 May for 80 more TPs for €233 which leaves me with 290 TPs to get... but is there a better way? I don't care where I go, I just want to spend as little as possible. The usual story. If anyone can assist, I'd be very grateful.
Sorry I can't be more help. Best way I found of doing it, but I'm sure others more well-versed might be able to do better.
May 4, 2017, 2:46 am
#1596
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Exec Gold; Accor Le Club Gold
Posts: 122
Choices over London to Hong Kong
I have another short-notice trip to Hong Kong in a couple of weeks. Using some the advice I've been picking up from this forum, and in the wake of my first Ex-EU trip (and hence first trip in CW - so hard to down grade now!) I've got two options in front of me that are as cheap as the Ex-EU prices
LHR-HEL-HKG with Finnair (sometimes returning with a BKK stop)
LHR-BKK-HKG (returning without the BKK stop) on BA and Cathay
The Finnair is better on tier points and I can identify the A350 flights from LHR to HEL too. But reading some trip reports, the Finnair A350 J seat gets very mixed reviews. I slept very well indeed in BA J and don't want to do J flights where I can't sleep.
Any commentary from the experts?
LHR-HEL-HKG with Finnair (sometimes returning with a BKK stop)
LHR-BKK-HKG (returning without the BKK stop) on BA and Cathay
The Finnair is better on tier points and I can identify the A350 flights from LHR to HEL too. But reading some trip reports, the Finnair A350 J seat gets very mixed reviews. I slept very well indeed in BA J and don't want to do J flights where I can't sleep.
Any commentary from the experts?
May 4, 2017, 3:02 am
#1598
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: UK
Programs: BA Bronze
Posts: 523
I have another short-notice trip to Hong Kong in a couple of weeks. Using some the advice I've been picking up from this forum, and in the wake of my first Ex-EU trip (and hence first trip in CW - so hard to down grade now!) I've got two options in front of me that are as cheap as the Ex-EU prices
LHR-HEL-HKG with Finnair (sometimes returning with a BKK stop)
LHR-BKK-HKG (returning without the BKK stop) on BA and Cathay
The Finnair is better on tier points and I can identify the A350 flights from LHR to HEL too. But reading some trip reports, the Finnair A350 J seat gets very mixed reviews. I slept very well indeed in BA J and don't want to do J flights where I can't sleep.
Any commentary from the experts?
LHR-HEL-HKG with Finnair (sometimes returning with a BKK stop)
LHR-BKK-HKG (returning without the BKK stop) on BA and Cathay
The Finnair is better on tier points and I can identify the A350 flights from LHR to HEL too. But reading some trip reports, the Finnair A350 J seat gets very mixed reviews. I slept very well indeed in BA J and don't want to do J flights where I can't sleep.
Any commentary from the experts?
ARN/GOT-LHR-HKG is ~1465 with the long haul on CX and possible to do GOT-LHR the night before, similar for OSL-HEL-HKG on AY.
May 4, 2017, 3:28 am
#1599
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Exec Gold; Accor Le Club Gold
Posts: 122
I will look up the GOT option to see if I can get that working as an alternative. Thanks!
May 4, 2017, 4:21 am
#1600
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Programs: BA Gold, Mucci
Posts: 2,068
Keeping cost down and with such date restrictions, it's fairly difficult. The LHR-HEL-TLL route on the 3/4 June is £323 with a Saturday night stay, and would be 240 TPs. A DUB-LHR in J for another 80 TPs bumps that another £299, though. It would get you the 290(+30) if you did the second DUB-IBZ-DUB.
Sorry I can't be more help. Best way I found of doing it, but I'm sure others more well-versed might be able to do better.
Sorry I can't be more help. Best way I found of doing it, but I'm sure others more well-versed might be able to do better.
Cheers!
May 4, 2017, 5:04 am
#1601
Formerly known as joannerose66
Join Date: Mar 2014
Programs: Gold BA Exec, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 116
Thanks guys for the responses so far...
Unfortunately my estimate (based on this year's scheduling) is that GCSE's will finish around 26th June, so won't be able to use this GUF for a post-GCSE celebration in 2018 
Unfortunately I have extended this GUF already by 6 months, and I haven't read of a successful 2nd extension.
Unfortunately I have extended this GUF already by 6 months, and I haven't read of a successful 2nd extension.
May 4, 2017, 5:16 am
#1602
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Programs: BA Gold, Mucci
Posts: 2,068
Keeping cost down and with such date restrictions, it's fairly difficult. The LHR-HEL-TLL route on the 3/4 June is £323 with a Saturday night stay, and would be 240 TPs. A DUB-LHR in J for another 80 TPs bumps that another £299, though. It would get you the 290(+30) if you did the second DUB-IBZ-DUB.
Sorry I can't be more help. Best way I found of doing it, but I'm sure others more well-versed might be able to do better.
Sorry I can't be more help. Best way I found of doing it, but I'm sure others more well-versed might be able to do better.
I looked at BA, AY, Google Flights... am I missing something?
May 4, 2017, 5:37 am
#1604
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Programs: BA Gold, Mucci
Posts: 2,068
May 4, 2017, 5:57 am
#1605
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Exec Gold; Accor Le Club Gold
Posts: 122
And once you've priced up a trip on Matrix, what's the best way to make a purchase? I've had trouble getting similar pricing on Expedia or by phoning BA.
I have the same trouble with google flights where prices displayed turn out to be £500 lower than actually available on websites when you click through.
I have the same trouble with google flights where prices displayed turn out to be £500 lower than actually available on websites when you click through.