Last edit by: OWBA
Welcome to the thread. This is a continuation of the highly popular 2017 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 Please add important information to it or correct outdated information by clicking the "Edit" button below.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 #9 for a 2018 archive of exEU sale fare, and see this post in the 2017 thread for last years’ archive of exEU sale fares.
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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
From North, Central and South America
23Sep £1.48/TP £650 (US$853) 440 TPs JFK-CLT/BOS-LAX-LAS and return all I class aa.com
6Sep £1.50/TP US$457 240TPs RIC-CLT-DCA-BOS, BOS-LGA/PHL-CLT-RIC all I class aa.com
Jan/Feb wide open £1.94/TP £700(US$883) 360 TPs SEA-CLT-MCO-PHX-SEA all I class aa.com
From Middle East, Asia and Australasia
18Jan £1.58/TP £883 560 CMB-xHKG-CGK return I cathaypacific.com ermen CX
28Feb £1.44/TP £575 400 MCT-DOH-BKK-DOH-MCT A/R/R/A travel.americanexpress.co.uk QR
21Feb £1.53/TP £860 560 HKG-CMB-MEL return I Expedia.com.hk Firemin UL
16Mar £1.22/TP £687 560 CGK-CMB-DXB return I srilankan.com Firemin UL
01Apr £0.87/TP £314 360 PEN-KUL-KTM return Malaysian.com cgtechuk MH
01Apr £1.19/TP £335 280 KUL-PER return Malaysian.com cgtechuk MH
01Apr £1.28/TP £335 360 PEN-KUL-PER return Malaysian.com cgtechuk MH
05Apr £2.00/TP £320 160 CAN-HKG-TPE return CathayPacific.com littlevoices CX/KA (flexible fare, bookable up to 24 hours in advance, allows stopovers, book with CX directly)
From Africa
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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. Some information on how to use ITA matrix is in post #4 of this thread (or just click 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 along with UK domestic returns. Additionally you may find that trips in to mainland Europe require a one night stay whereas the cheapest domestic CE returns do not have any minimum stay so can be booked as a same day return. If doing a back to back AMS and JER can be easier than DUB for an immediate turnaround - more information can be found in the back to back thread listed in the forum dashboard. 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). UK domestic route, Bilbao, Jersey and Amsterdam seem 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 of this thread, 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.
DUB-LHR-HEL return (or return to LHR) is currently a very efficient way of hitting 200-240 TPs
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Historic information
2017 Archive
2016 Archive
2015 Archive (6 months Jul to Dec)
2015 Archive (6 months Jan to Jun)
2014 Archive
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 JER to PDX IKN8T1S6 reported in this post, e.g. PDX £1,082, needs to be booked by 8 May, see linked post for details
Advanced Promotion Fares
- from OTP to PHX ILN8C8S4 reported here, e.g. PHX - £1,296, see linked post for details
- from AMS to BKK INCEU60 reported here, e.g. BKK - £1,340, see linked post for details
See here in post #9 for a 2018 archive of exEU sale fare, and see this post in the 2017 thread for last years’ 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
Code:
3Feb 200TPs DUB-LHR-HEL/HEL-LHR all I class ba.com
23Sep £1.48/TP £650 (US$853) 440 TPs JFK-CLT/BOS-LAX-LAS and return all I class aa.com
6Sep £1.50/TP US$457 240TPs RIC-CLT-DCA-BOS, BOS-LGA/PHL-CLT-RIC all I class aa.com
Jan/Feb wide open £1.94/TP £700(US$883) 360 TPs SEA-CLT-MCO-PHX-SEA all I class aa.com
From Middle East, Asia and Australasia
18Jan £1.58/TP £883 560 CMB-xHKG-CGK return I cathaypacific.com ermen CX
28Feb £1.44/TP £575 400 MCT-DOH-BKK-DOH-MCT A/R/R/A travel.americanexpress.co.uk QR
21Feb £1.53/TP £860 560 HKG-CMB-MEL return I Expedia.com.hk Firemin UL
16Mar £1.22/TP £687 560 CGK-CMB-DXB return I srilankan.com Firemin UL
01Apr £0.87/TP £314 360 PEN-KUL-KTM return Malaysian.com cgtechuk MH
01Apr £1.19/TP £335 280 KUL-PER return Malaysian.com cgtechuk MH
01Apr £1.28/TP £335 360 PEN-KUL-PER return Malaysian.com cgtechuk MH
05Apr £2.00/TP £320 160 CAN-HKG-TPE return CathayPacific.com littlevoices CX/KA (flexible fare, bookable up to 24 hours in advance, allows stopovers, book with CX directly)
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. Some information on how to use ITA matrix is in post #4 of this thread (or just click 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 along with UK domestic returns. Additionally you may find that trips in to mainland Europe require a one night stay whereas the cheapest domestic CE returns do not have any minimum stay so can be booked as a same day return. If doing a back to back AMS and JER can be easier than DUB for an immediate turnaround - more information can be found in the back to back thread listed in the forum dashboard. 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). UK domestic route, Bilbao, Jersey and Amsterdam seem 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 of this thread, 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.
DUB-LHR-HEL return (or return to LHR) is currently a very efficient way of hitting 200-240 TPs
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Historic information
2017 Archive
2016 Archive
2015 Archive (6 months Jul to Dec)
2015 Archive (6 months Jan to Jun)
2014 Archive
BA Tier Point Runs | 2018 master thread
#1861
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: UK
Programs: BA GGL; Lifetime Gold
Posts: 256
I was on the A321 between PHL and PHX last week and, whilst there was no IFE, with your own iPad you can connect to AA GoGoEntertainment and stream AA entertainment inflight and watch films/TV on your iPad. Make sure you download the GoGoEntertainment app before you board.
#1862
Join Date: Dec 2017
Posts: 833
Yes, great summary, @adamgilbride! I did the OTP (HEL) PHX recently. Staying the Otopeni Hotel by the airport (free transfers, £20, clean and basic.)
#1863
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: LHR
Programs: BAEC Silver
Posts: 484
If arriving on evening flight anyone just hanging around OTP for the night until lounges open at 0600 ish ??
#1864
Suspended
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: UK
Programs: BAEC GGL, HH DIAMOND, AVIS Presidents Club, Karahi Express
Posts: 1,229
#1865
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Vale of Glamorgan
Programs: BAEC Gold
Posts: 2,992
Book yourself.into the Vienna House hotel (also known as the Easy Airport, or Angelo), which is a ten-minute walk from the terminal entrance. I stayed there twice and it was perfectly good, with free WiFi and breakfast buffet from 5am. I paid €60.
#1866
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: T' North West
Programs: BAEC Gold
Posts: 655
Ive tried to input OTP-LHR-HEL-LHR-JFK-PHX-JFK-LHR-HEL-LHR-OTP into ITA matrix but it falls over straight away showing no flights found on any dates I try. I suspect it is because of the LHR HEL LHR legs. Is there something special I have to put into matrix for this to work?
#1867
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Gold, Hilton Honors Lifetime Diamond
Posts: 69
Great summary, thanks adamgilbride!
So the routing you did was LHR-OTP-LHR-HEL-LHR-JFK-PHX-JFK-LHR-HEL-LHR, should have been OTP-LHR on the end? When you say about a LAX extension, do you mean PHX-LAX-JFK or PHX-LAX-PHX-JFK?
It looks like this year I'm already going to have 3,500 TPs, so I'm thinking of doing something to get me to GGL (mainly for the jokers, the Hilton Diamond status, and it's closer to GFL)
So the routing you did was LHR-OTP-LHR-HEL-LHR-JFK-PHX-JFK-LHR-HEL-LHR, should have been OTP-LHR on the end? When you say about a LAX extension, do you mean PHX-LAX-JFK or PHX-LAX-PHX-JFK?
It looks like this year I'm already going to have 3,500 TPs, so I'm thinking of doing something to get me to GGL (mainly for the jokers, the Hilton Diamond status, and it's closer to GFL)
I think the times work such that you could do OTP-LHR-HEL-LHR-JFK-LAX-PHX-LAX-JFK-LHR-HEL-LHR-OTP for two extra legs. You'd arrive into PHX ate 23:00 and leave again at 06:00. I haven't confirmed this, but it might be possible.
#1868
Suspended
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: UK
Programs: BAEC GGL, HH DIAMOND, AVIS Presidents Club, Karahi Express
Posts: 1,229
Ive tried to input OTP-LHR-HEL-LHR-JFK-PHX-JFK-LHR-HEL-LHR-OTP into ITA matrix but it falls over straight away showing no flights found on any dates I try. I suspect it is because of the LHR HEL LHR legs. Is there something special I have to put into matrix for this to work?
#1869
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Gold, Hilton Honors Lifetime Diamond
Posts: 69
Ive tried to input OTP-LHR-HEL-LHR-JFK-PHX-JFK-LHR-HEL-LHR-OTP into ITA matrix but it falls over straight away showing no flights found on any dates I try. I suspect it is because of the LHR HEL LHR legs. Is there something special I have to put into matrix for this to work?
Have a look at this post from KARFA which shows the fare rules (https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/29374650-post982.html) and this post from rossmacd which shows what to put in to ITA Matrix (https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/29240873-post36.html). Once I'd got the flight, I used the Powertools Google Chrome extension to link through to AA to book it.
#1870
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: London. Edinburgh, Cornwall
Programs: BA GGL, British Midland Lifetime* Loser
Posts: 7,950
Having taken it many times, I'd happily choose it over most other options. Can't comment on whether the bedding is better/worse than BA's new blanket but the seat is certainly more comfortable, the IFE is good and I personally prefer the food and drink.
#1871
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Cumbria
Programs: BAEC GGL/CCR, Hilton Diamond, Starbucks Gold
Posts: 4,510
Hi Lucanesque. The tier point run I booked (thanks to this forum and particularly the members I mentioned) was OTP-LHR-HEL-LHR-JFK-PHX-JFK-LHR-HEL-LHR-OTP, but since I'm based in London, I ditched the last leg. The initial LHR to OTP was a positioning flight on a separate booking.
I think the times work such that you could do OTP-LHR-HEL-LHR-JFK-LAX-PHX-LAX-JFK-LHR-HEL-LHR-OTP for two extra legs. You'd arrive into PHX ate 23:00 and leave again at 06:00. I haven't confirmed this, but it might be possible.
I think the times work such that you could do OTP-LHR-HEL-LHR-JFK-LAX-PHX-LAX-JFK-LHR-HEL-LHR-OTP for two extra legs. You'd arrive into PHX ate 23:00 and leave again at 06:00. I haven't confirmed this, but it might be possible.
Although, strictly speaking, you may be able to do both, but this takes it outside of the permitted mileage and could significantly bump the fare up. If it was allowed (at a decent price!) then I can assure you that more people would be doing this option. You don't choose to do a TP run and go direct from JFK to PHX when you can go via LAX on the transcon.
#1872
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Gold, Hilton Honors Lifetime Diamond
Posts: 69
If doing the HEL legs then you cannot do the LAX sector as well. It's a case of one or the other. I understand that you can combine, so do HEL out and LAX back but not both on the same routing.
Although, strictly speaking, you may be able to do both, but this takes it outside of the permitted mileage and could significantly bump the fare up. If it was allowed (at a decent price!) then I can assure you that more people would be doing this option. You don't choose to do a TP run and go direct from JFK to PHX when you can go via LAX on the transcon.
Although, strictly speaking, you may be able to do both, but this takes it outside of the permitted mileage and could significantly bump the fare up. If it was allowed (at a decent price!) then I can assure you that more people would be doing this option. You don't choose to do a TP run and go direct from JFK to PHX when you can go via LAX on the transcon.
@happeemonkee I just put some dates in to ITA Matrix at the end of August for OTP-LHR-HEL-LHR-JFK-PHX-JFK-LHR-HEL-LHR-OTP and found a £1,512 fare.
#1873
Moderator: British Airways Executive Club, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges and Environmentally Friendly Travel
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: London, UK
Posts: 22,213
Personally, I'd recommend the AA A330 only as an option of last resort
#1874
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 7,464
If doing the HEL legs then you cannot do the LAX sector as well. It's a case of one or the other. I understand that you can combine, so do HEL out and LAX back but not both on the same routing.
Although, strictly speaking, you may be able to do both, but this takes it outside of the permitted mileage and could significantly bump the fare up. If it was allowed (at a decent price!) then I can assure you that more people would be doing this option. You don't choose to do a TP run and go direct from JFK to PHX when you can go via LAX on the transcon.
Although, strictly speaking, you may be able to do both, but this takes it outside of the permitted mileage and could significantly bump the fare up. If it was allowed (at a decent price!) then I can assure you that more people would be doing this option. You don't choose to do a TP run and go direct from JFK to PHX when you can go via LAX on the transcon.
This is when it becomes exceedingly lucrative (not just from TPs, but seat comfort)....
#1875
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Bristol
Programs: BA GGL, UA Plat, DL Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 2,380
It has been known that if you book the HEL shuffle then JFK-PHX-JFK, then if (when!) you get an AA schedule change, you can (time/availability/agent willingness permitting) get JFK-LAX-PHX-LAX-JFK whilst maintaining in the HEL shuffle also
This is when it becomes exceedingly lucrative (not just from TPs, but seat comfort)....
This is when it becomes exceedingly lucrative (not just from TPs, but seat comfort)....