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 Please add important information to it or correct outdated information by clicking the "Edit" button below.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
#3226
Join Date: Aug 2018
Programs: BA GFL
Posts: 21
Thanks to all for the incredibly helpful comments. I take the point re timing being very tight. So maybe one for next year.
Interested in the using double air miles vs CGL jokers suggestion.
As my flights tend to be US, Caribbean and Asian long haul club or first and always for 5, I would have thought £5k this year (or next) to top up my normal TP to GCL and say less than half that next year to top up to 3,000 TPs to retain GCL with four jokers probaly is good value compared to double air miles for 20 premium flights.
Would appreciate your expert guidance.
Interested in the using double air miles vs CGL jokers suggestion.
As my flights tend to be US, Caribbean and Asian long haul club or first and always for 5, I would have thought £5k this year (or next) to top up my normal TP to GCL and say less than half that next year to top up to 3,000 TPs to retain GCL with four jokers probaly is good value compared to double air miles for 20 premium flights.
Would appreciate your expert guidance.
#3227
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 1,295
Actually I think often quite the opposite. Quite a few good AA runs for TPs around $2-3/TP vs the 2-3GBP/PT the ex-UK folks are paying. Search for AA business fares with many segments. ex-SFO to east coast is likely to get you at least 180TPs each way, if not 220 (i.e. SFO-LAX/PHX-CLT/PHL/MIA/NYC-destination). ex-SEA and ex-LAS have some good fares if you can't find something out of SFO.
#3228
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2014
Location: UK
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 12,235
Thanks to all for the incredibly helpful comments. I take the point re timing being very tight. So maybe one for next year.
Interested in the using double air miles vs CGL jokers suggestion.
As my flights tend to be US, Caribbean and Asian long haul club or first and always for 5, I would have thought £5k this year (or next) to top up my normal TP to GCL and say less than half that next year to top up to 3,000 TPs to retain GCL with four jokers probaly is good value compared to double air miles for 20 premium flights.
Would appreciate your expert guidance.
Interested in the using double air miles vs CGL jokers suggestion.
As my flights tend to be US, Caribbean and Asian long haul club or first and always for 5, I would have thought £5k this year (or next) to top up my normal TP to GCL and say less than half that next year to top up to 3,000 TPs to retain GCL with four jokers probaly is good value compared to double air miles for 20 premium flights.
Would appreciate your expert guidance.
You'd be spending money on the underlying fare or a tonne of Avios either way even with a Joker. Using the above you would pay cash fare and receive a tonner of Avios and TPs.
Just my opinion, of course, but spending £5/6k to get Jokers does not make too much sense
#3229
Join Date: Aug 2018
Programs: British Airways
Posts: 4
Looking into RT transcontinental as recommended by Surgee, I'm looking at SFO-PHX-CLT-LGA-BOS for ~$1500, which would give me just 160 points each way
Maybe I'm just really bad at using the booking tool~
#3230
Moderator: Qatar Airways
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: LHR/NCE/MIA
Programs: BAEC GfL & GGL, SQ Gold, Amex Centurion, Mucci des Chevaliers des Bons Mots et Qui Savent Moucher
Posts: 8,944
Are there any Thanksgiving weekend TP Runs on?
I'm 1,080 TPs short of Gold-For-Life, and would like to complete it!
I'd need to leave mainland Europe on a Friday, but be back in LHR on Friday night, before flying onward on Saturday morning.
Can anyone help me out? Perhaps another PTY run (did one earlier this year)?
I had a look myself, but couldn't find routings as easily as I used to find them - maybe availability has gone
Thanks in advance all!
M
I'm 1,080 TPs short of Gold-For-Life, and would like to complete it!
I'd need to leave mainland Europe on a Friday, but be back in LHR on Friday night, before flying onward on Saturday morning.
Can anyone help me out? Perhaps another PTY run (did one earlier this year)?
I had a look myself, but couldn't find routings as easily as I used to find them - maybe availability has gone
Thanks in advance all!
M
#3231
FlyerTalk Evangelist, Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Somewhere between 0 and 13,000 metres high
Programs: AF/KL Life Plat, BA GGL+GfL, ALL Plat, Hilton Diam, Marriott Gold, blablablah, etc
Posts: 30,499
Still, in effect, build itineraries that mix advantages 1) and 2) and you'll soon get the TPs you need.
#3232
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: BCN
Programs: BA GGL, IB, LH, IHG Gold
Posts: 582
Are there any Thanksgiving weekend TP Runs on?
I'm 1,080 TPs short of Gold-For-Life, and would like to complete it!
I'd need to leave mainland Europe on a Friday, but be back in LHR on Friday night, before flying onward on Saturday morning.
Can anyone help me out? Perhaps another PTY run (did one earlier this year)?
I had a look myself, but couldn't find routings as easily as I used to find them - maybe availability has gone
Thanks in advance all!
M
I'm 1,080 TPs short of Gold-For-Life, and would like to complete it!
I'd need to leave mainland Europe on a Friday, but be back in LHR on Friday night, before flying onward on Saturday morning.
Can anyone help me out? Perhaps another PTY run (did one earlier this year)?
I had a look myself, but couldn't find routings as easily as I used to find them - maybe availability has gone
Thanks in advance all!
M
#3233
Moderator: Qatar Airways
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: LHR/NCE/MIA
Programs: BAEC GfL & GGL, SQ Gold, Amex Centurion, Mucci des Chevaliers des Bons Mots et Qui Savent Moucher
Posts: 8,944
Do you happen to know if any of the PTY runs are available for that period?
M
#3234
Join Date: Jul 2012
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hilton Diamond, SPG Gold, IHG Platinum Ambassador, Club Carlson Gold
Posts: 349
#3236
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: London, England
Programs: BA:Gold; IHG: Platinum;
Posts: 69
Not quite sure how to route from LAS - PTY.. tried replicating a search elsewhere in the thread, but didn't get any results D:
Looking into RT transcontinental as recommended by Surgee, I'm looking at SFO-PHX-CLT-LGA-BOS for ~$1500, which would give me just 160 points each way
Maybe I'm just really bad at using the booking tool~
Looking into RT transcontinental as recommended by Surgee, I'm looking at SFO-PHX-CLT-LGA-BOS for ~$1500, which would give me just 160 points each way
Maybe I'm just really bad at using the booking tool~
If you were to book (for example) SFO-PHX-PHL-LGA-BOS you'd earn 260 Tier points each way because PHX-PHL is 2,075 miles, earning you 140 TPs for that leg alone! Obviously, there are several legs other than PHX-PHL you can use for your 2,000 mile plus element in your itinerary.
#3238
Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Leeds, UK
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, GfL, HH Diamond
Posts: 42,876
Not quite sure how to route from LAS - PTY.. tried replicating a search elsewhere in the thread, but didn't get any results D:
Looking into RT transcontinental as recommended by Surgee, I'm looking at SFO-PHX-CLT-LGA-BOS for ~$1500, which would give me just 160 points each way
Maybe I'm just really bad at using the booking tool~
Looking into RT transcontinental as recommended by Surgee, I'm looking at SFO-PHX-CLT-LGA-BOS for ~$1500, which would give me just 160 points each way
Maybe I'm just really bad at using the booking tool~
#3239
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: UK
Programs: BA Bronze
Posts: 523
re: BUD-MLE: Sadly, that fare is long gone.
#3240
Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 1
Hi Folks
Just lost Silver but looking to get it back. I did the LHR-HEL-AGP run a couple years back.
I've a work trip LHR-DMM. Wondered if anyone has any good TP/£ routes to the Middle East from London? Positioning to an ex-EU is do able. Doesn't have to be the 600+ in one hit but a decent dent at it would be nice.
Cheers
Just lost Silver but looking to get it back. I did the LHR-HEL-AGP run a couple years back.
I've a work trip LHR-DMM. Wondered if anyone has any good TP/£ routes to the Middle East from London? Positioning to an ex-EU is do able. Doesn't have to be the 600+ in one hit but a decent dent at it would be nice.
Cheers