Jan 4, 2019, 9:09 am

FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides

Last edit by: jfkeze

Welcome to the thread. This is a continuation of the highly popular 2018 Tier Point thread (found here). 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 Please add important information to it or correct outdated information by clicking the "Edit" button below.

A new guideline thread for TP meetups has been created on 31 March 2020. If you would like other members to join your TP, or if you want to organize a TP run with other members. Please visit there. From the first few posts over there you could see the active ( confirmed ) TP meetings and the links to their relevant discussion threads, connect with other members and learn the details about the run. Click here to access that thread.

Current Promotions of Interest
Sale Fares

Advanced Promotion Fares

See here in post 9 for a 2019 archive of exEU sale fare, and see this post in the 2018 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:

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

15 Oct £0.96/TP £154 160 TPs LHR-SOF (2021 dates)
24 Feb £1.90/TP £152 80TP MAD-FRA Z/Z LA (available Feb-Mar 2019, immediate turnarounds possible)
10 Aug £2.06/TP £329 160TP LHR-MAD-RAK RAK-MAD-LHR I/I/I/I IB (available August, Sat night stay) BA.com, note hotels on offer until 26 March
3 Jul £2.99/TP £2,758.45 920TP DUB-LHR-JFK-LAX-HNL-LAX-JFK-LHR-DUB J/I/I/I/I/I/I/J Fare basis INX4C3S4 and INN4C1S4. Booked on AA via ITA Matrix Powertools script
18 Dec £1.90/TP £1370 720TP DUB-LHR-JFK-LAX-LAS-LAX-JFK-LHR-DUB All I class Flights 25 December to 31 March 2020, transatlantic Mon to Thur. Offer to 18 Dec. ITA details booked by TA Propeller
27 Apr £2.29/TP £640TP BEG-DOH-KUL-PEN-KUL-DOH-BEG I / I / I / I / I / I Fare IJR2R1RE Bookable on QR.com

From North, Central and South America
10Jan £1.52/TP £668 440tp JFK-BOS/CLT-LAX-LAS-LAX-BOS/CLT-JFK I / I / I / I / I / I HPN-HRL AA (find with ITA; probably have to book via a TA)
12Apr £0.90/TP £215 240tp DCA-ORD-CLT-RDU-CLT-ORD-DCA I/I/I/I/I/I/I AA Found with ITA, booked on the AA site with BookWithMatrix
23Apr £ 0.76/TP £ 182 240TP DCA-PHL-CLT-RDU-CLT-ORD-DCA I / I / I / I / I / I AA Found with ITA Matrix, Book on AA.com via BookWithMatrix or PowerTools
24Apr £ 1.04/TP £ 459 440TP YVR-LAX-CLT-ATL-CLT-LAX-YVR I / I / I / I / I / I AA Found with ITA Matrix, Book on AA.com via BookWithMatrix or PowerTools
23May £ 0.70/TP £ 169 240TP EWR-ORD-CLT-RDU-CLT-DFW-EWR I / I / I / I / I / I AA Found with ITA Matrix, Book on AA.com via BookWithMatrix or PowerTools
24Jun £ 0.52/TP £ 128 240TP LAX-DFW-PHX-SJC-PHX-DFW-LAX I / I / I / I / I / I AA Found with ITA Matrix, Book on AA.com via BookWithMatrix or PowerTools

From Middle East, Asia and Australasia

04/01 £0.95/TP £479 560tp AUH-CMB-CGK-CMB-AUH I / I / I / I cgtechuk UL
1FEB £1.49/TP £1,673 1,120tp PER-SYD-SIN-TYO-BKK Return (All book in I Class) timcjp BA (Ticket sold by BA, flights are on QF, BA & JL and lie flat seats available for all sectors)
23/04 £2.07/TP £2,112 1020TP CAI-LHR-JFK-LAX-HNL-DFW-ORD-LHR-CAI I/R here (All flights must be BA numbered)

From Africa
04/01 £1.80/TP £721 400tp CPT-JNB-GRU-JNB-DUR-CPT I / Z / Z / I / I ubiest LA

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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 (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 BA flight out on a Saturday, airport hotel and return on 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
2018 Archive
2017 Archive
2016 Archive
2015 Archive (6 months Jul to Dec)
2015 Archive (6 months Jan to Jun)
2014 Archive

BA Tier Point Runs | 2019-20 edition

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Jun 12, 2019, 11:40 pm

#1936

webstereo

Join Date: Jun 2017

Programs: BAEC Gold

Posts: 383

Quote:

Originally Posted by BA707

You have about six months to achieve this so you have time on your side. Unfortunately £1500 for 1200TP is £1.25/TP which isn't quite enough these days as they typically start at £1.50/TP plus positioning.

That said, (arguably) the best value right now is AUH/DXB-CGK on UL.
Ticket 1:
08/10/2019 LHR 12:45 - AUH 23:05
15/10/2019 AUH 01:50 - LHR 06:30
Basic Economy O, 40TP, £340

Alternative
07/10/2019 LHR 17:05 - AMM 00:10 +1
08/10/2019 AMM 21:30 - AUH 01:40 +1
15/10/2019 AUH 07:20 - AMM - LHR 15:25
Economy W, 50TP, £362

Ticket 2:
09/10/2019 AUH 23:00 - CMB - CGK 13:30 +1
11/10/2019 CGK 14:24 - CMB - AUH 22:00
Business I, 140 * 4 = 560TP, £676

Ticket 3:
12/10/2019 AUH 23:00 - CMB - CGK 13:30 +1
14/10/2019 CGK 14:24 - CMB - AUH 22:00
Business I, 140 * 4 = 560TP, £676

The run is 1120TP @ £1352 = £1.21/TP
Assuming you go with BA for positioning, 1160TP @ £1692 = £1.46/TP, plus 2 nights each in AUH and CGK.
You'll need 340TP elsewhere and don't forget the 4 BA flights (2 of which are here).

That really is exceptionally good value isn't it.
I'm not sure if it's still available but there's also the DEL to PER via KUL and SYD. Originally possible at around £1100. I had to pay £1300 to get it and I favoured it over the above suggestion because all the aircraft (bar one in my case) will be A330's with flatbeds. (I have assumed Srilankan's A321's are not but I might be wrong) That's 840 TP's. I've mixed a couple of other flights in too and all up I'll get 1280 TP's for £2376. If everything goes right and I haven't messed anything up in calculating then that will get me two years gold as I have other flights that will take me to the finish line that aren't runs. This will be my first TP run. Good luck in figuring out yours.

Jun 13, 2019, 12:14 am

#1937

Misco60

Join Date: Oct 2015

Location: Vale of Glamorgan

Programs: BAEC Gold

Posts: 2,987

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brad Perrow

Afternoon Everyone!

Have I had fun reading through all the posts, so much to learn..... that being said I would really like to do a TP run to try and hit gold - can anyone help point me in the right direction or spend a little bit of time with me to get my first run under my belt?

1. I earn around 3-325 a year organically
2. collection year ends 08/01/2020
3. I would ideally like to keep costs down (wouldn't we all) but around the £1500 mark would be a good place to be
4. Yes based in London, and very open to ex-EU
5. locations - I'm very open. I liked the look of the one Hula1973 proposed hitting New York, Los Angeles etc

You should perhaps be asking yourself why you want to attain Gold, when that status offers little more than Silver does. You get a dedicated check-in and security area, a (slightly) better lounge at a small number of airports and a few more Avios. Is it really worth spending £1500 for? (And, in fact, you won't get Gold for £1500 - it will be nearer £2500 once you consider positioning flights, hotels and the additional costs of being away from home).

What I would do in your situation is to plan a TP run for January or February 2020 (i.e., just after your TP collection year ends). If you can get 600 TPs - and that's not difficult - you'll then be Silver until the end of February 2022. That would be good value for money.

One of the easiest TP runs is Bucharest (OTP) to Phoenix (PHX). Flight timings are good, and hotels are inexpensive in both cities. A basic OTP-LHR-JFK-PHX and back will get you 720 TPs for around £1400 plus the costs of positioning flights and hotels. This deal isn't yet available for dates in 2020:

Category 3: Seasonal restrictions
INBOUND -
PERMITTED 21DEC 18 THROUGH 02JAN 19 OR 14APR 19 THROUGH
21APR 19 OR 01JUL 19 THROUGH 31AUG 19 FOR EACH
TRANSATLANTIC SECTOR.
OUTBOUND -
PERMITTED 22DEC 18 THROUGH 06JAN 19 OR 14APR 19 THROUGH
22APR 19 OR 01JUL 19 THROUGH 31AUG 19 FOR EACH
TRANSATLANTIC SECTOR.

Keep a watch on the fare, using Matrix, and be prepared to book as soon as dates for 2020 are made available.

craigthemif likes this.

Jun 13, 2019, 1:17 am

#1938

memesweeper

Join Date: Jan 2016

Location: South East England

Programs: Status with BA Exec Club; KrisFlyer; Hilton Honors; IHG One; Marriott Bonvoy

Posts: 543

Quote:

Originally Posted by Misco60

You also get to force-open Avios availability in economy and get your entire party seated together when on multiple bookings. That’s worth a lot over two years for some families. It all depends on anticipated future travel plans...

Jun 13, 2019, 2:40 am

#1939

alex67500

Join Date: Apr 2012

Location: LON

Programs: Mucci, BAEC, Eurostar

Posts: 3,277

Quote:

Originally Posted by memesweeper

You also get to force-open Avios availability in economy (...)

Actually if I may, there is more Avios availability for you in economy, and you can force open Avios availability in any class at double the Avios. I've found it confusing when I first read the benefits, but GPR can be done in any cabin.

Jun 16, 2019, 9:37 am

#1940

IanWorthington

Join Date: Jan 2014

Location: BOGish. VLCish. It's complicated.

Programs: BA

Posts: 660

Thanks to @kingcole974 for your suggestion to add in DFW in my LON...BOG routing to total 640 TPs. An expensive (and tedious: two long stopovers) way to earn TPs, but if that's the destination one needs then that's a good way to make the best of it!

Thanks again,

Ian

Jun 16, 2019, 9:40 am

#1941

kingcole974

Join Date: Dec 2013

Location: Shoreham By Sea

Programs: BAEC Gold

Posts: 1,313

Quote:

Originally Posted by IanWorthington

Glad I was able to suggest something useful. I admit the timings were awful, especially coming back!

Jun 16, 2019, 2:34 pm

#1942

timjwoodall

Join Date: Jun 2019

Programs: BAEC Gold

Posts: 4

Good evening,
This is my first post on Flyertalk but I have been reviewing the forum for a while. I'm now on the verge of booking my first TP run and I'm looking at the ever popular OTP-PHX route. I've found a pretty good fare. I'm having difficulty (as this is my first post and it's restricted) adding in the link but essentially outbound is Thursday 8th August and routing is OTP-LHR-JFK-LAX-PHX. Total cost is coming to £1,404. Return is on the 18th and same routing in reverse.

However, for the trans-con part from JFK to LAX, I would like to try and get 210 points which according to the BA TP calculator is F & A fare class. I've tried but failed to find a way in ITA to specify that this is the case just for this leg. Does anybody know how to bring this up on ITA?

Thanks,

Tim

Jun 16, 2019, 3:18 pm

#1943

BA707

Join Date: Sep 2018

Programs: BA Gold

Posts: 136

Quote:

Originally Posted by timjwoodall

However, for the trans-con part from JFK to LAX, I would like to try and get 210 points which according to the BA TP calculator is F & A fare class. I've tried but failed to find a way in ITA to specify that this is the case just for this leg. Does anybody know how to bring this up on ITA?

You won't be able to get F/A classes on an I fare basis ticket (business)

Jun 16, 2019, 9:54 pm

#1944

webstereo

Join Date: Jun 2017

Programs: BAEC Gold

Posts: 383

For those of whom booked the OTP-PHX run and travelled in Easter (or around that time) of this year - when did that fare become available? I note that the fare does not seem to be available next year so far.

Jun 17, 2019, 1:29 am

#1945

sunshinebob

Join Date: Jan 2007

Location: living near Malaga

Programs: BA Gold , Mucci recipient. Coffee Drinker, Blue Sky Thinker

Posts: 2,105

Quote:

Originally Posted by webstereo

Flew it this Easter, booked it 15th August last year.

SkiSunday likes this.

Jun 17, 2019, 3:10 am

#1946

onobond

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Nov 2008

Programs: AA EXP/LTP, BA GGL/CCR/GfL, HH D/LTD, SPG/MR Plat/LTP

Posts: 10,075

Quote:

Originally Posted by sunshinebob

Quote:

Originally Posted by webstereo

Flew it this Easter, booked it 15th August last year.

IIRC, the 'proper' Easter travel validity interval was amended around mid-August, before that the same dates for "Easter" travel for 2018 had been altered just for the year, and as Easter was very early 2018, and rather late this year. They must have discovered that many discounted I fare tickets were sold out of the actual Easter interval. My impression is that new dates are entered later now than just one or two years ago. Whilst Easter varies from late March to late April, Thanksgiving has a solid place in November, and the summer period July-Aug is also stationary, although previously, June was also included.

My advice is to wait one or two months. Personally, I'd be surprised not to see this fare available around the same dates as previous years.

Edit: Easter is 9 days earlier in 2020, compared to 2019

Jun 17, 2019, 5:18 am

#1947

peter h

Join Date: Mar 2018

Location: London

Posts: 865

Quote:

Originally Posted by webstereo

Travelled over Easter - booked last November.

Jun 17, 2019, 8:25 am

#1948

heman

Join Date: Dec 2012

Location: OSL

Programs: BA Gold, SQ Silver, LH, AF

Posts: 147

Hi, I have enough TPs thanks to a few trips with Qatar incl some business class flights. However, I still need two BA eligible flights. Based in Norway, and everything seems super expensive for at least July and August.

Does anyone have any suggestions or know of routes that tend to be cheaper for BA/Iberia ex Northern Europe? Ideally, to Italy or France in the first week of July or the first two weeks of Aug will be great.

Thanks!

Last edited by heman; Jun 17, 2019 at 8:27 am Reason: formatting