Best way to Paris using Avios

[heavenlyjane]

We are trying to lock in a future trip to Paris (summer 2017) and are sitting on a huge pile of Avios.

I am getting a nice point price (52K round trip for each route; ATL-PAR), however I would love to avoid the huge fees ($1142 for Brit Air and $536 for Iberia).

Questions

1. Are there other ways to get to Paris that avoid these fees?
2. Should I move my avios to a different program, other than Brit Air or Iberia?
3. Should I fly to a different city and get to Paris from there?

Thanks for any guidance.

 

[dukerau]

We are trying to lock in a future trip to Paris (summer 2017) and are sitting on a huge pile of Avios.

I am getting a nice point price (52K round trip for each route; ATL-PAR), however I would love to avoid the huge fees ($1142 for Brit Air and $536 for Iberia).

Questions

1. Are there other ways to get to Paris that avoid these fees?
2. Should I move my avios to a different program, other than Brit Air or Iberia?
3. Should I fly to a different city and get to Paris from there?

Thanks for any guidance.

1. Aer Lingus and airberlin would avoid the fees, though could add to Avios cost due to less direct routing.
2. I imagine the Iberia flights are > 52k round trip since you'd have two stops. Moving the BA Avios to IB Avios should reduce the fuel surcharge without much change to Avios cost. For example, BA and IB both charge 32k each way for ATL-JFK-MAD-ORY (I'm assuming peak saver rates since you are looking at summer). While using BA Avios the fuel surcharge is $536 (taking your number), IB would charge ~$250 for the same itinerary. You have have to call IB to book, and if so, I'm sorry.
3. Unfortunately BA Avios just don't have good options to Europe due to fuel surcharges. Certainly focus on the TATL flights on Are Lingus (ORD-DUB, BOS-DUB, JFK-DUB) and airberlin (JFK-DUS, ORD-DUS, JFK-TXL, MIA-DUS, etc) and consider paying cash to get to Paris from one of those European arrival cities of award flights aren't available for that small flight.

 

[heavenlyjane]

1. Aer Lingus and airberlin would avoid the fees, though could add to Avios cost due to less direct routing.
2. I imagine the Iberia flights are > 52k round trip since you'd have two stops. Moving the BA Avios to IB Avios should reduce the fuel surcharge without much change to Avios cost. For example, BA and IB both charge 32k each way for ATL-JFK-MAD-ORY (I'm assuming peak saver rates since you are looking at summer). While using BA Avios the fuel surcharge is $536 (taking your number), IB would charge ~$250 for the same itinerary. You have have to call IB to book, and if so, I'm sorry.
3. Unfortunately BA Avios just don't have good options to Europe due to fuel surcharges. Certainly focus on the TATL flights on Are Lingus (ORD-DUB, BOS-DUB, JFK-DUB) and airberlin (JFK-DUS, ORD-DUS, JFK-TXL, MIA-DUS, etc) and consider paying cash to get to Paris from one of those European arrival cities of award flights aren't available for that small flight.

Thanks for this info.

I have learned from my research that if I can find a better routing with a non-BA One World partner, I can call the BA reservation line and request that they book my tickets over the phone. If that's true, I have some great options.

I will also check out Aer Lingus and Iberia.

 

[smittytabb]

You would perhaps spend less to buy tickets on Iceland Air on sale than to pay fuel surcharges on BA. Big sale to Paris right now but only through April. I suspect these prices to Europe will continue to make it foolish to burn Avios for that purpose. I recently cancelled an AA award ticket to Paris and bought the ticket on AA instead and figured the miles could better be used for another purpose with the prices this low.

 

[heavenlyjane]

You would perhaps spend less to buy tickets on Iceland Air on sale than to pay fuel surcharges on BA. Big sale to Paris right now but only through April. I suspect these prices to Europe will continue to make it foolish to burn Avios for that purpose. I recently cancelled an AA award ticket to Paris and bought the ticket on AA instead and figured the miles could better be used for another purpose with the prices this low.

That's a pretty amazing idea. We were in Iceland for a week last year and wouldn't mind another layover AT ALL.

 

[smittytabb]

That's a pretty amazing idea. We were in Iceland for a week last year and wouldn't mind another layover AT ALL.

Free stopovers Just flew them and they are getting some nice new aircraft as well. Current sale ends at midnight today. Not sure it extends to next summer as I don't think they open the schedule that far in advance. But AA and others are matching this sale and their schedule is open much further out, but perhaps not that far.

http://www.icelandair.us/special-offer/

 

[gmenrule]

2 passengers
NYC-GSP
5/16/2017
170k avois(85 each)
econ+ or FC
per BA site..no flights avail on BA or Partners....
really not sure where to start here...I KNOW AA(partner?) flies the route ...and its 11 months out..
should i first check AA avail then call BA? is that how it works?

 

[dukerau]

2 passengers
NYC-GSP
5/16/2017
170k avois(85 each)
econ+ or FC
per BA site..no flights avail on BA or Partners....
really not sure where to start here...I KNOW AA(partner?) flies the route ...and its 11 months out..
should i first check AA avail then call BA? is that how it works?

Yes, check on AA.com. There needs to be sAAver availability (cost of 12.5k AA one way) in order to be able to book with BA Avios (at a cost of 7.5k BA one way). But fair warning - if BA.com doesn't show any availability, barring a system glitch, then there isn't any sAAver availability.