Got Literally Any Airline Status? How About Hotel Status? Get a Free Status Match to Club Avolta Platinum

Sponsored by Status Match

If you hold status with almost ANY airline, or hotel chain - and we mean almost any - here's an easy win for you. Club Avolta, the loyalty programme behind the World Duty Free shops and Hudson News in the US and Canada, is running a status match that hands you 12 months of free Platinum membership.

The headline draw 10% off in participating stores, which for anyone passing through a UK airport is worth five minutes of your time to apply. But it also allows you to earn Avios in World Duty Free (including 250 bonus Avios on your first purchase), discount on lounge access, and money off car hire. Did I mention that this status match was free?

So if you want some easy Avios, 10% off a giant Toblerone, or to grab a nice bottle of whiskey that you're definitely not going to open on the plane, then this is what you need to know.

Who are Avolta?

You might not recognise the Avolta name, but you've almost certainly shopped with them. Avolta is one of the world's largest travel retail operators, running over 5,100 outlets across 70+ countries under five brands: World Duty Free (the one you'll know best from UK airports), Hellenic Duty Free Shops across Greece, Hudson convenience stores across the US and Canada, Duty Free Shop in Argentina, and Autogrill food and beverage outlets in airports and motorways worldwide.

Club Avolta is their loyalty programme sitting across all five, so your Platinum status works whether you're browsing the perfume section at World Duty Free in Heathrow, or picking up some snacks at Hudson in a US airport.

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What do you actually get with Club Avolta Platinum?

First off, you get 10% off purchases at participating Avolta outlets. If you add that discount to the already discounted prices you see in duty free, the savings add up quickly. Tobacco is excluded, as are arrivals stores (the ones you see just as you exit baggage collection), but it'll apply for that last minute gift you get your wife, that you totally didn't mean to get sooner.

For Points Well Made readers though, the more interesting benefit is the Avios angle, and this one doesn't even require Club Avolta Platinum. Link your Club Avolta account to your British Airways Club account and you'll earn 1 Avios per £1 spent at Heathrow and Spanish Duty Free stores, on top of your 10% discount. You'll also get 250 bonus Avios, just connect your BA Club and Club Avolta accounts and make a single purchase (full T's&C's here)

If you don't have lounge access through a credit card or airline status, Club Avolta Platinum gets you 15% off at No 1 Airport Lounges across the UK. This not only includes No1 Lounges, but also My Lounge, Clubrooms and Club Aspire. The No 1 Clubrooms product at Heathrow T3 and Gatwick in particular is worth knowing about if you haven't tried it; it's a table service experience rather than the standard help-yourself buffet.

There are two other paid lounge access benefits worth knowing about. DragonPass airport lounge visits are available at $31 (£23) per visit, up to three times per year, and Plaza Premium lounges worldwide are discounted by 25%, again up to three times a year. Neither makes lounge access free, but if you're paying out of pocket for a lounge visit anyway, this is an easy way to save some money.

Finally, Platinum members can match their Club Avolta status across to Avis Preferred President's Club, which comes with 10% off car hire and priority service.

How does it work?

Sign up for a free Club Avolta account (click here), then head to Status Match (click here) and submit your application. You'll need to upload proof of your existing status (a screenshot of your membership card or app will do), and you should hear back within three business days.

There's no application fee and no strings attached. Once approved, you get 12 months of Platinum status.

A familiar sight

Which airline programmes qualify for Club Avolta Status?

The eligible list is honestly too long (you can find the full list here), so here are the programmes most relevant to UK travellers, along with the status tiers that qualify:

Airline	Programme	Eligible Tiers
British Airways	Club	Bronze, Silver, Gold, Gold Guest List, Premier
Virgin Atlantic	Flying Club	Silver, Gold
Emirates	Skywards	Silver, Gold, Platinum
Lufthansa	Miles & More	Frequent Traveller, Senator, HON Circle
Air France / KLM	Flying Blue	Silver, Gold, Platinum, Ultimate
Finnair	Plus	Silver, Gold, Platinum, Platinum Lumo
SAS	EuroBonus	Silver, Gold, Diamond, Pandion
Iberia	Iberia Plus	Plata, Oro, Platino, Infinita, Infinita Prime
TAP Air Portugal	Miles&Go	Silver, Gold, Navigator
Aegean Airlines	Miles+Bonus	Silver, Gold
Turkish Airlines	Miles&Smiles	Classic Plus, Elite, Elite Plus
Qatar Airways	Privilege Club	Silver, Gold, Platinum
Etihad	Guest	Silver, Gold, Platinum
Singapore Airlines	KrisFlyer	Silver, Gold, PPS, PPS Solitaire
Cathay Pacific	Cathay	Silver, Gold, Diamond, Diamond Plus
Delta Air Lines	SkyMiles	Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Delta 360
United Airlines	MileagePlus	Premier Silver, Premier Gold, Premier Platinum, Premier 1K, Global Services
American Airlines	AAdvantage	Gold, Platinum, Platinum Pro, Executive Platinum, Concierge Key
Qantas	Frequent Flyer	Silver, Gold, Platinum, Platinum One, Chairman's Lounge
Alaska Airlines	Atmos Rewards	Gold, Platinum, Silver, Titanium

What about hotel status?

Hotel afficienados aren't left out either. The following programmes qualify, again covering the ones most likely to be held by UK readers (full list here):

Hotel Group	Programme	Eligible Tiers
Marriott	Bonvoy	Gold Elite, Platinum Elite, Titanium Elite, Ambassador Elite
Hilton	Hilton Honors	Gold, Diamond
IHG	IHG One Rewards	Gold Elite, Platinum Elite, Diamond Elite, Royal Ambassador
Hyatt	World of Hyatt	Discoverist, Explorist, Globalist
Accor	ALL	Diamond, Gold, Platinum
Radisson	Radisson Rewards	Club, Premium, VIP

The biggest difference compared to the list of airlines, is that the lowest entry tiers with some hotel programmes, such as Marriott Silver Elite, Hilton Silver, IHG Silver Elite etc, don't qualify.

As you can earn Hilton or Marriott Gold Elite just by holding the either the Hilton Honors Plus debit card, Marriott Bonvoy Premium debit card, or get both with the American Express Platinum Card, matching it to Club Avolta is an easy way to get even more perks.

If you've travelled to North America, you'll definitely recognise Hudson

Is this status match to Club Avolta worth doing?

If you have any kind of status, even lowly Bronze on BA or Silver on Virgin Atlantic, then there's no reason not to apply. In its most basic form, this is a 10% discount at duty free, but add in being able to collect Avios (including 250 free Avios), and lounge discounts it's a bit of a no brainer to squeeze a bit more from your loyalty.

Sign up for a free Club Avolta account (click here), then head to Status Match (click here) and submit your application.

Sam

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