Sam

The weather has turned, and it's already too cold for me. I'm not built for winter. I need a holiday. Conveniently (for me at least), BA Holidays has brought back its Pay with Avios boost. Until 23:59 on Tuesday 13 October, British Airways Club members get 33% more value from their Avios when they use them as part payment on a package. This time the offer is for holidays between 5 January and 30 September 2027. If you were hoping to knock some money off using Avios for a Christmas or New Year...

I'm a big fan of this announcement. Terminal 5 has frankly always been rubbish for non-BA lounges, with just the pokey Club Aspire lounge for those of us not able to access the Galleries lounge. In recent weeks we had confirmation that the Club Aspire lounge will be renovated, expanded, and turned into a No. 1 lounge, so that's one tick. Now we have confirmation that American Express is going to open one of its Centurion Lounges in Terminal 5. This will be the second Centurion Lounge in the...

If you want Avios from a hotel stay, the usual move is Avios Hotels. Book through it and you collect 10 Avios per pound on a standard booking, which is usually very good. Until 15 October there's a better option. Book through Rocketmiles with a Qatar Airways Privilege Club account and you'll get a 75% Avios bonus, pushing it above the earn rate of Avios Hotels. We've got a London hotel we need to book this month, so I ran the same room through both for the dates we need, and Rocketmiles wins...