An Air Miles challenge - can anyone help?

[JRM]

I'm hoping that some of you experienced travellers can help unravel a little challenge for me.

I'm trying to the find the cheapest and maybe best class of travel using up all my BA miles, companion tickets and maybe Amex points and am struggling to find the best combination.

The basics: I live in Sydney and want a return flight to the UK in April next year with wife, a 5 year old and 18 month old.
BA (UK) Airmiles - 107,000
BA Companion tickets - 2 (one expires in Dec 2010 though)
Amex points - 38000

There is (as always) no availability on membership reward flights Sydney-LHR and I have been told that I can only use my companion tickets on journeys from the UK as they are on my UK account and can't be transferred - does anyone know if that is true?
Ideally I would have used the 2 companion tickets Syd-LHR return and got myself a bargain, but that's not likely now as we can't travel before Dec and so I'm facing a huge flight cost now.


So, I might just book standard economy return flights from Sydney and then use the companion ticket and miles to get one of the adults and the 2 children into business on the return leg to Hong Kong, but I'm hoping someone can come up with more cost effective option, that actually saves me some money

Booking one-way portions is a killer, so that looks unlikely, I just don't know if it is worth me moving all my points to other airlines and trying them.

Are there any Air Mile/Companion ticket gurus out there?

Thanks!

[GCH]

You should post the same question here for far more detailed advice than I can give-: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/british-airways-exe...

Yes you are correct that UK amex 2-4-1s can only be used for tickets starting in the uk- either one way or return.

One possible current way I can think of would be for you and your wife to take out a BMI credit card each, which at the moment gives 25000 BMI miles each. You could use these for cash + miles one way business tickets to the UK (many options for this on some decent star alliance carriers), and then to get back you could use your BA miles and 2-4-1 all the way,part of the way, one way or return.. remember that some BA redemption rates are changing in november too. Loads of ways of doing this, so I really do suggest you post on flyertalk

JRM said:

Booking one-way portions is a killer, so that looks unlikely,

Nothing to stop you 'missing' the return flight on a return booking which works out far cheaper than booking one ways

Edited by GCH on Friday 28th October 12:45

[JRM]

Actually that's a good reminder. I did cape town to Frankfurt via Hearhrow once and just got off at Heathrow and saved a fair bit. I might have a scan around

[sneijder]

JRM said:

Actually that's a good reminder. I did cape town to Frankfurt via Hearhrow once and just got off at Heathrow and saved a fair bit. I might have a scan around

Airlines demand that handling agents refuse to tag bags to anything other than a final destination now, unless there's a customs issue.

Wear all your clothes.

[JRM]

Yes true, I did travel with hand luggage only that time - might struggle this time with the whole family!