Flights from 6,000 points: 6 ways you can maximize the current 30% American Express transfer bonus to Avios

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Editor’s note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information and offers.

British Airways Avios has long been one of my favorite airline currencies. They have a slew of great redemptions — even for U.S.-based flyers.

Until Aug. 31, you can pick up Avios awards at a discount thanks to a 30% transfer bonus from American Express Membership Rewards to British Airways Executive Club. This means points transfer at a 1:1.3 transfer ratio, giving you a great discount on Avios award tickets.

It’s easy to earn lots of Membership Rewards points with cards like The Platinum Card® from American Express and the American Express® Gold Card.

Here are the six best ways to maximize the Avios transfer bonus for flights worldwide. Remember, points transfer in increments of 1,000, so you may need to transfer slightly more points than required for an award. This is reflected throughout the article.

Book Qatar Airways’ famous Qsuite business class

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British Airways offers low-priced Qatar Airways awards booked with Avios. Coupled with the 30% Amex transfer bonus, you can leverage this to get an excellent deal on flights from the U.S. to the Middle East in Qatar Airways’ famous Qsuite, one of the world’s best business-class seats.

All Qatar Airways flights from the U.S. — everywhere from New York to Los Angeles — to Doha, Qatar, cost just 70,000 Avios one-way in business class with roughly $100 in taxes and fees. During the transfer bonus, you can transfer just 54,000 Amex points to British Airways to book this award, making it one of the best ways to book this business-class product with points and miles.

Related: Close to perfect: Qatar Qsuite on a 777-300ER from Doha to New York

Book cheap cross-border and domestic flights

MASSIMILIANO PIERACCINI/SHUTTERSTOCK

One of the best ways to use Avios in the U.S. is to book flights with American Airlines and Alaska Airlines. BA’s distance-based award chart makes short- and mid-haul domestic flights relatively cheap, often beating out the AAdvantage award chart.

Flights within North America start at 7,500 Avios — 6,000 Amex points with the transfer bonus — for economy flights less than 650 miles. Then, flights between 651 and 1,151 miles cost just 9,000 Avios (or 7,000 Amex points with the bonus).

This deal is great for saving money on expensive short-haul flights from the U.S. to Canada and Mexico on peak dates when travel is expensive, like Thanksgiving and the winter holidays. Just remember that saver award space has to be available to book with Avios.

Related: 6 award chart ‘sweet spots’ that will save you money on domestic flights

Fly to Europe in Iberia business class

CHRISTIAN KRAMER/THE POINTS GUY

Another excellent way to redeem Avios is by booking off-peak Iberia flights from the U.S. to Madrid.

These flights cost 34,000 Avios one-way in business class on off-peak dates, or just 27,000 Amex points with the current bonus. This pricing is valid on flights from Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (ORD) and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK).

You’ll find a solid business-class cabin with lie-flat seats and premium dining on board. It’s a great way to spend the short flight from the East Coast or Midwest to Spain, and you can continue your journey on a connecting flight out of Madrid for marginally more Avios.

However, even though this is an Iberia-operated flight, your best bet is to transfer your Amex Membership Rewards points to British Airways Avios — not Iberia Avios. (Our tests show that Amex transfers to Iberia Plus don’t process instantly.) Then, you can either book directly through BA or transfer your Avios to Iberia and book the award on Iberia’s website.

Related: Sweet Spot Sunday: Fly business class to Europe from 34,000 Avios each way

West coast to Hawaii for 10,000 points

CLINT HENDERSON/THE POINTS GUY

Planning a trip to Hawaii? West Coast-based travelers can use British Airways’ distance-based award chart to book one-way flights to Hawaii for 13,000 Avios in economy — just 10,000 Amex points with the transfer bonus. You can book these flights on both American and Alaska on the BA website.

The trick is to keep your flights between 2,001 and 3,000 miles to get this pricing. Thankfully, this includes most flights from the West Coast to Hawaii, including from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA).

Related: The best ways to get to Hawaii using points and miles

South and Central America with American

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Of the major U.S. airlines, American Airlines has long offered the most service to Central and South America. It serves nearly every major city in the two regions, with most service from its Dallas and Miami hubs.

Short- and mid-haul flights from these regions can be an excellent deal when combined with the transfer bonus. You can book them for as little as 11,000 Avios in economy or 22,000 in business class. This drops to just 9,000 and 17,000 Amex points, respectively, with the current transfer bonus.

Some interesting routes in this price range include flights from Miami International Airport (MIA) to the following destinations:

Longer routes will cost marginally more Avios, depending on where they fall on the BA partner award chart.

Related: Every American Airlines premium seat ranked from best to worst

NICKY KELVIN/THE POINTS GUY

Aer Lingus is a Dublin-based airline and the flag carrier of Ireland. You can use the Irish carrier to visit Ireland or continue elsewhere in Europe on a connecting flight.

Further, Aer Lingus is owned by the same company as British Airways, so you’re not subject to the partner award chart. You can leverage this to score excellent deals on off-peak tickets.

For example, you’d redeem just 13,000 Avios in economy and 50,000 Avios in business class for a flight to Dublin Airport (DUB) from any of the following gateways:

This translates to just 10,000 Amex points in economy and 39,000 in business class with the transfer bonus.

Just note that we’re seeing abnormally high taxes and fees when booking Aer Lingus flights through British Airways, but Avios.com appears to have the correct amounts. As a result, you may want to call BA to see if they can price the flight(s) correctly — or, otherwise, use Avios.com to book these awards.

Related: 3 versions of Avios: When to use Aer Lingus, Iberia and British Airways

Earning Amex Membership Rewards points

The easiest way to earn lots of Membership Rewards points is by applying for a Membership Rewards points-earning American Express card.

Here’s a look at the current welcome offer, bonus-category structure, annual fee and benefits for some of the most valuable Membership Rewards credit cards to help you choose the best Amex card.

Bottom line

The current American Express 30% transfer bonus to British Airways is a great deal, especially if you’re headed to Europe or around the U.S. on partner airlines. Once again, it shows the value of transferrable credit card points like Membership Rewards.

Look at your upcoming travel plans and see if it makes sense for you to transfer Membership Rewards to Avios during this promo — which ends on August 31.

Additional reporting by Ben Smithson.