Airmile- scheme now changed!

julliff

Hi,

I usually save airmiles each year, and put it towards part payment to our holiday to Texas each year. I haven't ever had enough to pay completely with airmiles, but I do manage tosave about £300 using the part miles option.

However, they seem to have changed the schem so that yu can no longer pay part airmiles,/part cash. flights to Dallas are now a flat 8000 miles, which includes the taxes.

On top of that, the dates I want (in the school holiday) don't have any airmiles deals on them at all, and only a full cash option is available.

Airmiles have said that:
"the decision to alter the AIRMILES scheme came as a result of feedback from our customers, who said they would prefer simplicity and value". Nobody asked me!!

Well, quite simply, there seems no point in me saving airmiles anymore, and I might as well cancel my airmiles CC, as it will take me a bout 3 years to save anough for just one ticket (and it will probably have gone up by then anyway).

I am gutted, as I have done all my clubcard points into airmiles, for nothing.

Does anyone else think this is a change for the better? Is there another scheme that will allow me to save for flights to Dallas?

Many thanks

exel1966

Airmiles are extremely poor value in any case due to the excessive admin fees they charge.
99/100 it is possible to find a flight/holiday costing exactly the same or cheaper without the need for miles.
The only time miles have been useful is for purchasing items without the admin fees such as car hire/hotel room/wine or other items.

The only thing airmiles could do to change for the better is to start charging realistic prices and that's unlikely to happen.

franklally

I have used airmiles for at least 15 years now and have had some great trips with them that I would not have usually been able to afford.

I booked my holidays for 2008 before the system had changed. I have noticed the flightchecker shows up no availability for most popular dates - but when you put in specific dates under 'flights' there is availability - perhaps if you try this with a selection of dates you will get lucky.

I've found the callcentre very helpful - they may offer you a part payment/miles deal.

Good luck -

melancholly

hmm..... i got an airmiles statement over Christmas and was pleased that the prices now seemed to include all taxes in the miles price - i hadn't realised that the cash part-payment option had been removed...... you can still do it for car hire (which i've used more than flights tbh).

BernadetteN

The cash part payment is still there for Eurostar - I have just booked 1 adult and 3 kids from Kent to Brussels for 3100+ Airmiles plus £15 extra. The cash value saving is £190 so considering the Airmiles cost nothing and were exchanged from around £80 worth of Tesco points about 5 years ago (when you got loads more miles for Tesco points than you do now) I really think we still got a bargain.

When I checked on flights to Brussels last week, instead of Eurostar, the part cash payment was available on that too so maybe it's only certain routes.

Airmiles can be very poor value sometimes thought and I wouldn't exchange my Tesco points for Airmiles now.

TallGirl

I like Airmiles I have family in Denmark and we get in effect two free fligths a year by just paying taxes etc. Now that the tax is included the miles have gone up from 600/700 to 1500 but to me that is OK.

Would like to try to book ferries through them but the site does not say how much you can save or how many miles you can earn. Does anyone know I am looking to book DFSD Harwich to Esbjerg. Thanks

franklally

Does anyone know I am looking to book DFSD Harwich to Esbjerg. Thanks[/quote]

Have you seen today's travelzoo mini-break to Esbjerg?
http://uk.travelzoo.com/top20/377507-353678/:T

pinkteddybear

I'm disappointed to read this.

I am saving my Tesco points up (only about 1300 or so up to now) to convert to Airmiles so that we can knock a few quid off our flights to Bangkok this summer.

That's the main thing I want my clubcard points for.

There is no way we could save enough points to fly to Thailand without using cash as part of the deal.

I may as well stop using my clubcard if this is true.

richardw

exel1966 wrote: »

excessive admin fees they charge.

Can't find any details on this.

How much are they for a 1500 miles flight?

exel1966

You know as well as I do that Airmiles had excessive fees attached to their flights so I don't see what point you are trying to make here ? Maybe that's why they changed the system as they realised they weren't given customers a good deal or value for miles/money. As Airmiles said themselves in their statement "they would prefer simplicity and value"
A simple LHR - CDG flight would have admin fees and charges of approx £50 attached to them. Excessive when you consider flights can easily be found less that that without the need for the miles.
AIRMILES do NOT give Value for Money in my opinion.

richardw

Airmiles have played around with zones, so some short flights can now need more miles, ie BA LON-NCE, definitely worth logging in to your BA Exec account to see if flights are on half miles special offer, LON-NCE sometimes goes to 4500 BA miles.

Still a bit confused about airmiles admin charges though.