NEWS & OFFERS: 20% Off Eurostar Redemptions, Finnair Launches New Route to Kirkenes & IHG 100% Bonus on Points Purchases

Club Eurostar Launches a Redemption Sale: 20% Off All Travel Classes

Club Eurostar has just announced a sale on reward seats for bookings made by 16:00 on 15th May for travel until 13th December.

The total number of points needed for redemptions is 20% less for all ticket types and travel classes, and there are no blackout dates. If you’ve been thinking of booking a Eurostar reward seat, now’s the best time to book!

To view the promotion, log in to your account, then click ‘use points’, then click ‘book now’ when you see the offer:

Redemption rates are as follows:

It’s also worth noting that you can book tickets for ex-Thalys services in Europe.

Here’s a reminder of the 3 Eurostar travel classes and what’s included:

You can transfer Eurostar points from American Express Membership Rewards. 1500 Membership Rewards points = 100 Eurostar point. Transfers take up to 5 days, so you’ll need to do this very soon to guarantee your points arrive in time (although most people report that they arrive earlier).

Redemptions are great value, especially in Premier. Look at the cash price of the ticket you plan to book with points. Cash prices for some times/dates are much higher, and you can get more value from your points.

The sale may not be as big as the February sale (up to 40% off), but if you book before 15th May, you’ll get the best rate on your redemption.  

Things to Note

• If your tier status entitles you to an allocation of companion vouchers, you can redeem these on Reward Tickets at the promotional rates during the Booking Period via the Contact Centre.
• You can also transfer Accor points to Club Eurostar. 2,000 Reward Points = 300 Club Eurostar Points.
• Make sure you’re set on your trip before you book. All tickets are non-refundable.
• There is no discount for using points for seat upgrades. These still start at 600 points.

Finnair Launches New Route to Kirkenes

Finnair has just launched its most northerly route from Helsinki to the Norwegian town of Kirkenes (KKN). The new route is the only international flight route to the town and makes it much easier to visit from the UK and Ireland. 

Flights from Helsinki to Kirkenes will operate 3 times per week and have been timed to allow easy connections from the UK and Ireland. Transfer times in Helsinki can be as little as 40 minutes, although some flight times have an overnight connection.

With Finnair, you can fly to Helsinki from London Heathrow (6 flights per day), Manchester (2 flights per day), and Edinburgh (up to 7 flights per week).

Kirkenes is 400 miles north of the Arctic Circle at the beginning of the Siberian Taiga. It’s one of the best destinations worldwide to experience the summer midnight sun and the starting point for Hurtigruten’s Arctic cruises.

To mark the launch, Finnair is offering limited-time discounted one-way fares. Looking at the fare calendar, there are also several reduced Business Class one-way fares for £648 with 2-3 dates per month until 24th August. The usual Business Class fare is £653-£970, with most fares priced at £672. The £648 fare is for Business Light, meaning the flight is non-refundable, and you will collect fewer Avios.

Business Flex fares start at £715.12. It’s worth noting that Business Class seats are not available on the Helsinki to Kirkenes aircraft, but Finnair will assign you the ‘closest available alternative’. However, Finnair provides an excellent Business Class product to Helsinki. You can read a review of Finnair LHR to Helsinki here (reclining seats).

I can see plenty of dates with one way Economy fares from £169. There will be more available in the coming months, but there are still a few £169 fares right up until 24th October.

View fares on the Finnair website >>>

Up to 100% More Points with IHG

IHG has launched yet another sale! When you buy 5,000 IHG points or more before 22nd May, you’ll receive a 100% bonus.

This offer is targeted, so make sure you’re eligible by logging into your account and going to ‘offers’.

Points can be redeemed for reward nights at over 6,000 hotels and resorts worldwide, including luxury brands like InterContinental, Kimpton and Hotel Indigo.:

The maximum number of points you can purchase per year is 200,000. If you haven’t bought any points so far this year, you could get up to 400,000 points (200,000 points purchased + a 200,000 bonus).

The value per point depends on how many points you buy. To get the 100% bonus, you must purchase at least 5,000 points (although you can purchase less without receiving a bonus). To get the maximum value of 0.38p per point, you will need to purchase at least 26,000 points.

Based on today’s currency conversions, points are worth:

• 5,000-10,000 points = 0.51p per point
• 11,000-25,000 points = 0.43p per point
• 26,000-200,000 points = 0.38p per point

While buying points isn’t always of great value, buying points during a promotion can be of much better value. Offers like this are very useful for adding to your points balance if you’re just short of a redemption or buying points needed for a redemption where the value of points would be cheaper than the cash rate.

For example, the Kimpton Fitzroy London costs £359 or 86,000 points on 12th June. Buying the points needed for this stay would cost £316.40, saving £42.60.

Things to Note

• Points are sold by Points.com (not IHG directly), so the purchase won’t code as ‘travel’ on your credit card.
• Points usually post immediately, but officially allow up to 72 hours.
• Purchased points and any bonus points awarded under this offer do not count towards IHG One Rewards Elite status.
• All purchases are non-refundable

This offer is one of a few IHG promotions running at the moment, including the Pick Your Points offer we wrote about here. This is one of the best points offers IHG runs, but bonus promotions run often.

Click here to buy your IHG points