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How do I book a reward ticket on Aer Lingus with Avios miles?

How do I book a reward ticket on Aer Lingus with Avios miles?
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Since a few days, it is possible to book tickets on the new flight of the Irish company Aer Lingus: Montreal – Dublin. And it is possible to use miles!

Booking an award ticket on Aer Lingus

Aer Lingus, an Irish member of Oneworld, will operate a flight between Dublin and Montreal beginning in August 2019. The flight will be operated on a single-aisle aircraft – a brand-new Airbus A321 LR – with not only an economy class but also a business class with seat-beds.

aer lingus a321lr

While Aer Lingus has begun selling tickets, you should know that it is also possible to use British Airways Club Avios miles… although the process is (very) far from simple at the moment.

british airways club

Search via British Airways Club

As Aer Lingus is part of the IAG group of airlines (British Airways, Iberia…) it would be natural to find award tickets directly on the British Airways Club portal. Well… no!

Look at a search for August 19, 2019 (you will see later that this is a date available via other methods): British Airways is unable to show me the direct flight… so they offer me a connection in London with British Airways.

research ba yul dub available

Please note that the British Airways Club portal will not allow you to book Aer Lingus flights online.

Search via Avios.com

If we can’t book on British Airways Club, let’s turn to the Avios.com portal, which is the portal for all Avios member programs (British Airways Club, Iberia Plus…).

avios portal

But first, you need to create an Avios.com account… which is different from your British Airways Club account!

Create an Avios.com account with Aer Lingus

The easiest way to get an avios.com account is through the Aer Lingus website, via their Aer Club program! What’s in it for me? Unlike British Airways Club, Aer Lingus shares the same credentials as Avios.com for its Aer Club loyalty program.

aer club

Link your British Airways Club and Avios.com accounts

Once your Avios.com account is created, go to British Airways Club to link your British Airways Club, Iberia Plus and Avios.com accounts… so you can freely transfer your Avios miles from one account to the other via the « combine my Avios » feature!


combine avios
Here is an example of a transfer to Avios.com from British Airways Executive Club (to ultimately book on Aer Lingus). You have to choose your program, then you have to enter your identifiers and finally the amount of Avios. We receive an email and the transfer is instantaneous. Of course, the details of the accounts must match.


program selection
first step in the transfer of Avios: identification
choice amount
second step: choose the amount and the direction of transfer
before trasnfert
third step: final validation
ba avios transfer
last step: confirmation
result avios
on the Avios website you can see that the balance is updated automatically


Aer Lingus award tickets on avios.com

Now that you’ve gone through the whole process, let’s search for an Aer Lingus award ticket on Avios.com (you can see: « 
Pay for flights with these carriers using Avios: Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia
« ).

research avios yul dub

And then… unfortunately, the flights will not be displayed! Same result as with British Airways Club with a flight via London for 24,500 Avios miles and $325 one way!

research avios yul dub calendar

I know, at this very moment, you are angry with me!

In fact, for some reason, the Dublin – Montreal flight is NOT showing up on Avios.com. Unlike other destinations already served by the Irish company, such as Toronto – Dublin(20,000 miles and $183 one way):

research avios yyz dub calendar

So it’s only a matter of time before the YUL-DUB flight is displayed… so you haven’t done all this process in vain!

Well, if the flight YUL-DUB is not displayed on British Airways Club, nor on Avios.com… how can I find it? Here are 2 methods.

Search via United

Strange as it may seem, United, a Star Alliance airline, has a partnership with Aer Lingus. This allows United’s site to display award tickets available on Aer Lingus! And like Aeroplan award flights, United is definitely the BEST site to search for award availability quickly with its 2-month calendar feature!

To do this, you will need to set up the search as follows:

  • YUL-DUB
  • Non-stop flight
  • Flexible search
search united yul dub

Bingo! It’s simple: there is availability every day in economy class between August 8, 2019 until the end of the schedule available at the time of this writing, September 6, 2019.

Availability is displayed: points for business class, lines for economy class!

research united yul dub calendar

Take the example of August 19, 2019, available in both economy and business class in the « Saver Reward » category, which is the one available to all Aer Lingus partner airlines.

search united yul dub available

Now that we know that seats are available on this flight, all you have to do is call British Airways Club to make a reservation.

Search via Expertflyer

The other method is via the excellent professional website Expertflyer. If you travel frequently, we encourage you to purchase an annual license (US$99). In many cases, Expertflyer has been very helpful:

  • Award ticket availability alert: you set up alerts on specific flights, and Expertflyer will monitor for you by sending you an email when a seat becomes available
  • Alert for availability of a specific seat
  • Information on the occupancy of an aircraft: this makes it possible to estimate whether award tickets will eventually be « released
  • Real time access to the cabin plan (which also allows to see the filling)
  • MPM calculation: this makes it easy to see if our Aeroplan « mini-tour » of the world is working
  • And many other features

For example, here is an automated email from Expertflyer to notify the availability of a flight on Thai in First Class.

thai f expertflyer

This is certainly not the tool we would recommend to the casual traveler. However, if you use your miles several times a year, you should think about it!

There is also a free 5-day trial.

Via Expertflyer, you can search for a flight within +/- 3 days to check availability. Here is the configuration:

aer lingus expertflyer

And this is what it looks like for flights in August 2019 on Aer Lingus between YUL-DUB: at least 4 economy seats available.

aer lingus dispo expertflyer

Calling the British Airways Club

Once you have your flights (and your British Airways Club Avios miles in your account), the last step is to call British Airways Club.

It’s no picnic: the call can be long, very long. This will often be done in English, as French speakers at British Airways seem to be counted on the fingers of one hand. We advise you to call during off-peak hours in North America (Eastern time): 06-08h / 15-17h. If you have Skype, try your luck on Asian or French (France) numbers.

You will only need to mention your flights to the agent who should be able to book them. Since you could not technically do it online, you will not be charged a fee for booking by phone.

Lucky from Onemileatatime confirmed this:


I’ve called British Airways to verify that the availability is actually as it seems (British Airways doesn’t allow Aer Lingus redemptions online), and it indeed is. A one-way business class redemption from Montreal to Dublin shortly after the flight launches is pricing at 37,500 Avios plus $US 69 in taxes.

The rate in air miles is therefore:

  • 10,000 to 12,500 avios miles (low/high season) in economy class
  • 31,250 to 37,500 air miles (low / high season) in business class

Romain, in the facebook group « Travel for free (or almost…!) with your points & miles – milesopedia » was also able to book his tickets by phone using his avios miles. He writes:


I booked for 2 adults and 1 child in August for 75000 avios and $427.

That’s 25,000 air miles and $142 in taxes for a round trip between Montreal and Dublin in economy. A very nice deal!

How do I get airline miles in Canada?

In Canada, there are 3 ways to earn Avios miles.

Business Platinum Card® from American Express

Earn Avios miles with American Express Membership Rewards

British Airways Club is a transfer partner of the American Express Membership Rewards program.

You can transfer your Membership Rewards points to Avios miles at a 1:1 rate. So 10,000 Membership Rewards points = 10,000 Avios miles.

And regularly conversion promotions take place! The last one: 30% more airline miles. So 10,000 Membership Rewards points = 13,000 Avios miles.

These 4 American Express cards offer Membership Rewards points:

Please note that although the American Express Cobalt Card offers Membership Rewards points, they are part of the « Select » range: they are not transferable to airline partners such as British Airways Club (only to hotel partners such as Marriott Bonvoy).

book with rbc rewards fr2x

Earn Avios miles with RBC Rewards

Like American Express, the RBC Rewards program allows you to transfer RBC points to Avios miles at a 1:1 rate. So 10,000 RBC Rewards points = 10,000 Avios miles.

Also, regular transfer promotions take place, between 20 and 30%.

img 0008

Earn airline miles with Marriott Bonvoy

Last but not least, Marriott Bonvoy. The hotel program allows you to transfer your Marriott rewards points into Avios miles at a 3:1 rate. For example, 30,000 Marriott points = 10,000 Avios miles.

In addition, for every 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points transferred, Marriott adds a 5,000 mile bonus. For example, 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points = 20,000 + 5,000 Avios miles.

In Canada, it is of course possible to earn Marriott Bonvoy points with the American Express Marriott Bonvoy cards:

It is also possible to earn Marriott Bonvoy points with the 4 American Express Membership Rewards cards (the transfer rate is 5:6 or 50,000 Membership Rewards points = 60,000 Marriott points)

But the best solution is… the American Express Cobalt Card!

In fact, like its « big sisters », it allows you to transfer your Select Membership Rewards points at a 5:6 transfer rate. But it is the card that allows you to accumulate the most points on certain common categories of businesses such as grocery stores, restaurants, convenience stores (read: gift cards). At these stores you will earn 5 Membership Rewards points per dollar… that’s the equivalent of 6 Marriott Bonvoy points.

And if your ultimate goal is to earn Avios miles: these 6 Marriott Bonvoy points equal 2 Avios miles!

So, for every dollar you spend at grocery stores, restaurants, and convenience stores with the American Express Cobalt Card, you get… 2 Avios miles! No card will do better, not even the RBC British Airways card!

Bottom Line

So it is possible to book an award ticket with Avios miles on Aer Lingus… but you’ll have to be patient. We hope that Avios.com will soon display the Montreal-Dublin flight… as the Toronto-Dublin flight is displayed!

Annual fee
$191.88
Our valuation
$255
Milesopedia first-year estimateFirst-year valueWelcome bonus$255Total$255Rewards on your spending are not included. The calculator that adds them from your own profile is on the card's page.
Welcome offer
Up to 15,000 points
Apply Now

on American Express's website

Apply with confidence — no impact on your credit scoreApply with confidenceCheck whether your application will be approved before you submit it, with no impact on your credit score*When you apply for a personal American Express Credit Card, we will tell you whether you are eligible without affecting your credit score. So you can apply with confidence.*Instant decisions are only available for consumer Card applications (also called “personal Cards”).

The American Express Cobalt® Card is the best credit card from American Express, whether you want points for travel or cash back.

American Express Cobalt® Card welcome offer

The welcome bonus is paid out monthly over your first 12 months. You earn 1,250 Membership Rewards points for each monthly billing period in which you charge $750 in net purchases to your card, in any category (1X, 2X, 3X or 5X). That adds up to 15,000 Membership Rewards points over the year, a welcome offer we value at $255.

Earning the full bonus means $9,000 in net purchases spread across 12 monthly billing periods. This offer rewards steady monthly spending rather than one large purchase.

You can use these points as statement credits on everyday or travel purchases, at the same rate either way: 1,000 points = $10.

You can also transfer them to Aeroplan, Avios (British Airways and Qatar Airways), Flying Blue, Marriott Bonvoy or Hilton Honors. With the full welcome bonus, that is a choice between:

  • 15,000 Aeroplan points
  • 15,000 Avios points
  • 15,000 Flying Blue Miles
  • 18,000 Marriott Bonvoy points

If hotel points are what you are after, our ultimate guide to Marriott Bonvoy and our complete map of Marriott Bonvoy hotels by category show what those points can actually buy.

American Express Cobalt® Card benefits

Here is what the card gives you, starting with the benefits cardholders use most.

  • 5X points on eligible eats and drinks in Canada: groceries, restaurants and bars, home food delivery and convenience stores. A spend cap applies.
  • 3X points on eligible streaming subscriptions in Canada.
  • 2X points on eligible gas, public transit and ride sharing purchases in Canada.
  • 1 additional point on eligible hotel and car rental bookings made through American Express Travel Online.
  • 1X point per dollar on everything else, with no category restrictions.
  • Points that hold the same value either way: 1,000 points = $10 as a statement credit, or a 1:1 transfer to several airline and hotel loyalty programs.
  • No minimum income requirement, as with every American Express Canada card.
  • Additional cards at no extra cost: the first and every other supplementary card is $0.
  • The Hotel Collection: a room upgrade when available, 12pm check-in and late check-out when available, and up to $100 USD in hotel credit on amenities charged to the room for a stay of two or more consecutive nights, booked through American Express Travel.
  • Front Of The Line® presale and reserved tickets for concerts and theatre performances, plus offers and events curated for cardmembers through Amex Experiences.
  • A soft credit check before you apply: you can see whether you will be approved with no impact to your credit score. This applies to American Express personal card applications.

To see how it compares with the rest of the line-up, read our round-up of the best credit cards from American Express in Canada.

The 5X categories and where they apply

The 5X rate is the reason most people carry this card. In Canada it covers four kinds of merchants:

  • Groceries: Metro, IGA, Sobeys, Super C, Safeway, Whole Foods.
  • Restaurants and bars: sit-down meals, takeout and drinks.
  • Home food delivery.
  • Convenience stores: Couche-Tard, 7-Eleven.

The 2X rate covers gas stations such as Esso, Shell and Petro-Canada, along with public transit and ride sharing.

With the American Express Cobalt® Card, you earn between 1 and 5 points per dollar:

Category Points per dollar
Grocery (Metro, IGA, Sobeys, Super C, etc.) 5
Home food delivery 5
Restaurants and bars 5
Convenience stores 5
Streaming services 3
Service station 2
Transport 2
Travel 1
Other 1

That works out to a 1 to 5% return on those purchases. For example, if you spend $1,000 per month across groceries, restaurants and food delivery, you earn $50 back per month, or $600 per year from that category alone. Transfer the points to a program such as Aeroplan instead and the return can be higher.

You can also stack these categories with the hundreds of stores that offer 5x points.

American Express Cobalt® Card insurance coverage

The card comes with a broad insurance package. The amounts below are the coverage limits; conditions, age limits and exclusions are set out in the certificate of insurance linked in the Insurance section above.

Travel insurance

  • Emergency medical: up to $5,000,000 for the first 15 days of a trip.
  • Travel accident: accidental death and dismemberment of up to $250,000 for you, your spouse and dependent children under age 23 when travelling on a common carrier (plane, train, bus or ship) and the tickets are charged to your card. Supplementary cardholders and their families are covered too.
  • Flight delay: up to $500 for necessary hotel, meal and sundry expenses bought within 48 hours when you are delayed or denied boarding for four hours or more and no other transportation is available. This $500 is an aggregate limit per occurrence, shared with missed connection and delayed baggage coverage.
  • Delayed baggage: up to $500 for essential clothing and sundries bought within four days when your outbound luggage is delayed six hours or more. This $500 is an aggregate limit per occurrence, shared with missed connection and flight delay coverage.
  • Lost or stolen baggage: up to $500 per occurrence for all insured persons combined, for checked or carry-on baggage and personal effects in transit, when the airline tickets are charged to your card. Within that limit, jewellery is capped at $300 per occurrence and golf clubs, including golf bags, at $250 per occurrence.
  • Hotel and motel burglary: up to $500 against the loss of most personal items if your hotel or motel is burglarized, when the stay is charged to your card.

Rental car insurance

Theft and damage coverage is included for a rental car with an MSRP, for its model year, of up to $85,000 excluding all taxes, for rentals of up to 48 days. To use it, decline the Loss Damage Waiver (LDW) or any similar option from the rental company and charge the full rental to your card. There is no cost for this coverage, and it replaces the daily insurance the rental company charges, usually $16 to $23 per day.

Mobile device insurance

Your device is covered for up to $1,000 per occurrence when it is charged to the card, for up to two years from the date of purchase. The payout is based on the depreciated value of the device, which falls by 2% of the purchase price for every completed month, less a 10% deductible. Theft and accidental damage coverage starts on the 91st day after purchase, because the first 90 days are covered by purchase protection.

Purchase protection and extended warranty

Eligible items charged to your card are insured against accidental physical damage or theft for 90 days from the purchase date, up to $1,000 per occurrence for all items combined. The card also extends the original manufacturer’s warranty by up to one additional year on eligible items, with indemnification limited to $10,000 per insured item and $25,000 per Cardmember per policy year for all items combined.

American Express Cobalt® Card fees

  • Card fee: $15.99 per month, which equals $191.88 per year, for residents outside Quebec. Quebec residents are billed $191.88 per year.
  • Additional cards: $0.
  • Purchase interest rate: 21.99%.
  • Cash advance interest rate: 21.99%.
  • Foreign transaction fee: 2.5%.
  • Minimum income required: none.

Because the fee is billed monthly rather than in one annual charge, you can stop and restart the cost in step with how much you are actually using the card.

Annual fee

Primary card$191.88
Additional card$0

Annual income required

Individual$0
Household$0

Conversion fees

2.5%

Earning rate

  • 5xRestaurants
  • 5xGroceries
  • 5xConvenience
  • 3xStreaming
  • 2xTransit
  • 2xGas & EV
  • 1xAll spending

Value

1st Year Value$1,828
2nd Year Value$799

Transfer partners

  • AeroplanAirline
  • British Airways ClubAirline
  • Cathay Asia MilesAirline
  • Etihad GuestAirline
  • Flying BlueAirline
  • Hilton HonorsHotel
  • Marriott BonvoyHotel

Travel insurance

Travel medical (under 55)Up to $5,000,000 / 15 days
Travel medical (55-64)Up to $5,000,000 / 15 days
Delayed BaggageUp to $500
Lost BaggageUp to $500
Flight DelayUp to $500
Hotel BurglaryUp to $500
Travel AccidentUp to $250,000

Purchase protection

Purchase ProtectionUp to $1,000 / 90 days
Extended Warranty+1 years
Mobile DeviceUp to $1,000 / 2 years
Auto Rental Collision (primary)Up to $85,000 / 48 days

Our featured card

Featured
Annual fee
$120
Our valuation
$1,050
Milesopedia first-year estimateFirst-year valueWelcome bonus$1,050Total$1,050Rewards on your spending are not included. The calculator that adds them from your own profile is on the card's page.
Welcome offer
Up to 70,000 points
Ends Nov 25, 2026
Apply Now

on RBC's website

For a limited time, the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card offers a welcome bonus of up to 70,000 Avion points, worth up to $1,500 in travel.

  • 35,000 points upon approval of your application
  • 20,000 points when you charge $5,000 in purchases to your account within the first six months
  • 15,000 points on the first anniversary of your account

You can redeem your Avion points for flights with more than 500 airlines, with no blackout periods or seat restrictions, or transfer them to partner programs such as American Airlines AAdvantage, The British Airways Club, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles and WestJet Rewards.

The card earns you 1.25 points per dollar on eligible travel purchases and 1 point per dollar on all your other eligible purchases. It also includes extensive insurance coverage: emergency medical, trip cancellation and interruption, collision coverage for rental vehicles, and mobile devices.

The annual fee is $120.

Annual fee

Primary card$120
Additional card$50

Annual income required

Individual$60,000
Household$100,000

Conversion fees

2.5%

Earning rate

  • 1.25xTravel
  • 1xAll spending

Value

1st Year Value$1,369
2nd Year Value$271

Transfer partners

  • American Airlines AAdvantageAirline
  • British Airways ClubAirline
  • Cathay Asia MilesAirline
  • WestJet RewardsAirline

Card benefits

Concierge service24/7

Travel insurance

Travel medical (under 55)Included
Travel medical (55-64)Included
Travel medical (65+)Included
Trip CancellationUp to $1,500
Trip InterruptionUp to $5,000
Delayed BaggageUp to $500
Lost BaggageUp to $500
Flight DelayUp to $500
Hotel BurglaryUp to $2,500
Travel AccidentUp to $500,000

Purchase protection

Purchase ProtectionIncluded
Extended Warranty+1 years
Mobile DeviceUp to $1,500 / 1 years
Auto Rental CollisionUp to $65,000 / 48 days

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Our reviews and rankings are based on an objective assessment. Advertisers do not influence our content. We may receive compensation through some links; our analysis and opinions remain independent.