Booking a Back-to-Back Tier Point Run | Step by Step Guide (Top Tips)

Рет қаралды 4,180

Күн бұрын

In this video, I’ll walk you through the process of booking a back-to-back tier point run, with top tips to help you maximize your points and achieve elite status faster.
SUPPORT ME
Patreon: / mygreygapyear
Donate: www.paypal.com/paypalme/mygre...
WEBSITE (Additional Content and Information)
mygreygapyear.com/
REFERAL LINKS
SeatSpy: www.seatspy.com/referafriend/...
Nord VPN: go.nordfriend.com/aff_c?offer...
AMEX Credit Card Referral: email phil@mygreygapyear.com
SOCIAL MEDIA
Instagram: / mygreygapyear
X (Twitter): x.com/MyGreyGapYear
Facebook: / mygreygapyear.official
If you’re a frequent flyer looking to earn more tier points, a back-to-back tier point run is one way to go. I’ll show how you can book them with practical examples, and you’ll see why they are so perfect for getting those last few tier points on a tier point run or when you’re chasing status.
I’ll also talk about nesting back to back flights with so you can get the best prices but there are some warnings. So step away from the keyboard, don’t start booking until you’ve heard those.
CHAPTERS:
0:00 Introduction
0:48 What is a Back to Back?
3:03 Nesting Flights
5:20 Warnings!
7:48 Planning
8:51 Flights for Under £2 per TP
Flyer Talk B2B Airports Thread:
www.flyertalk.com/forum/briti...
British Airways Gold Status Playlist:
• British Airways Status
#greygapyear #backtoback #tierpoints

Пікірлер: 76

@sallybaccanello2359 5 ай бұрын

It was quite tricky to find the cheap price.. if I did the legs separately it came out at a huge amount. But when I used finnair and went lhr- arn . It automatically sent me via HEL… which got me 80,40, 80,40 on the return. Next time… I’ll stay over for a day or two and enjoy Stockholm 🙄 was like a gumball rally! Loving the help these groups give..

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comments, they're much appreciated.

@JamesGott747 5 ай бұрын

Great video as always! Interesting news about BA changing Tier point collection years today. As a couple who have recently started building up our Tier points (but both with different dates, one June, and one November), the change is probably(?) good, but in the short term super confusing. Again great video, and always enjoy the tier point run suggestions

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comment and your support, I think the date change will definitely make life easier for couples and families and there has been call for a change to the year end for this reason, but I don't think this is what anyone expected. I agree that there is going to be some short term pain over the next year or two. Thanks Phil

@msdes82 5 ай бұрын

We live near Heathrow and did a back to back to Amsterdam. Was a long day but first day out and last flight back gave us a nice full day in the city. On return passport control at schipol thought we were crazy or up to something a bit dodgy I think…even though I was travelling with the wife. Only downside was flying club Europe on return there was v poor lounge offering..basically temporary small cafe area

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comment and sharing your experience. I can imagine Amsterdam being place place where it looks the most suspicious 😊

@peterbrown6224 5 ай бұрын

AMS Lounge has been the end of the Universe for the last couple of years. It's a disgrace. When I was there in Nov 2022, you had to scan a QR code for your place in the queue, and I still remember that I was 153.

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

@@peterbrown6224 I shouldn't laugh but I think if you didn't laugh at being 153 in the queue then you'd cry into your over priced coffee.

@sallybaccanello2359 5 ай бұрын

not for the faint hearted.. but I needed 240 TP's and did LHR-HEL-ARN -HEL-LHR in one day... left at 5.30am, ( had two lovely breakfasts!, 2 sandwiches, and a dinner) got home at 10.30pm... but ultimately got the points. wish I'd found this site sooner as not going to make gold this year sadly but maintained my silver status... next year Im definitely going to 'work the system' and get gold! I'm on a grey gap 3 years!! :)

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comment, "Grey Gap 3 Years", nice. I hope you're having a blast. I have no idea how long I'll last but I'm going to enjoy every minute. The run is an interesting one and very close to my self imposed target of £2 per tier point, but it is a lot of tier points in a very short period of time, thank you for your excellent suggestion. Phil

@HannahMannah 5 ай бұрын

Looking at this but starting in Dublin!

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

@@HannahMannah Do please let me know how you get on, how much it costs and so on.

@HannahMannah 5 ай бұрын

@@mygreygapyearcan’t get it to work ex Dub. Added Ncl for an extra 40 on both legs but still not cost effective

@PhilEadie65 5 ай бұрын

Interesting to see these are still being used as I had assumed they were almost universally outlawed. Maybe the terminology has changed but when we booked these in the 90s/00s it was the nested element that made them a back-to-back, not the 0 days turnaround. Indeed we used to book two monday-friday business trips as back-to-backs to get two trips with weekend stays.

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comment, from other comments it seems that US carriers are particularly hot on this, the two I looked at were United and Delta and they both had clauses prohibiting the practice of nesting.

@timlewistcf 5 ай бұрын

I did a day trip (rather than a back-to-back) to Amsterdam from London City. Actually it wasn't for tier points but was to get Bronze status I needed two qualifying BA flights as I'd earned 300 points on American. Not sure I particularly want to do it again though!

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comment, I guess if I had to get up early to get to London City airport from Stafford and then ended the day at home again it would be exhausting. Not for the faint of heart.

@freesimply7311 Ай бұрын

Interesting! Thanks

@mygreygapyear Ай бұрын

You're very welcome

@freesimply7311 Ай бұрын

@@mygreygapyear 👍 Hope you can create informative videos in the future. Many thanks

@Joe-lb8qn 5 ай бұрын

I have done nested flights in the past for cheaper flights. There were some rumours maybe ten years ago that airlines would implement software that looked for this but AFAIK that never happened, apart from anything else i imagine its difficult to do and may screw up genuine travel. And its also easily evadable by booking with different airlines (obviously not workable with tier point runs but for frequent flyers who fly so much they are in multiple schemes, this is not an issue).

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for your comment, I would love to see British Airways' IT department implement this checking system 😂 (and go live in 3... 2... 1... 0... [ALL BA IT SYSTEMS FAIL!]). I mean I can imagine the SQL Query in my head and I know how I would approach it (depending on their data structures) but I can't see BA prioritising this over the other IT issues they have. Thanks Phil

@kuzeyboy 5 ай бұрын

As. usual, thank you so much, I love the way you present information. I do have one question though and it is something I rarely see discussed. My hub, as it were, is Birmingham - BHX, w hich although the second city is not blessed by British Airways. Getting to London or Manchester requires overnight accommodation, high public transport costs to position. Do you have any suggestions specifically that would help with Birmingham?

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for your question and your support. Birmingham is also my home airport. From a back-to-back point of view we're stuffed aren't we? I haven't tried to get a train to Manchester Airport from Stafford, but I feel I should just to see what it's like, but I've found trains from Stafford to Manchester and Glasgow to be reasonable if you plan ahead. So, tier point options that "work" from Birmingham are limited, you could look at Qatar Airways, they fly to Dubai from Birmingham for around £1,600 which would yield 200 tier points, which isn't great, but it is an option.

@stevecraven3502 5 ай бұрын

Phill. Its interesting to see what will and wont work from location to location, country to country and airline to airline, with nesting and back to backs. Also like you say what you can get away with as a turnaround time. on a different matter, what are your thoughts on BA changing the Tier Point status collection period from next year for every body to April 1st to March 31st? Steve. C.

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comment and support, it is an interesting academic exercise even if I never take any trips. My youngest son doesn't really watch my videos, but he found this one and last weeks (planning a tier point run in 2024) really interesting and he has no intention of running for status. Regarding BA changes, my first instinct was another bone headed BA change, but I'm not sure how I feel now. I imagine that flights to certain destinations will increase in March and April. Thanks Phil

@redcomusic 5 ай бұрын

Living in the US and if I want to become Silver or Gold with BAEC, I think I would just take several inexpensive domestic First Class flights on American and Alaska (be sure to watch that door panel, though! LOL) and then complete those "native sector" requirements with BA and/or Iberia whilst in the UK and/or Spain. First Class flights here yield 40 tier points or more, and bargains can be had from time to time. Poke! - Red

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comment and support Red. I would wear my seatbelt for the whole flight if I was flying Alaskan 😊.

@rogerwild1966 5 ай бұрын

@mygreygapyear Probably nothing to do with alaska but yet another fubar by Boeing. Those 737 max's are a no no to me.

@redcomusic 5 ай бұрын

@@mygreygapyear Also, Is BA changing the tier point "collection year" for all members? And more importantly, are you going to do a video on it? Did I just answer my own question? POOOOOOKE!!

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Yes, I'm planning to address the BA announcement, I was hoping to get a video out in the week but I think it's going to be Sunday now...

@jamespaul4421 5 ай бұрын

Phil~emergency video on new tier points changes for BA?

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for the suggestion, I'm making some notes and will possibly release a video tomorrow afternoon,

@streetspiritlondon 5 ай бұрын

Appreciate your videos. Got a quick question for you about going from blue status to bronze. My membership year is due to renew in July. In May and June I’m due to take 6 flights with BA, four of which are long haul. Will any points I earn count as nothing as they’ll all reset in July?

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your kind comment and question. I'm not sure if you're aware of the changes to the membership year by BA, if your not then this answer may seem a little odd. I made a video here about them, kzfaq.info/get/bejne/i-Bkd7mfrbO0oX0.html So with the BA changes, Part 1 is your current year. If you earn enough tier points to get Bronze status before the 9th July then you will be bronze for the rest of that membership year and the next membership year and the grace period until 31st August 2025. Part 2: is your shortened collection "period" from 9th July to the 31st March 2025, which you haven't asked about. Part 3: is the new transition period, which runs in parallel to these two other collection periods, from 1st April 2024 and 31st March. This is a live collection year, in that it works just the same as any other collection year and any status you earn in this period will last until 30th April 2026. So your points in May and June will count for both part 1, your current collection year and part 3, the new transition year. And, so, to answer your question directly, (according to a conversation I have had with BA) no your points earned in May and June won't reset at the end of your membership year in July, they will stay in your account until the end of March 2025. Thanks Phil

@morgy1916 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for all your video, so with my tier point year ending in November and I still am on Blue (We all got to start somewhere); do you think the new deal is better or worse for me?

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your question and your support, I think if you currently have no tier points then you can consider the 1st April 2024 as your new year start date. On this date your new "transition year" will begin. If you earn enough tier points for status after the 1at April 2024 and before the 31st March 2025 then you will earn that status for the rest of this "transition year" and then also for the next "new style" membership year and then for the new grace period, so until 30th April 2026. Unless your earning tier points before the 1st April 2024 then this is no issue at all. Thanks Phil

@AudiS4B7 5 ай бұрын

Just before 1st April 2025! keep changing the goal posts, my points earning year is 8th December!!

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comment, I'm planning a mid-week video on this, on first glance it looks like the closer you are to December the worse it will be, so you might be in the most effected group.

@AudiS4B7 5 ай бұрын

@@mygreygapyear I know!!!! Would be great if you could use my date please (8th December) currently silver tracking Gold by the end of June 2024. First class flight booked 13th-22nd Dec JFK should get 840 on the holiday deal. Really need to know if I’ll get gold again with the adjustments in the missing months in order to keep gold for the 2025 year past April?

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

I'll talk about December as the worst case scenario.

@richardmccarthy9580 5 ай бұрын

Another great video…..and (again) another curve ball query ! On Friday my daughter saw a show in Manchester which was sold out for weeks yet 4 days before (presumably due to cancellation) was able to secure tickets. I appreciate the cost was still the same but is there any evidence of prices dropping shortly before departure date…..or do the airlines rely on last minute passengers paying extra ?

@Joe-lb8qn 5 ай бұрын

The latter. They've spent months managing demand via adjusting prices up or down, they reason that last minute travellers have to go (many will be business who are much less price sensitive anyway) and so no special discounts for them. If they did offer last minute discounts then many customers would wait until the very last minute and their planning and sales would be a shambles. Source? My experience ... used to be a fery requent flyer for business (not business class unfortunately) and it wasnt unusual for idiotic bureaucratic delays in my company to mean that what was (say) a £500 economy trip in 2 months became a £1,000 in a week or even a business class trip at £3k once (to the US ) when no other vacancies. The only way they might sneak a discount in is via a holiday, eg say your manchester flight included an overnight hotel, they can hide a price drop on the flight as a "bargain hotel stay"

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for your comment Richard, it slipped through the net, but I've just spied it and thank you to Joe for answering it. Joe is correct, airlines would rather fly empty than make last minute discounts, prices always increase once you hit the last minute business zone, which is (again, only in my experience) about 30 days out from the flight. Before the pandemic I noted that I would often save £50 to £100 on a flight to Melbourne if I booked around 60 to 90 days out (with some news reports claiming that 56 days was the optimum time) but post pandemic they seem to start high ( 300- 355 days out), dip for a while then just go up and up and up. The Google flight tracker is an interesting tool to use. Interestingly, last minute ticket allocations for concerts can be made once the lighting set up has been agreed, where seats are blocked off for the lights and then released once the lights are in place. Elaborate props can also change the seating arrangements. For cricket matches seats behind the bowlers arm will be blocked "en masse" until they know which pitch on the square is going to be used. Once they know that, some of the seats won't be in the batters eye line and they get released. Thanks Phil

@skywalker2643 4 ай бұрын

I’m going traveling/moving abroad in August for the forseable future. I’m going to Thailand first and will go around most of SE Asia before going to Australia. What’s the best way for me to navigate getting to BKK to maximize my tier points ?

@mygreygapyear 4 ай бұрын

Thanks for your question, going East from the UK is full of opportunity, I'm assuming we're talking about business flights if it's tier points you're after. You could try something like London to Abu Dhabi with either BA or Qatar, but if you get start in Amsterdam / Oslo / Helsinki the Qatar flight is cheaper. Then look at Abu Dhabi to Jakarta, and then either Jakarta to Bangkok or to Taipei depending on how many points you're looking for. An issue you're going to face is if you're buying one way fares. It may well be that keeping costs down is more important that points on one way fares. Thanks Phil

@mygreygapyear 4 ай бұрын

You might also find this response helpful from @pauljeffels8356 on a similar topic. Think I have cracked the code on this one... Sri Lankan Airlines business class (Bangkok to Dubai via CMB) - 180 Tier points,. BA premium economy Dubai via London to Manchester (100 Tier Points) - then Qatar Airways (Birmingham to Bangkok) booked with BA flight numbers - business class (280 tier points) - I already have 90 points. 610 points. Total cost is around 2000GBP (Sri Lankan 600GBP then BA 1500GBP/7000AED or so)

@rogerwild1966 5 ай бұрын

Done manchester to inverness. Not as a back to back though. You get off the plane and walk right by the security lanes that are usually quiet for departures.

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for your comment and your support, good to know about the layout of the airport, thank you. I bet flying to Inverness from Manchester, via Heathrow is still competitive on time for driving.

@rogerwild1966 5 ай бұрын

That depends on how you like the food in the lounge. 😂

@peterhastings703 5 ай бұрын

My first TP run was an INV-LHR-DUB return nested inside a LHR-INV return over two days (one night in Dublin). Both visits to INV were 'true' B2Bs - arriving and departing on the same aircraft. Very easy at INV. I don't know what prices are like now, but starting in INV meant lower a lower air passenger duty charge.

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for the tip, I hadn't factored in the reduced taxes with an Inverness stop.

@rogerwild1966 5 ай бұрын

@mygreygapyear I cant say I've found flughts starting in Inverness any cheaper. The tax may be less but I find they load the surcharges.

@jamespaul9929 5 ай бұрын

Im doing a back to back for the very reasons you state: Jersey to Belfast via LHR and return in a day-£300 for 160TP’s-can you just go to a new gate when you arrive in Belfast City like you can do when you arrive in Edinburgh? Any experience appreciated?

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for your comment, very inventive, Jersey to Belfast, I didn't even think about that. I am planning some back-to-backs in economy (I don't need the tier points at the moment) but I haven't done one yet so I can't offer any advice. Do please let me know how it goes. Thanks Phil

@lutheredwards5068 5 ай бұрын

BHD is fine - you walk down the stairs as directed then you’re in the lower gate area. Up a different set of stairs without exiting the airport and you’ll be able to find gate 3, conveniently next to the Aspire lounge if you have 10 minutes spare.

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for your comment, much appreciated. Good to know about Belfast airport being back-to-back friendly.

@garyworden6816 5 ай бұрын

Back to back at BHD is a peach. The terminal is small and security is very short. Last such trip around September last year.

@jamespaul9929 3 ай бұрын

Update: Belfast was a breeze-50 m down the corridor-missed stairs-backtracked so as not to go through arrivals-funny look from those coming off the plane-finally found stairs-up two flights of stairs-automatic doors opened to reveal next BA crew making their way to gate-straight into departures-60 secs to new gate-decided to spend 10 mins in Aspire lounge, which by the way has its only private connecting door to the gate-27 mins spent at BHD and back on same aircraft again-highly recommended as a back to back-all four ba flights from JER to BHD went like a dream-even had enough time at LHR to explore the Whispering Angel lounge at B gates-such a breeze to get to and back to A gates.

@richardstreet7518 5 ай бұрын

Inverness (Inverness) To London (Heathrow) 1 hours 35 minutes 07:40 INV Wed 18 Sep 09:15 LHR Wed 18 Sep Terminal 5 Business London (Heathrow) To Inverness (Inverness) 1 hours 35 minutes 19:20 LHR Wed 25 Sep Terminal 5 20:55 INV Wed 25 Sep £160.10p Business 10p over budget!! The lower departure tax from INV helps..

@lutheredwards5068 5 ай бұрын

Glad to see the nightstop INV is back for the summer - one flight a day is a pain

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for your comment Richard, an excellent suggestion, I think we can forgive you for being 10p over budget 😊

@yvr2002rtw 5 ай бұрын

Don't do this in the U.S.! Your reservations can automatically get cancelled.

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for your comment, I found that United and Delta both have explicit rules against this, do you know if all US carriers have similar rules? I guess I should have checked the two Oneworld carriers, Alaskan and AA.

@charliebrown5 5 ай бұрын

All airfares in the US are one way So always book one way and you will not have a problem

@mygreygapyear 5 ай бұрын

Thank you for your comment, how interesting. Full service carriers in the UK charge a premium for one-way travel, often a one way ticket costing more than a round trip, but our new budget carriers (Ryanair, Easyjet) charge each leg seperately. Thank you for sharing that, Phil