Sofia, Bulgaria to Bangkok, Thailand for $1,029 round trip in Qatar Airways Business R Class is one of the deep discount fares I have seen in the past day as I explore ways to pick up British Airways Tier Points for a fast-track route to Executive Club elite status in 2017.
Departure Dates SOF-BKK: widely available March – June 2017. Some Jan-Feb dates.
While Sofia might seem as convenient for a starting point to most flyers headed to Bangkok as inner Mongolia, there are BA economy fares as low as $113 round trip from London. You can also fly Qatar SOF-BKK for $399 round trip in economy class. There are reasons to visit Sofia besides low airfare deals. The eastern front countries of Europe are gaining traction as mainstream tourist destinations at bargain prices with significant historic sites and landscapes comparable to many places in more traveled western Europe.
Bangkok is … well, Bangkok! Personally not a place I care for to return as a tourist, but travel deals have a tendency to take me to places I did not expect to travel. In a couple other posts I will share some high BA Tier Points earning, low cost Business Class airfare deals I found from Bangkok in my Business Class fares research this week.
Qatar Airways Business R Class
Sofia, Bulgaria SOF – Doha, Qatar DOH – Bangkok, Thailand BKK – DOH – SOF
$1,028.78 round trip (1,888.63 BGN) Tue May 2 – Tue May 9
Fare rules allow one free stopover in Doha outbound or inbound direction for up to 96 hours.
This $1,029 Business Class fare is particularly high earning for British Airways Executive Club Tier status with 560 Tier Points; 93% of 600 Tier Points required for BA Silver elite. Mid-level Executive Club Silver elite takes 600 Tier Points and 4 BA operated and marketed flights. BA Silver is equivalent to AAdvantage 50,000 EQM / $6,000 EQD Platinum elite.
Each of the four flight segments in Qatar Airways Sofia – Doha – Bangkok Business R Class itinerary earns 140 Tier Points for a total 560 Tier Points round trip from a single $1,029 ticket. That comes out to $1.84 in airfare per Tier Point. Acquiring Executive Club Tier Points at a price below $2/Tier Point means BA Silver elite at 600 Tier Points is achievable for $1,200 in airfare spend. Top level Gold elite at 1,500 Tier Points is possible for less than $3,000 in airfare spend.
British Airways Executive Club Flight Calculator.
SOF-DOH-SOF = 280 Tier Points in Qatar Business R Class.
DOH-BKK-DOH = 280 Tier Points in Qatar Business R Class.
Loyalty Traveler curated Airfare Deals and Google Flights and Kayak Explore tutorials.
