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South America-based LATAM left the Oneworld alliance in May 2020 after Delta purchased a stake in the airline. Although it cut ties with American Airlines completely, LATAM maintained its mileage relationships with many of its Oneworld partners — including British Airways.
However, this partnership hasn't always run smoothly. Before leaving Oneworld, travelers could book LATAM awards through British Airways' website. That ability was eliminated in November 2020. Since then, you've needed to call British Airways Executive Club to book LATAM awards.
But we have some good news to report. LATAM awards are once again bookable through the British Airways website. So, let's take a closer look at this partnership and some of the best uses of British Airways Avios on LATAM flights.
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British Airways Avios Award Chart for LATAM Flights
British Airways Executive Club uses a segment- and distance-based award chart for LATAM awards. That means the award cost depends on how many miles you fly — rather than what geographic regions you're flying between. If you have to connect, British Airways prices out each flight segment separately and then adds the prices together. That means you'll generally only want to use British Airways Avios for nonstop LATAM award flights.
British Airways no longer publishes any award charts. So, travelers have to search for award flights to figure out how much an award will cost.
But we will save you the trouble. Now that we're able to search awards online again, AwardWallet has confirmed the following British Airways award chart for LATAM flights based on award searches:
| Mileage Range | Economy | Premium Economy | Business Class |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 650 miles | 6,000 | ||
| 651 to 1,151 miles | 9,000 | 16,500 | |
| 1,152 to 2,000 miles | 11,000 | 16,500 | 22,000 |
| 2,001 to 3,000 miles | 13,000 | 38,750 | |
| 3,001 to 4,000 miles | 20,750 | 62,000 | |
| 4,001 to 5,500 miles | 25,750 | 77,250 | |
| 5,501 to 6,500 miles | 31,000 | 92,750 | |
| Over 7,000 miles | 51,000 | 154,500 |
Note that we only filled in fields where we were able to confirm award pricing. We will continue to fill in the blanks as we get additional data points.
Best Uses of British Airways Avios on LATAM
Miami to the Dominican Republic for 9,000 Avios
Surprisingly for a South America-based airline, one of the best ways to use British Airways Avios for LATAM is on a flight between the U.S. and the Caribbean! LATAM operates a fifth-freedom route from Miami to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (PUJ). As this flight spans just 911 miles, you can book it for 9,000 Avios each way in economy:
On this route, it might be worth splurging for business class. LATAM operates a Boeing 787 Dreamliner on this route including lie-flat business class seats. And you can book it for just 16,500 Avios each way:
The catch? This flight only operates on Saturdays, so you may need to have some schedule flexibility to book it. Thankfully, British Airways doesn't require roundtrip award bookings. That means you can fly LATAM in one direction and use your Avios (or another mileage currency) to fly in the other direction on another airline.
Business class from Miami to Bogota for 22,000 Avios
LATAM's flight from Miami to Bogota clocks in around ~1,500 miles. So, you'll only need to pay 11,000 Avios for an economy award, 16,500 Avios for premium economy, or 22,000 Avios for business class. Although this flight is only 3.5 hours long, it's a great way of sampling LATAM's 787 Dreamliner lie-flat business class product on a flight to South America.
Fly to Lima for 13,000 Avios
Another sweet spot in the LATAM British Airways award chart is on flights to Lima, Peru (LIM) — especially from Miami. The flight from Miami to Lima covers just ~2,600 miles, meaning the cost is just 13,000 Avios each way in economy:
Business class isn't quite as appealing at 38,750 Avios each way. Although it's three times as expensive, some will still find it worth it to upgrade to business class. LATAM currently uses Boeing 767 aircraft on this route with lie-flat business class seats.
Flights from New York (JFK) to Lima (LIM) span 3,629 miles, bumping the rate to 20,750 Avios in economy — or a whopping 62,000 Avios in business class.
Los Angeles (LAX) to Lima (LIM) falls just outside the 4,000-mile distance band. So, you'll need to pay 25,750 Avios in economy or 77,250 Avios in business class. You may be able to do better than this by booking these same awards through other mileage currencies. For example, Alaska Mileage Plan charges 25,000 miles in economy of 45,000 miles in business class.
Intra-South America Flights From 6,000 Avios
Unlike its award chart for flights within North America, British Airways prices short-haul flights on LATAM at just 6,000 Avios each way. You can fly up to 650 miles in distance for this bargain-basement price. Among the seemingly endless options include Bogota to Cartagena, Lima to Cusco, and Recife to Fortaleza.
Boosting Your British Airways Avios Balance
U.S.-based travelers have no shortage of ways of minting British Airways Avios. British Airways is a transfer partner of the following major transferrable points programs:
- American Express Membership Rewards (1:1 transfer)
- Chase Ultimate Rewards (1:1 transfer)
- Capital One Miles (1:1 transfer)
- Bilt Rewards (1:1 transfer)
- Marriott Bonvoy (3:1 transfer)
In addition, you can transfer Avios between British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus, and Qatar at a 1:1 transfer ratio at no cost.
Plus, eligible new cardholders of the British Airways Visa Signature® Card can earn 75,000 bonus Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.:
- Earn 75,000 Avios after you spend $5,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
- Earn 3 Avios per $1 spent on purchases with British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia, and LEVEL.
- Earn 2 Avios per $1 spent on hotel accommodations when purchased directly with the hotel. Plus earn 1 Avios per $1 spent on all other purchases.
- 10% off British Airways flights starting in the US when you book through the website provided in your welcome materials.
- Every calendar year you make $30,000 in purchases on your British Airways Visa card, you'll earn a Travel Together Ticket good for two years.
- Pay no foreign transaction fees when you travel abroad.
- Simply tap to pay with your contactless British Airways Visa Signature Card. Just look for the contactless symbol at checkout. It's fast, easy and secure!
- Member FDIC
- 3X Avios per $1 spent on purchases with British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia, and LEVEL
- 2X Avios per $1 spent on hotel accommodations
- 1X Avios for every $1 spent on all other purchases
Bottom Line
After a multi-year drought, LATAM awards are once again bookable through the British Airways website. This makes these awards a lot more accessible for travelers. And that's good news considering some of the great sweet spots available on flights between the U.S. and both South America and the Caribbean.
Thanks to its numerous transfer partners and lucrative credit card offer, British Airways Avios are some of the easiest miles to earn. And you can take advantage of frequent transfer bonuses from Chase, Amex, and Capital One to further reduce the cost of these awards.
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No luck using the BA website for flights to South America from LAX to EZE or Santiago or Luma. Says they do not service these locations.😔
Hi Robert, the BA site unfortunately has weird quirks. If you can find the availability from another site (Delta, Seats.aero, Point.me, etc.) BA should be able to ticket it over the phone and not charge you a fee for calling in if you say the website was having issues.