Today Only: Get up to a 100% Transfer Bonus from Bilt to British Airways

Bilt Rent Day is here … and it's another good one for travelers. This time, Bilt is leaning on one of its tried-and-true transfer partners, British Airways, to offer members up to a 100% on Monday, Dec. 1 – and only Dec. 1.

Here’s how it shakes out, based on your level of Bilt elite status:

• Blue: 50% bonus
• Silver: 60% bonus
• Gold: 75% bonus
• Platinum: 100% bonus

The promotion runs for just over 24 hours – until 11:59 p.m. PT – and applies to all transfers from Bilt to British Airways.

Considering you can combine Avios between a growing number of airlines – including kicking them over to Iberia, Aer Lingus, Qatar Airways, or even Finnair – there are even more ways to put this transfer bonus to use. That opens up more valuable ways to redeem points for premium cabins and partner flights across the Middle East, Asia, and beyond.

What Can You Do With This Bonus?

Avios are, without a doubt, some of the most valuable points and miles in the world. Not only can you use them to fly with the half-dozen (or so) airlines that have adopted them as their own mileage program, but you can also fly with each of these airlines' worldwide network of partners.

The world is, quite literally, your oyster. Here are a few stellar options.

Hawaii and Back for 27K Points (or Less)

You can book flights to Hawaii with British Airways Avios, flying American Airlines or Alaska Airlines out to the islands.

While American and Alaska frequently charge 60,000 miles or more for these flights, you can fly from the West Coast to Hawaii for just 40,000 Avios roundtrip. Factor in the 50% transfer bonus, and you need 27,000 Bilt points to make it happen as a basic, Blue status member – or as few as 20,000 points with Bilt's top-tier Platinum status.

The trick to getting these ultra-low rates is starting your search in Los Angeles (LAX) or Phoenix (PHX), both of which have nonstop service to the islands. You can also start from other cities like Seattle (SEA), Portland (PDX) San Francisco (SFO), San Jose (SJC), or San Diego (SAN), as Alaska Airlines nonstops to Hawaii are also bookable at these rates.
 

Read more on the cheapest ways to get to Hawaii using points and miles!

Willing to put in some extra legwork? This deal can get even better. While this transfer bonus only works to British Airways, you can transfer Avios between British Airways and Finnair, too. That means you could send your Bilt points to British Airways, get a 50% to 100% bonus, then kick them over to Finnair.

And you might want to: Finnair charges just 15,000 Avios each way for American Airlines flights between the mainland and Hawaii … or 13,500 miles on Alaska! And while you'll pay that rate for nonstop flights from the West Coast, it even applies to one- and two-stop trips from the Midwest and beyond!

Factor in this transfer bonus, and you could book roundtrip flights to Hawaii from all across the U.S. for as few as 14,000 Bilt points!

Roundtrip to Spain for 22K Points (or Less) 

Iberia economy flights between East Coast cities like Boston (BOS), New York (JFK), and Washington, D.C.-Dulles (IAD) and Madrid now start at just 16,000 Avios each way – or 32,000 Avios roundtrip in basic economy – plus about $250 in taxes and fees.

Here's how that roundtrip economy pricing to Madrid shakes out at each level of Bilt status: 

• Blue: 22,000 Bilt points
• Silver: 20,000 Bilt points
• Gold: 19,000 Bilt points
• Platinum: 16,000 Bilt points

If you’d rather fly up front, off-peak business class awards on those same routes now price at 40,500 Avios each way – just 27,000 or even as low as 21,000 Bilt points with this transfer bonus, depending on your Bilt status. 

From other U.S. gateways like Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW), Miami (MIA), or Los Angeles (LAX), off-peak business fares run 50,500 Avios each way – as few as 26,000 Bilt points with the bonus. 

Book Qsuites for Cheap

We saved the best for last.

Thanks to Qatar Airways' adoption of Avios, the floodgates are open to book Qatar's world-leading Qsuite business class seats using Bilt points. Factor in this 50% (or bigger) transfer bonus, and you can do it for fewer points.
 

Check out our full review of Qatar Qsuites!

Here's the easiest route: You could book a simple nonstop from many cities in the U.S. over to Doha (DOH) for just 70,000 British Airways Avios. Find the award availability you want, transfer as few as 35,000 Bilt points (or 47,000 with Blue status) to your BA account, and book it. Done. It doesn't get cheaper or easier than that.

Sadly, both Qatar and British Airways recently raised taxes and fees on these business class redemptions. What was once a $100-or-so charge has increased to roughly $235. That's a small price to pay to fly the world's best business class, if you ask us. 

We send Thrifty Traveler Premium members award alerts when they can book the world's best business class using their points, plus cheap cash fares too!

If you want to take it to the next level and connect elsewhere – Dubai (DXB) or Muscat (MCT) in the Middle East, Cairo (CAI), or maybe even the Maldives (MLE) or down to Cape Town (CPT) in South Africa – you'll want to turn to Qatar Airways Avios. Remember, you can easily combine your Avios balances between British Airways and Qatar.

And these multi-segment awards often turn out to be much cheaper when booked through Qatar itself than through British Airways. Booking through Qatar, you could fly in Qsuites to …

• Middle Eastern destinations like Dubai (DXB), Abu Dhabi (AUH) or Muscat (MCT) for 75,000 miles – as few as 38,000 Bilt points after the transfer bonus!
• Other destinations like Amman (AMM) and Cairo (CAI) as well as major Indian cities go up to 80,000 miles each way, or just 40,000 Bilt points with Platinum status.
• Getting to the Seychelles (SEZ) or Maldives (MLE) will run you 85,000 miles each way, which works out to as little as 43,000 Bilt points.
• Both Southeast Asia and South Africa typically cost 95,000 miles each way – just 48,000 Bilt points with the full 100% bonus.

These flights with connections raise your final cash costs even higher, typically to around $300 or more.

Take our advice: Book a flight that connects onward to the Middle East so you can access Qatar's incredible Al Safwa Lounge during your layover. There's even a sneaky way to connect onward in Qatar Airways First Class all the way to the Maldives (MLE), Bangkok (BKK), Hong Kong (HKG), or Perth (PER) in Australia … for the same rate as flying business class the whole way.

No matter which route you take, you won't regret it.

Read our full guide on the best ways to book Qsuites!

Other Rent Day Promotions

As always, Bilt is rolling out more ways for members to earn and redeem points beyond the big transfer bonus.

• Rent Free: This month’s Rent Free challenge stars New York-based stand-up comedian Zarna Garg. Play in the Bilt app between Nov. 25 (12 p.m. ET) and Dec. 1 (3 p.m. ET) for a chance to win free rent (up to $2,500) or bonus points.
  • Top 10: Free rent (up to $2,500)
  • Next 100: 1,000 Bilt points
  • Next 500: 100 Bilt points
• Neighborhood comedy series: Bilt continues to grow its dining series, fitness experiences, and entertainment events for Rent Day, including comedy nights in 18 venues across 13 cities.
• Multi-course dining experiences at 32 restaurants across seven major cities, with optional wine or cocktail pairings.
• Free fitness classes at SoulCycle and Barry’s.
• Gift card redemption bonus: New bonuses will unlock for featured gift card brands each day of Rent Week.
  • Day 1 (Nov. 25): Macy's, Apple, Nordstrom
  • Day 2 (Nov. 26): Uber Eats, Dominos, Panera
  • Day 3 (Nov. 27): Instacart, Safeway, Kroger
  • Day 4 (Nov. 28): Home Depot, Wayfair, Quince
  • Day 5 (Nov. 29): Amtrak, Airbnb, Chevron & Texaco
  • Day 6 (Nov. 30): AMC, Spotify, YouTube TV
  • Day 7 (Dec. 1): All brands available

Earn Double Points on Rent Day

Another thing to keep in mind on Rent Day: You'll earn double the points (up to 1,000 bonus points) for every non-rent dollar spent on your Bilt Mastercard® on the first of the month.

So long as you make at least five purchases each statement cycle, you'll earn points at the following rates on Rent Day:

• 6x Bilt points on dining (usually 3x)
• 4x Bilt points on travel (usually 2x)
• 2x Bilt points on other spend (usually 1x)

This is all in addition to the 1x Bilt points you earn on rent payments with the Bilt Mastercard.

Read more: Paying Rent? You Need to Have This Card in Your Wallet

All information about the Bilt Mastercard® has been collected independently by Thrifty Traveler and has not been reviewed by the issuer. 

Learn more about the Bilt Mastercard® (for full disclosure, this is a personal referral link).

How to Use Bilt Rewards Points

Just because the points can be fairly challenging to earn doesn't mean they aren't useful – just the opposite. There are many ways to use Bilt points. And once you've got them, they're some of the most valuable points in the world of travel.

The easiest way to use them is to book through the Bilt Rewards travel portal, where each point will be worth 1.25 cents apiece. That means 10,000 Bilt points are worth $125 toward travel.

But you'll get the best value for your Bilt points by transferring points to one of its travel partners, including World of Hyatt, Alaska Airlines, Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles, United Mileage Plus, and British Airways Avios, among many others.

Just keep in mind that unless you've earned anything beyond Bilt Blue status, you'll need to transfer a minimum of 2,000 points to get started.

Here's the full list:
 

If you prefer to use your points for something other than travel, Bilt recently introduced the ability to “cash out” Bilt Rewards points  (at a rate of .55 cents per point) by applying them as a statement credit to the outstanding balance on your Bilt Rewards Card. At approximately a half-cent per point, redeeming them this way represents poor value and should really only be done as a last resort.

Prior Rent Day Promotions

Over the years, Bilt has done a good job leveraging its partners to come up with some really creative (and often incredibly lucrative) promotions. While not every month's promo is a home run for travelers, the majority of Bilt's Rent Day promos do a good job of engaging members on a day that's otherwise un-celebrated.

Here's a look back at some of the other Rent Day promotions from the past year:

Most of Bilt's Rent Day promotions are centered on travel, and even the ones that aren't are still valuable for most Bilt Rewards members. Looking at prior Rent Day promos, you have to wonder how Bilt can continue to raise the bar month after month.

Bottom Line

Bilt Rewards' Rent Day promo for December is another good one for travelers.

Today, Dec. 1 – and only Dec. 1 – you can get up to a 100% bonus when transferring Bilt points to British Airways Avios.

If you've got a Bilt Mastercard® in your wallet, you'll earn even more when you spend on the first of the month.