British Airways is turning up the heat on summer 2026 with a headline-grabbing move for its most loyal customers. The carrier has unveiled new Avios-only services from London City Airport to Madrid and Toulon Saint Tropez, with every single seat on specific flights available exclusively as a Reward Seat. With starting prices from just 2 pounds plus Avios and generous baggage included, the offer positions British Airways at the center of the summer travel conversation and signals how aggressively the airline is now courting frequent flyers.
Avios-Only Flights Reach a Milestone in Summer 2026
The new Madrid and Toulon Saint Tropez services mark the 50th Avios-only flight milestone for British Airways, underlining how central reward-based travel has become to the airline’s strategy. On these specially designated flights, 100 percent of the seats are released as Reward Seats, a rarity in a market where award inventory is typically tightly constrained and often hard to secure during peak travel periods.
Operated by BA Cityflyer from London City Airport, the flights will serve two of Europe’s most sought-after summer destinations. Madrid, with its renowned arts, food and late-night culture, and Toulon, gateway to the French Riviera and the glitz of nearby Saint Tropez, have been chosen to appeal both to culture-focused city breakers and to sun-seeking holidaymakers. The launch aligns with rising demand for short-haul leisure travel across Europe and the growing popularity of London City as a convenient departure point for time-pressed travelers.
The carrier has clearly timed the announcement to capture peak planning season for summer 2026. Leisure travelers and frequent flyers are already looking ahead to bank holiday weekends and school breaks, and positioning Avios-only itineraries at the heart of that planning cycle helps British Airways convert loyalty into tangible trips rather than abstract points balances.
Pricing That Turns Points Into Real-World Value
At the core of the announcement is aggressive pricing designed to highlight the value of Avios redemptions when seats open widely. For economy cabins, return flights from London City to Toulon Saint Tropez start from 2 pounds plus 21,500 Avios, while returns to Madrid start from 2 pounds plus 28,000 Avios. Both options include a 23 kilogram checked baggage allowance, giving these redemptions a full-service feel that compares favorably with many low-cost rivals that strip back luggage and extras.
For travelers seeking a more premium experience, business class in Club Europe also features in the promotion. Business class returns are reported from 30 pounds plus 36,000 Avios for Toulon and 30 pounds plus 49,000 Avios for Madrid, again including checked baggage and the usual Club Europe soft-product enhancements. Against a backdrop of high summer fares on popular routes, these combinations of low cash co-pays and fixed Avios totals will look attractive to members holding significant points balances.
The airline continues to allow flexibility in the cash-to-Avios ratio, so customers can choose higher Avios with lower fees or save points and pay more cash. While some seasoned points users will inevitably compare these redemptions with alternative options on Iberia or other partners, the Avios-only flights stand out for one critical reason. The certainty that every seat on board starts life as a Reward Seat makes it far easier to plan trips exactly on key dates such as a late May bank holiday or specific school holiday weeks.
Key Dates, Routes and What Passengers Can Expect
British Airways has targeted highly specific windows within the broader summer 2026 season, aligning flight dates with high-demand holiday periods. The Avios-only Madrid service from London City is scheduled around the late May bank holiday, a prime long-weekend opportunity for British travelers seeking a short cultural escape. A typical pattern gives travelers a Friday outbound from London City and a Monday return from Madrid, allowing three full days on the ground without taking an extended block of annual leave.
The Toulon Saint Tropez Avios-only flights focus on mid June, aligning with the early peak of Riviera holiday season but before the very highest July and August crowds descend on the French coast. The routing from London City to Toulon places passengers at the closest commercial airport to Saint Tropez, cutting down transfer times and creating an efficient door to shore experience for those targeting glamorous beach clubs, marinas and hilltop villages along the Côte d’Azur.
On board, travelers can expect the typical Cityflyer configuration used on London City short-haul services. While aircraft details are not the headline of the Avios-only initiative, the smaller, regional-jet style operation combines a relatively intimate cabin with quick boarding and deplaning. Club Europe passengers benefit from blocked middle seats where applicable, enhanced catering and complimentary drinks, while economy passengers enjoy full-service catering policies in line with British Airways’ short-haul offering from London City.
London City: Convenience at the Heart of the Offer
Using London City Airport as the departure point is a deliberate strategic choice. Located close to the financial and residential heart of London’s east and central districts, London City is renowned for its short processing times, with published guidelines often citing as little as 15 minutes from curb to gate under typical conditions. For frequent travelers and busy professionals, the time savings compared with larger, more crowded airports can be considerable.
That convenience dovetails neatly with the Avios-only concept. The core appeal of loyalty programs lies in making life easier and more rewarding for regular customers. Combining guaranteed award availability on designated flights with a fast, compact airport experience reinforces the message that British Airways is courting high-value passengers who prize both time and flexibility. For travelers living or working in Canary Wharf, the City of London, or nearby neighborhoods, the geographic advantage over Heathrow or Gatwick is significant.
London City has also emerged as the focal point for BA Cityflyer’s broader 2026 expansion. The airline’s regional subsidiary is introducing a wider summer network that includes new routes to destinations such as Toulon Saint Tropez on a regular commercial basis, alongside seasonal links from other UK airports to Mediterranean and Atlantic leisure hotspots. The Avios-only flights, therefore, sit within a larger pattern of growth in short-haul leisure flying from the British Airways brand.
How Loyal Flyers Can Book and Maximize the Deal
The Avios-only Madrid and Toulon flights are available exclusively to members of the British Airways Executive Club, the airline’s loyalty program. Membership is free, and existing Avios held through British Airways, Iberia or partner credit cards can typically be used for redemptions on these services once transferred or pooled as needed. Seats are being released for booking from February 12, 2026, and are expected to be in high demand given the limited frequency and fixed travel windows.
Booking is carried out just like any other reward flight, with members selecting their preferred cabin and then choosing among several combinations of cash and Avios. The lowest-cash options, which start from 2 pounds on economy itineraries and from 30 pounds in business class, will likely be snapped up quickly, particularly for the most popular dates. Travelers hoping to secure multiple seats on the same flight are advised to move early, as the very appeal of 100 percent reward-seat availability means competition among Avios-rich customers will be intense.
British Airways American Express cardholders gain an additional edge through the use of Companion Vouchers. These can allow a second passenger to travel on the same reward booking without incurring additional Avios, with only taxes, fees and carrier charges payable for the companion seat. When applied to Avios-only departures with low cash co-pays, Companion Vouchers can drastically improve the overall value of a redemption, especially for couples or families planning a bank holiday getaway or a Riviera escape.
Madrid and Toulon: Two Distinct Visions of Summer Europe
By pairing Madrid and Toulon Saint Tropez in a single Avios-only tranche, British Airways is essentially offering two contrasting versions of the ideal European summer break. Madrid, the Spanish capital, is a magnet for travelers drawn to grand boulevards, world-class museums such as the Prado and the Reina Sofia, and a late-night dining scene where tapas bars and terraces come to life long after sunset. For culture lovers, a long weekend over the late May bank holiday offers enough time to explore galleries, stroll historic plazas and enjoy leisurely lunches in shaded courtyards.
The climate in Madrid at that time of year is particularly appealing. Warm temperatures and long daylight hours make it comfortable to explore neighborhoods like La Latina, Chueca and Malasaña on foot, while avoiding the more extreme heat that can arrive in July and August. For Avios collectors, the opportunity to secure guaranteed reward seats to such a perennially popular city, timed to a prime long weekend, is a strong incentive to lock in summer 2026 plans early.
Toulon Saint Tropez, by contrast, is all about coastal glamour and Mediterranean leisure. Toulon’s airport provides one of the closest air gateways to Saint Tropez and surrounding Riviera resorts, significantly reducing transfer times compared with flying into Nice or Marseille. From sun-drenched beaches and yacht-filled marinas to coastal villages and Provençal markets, the area caters equally to luxury travelers and those seeking simple seaside pleasures.
Mid June is when the French Riviera begins to buzz in earnest, with beach clubs opening fully, restaurant terraces filling in the evenings and the Mediterranean warming up for comfortable swimming. Yet it still precedes the absolute peak of the season, when crowds and prices rise sharply. This makes the Avios-only Toulon flights particularly enticing for travelers keen to experience the Riviera at its best without the intensity of late July or August.
How These Flights Fit Into British Airways’ Wider Loyalty Strategy
The Madrid and Toulon services are not just stand-alone promotions. They sit within a broader evolution of British Airways’ approach to Avios and reward availability. In recent years the airline has increased the number of guaranteed reward seats on each flight across its network, and experimented with periodic Avios-only departures where all seats are released as awards from the outset. Reaching the 50th Avios-only service is both a symbolic and practical milestone in that program.
The strategy signals a shift from loyalty currencies as distant, hard-to-use perks toward something more tangible and predictable. Travel industry analysts note that customers increasingly expect to see clear pathways from card spending and frequent flying to actual seats on popular routes during desirable dates. By publicly designating specific flights as Avios-only and heavily promoting the low entry-level cash outlay, British Airways is addressing one of the longest-standing complaints in the loyalty world: that reward seats are only available when no one wants to travel.
At the same time, the airline is using its BA Cityflyer network out of London City as a test bed for such innovations. The smaller scale of the operation compared with Heathrow long haul services makes it easier to designate entire flights as reward-only without severely disrupting revenue management models. If the Madrid and Toulon Avios-only services fill quickly and generate strong engagement, it may encourage British Airways to expand the concept further into future seasons or additional destinations.
What This Means for Travelers Planning Summer 2026
For travelers, particularly those based in or near London, the new Avios-only flights represent an opportunity to secure high-value summer trips at predictable and potentially very favorable redemption rates. Bank holiday weekends, early summer Riviera weeks and peak-season city breaks are often the most expensive times to travel when paying cash. Locking in reward flights now for late May and June 2026 effectively shields loyal customers from price spikes that may emerge closer to departure.
However, the limited number of dates and flights involved means that flexibility remains crucial. Only specific departures to Madrid and Toulon Saint Tropez have been designated as Avios-only, and those who need different dates or routing options will still be subject to standard reward-seat allocations. Savvy travelers are likely to weigh these Avios-only opportunities against alternative redemptions on Iberia or on British Airways services from other London airports, particularly where off-peak calendars and partner award charts offer additional value.
Nonetheless, the symbolism of opening entire cabins to Avios redemptions at the height of the European summer cannot be understated. It sends a clear message that British Airways intends to compete actively for loyalty in a crowded market where rival programs are also experimenting with generous promotions and off-peak award pricing. For Executive Club members holding substantial Avios balances, summer 2026 now looks a little closer and a lot more attainable, whether the goal is a late-night stroll through Madrid’s plazas or a sunlit afternoon overlooking the harbors of the French Riviera.