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I finally book the UK’s best value – by far – frequent flyer redemption

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There is one redemption opportunity via a UK frequent flyer programme which – in terms of flights departing the UK – is head and shoulders about the rest in terms of value.

Even more amazingly, availability for this redemption is very easy to find.

Until yesterday, I had never booked it.  Even now, I have booked it but someone else will be flying.

air-china-first-2

Virgin Atlantic is not in a major airline alliance, despite Delta Air Lines – a core plank of the Skyteam alliance – being a 49% shareholder.

Despite that, the airline does have a number of airline partners with whom you can earn and redeem Flying Club miles.  These include :

  • Air China
  • Air New Zealand
  • All Nippon Airways
  • Hawaiian Airlines
  • Jet Airways
  • Malaysia Airlines
  • SAS (earning only)
  • Singapore Airlines
  • South African Airways
  • Virgin Australia

… plus of course Delta.

One of these partners offers outstanding value – Air China.

air-china-first

You can fly First Class from London to Beijing on Air China for just 75,000 Virgin Flying Club miles return.  Business Class is just 63,000 miles, although you’d be silly not to pay the extra 12,000 miles if you can.

The tax, as I found out yesterday, is £508.75.

There are two caveats to the Air China deal, but these are minor:

You can only book London to Beijing.  No other routes are possible, no add-on connections are possible.

You can only book return flights

You can check availability online.  The easiest place to look is the United Airlines website.  United lets you search for redemption availability even if you don’t have a United MileagePlus account – you don’t even need to log in.

If you can see ‘First Class Saver’ space showing for Air China, Virgin Flying Club should be able to book it.

The booking process took 20 minutes but that was mainly due to the agent – who knew exactly what she had to do – waiting for Air China to approve the seat.  It was a longer wait (25 minutes) to get to the front of the Virgin phone queue, as many people are currently calling up with problems following the botched relaunch of the Virgin Atlantic website.

To put this redemption in context, British Airways Executive Club charges 170,000 (off-peak) or 200,000 (peak) Avios points plus £550 for London to Beijing in First Class.

Even if you have a BA Amex 2-4-1 voucher, it is STILL better value to use 150,000 Flying Club miles for two people.

The eight-seat Air China First Class seat doesn’t look too bad either as the photos in the article show.  It is not on a par with Etihad or Emirates (the food seems to be especially weak) but for 75,000 Virgin Flying Club miles return …..?  I don’t think anyone will complain.

As I said, this ticket was not for me but I will try to get a review done.

How to earn Virgin Points from UK credit cards

How to earn Virgin Points from UK credit cards (April 2024)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Virgin Points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

You can choose from two official Virgin Atlantic credit cards (apply here, the Reward+ card has a bonus of 15,000 Virgin Points):

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard

15,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review

Virgin Atlantic Reward Mastercard

A generous earning rate for a free card at 0.75 points per £1 Read our full review

You can also earn Virgin Points from various American Express cards – and these have sign-up bonuses too.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold is FREE for a year and comes with 20,000 Membership Rewards points, which convert into 20,000 Virgin Points.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express comes with 40,000 Membership Rewards points, which convert into 40,000 Virgin Points.

The Platinum Card from American Express

40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Small business owners should consider the two American Express Business cards. Points convert at 1:1 into Virgin Points.

American Express Business Platinum

40,000 points sign-up bonus and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Virgin Points. 

(Want to earn more Virgin Points?  Click here to see our recent articles on Virgin Atlantic and Flying Club and click here for our home page with the latest news on earning and spending other airline and hotel points.)

Category

Virgin Atlantic and Flying Club

Comments (101)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Stu R says:
    15 Dec15 December 05:39

    On the downside, you arrive in Beijing, capital of a country with a poor human rights and, well, if you’re any kind of animal …. bad luck!

    • Genghis says:
      15 Dec15 December 06:01

      I don’t think I’ll be returning to China after our 3 week trip in the autumn. Strange people.

      • Worzel says:
        15 Dec15 December 06:56

        Stu/Genghis,

        I’m willing to sponsor you both(via HFP) to go over there and sort 1.3billion people out in order to point them in the right direction.

        Good Luck!

        • Genghis says:
          15 Dec15 December 07:13

          From experience: spitting and starting smoking right next to you in restaurants, no concept of personal space, the staring and touching of my wife’s hair and skin, people holding you still so they can take selfies… Even my native Chinese colleague (now very anglicised) laughed when I told him and thinks Chinese are strange. You’re in for some fun Raffles! You should have tried harder (t-355) to book direct to Japan.

          • Brian says:
            15 Dec15 December 07:24

            Rob isn’t flying…

          • Genghis says:
            15 Dec15 December 07:29

            I thought he is going to China/Japan at Easter?

          • Mike says:
            15 Dec15 December 12:37

            Completely agree with the comments – they are a strange bunch. On the cruise ships they are a law unto themselves. Starter, main and dessert all on the one plate – barging into lifts, queue jumping, spitting – unbelievable.

      • Choons says:
        15 Dec15 December 07:14

        I am interested to hear more about China, was it a good trip then? I quite fancy going next year.

        • Genghis says:
          15 Dec15 December 07:27

          I’d wanted to go for a long time from my living in Japan days. Some of the sights and experiences are v impressive: maglev in Shanghai, Great Wall at Jinshaling at sunset, climbing Hua Shan, hiking in Yangshuo to watch sunset. Food – such an important part of travelling for me – was on the whole disappointing. I’m pleased I went though to stop the urge of wanting to go. But unlike most other places I travel to, I’ve no desire to return.

          • Barry cutters says:
            15 Dec15 December 07:50

            Totally agree . Over Easter last year I was living in la and we got a cracking deal on the aa 787 to shanghai and then back out of Hong Kong . Something like $2300 return in j (Rate was probably 1.6 to £ at Time of booking and remember this is 14h flight) . Anyway we loved hk – but china , a difficult place to like really. The food was weird , everything had bones in it and was cooked to the point that all it tasted of was bone marrow. Spitting on the floor, rude people, it’s a different culture I get it , but not one I enjoy. I’m 30 years old , have been to over 50 country’s and I’m very much able to accept other people a customs and ways, but china ……..I just wouldn’t go back

    • Alex W says:
      15 Dec15 December 07:12

      I have been to China 5 times, it is a fascinating place and I would love to go back again.

    • Ed says:
      15 Dec15 December 08:40

      Well. It’s a shame, as there’re many travelers actually had a good time in Beijing.

      • Graeme says:
        15 Dec15 December 10:27

        I enjoyed it a couple of weeks ago – that was my third time. As someone said, it’s a fascinating place. Some of the criticisms – while very valid – are part of what makes it interesting.

    • Toto says:
      15 Dec15 December 08:09

      Not condoning chinese human or animal rights record…but often overlooked is the fact the same government has through economic reforms lifted hundreds of millions out of absolute poverty and starvation over the past 3 decades which in itself is one great acheivement in human rights!

      Meanwhile its convenient to forget that US and the west has repeated invaded other countries and violate the human rights of their civilians but can still claim to be morally superior to China!

      • Choons says:
        15 Dec15 December 08:16

        Thanks for all the notes on China everyone, some useful pointers so at least I can go there with my eyes open!

      • JONATHAN says:
        15 Dec15 December 08:44

        Yes. Talking about human rights. What about those people US and U.K. Have bombed. What about their rights of living !!!

        • Alex W says:
          15 Dec15 December 09:01

          For every accidental death countless lives are saved.

          • Will says:
            15 Dec15 December 09:09

            Hiroshima? Nagasaki?

          • mark2 says:
            15 Dec15 December 09:41

            Hiroshima and Nagasaki are excellent examples of where bombing saved enormous numbers of lives both Allied and Japanese if Japan had been invaded.
            Although of course the deaths were not accidental.

          • Matt smith says:
            15 Dec15 December 15:37

            Americans continue to be blind to the difference between civilian and military targets, unless that is they are the victims.. And it is for this reason that their foreign policy is so hated the world over, along with their ‘we saved the world’ attitude. It’s questionable how on the one hand Americans can celebrate civilian attacks in Japan to the scale of Nagasaki and Hiroshima and yet consider themselves victims in the same regard when they are attacked.

          • Toto says:
            15 Dec15 December 17:29

            “Hiroshima and Nagasaki are excellent examples of where bombing saved enormous numbers”
            This has to be the most inappropriate use of the word “Excellent” in history!
            In case you didnt know, over 100,000 lives were wiped out instantly by the blasts and 5 times that amount died from radiation related cancers in the decade that followed…how can you ever use the word excellent to describe them?

            The idea that the atom bombs were needed to end the war is propagated by the US only to justify their actions. Japan has long been incapable of defending itself after the oil embargo, and had prepared to surrender

      • Libertyscott says:
        15 Dec15 December 12:02

        Taiwan today is how China would have been had it not been subjected to the world’s most murderous – statistically – regime in history. The Chinese Communist Party embraced corporatist capitalism after starving and killing tens of millions to death in the 1960s, but the idea that “somehow” it deserves thanks for embracing rational market principles in some ways, whilst maintaining an unchallenged, corrupt, brutal one-party state, with little rule of law, little respect for individual rights, is absurd. Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macao all remain light years ahead of mainland China in terms of both standard of living and individual rights. Giving the CCP credit is like giving your once deadbeat alcoholic psychopathic neighbour credit for getting a job, making sure his family is fed and clothed, while he still bashes his wife and kids for disagreeing with him.

        Still, great deal for Beijing and no reason why flights can’t be booked from there to other locations like Hong Kong or Japan.

        • Toto says:
          15 Dec15 December 17:59

          Corruption only happens in China does it? No other place in the world? Taiwan is light years ahead of china so much so its former president Chen Shui-bian is serving 19 years for corruption charges!
          Over in the US, nothing the Clintons or Trump has ever done which is not questionable?

          By your analogy, US is your paranoid schizophrenic uncle…who may be perfect husband and father at home…then fabricates a story about how his neighbours are threatening, then goes round with a shotgun and takes what he likes.

          • John says:
            15 Dec15 December 18:48

            I have no desire to visit the US and I wonder why it’s so popular with other HFPers.

            Corruption happens everywhere, including the UK. His problem with China is not so much the corruption but more the “unchallenged, brutal one-party state, with little rule of law and little respect for individual rights”

          • Andrew Green says:
            15 Dec15 December 20:11

            ofcourse the us and uk are the worst countries in the world… happy now… move on

    • William says:
      15 Dec15 December 12:47

      Assume you are British? Not sure if you have ever been or how long you have been there but this country with “poor human rights” has brought a population 20 times of UK out of poverty, become 2nd largest economy of the world, sending millions of tourists across the world who are buying all the things that your own people can’t afford, built its first ever aircraft carrier fleet while UK just sold its last one because it can’t afford it. Your government is begging for business with this “dictatorial, corrupt and brutal” country to save your own. Another thing, people from this country rarely (but not never) judge or comment on those from other places unless. So now my friend from an country whose international influence is trending to nil, where does your moral superiority come from?

      • Andy says:
        15 Dec15 December 19:05

        With all the things you have stated in you post, hating on China’s human and animal rights is probably the last place to go for them to cling onto some sense of superiority.
        Funny how British people always appears to be extra careful when discussing Black/Muslim countries and their people. But when it comes to China, all their political correctness instantly goes out of the window!

    • Markymarc says:
      15 Dec15 December 13:01

      Interesting discussion threads here…I have to say that whilst I am a great traveller I have absolutely no desire to visit China.
      The screenshot of the first class cabin looks about as welcoming as the country itself, bleak to say the least.
      I worry not so much for global peace, after all Putin and Trump will both be doing their best to get that party going but the future of animals, especially the most beautiful, fragile and rare ones.
      Say goodbye to the tigers, lions, cheetahs, leopards, turtles, the list goes on. The only rare animal they lift a finger for is the giant Panda – why? – because on their doorstep.
      Dreadful country.

    • Grace says:
      15 Dec15 December 14:05

      Stu R, by attacking China does not make you look superior. Perhaps you should just stay where you are to honour your human rights.

      The deal on Air China sounds absolutely amazing. First class on Air China, from my experience, is very good indeed!

      • Stu R says:
        15 Dec15 December 15:22

        Grace, my intention was never to look ‘superior’, and frankly I couldn’t give a fig about human rights; most human suffering is caused by other humans. Sadly so is most animal suffering. I’m sure there are plenty more countries guilty of animal cruelty, our own included, but none so prevalent as China – I’ll spare you the (X-rated) grim details but if you feel so inclined, do a search on the skinning/drowning of live dogs, or bear bile farms, and watch some of the videos on the subject, it’s appalling …. that’s why I personally wouldn’t visit China. You, on the other hand are free to visit should you choose, as free as I am to have my opinion. Have a nice evening.

    • Andy says:
      15 Dec15 December 19:22

      I bet If this article was about a good value redemption on one of the Big 3 ME airlines going to Saudi Arabia/UAE, everyone will just be talking about how great their J products are and how lovely the hotels are over there. No one will even dare to mention a word about their human rights situation, never mind straight-up calling their country ‘dreadful’ and its people a ‘strange bunch’!
      Unbelievable.

  • Waribai says:
    15 Dec15 December 06:19

    Another caveat. Do not get too excited about the other airlines on the list. IIRC they range from extremely difficult to nigh on impossible to book. I would love for someone with recent experience to correct me!

  • Susan says:
    15 Dec15 December 06:42

    Looking at the VS Flying Club Air New Zealand chart and assuming I’m reading it correctly, it’s only 80k NZ-Asia. So a combination of Air China to Beijing and Air New Zealand to AKL would get you an all J trip for 143k virgin miles albeit with separate PNRs. I’ve done this route before and it’s actually a nice trip allowing a proper night’s sleep in Beijing which helps with jetlag.

    • James A says:
      15 Dec15 December 06:56

      You found availability on air New Zealand? That is like winning the lottery!

      VS’s partners treat VS like some sort of joke, it seems. There are all sorts of conditions imposed and they release so few seats to them. Speaking personally I did manage to book flights on Virgin Australia with some difficulty, but they only allow domestic redemptions in economy!

    • Libertyscott says:
      15 Dec15 December 12:03

      NZ doesn’t fly Beijing to NZ, but there can be availability from PVG to AKL, albeit scarce in premium classes now it is flown by a high density (small premium cabin) 787-9

  • Susan says:
    15 Dec15 December 07:00

    I did and for two! But that was in the last, glory days of BMI not VS, and using the ANA tool.

  • the real harry says:
    15 Dec15 December 07:04

    re: the botched Virgin Atlantic website makeover – ten days ago it threw me out several times & I couldn’t get in…

    …but 2 days ago it was easy, just change your password without trying to get in with your old details is the answer

    there is a plaintive warning along the lines: ‘try to log in & fail 3 times & you’ll have to phone us to sort it out, so why not simply change your password?’ – which turned out to be good advice – they should just have made changing password mandatory then none of these locked-out phone calls

    • Floridaglen says:
      15 Dec15 December 09:33

      It is certainly very annoying at the moment trying to log in to Virgin’s website. Each time it wants me to set 2 security questions. I’ve let virgin know but nothing’s been done yet to fix it. I suppose I should be grateful that I can log in!

    • Matt says:
      15 Dec15 December 09:58

      Have Virgin killed the Miles More Friends scheme?
      I was looking to refer colleagues to VA for some LH trips we are making but can’t find it anywhere. Is this because they killed it or just the new website missed it?
      I did get a referral bonus a while ago, this seems to have disappreaed from my statement (though I think still have the miles the transactions are missing).

      • Lawro says:
        15 Dec15 December 10:00

        Yes. Reported on Flyertalk about 3 weeks ago. Shame as it was a nice incentive.

        • Matt says:
          15 Dec15 December 10:12

          That’s earning my first “Bah Humbug” of the festive season.
          thanks for the answer

          • Oh! Matron! says:
            15 Dec15 December 10:39

            They’ve also killed the 2,000 miles when gold for your birthday. Miserable scroogebugs

  • Anon says:
    15 Dec15 December 07:25

    Firstly I would argue its certainly not the best value redemption available to UK residents, surely that’s a cracking article we can all submit our own opinions on for Rob to run a HFP top ten.

    Secondly just because its cheap doesn’t make it high value.

    Thirdly (and being careful how I echo Genghis comments) I’ve heard some horror stories flying on flights out of China.

    • Gavin says:
      15 Dec15 December 09:36

      Whilst waiting to board a Qatar flight at Larnaca the Mrs witnessed an old Chinese lady screaming in Cantonese (she thought), smacking herself in her face, and then lying down in front of the air bridge while pointing at her leg. No-one knew what she was on about, but eventually she was allowed to pre-board. Sadly my wife was sitting behind her – she spent the entire flight pressing the call bell almost continuously, and then stood up and started unpacking her carryon when the seatbelts sign came on before landing.

      God knows how she connected at Doha, my wife was just pleased she wasn’t flying on to Seoul!

    • Han says:
      16 Dec16 December 15:55

      LOL!! Very true … when my friends and I flee from NYC to Beijing – whilst on their subway, a child was at liberty to defecate on the floor of the train – yes, a moving public train. The father merely wiped his bottom with a newspaper he picked up from the floor. Legitimately sick people.

  • Anon says:
    15 Dec15 December 07:33

    I dare say there’s also airlines operating to/from UK that have a rating greater than 5/10..

    http://www.airlinequality.com/airline-reviews/air-china/

  • Anon says:
    15 Dec15 December 07:40

    Considering Robs experience I find it laughable he’s rating Air China far higher than BA First. (With 241)

    Come on, surely we deserve a straw poll on our opinions on that one.

    • TimS says:
      15 Dec15 December 07:54

      He’s not rating it “higher” than BA First. He’s rating it “better value” for miles used. Big difference.

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