Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

BIG NEWS: Major changes at Virgin Flying Club

Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission.  See here for all partner links.

Virgin Atlantic announced major changes to Flying Club at 2pm today which, on the face of it, appear to move it closer to British Airways Executive Club in terms of earning and burning.

Unfortunately I am, literally, on a beach and Anika is, literally, getting onto a plane.  I am therefore leaving it to you lot to analyse 🙂

There will be a full article tomorrow.

You can see details of the changes to Virgin Flying Club by clicking here.

Here is the official Virgin statement:

“Our goal is to make Flying Club a key differentiator for Virgin Atlantic customers, through the value we offer with miles and by enhancing their Virgin Atlantic experience. As a long haul airline, we know that our members have different needs from a loyalty programme and, by reimagining each component of Flying Club, we ‘re making it more relevant and engaging.”

“The changes we’re making will mean that, whether a customer only travels long haul for a holiday every few years, or they travel frequently or on business, Flying Club will offer them great value and benefits that really make a difference to their experience with us. This is the first step in an exciting journey of change for Flying Club with many more enhancements in the works that we will be announcing through 2017.”

PS. If you are not a regular Head for Points visitor, why not sign up for our FREE weekly or daily newsletters? They are full of the latest Avios, airline, hotel and credit card points news and will help you travel better. To join our 65,000 free subscribers, click the button below or visit this page of the site to find out more. Thank you.

How to earn Virgin Points from UK credit cards

How to earn Virgin Points from UK credit cards (April 2025)

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 18,000 Virgin Points and the free card has a bonus of 3,000 Virgin Points):

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard

18,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review

Virgin Atlantic Reward Mastercard

3,000 bonus points, no fee and 1 point for every £1 you spend 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.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express comes with 50,000 Membership Rewards points, which convert into 50,000 Virgin Points.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large 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

50,000 points when you sign-up 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. 

Category

Virgin Atlantic and Flying Club

Comments (89)

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

  • Fenny says:
    31 Oct31 October 18:35

    Must remember to check with my martial arts instructor when the grading dates are next May/June. I should be able to get away in the off peak time, but don’t want to get caught out and miss my next belt.

  • Rob says:
    31 Oct31 October 19:10

    Virgin has confirmed to me that the Hilton and IHG transfer options will remain and the conversion rates will not change. The same goes for all other partner earning and spending.

    • Alan says:
      31 Oct31 October 19:16

      Excellent, thanks for confirming this with them, Rob.

    • James67 says:
      31 Oct31 October 21:48

      +1 that’s what I was looking for too tnanks. Have just transfered 30k, will get my ISA cancelled for next time and will do thd tesco autoconvert again.

  • mikee says:
    31 Oct31 October 19:22

    Looks like the discounted Z fare Upper Class tier point earning rate has taken a hit. Previously it was 10TPs vs 12TPs for full-fare Upper. Now its 50% of full-fare Upper – 200TPs return vs 400 🙁

    I was generating some good TPs by taking advantage of the discounted Z fares ex EU (Cork and Shannon) so looks like it will now take longer to achieve Silver and Gold status using this method.

    • mikee says:
      31 Oct31 October 19:29

      …so under the old rules, 4 x UC return Z-fare flights (4 x 10TPs rtn) got you Gold status (40TPs) but now you’ll need 5 returns (5 x 200TPs rtn) to reach 1,000TPs.

  • Jake says:
    31 Oct31 October 19:27

    As steadfast off-peak travellers, these changes are brilliant! Not having kids, I don’t travel during peak times so the amount of miles I’ll save is awesome!

    There’ll be a sting in the tail somewhere but at first glance, this looks pretty decent.

    Wonder what they’ll do with Miles Booster?

  • Sebastian says:
    31 Oct31 October 19:30

    For me, whilst this isn’t pleasant news, it’s not as bad as the BA changes. To be honest, as I am someone who gets the PE upgrade X 2 once a year and then takes a UC return X 2 every 1.5/2 years, it’s kind of swings and roundabouts owing to the changes in miles in Economy. The only real killer for me is miles on economy fares (however, I am booking tickets next week, for Feb, if I pay by then will I still get the current rate?). That said, I am not certain with what is happening on the following:

    1) Taxes
    2) Reward Saver deals

    If anyone could clarify my questions it would be greatly appreciated!

  • John G says:
    31 Oct31 October 19:36

    We knew this was due at some stage and I for one am pleasantly surprised. If the availability is there the new PE rates are great value. It is a kick in the balls for anyone looking to redeem in UC but that was always on the cards after BA made their changes. Definitely not as bad as it could have been.

  • M Brown says:
    31 Oct31 October 21:12

    I assume the 2 economy bookings I have already made for after this date will now only earn at the new lower rate?

  • Wetboy1uk says:
    31 Oct31 October 21:25

    The change in miles doesnt reqlly bother me but seems like there will be a significant increaee in taxes – would thia be correct?

    • Dale says:
      31 Oct31 October 21:47

      Might mean the reasonable reward sales of 30% might be a thing of the past? Otherwise economy will be ridiculously cheap?

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

New to Head for Points?

Welcome!  We’re the UK’s most-read source of business travel, Avios, frequent flyer and hotel loyalty news. Let us improve how you travel. Got any questions? Ask them in our forums.

Get 25,000 Avios with the Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

GET A SIGN-UP BONUS OF 18,000 VIRGIN POINTS!

Latest Forum Posts

Get 80,000 bonus points (worth 80,000 Avios) and £400 of dining credit with The Platinum Card (Offer ends 27th May)

Check reward flight availability instantly for free!

See a whole year of reward seat availability on one page at SeatSpy.com

Get up to 10,000 bonus Hilton Honors points

Booking a luxury hotel?

Our luxury hotel booking service offers you GUARANTEED extra benefits over booking direct. Works with Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, The Ritz Carlton, St Regis and more. We've booked £1.7 million of rooms to date. Click for details.

SME? GET THE ONLY FREE SMALL BUSINESS CREDIT CARD WHICH CAN EARN AVIOS

Get points worth 30,000 Avios with 'first year free' American Express Gold (ends 27th May)

The UK's biggest frequent flyer website uses cookies, which you can block via your browser settings. Continuing implies your consent to this policy. Our privacy policy is here.

Got it!