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Virgin Atlantic to end flights to Dubai next year

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Virgin Atlantic has announced that it is cancelling all flights to Dubai from 31st March 2019.

As a regular traveller on the route, I always struggled with Virgin. 

Virgin Atlantic to drop Dubai route

The outbound flight from the UK is overnight which, whilst it may suit some business travellers (albeit you are heading straight into work after 2-3 hours sleep at most), didn’t work for the leisure market.  Arriving in Dubai at 8am with no hotel room to check into and sleep-deprived kids is not fun.

The British Airways options are not great either, with the first Heathrow service leaving at 12.55 which gets you in very late.  The sweet spot is taking the 9-ish services on Emirates or Etihad (to Abu Dhabi, a short taxi ride away) which land around 8pm.

How to earn Virgin Points from UK credit cards

How to earn Virgin Points from UK credit cards (September 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 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.

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 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.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 22nd October 2024, the bonus on American Express Business Platinum is increased to up to 80,000 Membership Rewards points, worth 80,000 Virgin Points. You will receive 8 points per £1 spent for the first three months, on up to £10,000 of spending. Click here to read our full card review. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 22nd October 2024, the bonus on American Express Business Gold is increased to up to 40,000 Membership Rewards points, worth 40,000 Virgin Points. You will receive 4 points per £1 spent for the first three months, on up to £10,000 of spending. The card is FREE for your first year. Click here to read our full card review. Click here to apply.

American Express Business Platinum

Up to 80,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

Get up to 40,000 points as a sign-up offer 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.

  • Ben says:
    28 Jun28 June 12:09

    OT virgin related – What would be the best UC seats on the 787 in people options?
    Its going to be my first time in UC so want to get the best seats possible.

  • ahop says:
    28 Jun28 June 12:17

    OT but also Virgin related. Rob, do you know when the final Virgin offers for bonus points on the new cards are going out? I have marketing turned on (always have) but haven’t received any correspondence yet.

  • the real harry1 says:
    28 Jun28 June 13:05

    BREAKING

    British Airways’ parent company, IAG, has astonished the aviation market by launching a new Vienna-based subsidiary airline with less than three weeks’ notice before flights begin.

    IAG’s new operation is called Anisec. It will be branded as Level – the same as the group’s existing long-haul budget operation.

    • the real harry1 says:
      28 Jun28 June 13:06

      evel’s short-haul flights begin on Tuesday 17 July. On that day flights between Gatwick and Vienna are available at £23 each way. Services start on the same day between Vienna and Palma de Mallorca.

      Over the subsequent four weeks, flights from Vienna will be launched to six Spanish destinations and three cities in Italy, as well as Paris, Dubrovnik and Larnaca in Cyprus. The latter two routes offer connection opportunities for British travellers from Gatwick via Vienna.

      The new airline uses Airbus A321 jets – bigger planes than other low-cost carriers. They seat 210 passengers, compared with a maximum of 186 on easyJet and 189 on Ryanair.

      Willie Walsh, IAG’s chief executive, said: “We are launching this new short-haul subsidiary to provide Austrian consumers with more flight choices across Europe.

      “These flights will be branded as Level to build upon the huge success of our new long haul low-cost operation.”

      IAG already has a low-cost short-haul airline, Vueling, which is based in Barcelona. Initially bookings for Level are being made through the Vueling website.

      With so many holidaymakers already booked for the summer, to launch an airline with just 19 days’ notice is most unusual. But a spokesperson for IAG said: “We’re so confident that the new operation will be a success, that tickets will fly off the shelves like hot cakes.”

      • the real harry1 says:
        28 Jun28 June 13:26

        Oh stand corrected he got it right (in part)

        Decent cheap flights in peak hols season if you route on Level thru Vienna, could get there and back this summer for about £70 EW

      • Thomas Howard says:
        28 Jun28 June 13:37

        Will IAG ever add Vueling, Level and Aer Lingus to Oneworld Connect? What percentage of the ticket price is linked to alliance membership?

      • Rob says:
        28 Jun28 June 13:41

        Weird! Anika had HUGE fun with Vueling yesterday, so much fun that a compensation cheque has been agreed within 24 hours …..

        • marcw says:
          28 Jun28 June 13:44

          Good for her!

          • Rob says:
            28 Jun28 June 15:47

            Good for me, I paid for the ticket 🙂 I’ve told her she can spend €50 on cocktails by the pool on HFP …

        • Genghis says:
          28 Jun28 June 16:11

          Surely Anika should keep all compensation as she experienced the issues? Unless you compensate her for her additional time etc? I keep all compensation when on company travel.

    • marcw says:
      28 Jun28 June 13:26

      It’s been a rumour since may. Cheap flights to Vienna this summer though.

    • Jeff says:
      28 Jun28 June 13:50

      This is presumably trying to replicate what they would have got had they been able to buy Lauda

  • Jon says:
    28 Jun28 June 13:32

    Abu Dhabi airport to Dubai is a “short taxi ride”???

    78 miles. For comparison that’s more than the “shorter still” taxi ride from Heathrow to Southampton….

    • the real harry1 says:
      28 Jun28 June 13:38

      60-odd mins, it’s also a cheapish £40 taxi ride – whereas what would you pay LHR to Southampton, £200?

    • Rob says:
      28 Jun28 June 13:40

      It took us 65 minutes to Madinat Jumeirah last time and a £40 fare. From DXB it is 25 mins. You get some of the extra 40 mins back via quicker immigration too.

    • Alan says:
      28 Jun28 June 14:48

      Thanks for posting that. Its been 30 years since I was last in the UAE but my memory of it was that it was much more than a “Short taxi ride” between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Not losing my marbles as quickly as I’d feared!

      • Rob says:
        28 Jun28 June 15:44

        It is now direct motorway from the airport into Dubai – that is what has changed in the last 30 years!

        • Nick says:
          28 Jun28 June 17:43

          Yeah, i’ve done the taxi ride to abu from dubai many time given the better flight times (i.e. overnight!).

  • RIccatti says:
    28 Jun28 June 15:03

    Indeed.

    Seems the redemption rate for Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis brands are through the roof. I remember Rob saying SPG high end hotels being expensive (on points) as they are. Even more so under the new program. Keeps hotel owners happy, I suppose.

    • RIccatti says:
      28 Jun28 June 15:08

      Mostly up for Ritz, and only slightly down like -5000 Marriott for St Regis. Some relative sweetspots like St Regis Rome and W Fort Lauderdale — up significantly.

  • RIccatti says:
    28 Jun28 June 15:04

    Point 2. Seems that plenty of crappy, convenience airport Sheraton hotels also went up.

  • New Card says:
    28 Jun28 June 15:10

    Domes of Elounda goes from 45k to 85k – crazy devaluation.

  • Antonio Lulic says:
    28 Jun28 June 15:19

    The new Intercon doesn’t appear to be bookable with the Ambassador Free Weekend Cert. What are the criteria for a hotel being bookable with that?

    • Rob says:
      28 Jun28 June 15:43

      All hotels have to offer it. Probably haven’t got around to it, perhaps email the Ambassador Service Centre and see if they can book it for you.

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

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