Virgin Flying Club launches a redemption seat sale on selected US economy routes

Virgin Atlantic has launched a reward seat sale on selected routes.

Full details are on their website here.

You can book until 31st October for flights before 12th December.

These deals run until 31st October.  All dates during this period are priced at the lower standard level under the Virgin Flying Club redemption chart so you really are getting the lowest possible mileage price.

Economy redemptions are booked as ‘Economy Classic’ tickets.  You can pre-select seats and checked baggage is free.  You can see the difference between Economy Light, Economy Classic and Economy Delight in this HFP article.

Check the cash price before you book a mileage ticket because, even with 25% off the miles required, these may still not be good deals on cheaper days.  Taxes and charges are still payable although they are a notch lower than what British Airways asks for World Traveller Avios redemptions.

These are the routes which are reduced by 25%:

• London Heathrow to New York (Newark and JFK)
• London Heathrow to Miami
• London Gatwick to Orlando
• Manchester to Orlando
• Manchester to New York JFK
• Glasgow to Orlando

Here are some example return prices in Economy:

Miami (from Heathrow) – 18,600 miles + £267

Orlando (from Gatwick) – 18,600 miles + £236

New York (from Manchester) – 15,000 + £241

Remember that you must complete your travel by 12th December.

How can you top up your Virgin Flying Club balance quickly?

If you are short of miles, remember that Virgin Flying Club miles transfer INSTANTLY at 1:1 from American Express Membership Rewards as long as your accounts are already linked.  It may take a couple of days if you have not previously linked your accounts.

Transfers from Tesco Clubcard are also very fast, usually overnight – the ‘Clubcard to Virgin’ page is here.  250 Clubcard points are worth 625 Virgin Flying Club miles.

You cannot do a ‘miles plus money’ redemption for these deals.  It has to be a 100% miles booking.

To maximise your miles when paying the taxes, your best bet is one of the two Virgin Atlantic Reward credit cards.  These earn double miles (3 per £1 on the paid card or 1.5 per £1 on the free card) when you book at virginatlantic.com or via Virgin Holidays.  Another option is American Express Preferred Rewards Gold which offers double points – 2 per £1 – when you book flight tickets directly with an airline.

Full details of the reward flight sale are here.

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 (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.