Virgin Atlantic’s Sao Paulo flights to go on sale

Earlier this year, Virgin Atlantic confirmed it would (re-)launch flights to Sao Paulo after the initial launch was nixed by covid. It is Virgin Atlantic’s first foray into South America.

Here are the details:

• Flights will launch on 13th May 2024, with a daily service all year round

• The route will use a Boeing 787-9, which means you are getting the old-style Upper Class seat, unfortunately. The layout is 31 Upper Class, 35 Premium and 192 Economy Delight / Classic / Light.

The flight timings are significantly better than what was planned for 2020:

• VS193 departs Heathrow at 12:45pm and arrives in Sao Paulo at 8:20pm
• VS194 departs Sao Paulo at 10:10pm and lands in London at 1:25pm the following day

This gives Virgin Atlantic a quick turnaround time of around two hours in Sao Paulo, which is pretty efficient for a long haul flight like this.

Tickets are on sale soon

Virgin Atlantic has now confirmed that it will start selling tickets on the route on Wednesday 6th September.

According to the press release, lead in pricing will start from:

• £686 in economy
• £1,126 in Premium
• £2,744 in Upper Class

If you are keen to fly to Brazil and/or South America, and are sitting on a pile of Virgin Points, now is a good time to sort out when you would like to go.

Virgin Atlantic reward availability will be wide open from 5am-ish on 6th September. They will release redemption availability for all flights between 13th May and 2nd August 2024, which is as far as the booking window goes.

Virgin Atlantic guarantees two Upper Class seats, two Premium seats and eight economy seats on every flight, which means that on the 6th September at least 162 Upper Class seats each way will be up for redemption.

Redemptions for dates after the 2nd August 2024 will drop in day-by-day (Virgin Atlantic releases seats 331 days in advance.) Here are the current prices for these flights:

Expect to pay a heft chunk of taxes and fees, which remain high on Virgin Atlantic redemptions.

This article looks at how you can redeem Virgin Points for Virgin Atlantic flights in more detail. Don’t forget you can also redeem Virgin Points with the South American airline LATAM, which has just announced a new route between London and Lima.

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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.