Virgin Atlantic launches a new reward seat sale – save 25% on flight in all cabins, on all routes

Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Red have teamed up to offer a 25% discount on ALL Virgin Atlantic destinations when you travel between October and December.

Premium and Upper Class flights are included.

Flight upgrades are included.

‘2 for 1’ bookings made using a Virgin Atlantic credit card voucher are included.

Taxes and fees are unchanged and remain high, with an Upper Class redemption to New York pricing at 71,200 Virgin points + £1,000. The 25% reduction in points does, at least, take the edge off.

You need to book by 3rd October for flights departing between 1st October and 31st December. If your return flight is after 31st December, the discount will only apply to your outbound flight.

The offer does not apply to the ‘we will open up any seat, any flight for double points for Gold members’ benefit.

Where can you go?

To give Virgin Atlantic credit, this sale includes all routes, even those which are currently in their peak season.

The list of current routes (we think) is in the pricing chart below. These are all from Heathrow.

From Manchester you have:

• New York
• Atlanta
• Orlando
• Barbados (seasonal)

The Edinburgh to Orlando service is Summer-only. Manchester to Las Vegas does not launch until next year.

Virgin Atlantic now guarantees that 12 seats are opened to redemption on every flight – two in Upper Class, two in Premium and eight in Economy Classic. Obviously some of these may already have gone, as these flights have been on sale for almost a year.

What do Virgin Atlantic redemptions cost?

Here is the current pricing chart, EXCLUDING the 25% discount:

Return prices	Standard economy	Standard Premium	Standard Upper Class	Peak economy	Peak Premium	Peak Upper Class
Antigua	20,000	35,000	115,000	40,000	55,000	135,000
Atlanta	25,000	45,000	95,000	45,000	65,000	115,000
Austin	30,000	55,000	135,000	50,000	75,000	155,000
Barbados	20,000	35,000	115,000	40,000	55,000	135,000
Bengaluru	20,000	35,000	75,000	40,000	55,000	95,000
Boston	20,000	35,000	95,000	40,000	55,000	115,000
Cape Town	25,000	50,000	115,000	45,000	85,000	135,000
Delhi	20,000	35,000	75,000	40,000	55,000	95,000
Dubai	20,000	35,000	75,000	40,000	55,000	95,000
Grenada	20,000	35,000	115,000	40,000	55,000	135,000
Jamaica	20,000	35,000	115,000	40,000	55,000	135,000
Johannesburg	25,000	50,000	115,000	45,000	85,000	135,000
Lagos	25,000	45,000	115,000	45,000	65,000	135,000
Las Vegas	30,000	55,000	135,000	50,000	75,000	155,000
Los Angeles	30,000	55,000	135,000	50,000	75,000	155,000
Maldives (Male)	25,000	50,000	115,000	45,000	85,000	135,000
Miami	25,000	45,000	95,000	45,000	65,000	115,000
Mumbai	20,000	35,000	75,000	40,000	55,000	95,000
New York	20,000	35,000	95,000	40,000	55,000	115,000
Orlando	25,000	45,000	95,000	45,000	65,000	115,000
San Francisco	30,000	55,000	135,000	50,000	75,000	155,000
Seattle	30,000	55,000	135,000	50,000	75,000	155,000
Shanghai	25,000	45,000	115,000	45,000	65,000	135,000
St Lucia	20,000	35,000	115,000	40,000	55,000	135,000
St Vincent	20,000	35,000	115,000	40,000	55,000	135,000
Tampa	25,000	45,000	95,000	45,000	65,000	115,000
Tel Aviv	18,000	32,000	56,000	22,000	40,000	66,000
The Bahamas	20,000	35,000	115,000	40,000	55,000	135,000
Tobago	20,000	35,000	115,000	40,000	55,000	135,000
Turks & Caicos	20,000	35,000	115,000	40,000	55,000	135,000
Washington DC	20,000	35,000	95,000	40,000	55,000	115,000

Sao Paulo is not on this list as it doesn’t launch until 2024, outside the promotional period.

Here are the peak and off-peak dates. For non-Caribbean routes for the rest of 2023:

…. and for the Caribbean for the rest of 2023:

Virgin Atlantic redemptions now earn tier points

Don’t forget that, unlike almost any other airline, redemptions on Virgin Atlantic earn you tier points.

On redemption flights, you will usually earn the following:

• Economy: 25 tier points each way
• Premium: 50 tier points each way
• Upper Class: 100 tier points each way

You don’t earn Virgin Points on reward tickets, for obvious reasons!

You can learn about tier points on this page of the Virgin Atlantic website.

What can you expect flying Virgin Atlantic?

Virgin Atlantic now flies three different Upper Class seats. We have reviewed them all:

• Virgin Atlantic A350 Upper Class suite review
• Virgin Atlantic A330neo Upper Class review (image above)
• Virgin Atlantic 787 and A330 Upper Class review

In addition to the usual amenities you’d expect form a business class flight, Virgin Atlantic aircraft also feature a bar or social space for Upper Class passengers – a unique feature that only the Middle Eastern airlines such as Emirates and Qatar Airways usually offer.

You’ll also get access to the impressive Virgin Clubhouse at Heathrow, which we’ve reviewed here.

You can read our review of Premium on Virgin Atlantic here.

Conclusion

Virgin Atlantic has launched a major reward flight sale. What’s important is that ALL routes are included, even those such as Dubai and the Caribbean which have their peak season between October and December.

Premium and economy flights are also included, with economy redemptions ticketing into Economy Classic with 23kg checked baggage allowance.

Whilst you can’t get a 25% refund on an existing booking, if you called up and paid the £30 change fee to move your outbound or inbound flight the whole trip should reprice at the lower rate. You could also cancel completely and rebook if seats are available. Be wary of doing this if you booked a long time ago when taxes are lower, as you would be liable for the current rate.

You need to book by 3rd October, for flights departing before the end of December.

The savings are now live on the Virgin Atlantic website here. Just enter your destination and dates. To find reward flights, simply click ‘Advanced’ and select ‘Points’.

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

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.

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

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

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.)