It’s back: 7 nights Virgin Voyages full board cruises for two from 120,000 Virgin Points!

Virgin Red has brought back its Virgin Voyages redemptions for the summer.

The pricing has, unfortunately, increased from 2023 but you will still be getting exceptional value from these cruises.

Options range from 5-night Caribbean cruises for 115,000 points for two to a transatlantic 14-day voyage for 280,000 Virgin Points for two.

Each cruise is full board. All your meals, soft drinks, fitness classes, entertainment etc are included – even tips. You only pay for alcoholic drinks.

Remember that these are adults only trips. Flights and transfers are not included.

A lot of HfP readers have jumped on these redemptions in the past few years. The feedback in our forum has been fantastic – from young and old, from those who wanted a bit of a party to those who simply wanted a quiet break after a tricky couple of years. There is a Virgin Voyages master thread in our forum for your Q&A.

If you are short of Virgin Points, options include:

• buying them via this link

• transferring Tesco Clubcard points (should happen overnight)

• transferring American Express Membership Rewards points (should be instant)

• transferring Heathrow Rewards points (not clear about timeframe)

You can transfer points from another Virgin Points account to yours for a flat £10 fee. However, if both of you are travelling then the call centre should be able to take the points from two accounts.

Here are your options:

Which Virgin Voyages can you book?

As mentioned above, you have multiple options.

Mediterranean flash sale – 120,000 points

First up is a limited-time offer for Mediterranean cruises in May. These have been reduced to 120,000 points per cabin (sleeping up to two people) – as you will see below, later dates cost 160,000 Virgin Points.

There are two 7-day cruises you can choose from: ‘French Daze & Ibiza Nights’ and ‘Irresistible Med & Rome’.

This flash sale is only valid for cruises on Scarlet Lady, departing on either 12 May 2024 or 19 May 2024.

Seven nights in the Mediterranean between May and August – 160,000 points

If May is too soon for you, you can also book onto cruises from Barcelona or Athens for the entire summer. This includes Greek Island Glow, Adriatic Sea & Greek Gems, The Irresistible Med (or Elevate Voyage), Irresistible Med & Rome and French Daze & Ibiza Nights (or A Virgin Celebration Voyage).

Itineraries from Athens on Resilient Lady are available departing no later than 28th July 2024.

Five nights in the Caribbean between June and September – 115,000 points

Alternatively, if you want to venture further afar, you can snag one of Virgin Voyages’ Caribbean cruises for just 115,000 points for two. Itineraries include Riviera Maya, Mayan Sol, Miami, Grand Turk & Back and Dominican Daze (or A Virgin Celebration Voyage – Miami).

For the Caribbean cruises – and ONLY for the Caribbean cruises – some additional taxes will be due. These vary from $150 to $300 depending on the itinerary. These will be shown during the booking process.

Transatlantic Voyages

If you’ve got more annual leave than you know what to do with, you can book one of two transatlantic positioning cruises offering multi-week itineraries.

• Barcelona to Miami is a 14-day voyage, available for 280,000 points per pair
• Rome to Miami is a 16+ day voyage, available for 320,000 points per pair

Things to know

There are a few things to know before you book:

• you need to fly to and from Athens, Barcelona, Rome or Miami at your own expense
• the cruises are adults only
• the cost is per cabin, sleeping up to two – there is no discount for single occupancy
• cabins are Central Sea Terrace or The Sea Terrace on Scarlet Lady or Resilient Lady, and will be determined by Virgin Voyages according to availability
• it can take up to three working days to receive your Access Code once you have redeemed your points – once you have the code, you book via the Virgin Voyages website and use the code at the point of payment
• Access Codes are transferable and do not need to used by the person who redeemed the points

Note that there is no guarantee that you can book the exact cruise you want – you need to make sure the cruise in question is still available for cash.

If you want to find out more about Virgin Voyages, here is our report from an afternoon on ‘Scarlet Lady’, the first ship in the fleet.

If you want to top up your balance by buying Virgin Points, the link is here.

You can book via the Virgin Red app or online. Read the instructions carefully before booking – you need to check there is still a relevant cabin available for cash before ordering your booking code, and once it arrives you should book ASAP before the availability disappears. Based on last year, you should be offered the chance to upgrade your cabin for cash nearer the time of departure if you want something larger.

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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):

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.

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.

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.)