Virgin Atlantic (re)launching flights to Toronto in 2025
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For the first time in over a decade, Virgin Atlantic will operate to Canada. Flights to Toronto launch on 30th March 2025.
Richard Branson joked that this was “third time lucky” for the airline which celebrated its 40th anniversary with a party in Las Vegas last night.
But according to Shai Weiss, CEO of Virgin Atlantic, “this time is different.”
“We had Toronto, which was launched just pre-9/11 which was not a really good time to do so. But the difference with Toronto this time is that our Indian network is so strong that it can provide connectivity for Indian nationals. Toronto happens to be the eighth largest centre for Indian diaspora in the world. So it makes a lot of sense.”
India has become a huge market for Virgin Atlantic since it re-launched flights to the country in 2019. From late October, when Virgin adds a second daily flight to Mumbai (in addition to flights to Bengaluru and Delhi) it will offer over a million seats to the country per year.
Virgin Atlantic will face competition, and not just from the usual suspects. Air Canada already operates flights to Mumbai via London and will switch to Delhi this winter.
That didn’t faze Chief Commercial Officer Juha Jarvinen, who said “There’s plenty of competition on the route, but there’s also plenty of people travelling. There’s 1.5 million people travelling between London and Toronto every year.”
To underpin the new route, Virgin Atlantic is also launching a codeshare arrangement with Canadian airline WestJet in October 2024. This will allow Virgin to sell connections via Toronto to other Canadian cities including Calgary, Ottawa and Winnipeg. Reciprocal frequent flyer benefits will follow “in 2025”.
The route will also get support from being included in the Delta / Air France / KLM transatlantic joint venture agreement, which effectively shares the financial risk – and rewards – across the partners.
When will Virgin Atlantic’s Toronto flights operate?
Virgin Atlantic’s new Toronto service will operate daily, with a relatively late departure from Heathrow. The good news is that this means the Clubhouse lounge will be less busy than during the morning rush of flights to North America.
- VS147 departs Heathrow at 17:10 and arrives in Toronto Pearson Airport at 20:30 the same day
- VS148 departs Toronto at 22:20 and lands into Heathrow at 10:30 the following morning
The flights will be operated by a mixture of aircraft including Virgin’s latest fleet addition, the A330neo.
Tickets go on sale a week on Wednesday, on 19th June. This is for both cash and points redemptions.
As a reminder, on every flight Virgin Atlantic guarantees to opens up for Virgin Points on the first day of booking:
- 2 x Upper Class seats
- 2 x Premium Economy seats
- 8 x Economy seats
…. although additional seats are likely to be added later.
With reservations available up to 331 days in advance, this should mean that bookings will open up on 19th June for flights from 30th March until mid-May 2025. Be ready to book if you fancy Easter 2025 in Canada.
Tickets go on sale on the Virgin Atlantic website on 19th June.
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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.
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