Virgin Atlantic closing two more routes

It was only last month that Virgin Atlantic closed its Shanghai route, cutting off its final ties to East Asia.

Shanghai followed the closure of Hong Kong and Tokyo, although Seoul is still expected to launch in the next year.

It seems that there is more to come, with two more routes now chopped.

The closures are:

• Nassau, Bahamas – final flight outbound on 20th February 2025

• Providenciales, Turks & Caicos – final flight outbound on 15th February 2025

Nassau was launched in November 2021. It seemed to be going well because a third weekly flight was added for Winter 2024. Why was a third flight added (and which still hasn’t launched) just for the route to be cut a few weeks later?

Providenciales is a new route, launched in November 2023.

I should note that Virgin Atlantic has said that the last flight to Nassau will be on the 23rd and the last flight to Providenciales will be on the 21st. However, as of last night, the final flights I could see that were bookable are the ones I listed above.

These routes were all stops on the way to Jamaica

What is interesting about Nassau and Providenciales is that they were stops on the way to Montego Bay in Jamaica.

There are seven flights per week to Montego Bay. Three are direct, two go via Nassau and two go via Providenciales.

It isn’t clear what is happening to the daily Montego Bay service. At present, flights to Montego Bay in March are still operating each day, and still showing stops in Nassau and Providenciales – even though you can’t book to those places on their own.

Will some of the seven Montago Bay services also be dropped? Or will the flights continue and operate directly from Heathrow, cutting a couple of hours from the return journey time?

Re-routing options

Virgin Atlantic has said that it will have a re-routing policy in place on 10th August. Do NOT waste your time contacting them to discuss new flights until then.

I suspect that Nassau customers will be offered flights on Delta with a change in Atlanta. There would also be the option of taking Virgin Atlantic to Atlanta before changing to Delta.

Turks & Caicos passengers could be re-routed on Delta via New York or Boston. However, both options would require passengers to get an ESTA and meet US immigration requirements (no Cuba travel, no unspent convictions etc) so you may want to push for a BA flight.

It is worth noting that, when Shanghai was cancelled, we had a LOT of reports in our comments and in our forum of Virgin Atlantic call centre agents failing to give accurate information. Virgin Atlantic MUST offer you an alternative flight on another carrier. You are NOT obliged to take a refund.

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.