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Ok, new member so please go easy on me. I wasn’t even sure which sub forum to post it in. I would just like to put something out there to gauge opinion and the practicality of it.
As a family of 5 who can only travel at peak dates due to school unfortunately, summer flights to the US are usually an eye watering amount of £s – This summer seems especially high for some reason so I’m thinking ahead to next year.
I’ve found myself in the position of having circa 160,000 Avios points and circa 100,000 Virgin Flying Club points.
Now to even take 5 of us in economy peak we are looking at around 225,000 Virgin points and around 375,000 Avios for a return trip.
So my question is, would we be able to fly BA outbound and Virgin Inbound as I’m guessing those points would revert to half + fees/taxes at 112,500 (Virgin) and 187,500 (BA) which is far more realistic.
Is this a decent solution to using our existing points and predicament? – From what I can gather, we would probably pay somewhat of a premium in terms of taxes as they are classed as one-way individual bookings but even then, we still appear to save thousands on the cash prices.
Am I missing anything obvious here or any other potential downfalls or problems? – I’ve researched and can’t seem to find anyone who has exercised such an option as I guess most of you concentrate on a single flying club points scheme.
Thanking you kindly for any comments/advice. Looking forward to reading and contributing to the forum going forward
I would suggest you consider splitting the five people into two groups (with one adult in each group).
Particularly for Virgin, the fees associated with a round trip (return) are far less than the fees associated with a “mixed” trip (Virgin one way, and BA the other).
I have done this a few times in the past, and saved significant amounts. The strategy also provides lots to talk about (“We got this on BA; Did you get that on Virgin, etc).
So, try a few “trial runs” and see the costs.No problem at all with flying out on BA and back on VS (or vice versa)
No need to guess on the points cost just do dummy points bookings. Search each leg separately for each airline then mix and match depending on which combo works out best for your trip.
Issue maybe getting 5 economy rewards seats on the same flight though so you might want to consider splitting your party up to maximise availability and options.
Did this a few times recently nesting a Ba return into a VS return to/from Barbados with no issues. Also booked one ways with a VS and a BA upgrade vouchers earlier this year – again no problems.
When I did two different one ways in/out the US immigration picked up I was on a one way and wanted to see the details on my return flight.
Lol, I remember Batfink!
VS surcharges are crazy high, especially to and from the US, and even more so one-way. I have actually changed my redemption strategy because of this – it’s better value using VS points to the Caribbean and other destinations.
I personally wouldn’t want the family travelling separately, although it may work for some people.
You could look at getting the free BA Amex and make use of the companion voucher at a future date.
But BA RFS pricing in economy should be within your grasp – if you can travel on off-peak dates, return flights for 5 of you would be 250k avios without any vouchers, plus £500, to somewhere like New York or Boston. There are other combinations where you can use fewer avios and pay more cash, if that would work better for you.
Another option would be to use avios for some of you and put one or two on a BA Holiday booking – you should then all be on the same flight and you can add a car or hotel (or both) for less than separate bookings would cost.
Check out the MANY useful articles on this site about all these options!
Thanks guys for the input and advice. Could I just add, what is the advantage of splitting the party up? – I’m a little wary of that as at least we would all be on a single booking with 5. I thought doing it this way, it could also save any potential phone calls, waiting on hold etc as I could potentially “hopefully” nab the 5 seats on release date via both airlines without having the gamble of waiting for the inbound release.
*BA does guarantee to release either 6 or 8 economy award seats on all flights (can’t recall off the top of my head), and there are sometimes more on routes like NYC with lots of services.
I think the suggestion was so that you would have enough points for all 5 of you, albeit across different airlines. I wouldn’t like to do this, in case of delays or cancellations/other issues on one of the flights.
Also – on BA there is at least one off-peak date each week, even in school holidays. Virgin doesn’t do this.
So reading again, it appears Virgin taxes/fees are the main reason again the one way idea. For a return for 5 it’s coming out at roughly £1200 return. Is it normal if booking a one way from the US to U.K. on Virgin it’s priced in dollars? – Having done a dummy run, it also appears seat selection is free as well which could offset some of the extra taxes as it looks to be about £800 on Virgin one way.
I think the suggestion was so that you would have enough points for all 5 of you, albeit across different airlines. I wouldn’t like to do this, in case of delays or cancellations/other issues on one of the flights.
Wouldn’t any cancellations or delays though be the same risk with a return on the same airline?
Yes, you pay in the currency of the place you start in on VS, and depending on how you pay, you may have to pay FX fees. Virgin does allow you to select certain seats FOC, I think, though I’m not sure about in economy.
? If you’re all on the same flight, any issue would affect all of you. If half of you were on BA, and half on VS, obviously this could cause major problems.
? If you’re all on the same flight, any issue would affect all of you. If half of you were on BA, and half on VS, obviously this could cause major problems.
Ok with you, the idea would be 5 of us flying ba together and 5 of us fly Virgin.
You asked what the advantage was of splitting up the family – that was the only one I could think of!
Hello hello
Firstly, this is a little bit vague as both BA and Virgin have different prices for different parts of the US.
But here I go anyway:
BA do what is called “Reward Flight Saver” if you have earned an Avios point in the last year which it sounds like you have done. Therefore BA in peak times will be:
25,000 Avios + £50 the closest bits of the USA
30,000 Avios + £75 the less close bitsThis is the same no matter whether you be going west or east.
Virgin is more confusing as they have three zones (west, east, & Midwest/south). It sounds like you are going Midwest/south. Let’s say Orlando because that is Disney-tastic.
Fly to Orlando one way is 22,500 + £214
Flying back from Orlando is 22,500 + £124 (priced as $153)
A return flight is 45,000 + £282.(If you are seeing higher prices than this then you will probably find it is non-direct with Delta)
So hypothetically assuming Orlando, you would be best off (given your likely points capability) flying out with BA and back with Virgin.
For five of you, this would cost:
150,000 Avios + £375 and 112,500 Virgin points + £620.
So all you should need is another 12,500 Virgin points and £1,005 in cold hard cash being £995 in fees/taxes plus my usual fee of £10 (just pop it down my well please).
I can confirm that the above is a much better deal than cash prices.
30k is the off-peak price to Orlando, so OP would need to be able to fly on the 1 day per week (or sometimes 2) that this is available in the summer holidays. Otherwise it will be 175k avios for 5 in economy. But the extra 15k might be achievable by the time the flights are released.
Also I’m thinking that combining BA and VS would involve departing LGW but returning to LHR?
Argh – picked the wrong number up off the chart. Now I can’t charge @Batfink-uk £10 in good conscience so Kermit and Freddo will go hungry tomorrow.
Too late to edit which is a shame as it was beautifully formatted.
If it was Orlando then sure for Gatwick/Heathrow but maybe it is Miami.
This summer I’ll be departing from Edinburgh into Orlando and returning from San Francisco into Heathrow. We’re still working on the squiggly bits in the middle but I’ve got the boys drawing up a super cute hitchhiking sign.
Argh – picked the wrong number up off the chart. Now I can’t charge @Batfink-uk £10 in good conscience so Kermit and Freddo will go hungry tomorrow.
Too late to edit which is a shame as it was beautifully formatted.
If it was Orlando then sure for Gatwick/Heathrow but maybe it is Miami.
This summer I’ll be departing from Edinburgh into Orlando and returning from San Francisco into Heathrow. We’re still working on the squiggly bits in the middle but I’ve got the boys drawing up a super cute hitchhiking sign.
It was a great post buddy. You were spot on with the Orlando/Tampa/Miami assumption. My calculations were a tad more points for BA but I think ultimately it’s the way to go for my current points scenario & accumulation
Having triple checked, I’m pretty sure you will be 35,000 Avios + £75 one-way with BA.
As Northern Lass suggested, for BA, Tampa and Orlando fly from Gatwick whereas Miami flies from Heathrow. Virgin is all Heathrow (unless you really mess up and book from Manchester etc!) Depending on your personal London logistics this could make e.g. flying to Miami with BA and back from Orlando with Virgin smoother assuming you are wanting to see a bit of Florida anyway.
If you are looking at summer 2025, then decide where and when you wish to go and be ready to get your flights locked in. You can book BA 355 days before your flight (and best to do this to avoid disappointment although maybe no need to stay up to midnight GMT to do so). Virgin is 330 days prior (I think).
There are still dates available for 2024 summer if you can get your points together in time and have some flexibility.
Also I believe Virgin do now charge for seat selection in economy although others might confirm. However the legacy airlines are pretty good about sitting families together although it very much helps if you have a child under 12 for this.
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