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Virgin Atlantic Upper Class From 21K Points |
| UPDATE: I flipped the transfer bonuses. Fixed it below. Sorry about that!
Virgin Atlantic recently revamped its award rates for its own flights. While dynamic award rates mean you’ll find some egregiously high rates, the saver level rate is now lower as well. Plus, Virgin has reduced the steep carrier-imposed surcharges.
Just keep in mind that Virgin’s newer Upper Class products are only on the Airbus A350-900 and A330-900neo. Book those flights if possible!
Now, let’s get into it! |
|  | Straight To The Points
Routes: To London Heathrow (LHR) Atlanta (ATL), Boston (BOS), New York (JFK), Los Angeles (LAX), Orlando (MCO)
To Manchester
Operating airline: Virgin Atlantic
Class of service: Upper Class (business class) Dates: January 2024 - November 2025 Seats available: 2 (up to 9) Cabin layout: 1-2-1 (A350, A330-900neo); 1-1-1 (A333, B789) Book with (per person, one-way): Air France-KLM Flying Blue: BOS: 66,000 miles JFK: 67,500 miles IAD: 74,500 miles ATL: 85,000 miles MCO: 87,000 miles LAX: 110,500 miles JFK-MAN: 67,500 miles MCO-MAN: 85,500 miles ATL-MAN: 83,000 miles
Delta SkyMiles: 195,000 miles Virgin Atlantic Flying Club: ATL, BOS, JFK, MCO: From 29,000 points LAX: From 41,000 points
Taxes/fees to/from LHR (per person, one-way):
Air France-KLM Flying Blue: From US: ~$220 From LHR: ~$593
Delta SkyMiles From US: $5.60 From LHR: ~$560
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club From US: ~$248 From LHR: ~$590
From LHR/MAN, you will be on the hook for the Air Passenger Duty (APD) fee of £202. It doesn't matter which program you use to book, this fee will be included.
Bank transfer partners:
Air France-KLM: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Marriott Delta: Amex, Marriott Virgin: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Marriott
Current Airline Transfer Bonuses Best Card Offers
Let me know if you book! |
|  | | ATL-LHR January: 27, 28 February: 7 LHR-ATL January: 22, 23, 29 February: 3, 4, 11, 12, 18, 19, 21, 25-27 March: 4, 5, 12 November 11, 12, 18, 19
BOS-LHR February: 24 March: N/A April: 24-28, 30 May: 2-7, 9-11, 13, 14, 17, 19-21, 24-26, 28 June: 1-3, 9, 11 September: 3, 5-10, 13-17. 20-24, 27-30 October: 1, 4-8, 11-15, 17-22 November: 5, 12-15, 18-20 LHR-BOS January: 22, 25, 28, 29 February: 5, 8, 11, 19, 25, 26 March: 3, 4, 8, 11, 17, 18 April: 22-24, 26 May: 13, 14, 20, 30 June: 3, 4, 10, 11 October: 14 November: 5, 7-9, 11, 12, 14-16
IAD-LHR January: 28 LHR-IAD January: 28, 30 February: 2, 5-7, 9-12, 14, 18, 19, 24-26, 28 March: 4, 6-8, 11-15, 18 April: 24, 30 May: 1, 8 June: 10 November: 11-13, 18
JFK-LHR January: 28, 29 February: 4 March: N/A April: 29, 30 May: 5-7, 14, 21 October: 1, 3, 5-8, 10-15, 17, 19, 21, 22 LHR-JFK January: 22-31 February: 1, 4, 5, 8, 10-12, 18, 19, 21, 25-27 March: 1, 3, 5, 11, 12, 19 April: 23, 24, 26, 30 May: 1-31 June: 1-14 September: 3, 4, 6, 8-13, 15-17, 19, 20, 22-24, 26, 27, 29, 30 October: 1-23 November: 5, 11, 12, 18, 19 |
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| LAX-LHR April: 27-30 May: 4-7, 11-14, 18, 19, 27 September: 7-10, 14-17, 20, 21-24, 27-30 October: 1, 4-9, 11-16, 18, 20-23 LHR-LAX April: 22-26, 28-30 May: 1-11, 13-16, 20-23, 27-30 June: 1, 3-5, 10, 13 July-August: N/A September: 3-5, 8-12, 15-20, 23-28, 30 October: 1-4, 6-11, 13-18 MCO-LHR May: 11 September: 2, 29 October: 5-7
ATL-MAN January: 21 February: 4, 18 November: 19 MAN-ATL January: 24, 25, 28, 30, 31 February: 1, 4, 7, 8, 11, 13, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22, 25, 27 March: 4-6, 11-13, 19, 25-27 April: 24 May: 7, 8, 13, 14, 20, 21, 22, 27, 29, 30 June: 3 September: 3, 10, 11, 16, 17, 24 October: 8, 14, 23 November: 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12
JFK-MAN January: 22, 29 February: 2 MAN-JFK January: 22, 24, 26, 27, 31 February: 2, 3, 7, 9, 10, 12, 14, 16, 19, 23 March: 2-5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 16, 17, 19, 21, 23, 26 April-May: N/A June: 3, 4, 10 September: 6, 17 October: 1, 4, 8, 11, 15, 22, 23 November: 5, 7, 9, 10, 14
MAN-MCO January: 21, 28, 29 February: 5, 19, 20, 23, 26-28 March: 1, 2, 7, 9, 13, 21 April: 22, 24 May: 5, 19, 22, 29 June: 2-4, 9, 11 |
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|  | Flight Experience
Virgin Atlantic has a reputation for being a fun airline with friendly crews and an amazing lounge at London Heathrow. For the best inflight experience, try to find a date with award space on Virgin's A350-1000 or A330-900neo.
The A350 has a 1-2-1 cabin layout but, unlike reverse herringbone cabin arrangement, the 2 middle seats face away from each other and toward the window seats. Their A330-900neo has a staggered 1-2-1 layout.
The A330neo will also have two Retreat Suites which have a bit more space, including an ottoman that allows your traveling companion to dine with you. You can pay extra to book these seats.
The A330-300 and Boeing 787-9 cabins are arranged in a 1-1-1 layout. Row A will provide the most privacy as Rows G and K are angled toward each other.
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| Book Your Stay With VIP Perks |
| | | Best Ways To Book
Virgin Atlantic: Great Rate, Reasonable Surcharges, Transfer Bonus
With Virgin’s move to dynamic award rates, the saver level award rate for their own flights has gone down. They’ve also reduced the surcharges on saver level tickets. Since you can transfer points from Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, and Citi, this will be your best way to book.
At 29,000 points from many route and 41,000 points from the west coast, this is one of the best ways to book business class to Europe. It’s even better with a transfer bonus:
40% Amex Transfer Bonus ATL, BOS, JFK, MCO: From 21,000 points LAX: From 30,000 points
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|  | How To Search
The fastest way to search is on Virgin's site. Select one-way or round-trip Select Upper Class Select Pay with points Select Flying From and Flying To cities Select date(s) Select number of passengers Run search
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club will put award space on hold for up to 24 hours, but you'll need to call to do so (800-862-8621).
Flying Blue will allow you to hold award space over the phone (800-375-8723) and you can include a stopover if you want to see two cities on one award.
Happy booking! |
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