The Virgin Atlantic Flying Club program reinvention is now live. The biggest change in the history of the program there is a new concept of dynamically priced refunds for flights operated by Virgin Atlantic.
Every seat on every Virgin Atlantic Ocean The flight is now bookable with Virgin points, a significant departure from the previous model of strictly limited and capacity-controlled award seats.
While some award seats are now much cheaper, others are significantly more expensive; Moreover, there are also changes to those annoying surcharges.
Here’s what you need to know about Virgin Atlantic Flying Club’s program changes.
Related: Is Virgin Atlantic premium economy worth it on the A330-900neo?
Introducing Saver seats with fewer points and lower fees on off-peak dates
BEN SMITHSON/THE POINTS GUY
Because all seats are bookable with Virgin points, when searching, look for new Saver seats marked with a red label. These are the cheapest options now, but that will be the case not are offered on every flight.
On low demand dates, such as transatlantic flights on select days during the northern winter period, these flights will now start from just 6,000 Virgin points from John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) to Heathrow Airport (LHR) in economy, 10,500 Virgin points points in premium economy and just 29,000 Virgin points in business class.
If you’re lucky enough to get this redemption, you’ll book the lowest redemption rate for business class flights to Europe of any major airline loyalty program.
VIRGINATLANTIC.COM
While the Flying Club program has previously discounted the points required during periods of low demand through the regular program network-wide redemption salesfees, taxes and surcharges have not been reduced.
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But good news for Flying Club members: Airline-imposed surcharges are being reduced for low-demand flights, starting from just $45 in economy, $78 in Premium and $227 in Upper Class on a flight from New York to London . There are also small additional government taxes and airport charges payable, which vary from route to route. Please note that taxes for flights from London will be more expensive than those to London due to the UK APD tax.
If you’re traveling on dates or flights that are least in demand, the new pricing system means you’ll need far fewer Virgin points and cash under the new system, an undeniable program improvement.
According to a press release from the airline, Flying Club estimates that Saver seats will be available on 75% of Virgin Atlantic-operated flights – and we’ve seen plenty of them in our initial searches.
VIRGINATLANTIC.COM
Related: Virgin Atlantic is flying to Canada for the first time in a decade in a wider three-route expansion
While Flying Club earlier guaranteed a minimum number of award seats for fixed award charter rates in each cabin on each flight (two business class, two premium economy and eight economy class seats), this guarantee is no longer offered.
Therefore, if you want to travel during peak periods such as the summer holidays, economy seats may not be available, even if you try to book an award flight once schedules are loaded 12 months in advance.
Higher award prices, lower costs: Redeem Flying Club points during peak season
BEN SMITHSON/THE POINTS GUY
The changes to the loyalty program are not all good news for Flying Club members.
The dynamic pricing model means that during peak periods such as school holidays and public holidays, the number of Virgin points needed to book seats on Virgin Atlantic operated flights will increase significantly. Every seat on every flight may now be available to book with Virgin points, but you can expect to pay up to 700,000 Virgin points return in business class to the UK for the most in-demand flights during super peak periods.
From our first searches with the new prices, the fees have been reduced from $2,000 to $908, which is good news.
Still, redeeming 700,000 Virgin points plus $1,349 in fees, taxes and charges will cost you more than $10,000 in points and cash, according to TPG’s October 2024 valuation Virgin points worth 1.4 cents each. You should be able to find a cash fare on the same flights for a fraction of this price.
GOOGLEFLIGHTS.COM
While some Flying Club members may view this as a devaluation of their Virgin points, under the previous model these seats would not have been made available for fixed-price redemption, so they are additional award seats, albeit at much higher rates .
From our initial searches, the new dynamic pricing model has shown some strange prices, with us finding that economy seats are significantly more expensive than premium economy seats. That’s why it pays to play with dates, routes and lessons.
VIRGINATLANTIC.COM
Related: How much will your holiday really cost? The plague of dynamic pricing is spreading like wildfire
Increased change and cancellation fees for Virgin flights
Change and cancellation fees for flights booked with Virgin points have now doubled from $50 to $100 per person (or local currency equivalent) for flights from outside the UK. Routes, dates and flight times can be changed online via the red web chat icon in the Manage My Booking section of the Virgin website.
If you cancel your redemption more than 24 hours in advance, all points, fees, taxes and fees will be refunded minus the cancellation fee. If you cancel your flight less than 24 hours before departure, only government fees will be refunded (minus cancellation fees).
Related: 10 things you need to know about flying in Virgin Atlantic’s super business class, the Retreat Suite
Upgrade any seat on Virgin-operated flights
BEN SMITHSON/THE POINTS GUY
Now that all Virgin-operated seats are available for redemption, you can upgrade any existing booking with Virgin points, regardless of whether it was originally booked with points or cash.
To upgrade an existing redemption, you will need to pay any difference in Virgin points plus fees, taxes and fees. Because the seat you are upgrading to is dynamically priced, this price may change frequently.
To upgrade to a cash fare, you must pay the points price of the upgraded seat, less than the maximum Saver reward seat price for the cabin you are upgrading from, plus any difference in fees and taxes. Virgin Atlantic has informed TPG that the maximum Saver fares will follow previous award chart prices, depending on whether the flight operates on a standard season date or a high season date. Here are the previous price lists:
There are no changes to affiliate redemption rates
ZACH GRIFF/THE POINTS GUY
There have been no changes to flights booked with Virgin points operated by their 26 partner airlines, including Delta Air Lines, Air France-KLM and ITA Airways.
The prices remain based on fixed award cards with limited availability on each flight.
VIRGINATLANTIC.COM
Related: How to book Delta Award flights with Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points
How to Earn Virgin Points
ZACH GRIFF/THE POINTS GUY
Virgin points are easy to earn because Flying Club is a transfer partner of every major program with a transferable currency:
It’s worth noting that Capital One miles transfer to Virgin Red, and not directly to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. But that is possible easily use your Virgin Red account points with Flying Club.
Additionally, some of the above programs offer regular programs transfer bonuses to Flying Clubmeaning you may need even fewer points than you originally thought.
That means you have plenty of card options to earn rewards that you can transfer to Flying Club, many of which are also available great welcome bonuses. Here is just an example of the travel rewards credit cards who earn transferable points that can be converted into Virgin Points:
In short
The changes to the Flying Club are mixed, with some members benefiting and others being harmed. If you traditionally travel during off-peak times, the changes are great news, with reduced points and fees for all classes. Paying just 6,000 points plus minimum fares, taxes and fees for a flight to Europe on a full-service airline is a spectacular value.
For those who traditionally booked a year in advance once flights loaded on popular dates, the new program will likely be less attractive. There is now no guaranteed minimum number of seats on the Saver fare, and flights across the Atlantic may require many more Virgin points than before. Fortunately, the high surcharges have been reduced, even on the most requested dates.
For those craving flight prices above 350,000 points for travel next summer, remember that Virgin would not have offered these seats for redemptions above their previous guaranteed minimum, which would have been snapped up within days of loading. It’s worth checking cash rates on these dates as they are likely to be a much better deal.
Virgin is now offering extra seats at higher prices, and more choice is always a good idea, especially if you have a large balance of Virgin points that you may have struggled to redeem.