Virgin Atlantic is running its latest big promotion, reducing the amount of points you need to book a trip across the pond this summer to as low as 4,800 points one way. Or just 4,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards … thanks to the current 25% transfer bonus. That's an absolute steal!
The London-based airline is offering 20% off economy award tickets between select U.S. cities and England for travel from now through Sept. 30. But only economy class tickets are discounted. If you're hoping to score a cheap seat in premium economy or Virgin's chic Upper Class business class seats, you're out of luck this time around. Luckily, this isn't a rebate: That discount applies automatically when you search for flights at VirginAtlantic.com using points.
But act fast: You have to book by next Tuesday, May 27 to get the cheaper rate. For best availability and the lowest amount of points, look towards the end of the schedule in late August and September.
The savings here are nothing to scoff at, but there's a big caveat. While award rates have been slashed by 20%, you'll still be on the hook for all the taxes and fees … and those can be substantial when flying Virgin. Still, you can easily come out way ahead – especially on a one-way flight in economy to the U.K.
The 20% discount applies to flights between London and Boston (BOS), Miami (MIA), New York (JFK), San Francisco (SFO), Seattle (SEA), and Washington D.C.-Dulles (IAD), as well as the route between Manchester (MAN) and New York (JFK). Only flights to and from Los Angeles (LAX), Las Vegas (LAS), Atlanta (ATL), Tampa (TPA), and Orlando (MCO) are exempt from this promo.
You'll see the discount applied automatically when you search at VirginAtlantic.com. This one-way flight from New York City (JFK) to London-Heathrow (LHR) typically goes for as low as 6,000 miles each way in economy.
But yeah, those taxes and fees can be nasty. While paying $75 for the flight to London is nothing outrageous – especially with this discounted award rate – getting hit with nearly $290 in fees on the return makes this much less of a deal.
Still, with fewer than 10,000 points out of pocket – or less if you're transferring from Chase – this deal can be well worth it … even with the higher-than-normal taxes and fees.
Virgin Atlantic is a transfer partner of Chase, American Express, Capital One, Citi, and even Bilt Rewards. So if you’re earning points with cards like the *chase sapphire preferred*, *venture x*, or *amex gold*, you can easily transfer those points to Virgin.
Unfortunately, these discounted award rates are only available on Virgin Atlantic flights; you won't get 20% off bookings on partner airlines. That means you can't use the discount to book Delta One suites or an ANA first class flight – assuming you get the heads-up to book one of those unicorn fares.
How to Get 20% Off Virgin Atlantic Flights
Booking these flights should be relatively easy, just head to VirginAtlantic.com and start searching for award tickets. You'll automatically see these discounted award prices in your results. But the short time frame to book and travel means you need to act fast to find the flight you want.
Start by logging in and then select the “Search for Reward Flights” option and enter your desired departure and arrival city, along with the date.
Thrifty Tip: It’s much easier to search for Virgin Atlantic flights one-way rather than roundtrip – and unlike with many other airlines, it’ll often save you money on taxes and fees booking one-ways separately, too.
While this promo includes the entire peak summer travel season, from now through the end of September, you're unlikely to find these rock-bottom rates on every date. Case in point, I scanned the entire summer calendar of flights from New York (JFK) to London-Heathrow (LHR) and only found the lowest, 4,800-point awards in September.
Even still, paying 9,600 points for a one-way flight any day of the week in peak travel months like June, July, and August is still a great deal. You can use Virgin's handy “Reward Seat Checker” to scan the calendar month-by-month and find the lowest priced awards.
These flights typically start at $300 if paying cash and only go up from there. If you're able to take advantage of the current 25% transfer bonus from Chase, you'd only need 8,000 Ultimate Rewards and $75 to book one of these flights.
If you want the best experience, look for flights operated on Virgin's Airbus A350-1000 or Airbus A330-900neo, both of which are newer and have nicer seats than what you'll find on other Virgin jets. They're also quieter and have better air circulation, which means you'll get more rest on the long flight across the pond.
Need help with booking this deal? Read our full guide on redeeming Virgin points!
Bottom Line
Virgin Atlantic is out with a new promo for 20% off many of its routes connecting the U.S. and the U.K. for a trip this summer.
While this discount only applies on Virgin Atlantic flights – not partners like Delta or Air France/KLM – it's still a solid deal if you've got a trip to London in mind. If you can stomach the hefty taxes and fees Virgin tacks onto these award tickets, it's well worth it.
But you have to book by next Tuesday, May 27 to take advantage – or even sooner before other travelers snag these seats!
