Based in England, Virgin Atlantic is a great choice for travelers in the U.S. that want to fly to the U.K. You’ll be able to gather miles and earn elite status credit as well. Virgin Atlantic isn’t apart of the airline alliance, but Flying Club has individual partnerships with several carriers that offer special award flight options.
Check out our list of the best credit card bonuses here.
Read below for more information on this frequent flyer program and what they have to offer.
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club Quick Facts
| Airline Alliance | No alliance |
| Hubs | London (England), Manchester (England) |
| U.S. Destinations | Atlanta, Boston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Newark, Orlando, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington D.C. |
| U.S. Credit Cards | Virgin Atlantic World Elite Mastercard |
| Redemption Options | Award flights, upgrades, companion seats, Miles Plus Money, hotel stays, airport services, Virgin Group purchases, transfer or gift miles and more. |
| Average Mile Value | $0.015 |
 The Platinum Card® from American Express offers 125,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. You'll earn: • 5X Membership Rewards Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year. • 5X Membership Rewards Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. • $200 Hotel Credit: Get up to $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts(R) or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel using your Platinum Card(R). The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay. • $240 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $20 back in statement credits each month on eligible purchases made with your Platinum Card on one or more of the following: Disney+, a Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, The New York Times, Peacock, and The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required. • With American Express Global Lounge Collection you can enjoy access to over 1,400 airport lounges globally, including The Centurion Lounge, Unlimited Delta Sky Club® Access when flying an eligible Delta flight, Escape Lounges, Lufthansa Lounges when flying Lufthansa Group, Plaza Premium, Priority Pass Select Lounges, & Additional Global Lounge Collection Partner Lounges subject to visit limitations. Lounges may have their own rules, like additional access rules and guest fees, and for Priority Pass Select, you need to enroll and there are unlimited airport lounge visits for Card Members. With Delta Sky Club Access, Card Members will receive 10 Visits to the Delta Sky Club to be used from February 1 until January 31 of the next calendar year and can unlock Unlimited Delta Sky Club Access by spending $75,000 in eligible purchases on their Card in a calendar year. To find a lounge, visit the membership section in the American Express App or visit http://www.americanexpress.com/findalounge#/loungefinder. • $155 Walmart+ Credit: Save on eligible delivery fees, shipping, and more with a Walmart+ membership. Use your Platinum Card to pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership and get up to $12.95 plus applicable taxes back on one membership (excluding Plus Ups) each month. • $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to your Platinum Card. • $200 Uber Cash: Platinum Card Members can ride or dine in style with $15 in Uber Cash each month, plus a bonus $20 in December after adding their Card to their Uber account. Use your Uber Cash on rides and orders in the U.S. when you select an Amex Card for your transaction. • $199 CLEAR® Plus Credit: CLEAR Plus helps to get you to your gate faster at 50+ airports nationwide and get up to $199 back per calendar year on your Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Card. CLEARLanes are available at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues. • Receive either a $120 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 years for a TSA PreCheck (through a TSA official enrollment provider) application fee, when charged to your Platinum Card. Card Members approved for Global Entry will also receive access to TSA PreCheck at no additional cost. • Shop Saks with Platinum: Get up to $100 in statement credits annually for purchases in Saks Fifth Avenue stores or at saks.com on your Platinum Card. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required. This card comes with a $695 annual fee.¤ (See Rates & Fees), but you cardholders can enjoy Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on rides in the US annually. Uber Cash and Uber VIP status is available to Basic Card Member and Additional Centurion Cards only. Terms Apply. |
Flying Club Elite Status
When you use Flying Club, it comes with three status tiers: Red, Silver, and Gold.
Gain Tier points to be eligible for their elite status. In other words, the more you fly, the more points you’ll be able to earn:
| Ticket Type | Tier Points Earned |
| Economy | 25-50 |
| Premium | 50-100 |
| Upper Class | 100-200 |
To reach the status you want, you’ll need a specific amount of points every year.
| Red | Silver | Gold |
| 0 Tier Points | 400 Tier Points | 1,000 Tier Points |
Red. This time frame is calculated from the current date to the first day of the month, to the previous year.
Silver & Gold. This is the Upgraded Fixed Membership Period begins on the day you earn status and continues for the remainder of that month until the end of the following 12 months. In this time, you’ll need to earn about 400 Tier Points (Silver) or 1,000 Tier Points (Gold) to be eligible.
Once you’ve signed up for the Flying Club, you’ll immediately receive the Red Status and the benefits included:
- Earn miles when you fly
- Spend miles on reward flights
- Miles Plus Money on flights
- Access to partner brands
- Discounted access to Flying Club lounges
- Dedicated Flying Club phone line.
The Silver Status Members get Red perks and:
- 30% bonus miles on flights
- Free seat selection in Economy Light
- Premium check-in
- Priority waitlist
- Tier renewal bonus
- Maternity/paternity membership pause
Gold Status members get all of the Silver benefits and:
- 60% bonus miles on flights
- Extra baggage allowance
- Upper Class check-in
- Clubhouse passes for you +1
- 1 complimentary Clubhouse spa treatment, 10% discount thereafter
- London Heathrow Revivals Lounge access
- 2,000 bonus birthday miles
- Complimentary companion ticket (on status renewal)
- Complimentary Silver membership for a friend
After you’ve gotten to the Gold Status, you’ll be able to get more perks for meeting specific Tier Point thresholds.
- 1,500 Tier Points: Clubhouses passes for you to keep or share.
- 2,000 Tier Points: Cabin upgrade rewards.
Gain Flying Club Miles
Receive Flying Club miles when you fly with virgin Atlantic. The amount of miles you’ll be able to earn will depend on your flight distance, fare class, and your status.
Use the Flying Club earning calculator if you want to figure out how many miles you get from a specific flight. Additionally, you’ll gain Flying Club miles when you fly with Virgin Atlantic’s partner carriers. The amount of miles you can get will depend on the airline, fare class, and your cabin.
Some airline partners include:
- Air France
- Air New Zealand
- ANA
- Singapore Airlines
- South African Airways
- Virgin Austrailia
- Delta Air lines
- Hawaiian Airlines
- KLM
- SAS
Gain miles when you make transactions with the Virgin Atlantic World Elite Mastercard from Bank of America. Furthermore, this is one of the fastest way for people who live in the U.S. to build up Flying Club miles.
| Welcome Bonus | Get 30k miles when you spend $1k in 90 days Get up to 5k miles when you add authorized users to your card |
| Bonus Value | $750 |
| Ongoing Rewards | 3x miles on Virgin Atlantic purchases 1.5x miles on all other purchases |
| Anniversary Bonus | Up to 15k miles after qualifying purchases |
| Annual Companion Reward | $25k minimum annual spend |
| Tier Points | 25 Tier Points per $2.5k in purchases (max 50/month) |
| Foreign Transaction Fees | None |
| Annual Fees | $90 |
Additionally, another great way for you to gain Flying Club miles is to transfer points from one of the following below:
- American Express Membership Rewards (1:1)
- Chase Ultimate Rewards (1:1)
- Citi ThankYou Rewards (1:1)
- Marriott Bonvoy (3:1)
Get miles in different ways with the Flying Club partners, this will include hotels, car hire, shopping, financial, Virgin Group, etc.
Furthermore, you’ll be able to buy Flying Club miles for $27 every 1,000 miles you get. Additionally, there’s a $25 transaction fee that comes with it as well. In other words, if you buy 1,000 miles, you’ll have to pay about $52 for them. Just sign into your Flying Club Account for more information.
Redeeming Flying Club Miles
Normally, Flying Club miles will expire after about 36 months of having them if there aren’t any earn or burn activities on your account.
One of the better ways for you to use your Flying Club miles is towards award travel. This will include flights, cabin upgrades, and companion tickets.
Additionally, there are two types of awards you’ll be able to pick from: Standard Season and Peak Season. This will all depend on the travel dates, Standard Season roundtrip tickets will start from 20,000 miles. Meanwhile, Peak Season ones will start at 40,000 miles. Here are some tips:
- Upgrade award pricing will depend on if you want to travel or not. For Peak Season roundtrip upgrades, you need to spend at least 10,000 miles more than the Standard Season awards.
- Companion Seat award pricing is determined on the destination and cabin class. Peak Season roundtrip companion seats, you have to spend an extra 10,000 miles compared to Standard Season awards.
- Miles Plus Money is great when you want to spend less money on your next Virgin Atlantic flight. Additionally, with 3,000 Flying Club miles, you’ll be able to decrease the charge of your flight while earning miles and Tier Points.
Furthermore, you’ll be able to cash in your Flying Club miles towards award flights with their partner airlines such as:
- Air New Zealand
- ANA
Delta Air Lines - Hawaiian Airlines
- Singapore Airlines
- South African Airways
- Virgin Australia
You can spend your Flying Club miles with several different partners such as:
Hotels:
- Hilton Honors
- IHG Rewards Club
- Kaligo.com
Virgin Group:
- Virgin Balloon Flights
- Virgin Galactic
- Virgin Trains East Coast
Airport Services:
- Chauffeur
- Wellness Spa
Other Partners:
- Eurostar
- WE
Keep in mind that these options will come with less than $0.01 per mile. So, it’s better to use the flight awards instead. Additionally, you can transfer or gift up to 100,000 of your Flying Club miles to another member in one calendar year.
Flying Club Tips & Tricks
Here are some examples of Miles Boosters that lets you have the option to get extra miles based on the amount of miles you’re flying. Plus, you’ll be able to use this perk for past, future, and award flights!
With Flying Club, they normally offer a limited-time earning bonus. Some of the offers they had before are:
- Earn 3x miles shopping with Apple
- Gain 3,000 bonus miles for your first RocketMiles hotel reservation.
When you use Flying Club, it’s super straightforward about their large taxes and surcharges. Especially, if it’s for their premium and upper class cabins. For their Standard Season award flights, you can expect to pay:
| Route To/From UK | Taxes & Surcharges |
| USA – Northeast | $435 – $1,425 |
| USA -Midwest & South | $435 – $1,405 |
| USA – West | $475 – $1,460 |
Remember, you’ll be paying a good amount on taxes and surcharges when you fly a roundtrip from London. So, if you’re flying from another airport, or on a one-way flight, you’ll save money.
To receive the best value for your miles, you can redeem them for international flights or partner airlines in premium cabin. However, you’ll only be able to book Virgin Atlantic and Delta award flights online with the Virgin Atlantic website. Booking on other partner airlines will need you to call Flying Club at 800-365-9500.
Here are some of the sweet spots below:
| Flight Details | Miles Required |
| US to Europe Delta | One Way | Business |
50,000 |
| US to Asia Delta | One Way | Business |
60,000 |
| US to New Zealand Air New Zealand | Round Trip | Business |
125,000 |
| US to Senegal South African | Round Trip | Business |
50,000 |
| US to Japan ANA | Round Trip | Business |
90,000 – 95,000 |
| US to Japan ANA | Round Trip | First |
110,000 – 120,000 |
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Conclusion
Using Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is a great way to earn miles and use them for award flights and more. Plus, there are many perks that comes with using their miles if you know how to use them correctly. Remember, you should avoid Virgin Atlantic award flights to/from the United Kingdom since it comes with overpriced taxes and surcharges.
