Right now, the airline is offering a 20% discount on economy flights from Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and other U.S. gateways to London's Heathrow Airport (LHR), bringing flight redemption rates to as low as 4,800 Virgin points one-way. You can book these awards through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, a transfer partner of all the major transferable points programs.
Even better, this sale stacks with the current 25% transfer bonus from Chase Ultimate Rewards to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. This means you can book the cheapest awards for just 4,000 Chase points.
We're finding widespread availability at these rates throughout the summer, making it one of the best deals we've ever seen for economy flights to Europe. You'll have to act quickly if you want to book this deal — it expires May 27, but it may book up before then.
Deal basics
Airline: Virgin Atlantic
Routes: Between BOS, JFK, Miami International Airport (MIA), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Dulles International Airport (IAD) near Washington, D.C., and LHR; between JFK and Manchester Airport (MAN) in the U.K.
How to book: Online via virginatlantic.com, as this deal is only available when booking directly (despite the airline being a SkyTeam partner)
Book by: May 27
Travel dates: May 20 to Sept. 30
Cost: From 4,800 Virgin points
Sample flights
We're seeing a ton of award space availability for this route from the end of this month to the end of September. Most award flights on applicable routes offer a 20% discount, with the lowest-priced tickets available in September.
From mid-June to August, tickets in both directions are available for 9,600 points on most dates. Expect to pay roughly $361 in taxes and fees on round-trip tickets booked during this promotion.
Flights from the West Coast are more expensive but are still a good deal. For example, you can book a one-way ticket from LAX to LHR for as few as 9,000 points on select dates in September.
If your travel dates are flexible, use Virgin Atlantic's Reward Seat Checker to speed up the search process. Input your departure and arrival airports and see a month's worth of award pricing in one place.
Related: Use Virgin Atlantic's Reward Seat Checker to find the cheapest Saver seats
How to earn Virgin points
Virgin Atlantic is a transfer partner of all the major transferable points programs, including:
- American Express Membership Rewards (at a 1:1 ratio)
- Bilt Rewards (1:1)
- Capital One miles (1:1)
- Chase Ultimate Rewards (1:1)
- Citi ThankYou Rewards (1:1)
- Wells Fargo Rewards (1:1)
- Marriott Bonvoy (3:1, with a 5,000-point bonus for transferring 60,000 points; 48-hour transfer time)
Note that Bilt Rewards Points and Capital One miles transfer to Virgin Red, not Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. However, Virgin Red points work the same as Flying Club points, as you can use them across most Virgin-branded loyalty programs.
Further, Chase Ultimate Rewards is running a 25% transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club through June 15. This makes this deal an absolute steal for those transferring Ultimate Rewards points to Virgin Atlantic, as you'll only need 4,000 points to book the cheapest flights.
Related: Travel to Europe using points and miles: How to redeem your rewards for flights
Bottom line
This is some of the cheapest award pricing we've ever seen between the U.S. and the U.K., especially if you combine it with the 25% transfer bonus from Chase Ultimate Rewards. While flying in economy class isn't the most exciting, this sale should leave you with enough points and miles left over for another trip later down the road.
