Can you no longer book last-minute premium cabin ANA awards with Virgin Atlantic points?
One of TPG's favorite points and miles best sweet spots has now become seemingly harder to book. It seems Virgin Atlantic Flying Club no longer has access to last-minute All Nippon Airways business- and first-class award seats.
Redeeming your Virgin Atlantic points for business- and first-class flights operated by Japanese carrier ANA has long been one of the best ways to use them. Virgin is a transfer partner of all major credit card programs (except for Wells Fargo Rewards), making Virgin points easy to earn.
One-way ANA award redemptions made with Virgin points can be booked as follows:
- Hawaii to Japan for 37,500 Virgin points in business class or 57,500 points in first class
- Western U.S. to Japan for 52,500 Virgin points in business class or 72,500 points in first class
- Eastern U.S. (as well as Europe) to Japan for 60,000 Virgin points in business class or 85,000 points in first class
While TPG found available award redemptions in 2025, last-minute award availability was nonexistent.
Related: Feels like first class: Flying ANA The Room business class from LA to Tokyo
Is ANA limiting premium cabin award availability with Virgin Atlantic?
Availability on ANA through partner airline programs has always been very limited, with some award seats being released when the schedule opens up to 12 months in advance and a usually reliable extra release of last-minute seats up to 14 days in advance.
While Virgin's Flying Club website has never allowed you to book ANA awards online, you can book these tickets by phone if you find seats available. An easy way to check if a seat is available is through other partner airline programs, such as United MileagePlus, where you can also book ANA award seats, albeit at much higher prices than what Flying Club charges.
United's online platform follows the usual ANA availability trends, with some premium seats being available toward the end of the schedule in 2025.
There is also some availability for last-minute flights departing over the next 14 days.
Virgin Atlantic usually has the same (or similar) access to United's ANA award availability. TPG contacted Virgin Atlantic Flying Club to inquire about booking premium cabin ANA award availability, as seen on United's website.
The availability yielded the same results in the multiple flight searches Flying Club checked for us between North America and Japan. While Virgin could see and book business- and first-class seats for flights departing in 2025, for flights departing within the next 14 days, only economy seats were available to book with Virgin points. This is unusual as the award availability provided to partner airlines is usually the most abundant during this 14-day period.
Plus, business- and first-class seats are available on the same ANA flights through other partner airline programs like United (as this is where we found the availability to ask Flying Club to check).
In each case, Flying Club was required to request the seats from ANA, which leads TPG to believe that ANA is limiting its award availability provided to Flying Club instead of Virgin Atlantic blocking members from booking ANA seats.
TPG contacted Virgin Atlantic Flying Club for an official comment about this restriction.
“We can confirm there have been no changes made to our ANA availability, and premium seats remain part of our offering," the official said. "We’re investigating the issue with our partners and will provide more details in due course.”
Despite several minor devaluations of ANA redemption rates by the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club program over the past 18 months, perhaps the rates are still too low to be sustainable. This may have led to an excessive number of ANA seats being snapped up by Flying Club members, resulting in ANA deciding to make fewer seats available to Flying Club members than other partner programs.
Hopefully, this is a temporary issue. TPG will update you as soon as the situation unfolds.
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| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com. |
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You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after spending $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.As High As 100,000 points. Find Out Your Offer.Annual Fee
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Why We Chose It
There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)Pros
- 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
- 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
- Solid welcome bonus
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
- Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.