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Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
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Which Virgin Atlantic Flying Club partner redemptions can be booked online?
Ben Smithson is a senior writer for TPG and is based in London. Originally from Australia and a qualified lawyer with a financial services background, he has almost a decade of experience writing about a broad range of travel and loyalty topics.
July 9, 2024 • 7 min read
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don't cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
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Quick summary
Virgin Atlantic's Flying Club allows earning and redeeming points with SkyTeam airlines and several nonalliance partners, expanding travel options globally.
While some partner flights can be booked online, many require calling customer service due to website limitations.
Award availability and surcharges vary widely by partner and route, with some notable deals and some steep rates, especially for premium cabins.
The program is a transfer partner of all major transferable points currencies, making it easy to accumulate points.
What to consider
Not all partner airlines or cabin classes are available for online booking; many require calling to secure award seats.
Surcharges and award rates differ by airline and route, with some premium cabins incurring significant extra costs.
Some offers mentioned in the article are no longer available.
What you'll miss from the article
A detailed breakdown of which partner airlines can be booked online, plus tips for maximizing value and avoiding high surcharges.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
At TPG, we often praise Virgin Atlantic's Flying Club program as one of the most underrated and high-powered frequent flyer programs. Flying Club is a transfer partner of all major credit card programs, so Virgin points are easy to earn.
However, just because the points are easy to earn does not mean they are easy to use.
Virgin Atlantic joined the SkyTeam alliance in 2023 and has several other nonalliance airline partners with which you can earn and redeem Virgin points. Unfortunately, Virgin's website is not the most user-friendly and has many limitations.
Some Flying Club redemption partners can be booked online, while others require you to hunt for award space and call in to book.
What are the Flying Club airline partners?
ZACH GRIFF/THE POINTS GUY
You can earn and redeem Virgin Atlantic points on the following member airlines of the SkyTeam alliance:
Aerolinas Argentinas
Aeromexico
Air Europa
Air France
China Airlines
China Eastern Airlines
Czech Airlines
Delta Air Lines
Garuda Indonesia
ITA Airways
Kenya Airways
KLM
Korean Air
Middle East Airlines
Saudia
TAROM
Vietnam Airlines
Virgin Atlantic
Xiamen Airlines
ZACH GRIFF/THE POINTS GUY
In addition to these airlines, you can also book award flights with the following non-SkyTeam airlines using Virgin points:
You can also earn Virgin points — but not redeem them — with partners Scandinavian Airlines, IndiGo and LATAM.
Which Flying Club partner airlines can be booked online?
BEN SMITHSON/THE POINTS GUY
In addition to flights operated by Virgin Atlantic, Flying Club members can redeem their Virgin points on the following partner airlines (for all other airlines, you must call 800-862-8621 to book).
To avoid the significant surcharges Flying Club imposes on flights operated by Virgin Atlantic, booking flights operated by Air France-KLM can be an affordable way to use Virgin points to fly to Europe and beyond. While premium economy on these airlines is not usually available to book online or by phone, economy and business class can be booked online at the following rates:
One-way economy flight to Europe from the West Coast for 15,000 points
One-way economy flight to the Middle East from the East Coast for 25,000 points
One-way business-class flight to Europe from the East Coast for 48,500 points
One-way business-class flight from the East Coast to North Africa for 66,500 points
With Delta taking dynamic pricing to the extreme and charging 300,000-plus miles for one-way, international, business-class awards, using Virgin Atlantic to score cheap awards can be great.
Long-haul flights to Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and South America are fairly easy to find and can be booked online.
Unfortunately, Delta's premium economy product is unavailable to book with Virgin points, and while Delta One business-class seats can technically be booked online, they are very rarely available and now come with huge surcharges.
Short-haul flights operated by Delta are easy to book online. Prices start at a reasonable 7,500 Virgin points in economy class or 21,000 points in first class.
VIRGINATLANTIC.COM
Korean Air
Based in Seoul's Incheon International Airport (ICN), Korean Air flights can be booked with Virgin points online, though availability outside of Asia is difficult to find.
VIRGINATLANTIC.COM
ITA Airways
Rising from the ashes of the now-defunct Alitalia, ITA Airways has excellent award availability using Virgin points and can be booked online. ITA's long-haul business-class product is excellent, with a solid lounge in Rome Fiumicino Leonardo da Vinci Airport (FCO), elaborate onboard meals and stylish Italian finishes.
South American carrier LATAM can be booked online with Virgin points, and availability is generally good between North America and South America, with business-class flights from Florida to Brazil costing just 50,000 points plus minimal fees and taxes.
VIRGINATLANTIC.COM
El Al
Flying Club quietly added Israel's flag carrier El Al to its partner airline list earlier in 2024, and fortunately, these flights can be booked online, though the rates between the United States and Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport (TLV) are steep.
One of SkyTeam's lesser-known airlines, Middle East Airlines (commonly referred to as MEA), is based in Lebanon's Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport (BEY).
While MEA does not operate long-haul flights, it has a decent route network to Europe and can be booked online using Virgin points.
VIRGINATLANTIC.COM
China Airlines
While Flying Club insists that flights on Taiwanese carrier and SkyTeam member China Airlines (not to be confused with China-based Star Alliance member Air China) can be booked online with Virgin points, TPG has not found any availability on China Airlines through Virgin's website.
Xiamen Airlines
Based in Xiamen, China, SkyTeam member Xiamen Airlines operates numerous flights within Asia and a handful of routes to Australia and Europe. Its current North American destinations include New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Vancouver International Airport (YVR).
You can book Xiamen Airlines redemptions using Virgin points online.
VIRGINATLANTIC.COM
How to earn Virgin points
SKYTEAM
It's easy to boost your Virgin points balance with the right credit card, as Flying Club is a transfer partner of every major program with a transferable currency, including:
Some of the above programs offer regular transfer bonuses to Flying Club, meaning you might need even fewer points than you first thought.
Many of these programs offer cards that feature terrific welcome bonuses. Here are some of our favorite travel rewards cards that earn transferable points that can be converted to Virgin points:
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
The Platinum Card® from American Express
American Express® Gold Card
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (see rates and fees)
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees)
Bottom line
Virgin Atlantic's Flying Club program boasts an impressive list of redemption partners inside and outside of the SkyTeam alliance. Unfortunately, the program's website is less impressive, with most partner redemptions unavailable online, requiring a little extra legwork and a phone call to 800-862-8621.
You may wish to use an external resource to check award availability through other programs and then contact the Flying Club program to book the seats you know are available.
There are some excellent deals to be had, so it's worth the effort.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
