Back online: Air France and KLM award seats are bookable again through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
Points and miles enthusiasts were dismayed last month when a system issue at Virgin Atlantic Flying Club caused Air France-KLM Flying Blue partner award flights to become unavailable on Virgin Atlantic's site. Thankfully, the glitch seems to have been addressed because Flying Blue flights are showing up again, meaning you can once more use your Virgin points to book flights operated by Air France and KLM.
Here are a few of the award tickets we've found and how you can take advantage of them.
How and when to book Flying Blue awards with Virgin Atlantic points
We now see plenty of Air France- and KLM-operated flights bookable with Virgin points on the Flying Club website. For instance, you could fly from Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) to Munich Airport (MUC) in December to see the Christmas markets for 16,000 Virgin points and $145.
Related: Is Air France premium economy worth it to Europe?
Short-haul flights within Europe are a great use of Virgin points.
A KLM flight from Belfast International Airport (BFS) to KLM's hub at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS) costs 5,625 miles and $63 if booking through Air France-KLM's own Flying Blue program — but you could book the same flight for only 4,000 points and 49 British pounds ($63) through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
Business class is an even better deal at 8,000 points through Flying Club, compared to 15,000 miles through Flying Blue.
For a February flight from Denver International Airport (DEN) to Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG), the economy ticket costs fewer points through Virgin's Flying Club, but the business-class ticket is cheaper when booked via Air France-KLM's Flying Blue program.
Related: How points and miles made my son's Paris travel dreams come true
If you have a stockpile of Virgin points, Flying Club award tickets are certainly a redemption worth considering, whether you want to fly Virgin Atlantic or a partner airline like Air France or KLM.
But if you plan to use a transferable points currency that transfers to both Virgin Atlantic Flying Club and Air France-KLM Flying Blue, like Chase Ultimate Rewards, check all three sites before booking — you may save a few points, miles or dollars.
Also, check our list of current transfer bonuses to see if any programs offer bonus points when you transfer to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club or Air France-KLM Flying Blue.
Related: Save big on fees: Why Flying Blue is the new best way to book Virgin Atlantic award tickets
Bottom line
Now that Flying Blue awards are bookable through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club again, points and miles enthusiasts have even more options for booking award travel.
Remember, you don't need a stockpile of Virgin points to explore this redemption route. You can transfer points to Virgin from all the major transferable currencies: American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Capital One miles, Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou Rewards.
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- In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
- Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.
Cons
- The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
- Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
- With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
- Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
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- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month