If you want to head to Europe next summer but are having trouble finding reasonable award space, here’s an amazing deal available: You can fly Virgin Atlantic to London starting at just 8,600 points and $75 each way.
I’m currently seeing tons of award space to London (LHR) for just 12,000 Virgin points out of the East Coast and 15,000 from the West. These are incredible deals for international economy class, but it gets better: Thanks to numerous transfer promotions, you can book these flights for much less.
- Chase Ultimate Rewards: 40% transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- Citi ThankYou: 30% transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
This deal is available from cities like New York, San Francisco and Boston to London. There’s availability for travel throughout July, which is peak summer travel season.
Keep in mind that the return fares incur much higher taxes and fees. So you might want to consider booking with a different program and/or out of another city that imposes lower taxes. If you decide to cancel or change your award ticket, Virgin Atlantic charges a $100 fee to either change or redeposit your miles.
Here’s an overview of the lowest award flights you can book on Virgin Atlantic this summer:
How to book this award
Booking a Virgin Atlantic award is straightforward and can be completed online.
- Head over to the Virgin Atlantic website and login to your Flying CLub account.
- On the homepage, select the “reward flights” option under “where to next”?
- Enter your travel dates and destination. Be sure to select “one way” and then hit the search button.
- The website doesn’t always show the cheapest flights first, so scroll down to review your options.
- Select your flight and review the details before hitting “continue.”
- Enter each traveler’s information on the next page before navigating to seat selection.
- Most seat selection is free, with a few buy-up options. Choose your seat and continue to payment.
- Pay the award taxes and fees, and wait for the confirmation page.
That’s it! You’re flying to Europe next summer, at a fraction of the cost.
Related: Earn extra miles, points and elite status with online shopping portals
Sample Virgin Atlantic flights out of New York (JFK)
Virgin Atlantic offers several direct flights from New York (JFK) to London (LHR). These are by far some of the cheapest award flights you can book using points. During off-peak dates, an economy class ticket starts at 10,000 Virgin points each way. During the summer months, you’ll need 12,000 points, which is still reasonable. Especially, considering all the airlines are hiking up their award prices and limiting saver inventory.
Flights between New York (JFK) and London (LHR) start at 12,000 points each way for economy class and as low as 70,000 for Upper Class (i.e. business):
- Economy class: 12,000 Virgin points + $74 in taxes and fees
- Premium economy: From 20,000 Virgin points + $145
- Upper Class: From 70,000 Virgin points + $481
If you take advantage of the Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer bonus, the cost of an economy class ticket between New York and London drops to under 8,600 Chase Ultimate Rewards points or 9,300 Citi ThankYou points.
To book a premium economy seat, you’ll need to transfer just 15,000 Chase points to Virgin Atlantic or 16,000 Citi points.
For Upper Class seats, you’ll need 50,000 Chase points or 54,000 Citi points for the required 70,000 Virgin points.
Related: What IS a cheap business class fare to Europe?
Sample flights out of San Francisco
Virgin Atlantic flights between San Francisco (SFO) and London (LHR) are also a fantastic deal at just 15,000 points and $184 each way in economy class. Premium economy is a little more comfortable and probably worth the splurge, with rates starting at 37,500 Virgin points and $184 in taxes.
- Economy class: 15,000 Virgin points + $80 one way in economy class
- Premium economy: From 37,500 Virgin points + $184
- Upper Class: From 120,000 Virgin points + 481
To have enough points for an economy class award, you’ll need to transfer 11,000 Chase points to Virgin Atlantic or 12,000 Citi Thank you points. Premium economy is also a bargain, requiring you to transfer 27,000 points from Chase or 29,000 points from Citi.
If you want to splurge on Upper Class, I don’t personally think the upgrade is worth it. But you’ll need 86,000 Chase points or 93,000 Citi points.
How to boost your Flying Club balance
Virgin Atlantic has multiple transfer partnerships that allow you to top off your account quickly. The most notable right now are Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou, which are offering transfer bonuses (40% and 30%, respectively).
With these bonuses, the cost of flying Virgin Atlantic is reduced significantly. While transfers are supposed to be instant, sometimes Chase points can take a little longer. When I transferred my Chase Ultimate Rewards points, I had to wait a good hour before the balance was updated.
You can also transfer points to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club at a 1:1 ratio from Amex Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards and Capital One. However, none of these programs currently offer a transfer bonus to Flying Club.
Maximize your purchase
When paying the taxes and fees on your award ticket, be sure to use a credit card that earns additional points on airfare purchases and offers travel protections in case anything goes wrong.
Cards that fit the bill include The Platinum Card® from American Express, Chase Sapphire Reserve, or the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card.
Related: 8 ways to earn points and miles without credit cards
Summary
Airline: Virgin Atlantic
Routes: U.S. to London
Cost: From 12,000 miles + $74 each way
Dates: July 2025
Pay taxes and fees with: The Platinum Card® from American Express (5X on airfare booked directly with the airline; on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year), Chase Sapphire Reserve (3X on travel) or Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2X on travel) for travel protections and elevated rewards.
Virgin Atlantic change/cancellation fee: $100.
