The Bank of America Virgin Atlantic World Elite Mastercard is offering an elevated bonus and comes with opportunities to earn even more points.
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The card and its corresponding program offer several surprising benefits that you might not know about. Here's our full review of the
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However, you don't have to be loyal to the airline to make this card worthwhile. If you're willing to familiarize yourself with the Flying Club program and how to maximize its award chart, this card can be valuable. The welcome bonus isn't as high as some other airline credit cards, but big spenders who don't want to deal with category bonuses might benefit from the 1.5x earning rate on all purchases.
Lastly, it's worth noting that Virgin Atlantic's Flying Club program is a transfer partner of Amex Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards®, and Citi ThankYou. You can also transfer Capital One miles to Virgin Red, the loyalty program of Virgin brands (including Virgin Atlantic).
Those programs have credit cards that not only offer bigger welcome bonuses than this one but also allow you to transfer points to dozens of other programs. That way, if Flying Club ever gets devalued and awards require more points, you have other options.
We're focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won't be worth it if you're paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it's important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.
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This card is a great choice for people who want to earn more than 1 mile per dollar spent on everyday purchases without having to track category bonuses. This elevated earn rate makes award flights more attainable, especially considering some of the cheap awards you can book through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (more on that later).
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Virgin points are undervalued, considering the number of sweet spot awards you can book. Virgin Flying Club offers one of the cheapest ways to travel to Europe. An economy class ticket to London starts at just 10,000 points each way. That's less than what most frequent flyer programs charge for a domestic award ticket.
Keep in mind Virgin Atlantic adds significant fuel surcharges to some awards, so be sure to compare the cost of a flight including taxes and fees to other programs.
If you're looking for reasonable international business and first-class award tickets, Virgin Atlantic offers several sweet spots. You can fly Delta One business class to Europe for just 50,000 points each way.
If you're itching to get to Japan once it reopens to visitors, you can fly All Nippon Airways' aspirational first-class seat to Japan for just 110,000-120,000 points round-trip. This is an incredible bargain, considering Star Alliance partner United charges at least 70,000 points each way for the same award.
Virgin Atlantic is a great program if you want to redeem miles for international travel. It offers reasonable rates for both economy and premium seats. Even with the regular 30,000-point welcome bonus from the
If you don't have enough points for a premium cabin award, you might want to book an economy fare and upgrade your seat with points. Rates vary greatly depending on your travel dates, departure city, destination, and the cabin you're booked into.
Upgrades to premium economy start at 16,000 points round-trip, while economy-to-Upper-Class upgrades start at 42,000 points. If you have many Virgin Atlantic points and dread a long-haul flight in economy class, redeeming points for an upgrade can be worthwhile. That's especially true if you booked a particularly cheap fare.
The ability to book a companion ticket for less is also a noteworthy feature of the Flying Club program. With as few as 9,000 points, you can book a companion ticket on select routes. This can be a good way to put the welcome bonus from the
If you don't quite have enough points for an award or seat upgrade, you can use them for spa treatments or chauffeur service to the airport. Spa treatments at Flying Club locations start at just 2,000 points for brow wax or 3,000 for a facial. You can choose from many more treatments and the rates will vary, but this is a nice way to unwind during your trip and put a small point balance to good use.
If you want to start your trip in style, you can splurge on a chauffeured ride to the airport for just 17,500 points. You must be traveling on an Upper Class ticket to qualify for this redemption and picked up within 75 miles of the airport.
With a standard earning rate of 1.5 points per dollar spent, the
These bonuses may not seem like much, but they can go a long way, thanks to Virgin Atlantic's generous award chart. Moreover, this bonus can help some cardholders justify keeping the card long-term and paying the annual fee.
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While 5,000 points may not sound like much, it gets you halfway to a one-way economy class ticket between the East Coast and London. That's a terrific value for a simple action that takes just a few minutes.
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Earning Silver status normally requires earning 400 Tier Points. However, the status requirements have been reduced between April 1, 2022, and March 31, 2023. Instead of completing 400 Tier Points for Silver status, you need just 300. Meanwhile, Gold status requirements have been reduced from 1,000 Tier Points to 800.
Once you achieve status with Virgin Atlantic, you have some practical benefits to look forward to.
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Gold
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If you're a standard Flying Club Red Tier member, you can book the companion ticket on an Economy Classic or Premium ticket. Red members can also upgrade the companion ticket to Upper Class at a 50% point discount.
Flying Club Silver and Gold members can use the companion ticket in any cabin class. So if you were to book yourself an Upper Class ticket, you could book your companion's seat for just the cost of taxes and fees.
Solo travelers can forego the companion ticket in favor of a one-cabin upgrade. Virgin Atlantic gives you plenty of time to decide how to use the anniversary benefit. You have two years after the issue date to redeem it.
Because the
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The card has no foreign transaction fees, meaning you can use it abroad to earn 1.5 points per dollar on all your purchases without any penalties.
Unfortunately, the card doesn't currently offer an introductory APR, so you'll want to pay your card in full every month to avoid interest fees.
Annual fee | |||
Rewards rate | 3x points on Virgin Atlantic purchases 1.5 points per dollar spent on all other purchases | 3x miles on Alaska Airlines purchases 1 mile per dollar on all other purchases | 1.5 points per dollar on all purchases |
Welcome bonus | |||
Card benefits | Up to 15,000 bonus Virgin Points every anniversary after qualifying purchases Up to 5,000 bonus Virgin Points when you add additional cardholders to your account Companion reward after you spend $25,000 or more in a year Earn 25 tier points per $2,500 in purchases (maximum 50 per month) World Elite Mastercard benefits No foreign transaction fees | Free first checked bag on Alaska flights Alaska companion fare from $121 ($99 fare, plus taxes and fees from $22) on your card anniversary 20% back on Alaska inflight purchases 50% off Alaska lounge day passes | |
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Annual fee | |||
Rewards rate | 3x points on Virgin Atlantic purchases 1.5 points per dollar spent on all other purchases | 2x miles on eligible Delta purchases 2x miles at U.S. supermarkets and at restaurants worldwide 1 mile per eligible dollar on everything else | 2x miles on eligible United purchases 2x miles on dining/delivery service purchases, and hotel stays booked directly with the hotel 1 mile per dollar on everything else |
Welcome bonus | |||
Card benefits | Up to 15,000 bonus Virgin Points every anniversary after qualifying purchases Up to 5,000 bonus Virgin Points when you add additional cardholders to your account Companion reward after you spend $25,000 or more in a year Earn 25 tier points per $2,500 in purchases (maximum 50 per month) World Elite Mastercard benefits No foreign transaction fees | Free first checked bag and priority boarding on Delta flights $100 flight credit when you spend $10,000 or more in a calendar year 20% off inflight purchases as a statement credit Car rental insurance Purchase protection Extended warranty Baggage insurance Global Assist Hotline Access to Amex Offers** No foreign transaction fees | Free first checked bag on United flights* Priority boarding on United flights 25% back on United inflight purchases Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS application fee credit Complimentary Premier upgrades 500 Premier Qualifying Points (PQP) for every $12,000 you spend on purchases**** Expanded access to United award flights Primary car rental insurance Baggage delay insurance Lost luggage reimbursement Trip cancellation/interruption insurance Trip delay reimbursement Purchase protection Extended warranty Visa Signature Concierge Chase Luxury Hotel and Resort collection No foreign transaction fees |
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*When you use your card to pay for your ticket, or the taxes and fees on an award ticket
****Up to 1,000 PQP in a calendar year
Most people who qualify for the
If you're not quite there yet, check out our guide to the top credit cards for fair or average credit for other options.
If you fly Virgin Atlantic or like redeeming points with the Flying Club program, the
That said, if your main objective is to earn Virgin Atlantic points from spending, you might want to look at credit cards that earn rewards in transferable points programs like Chase Ultimate Rewards or Amex Membership Rewards instead. Because you can transfer points to Virgin Atlantic at a 1:1 ratio from these programs, a card like the
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