The Chase Ultimate Rewards program has just introduced its latest transfer bonus. Of the major transferable points currencies, Chase Ultimate Rewards has historically had the fewest transfer bonuses. However, in the past year or so we’ve seen a significant increase in transfer bonuses, which is great.
In this post:
Chase offering 30% Virgin Atlantic transfer bonus
Through Saturday, November 12, 2022, you can receive a 30% bonus when you transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
This promotion is being offered on Chase’s end (in the United States), and is hard coded into the transfer ratio, meaning you should see the bonus at the time that you make the transfer. You can take advantage of this offer an unlimited number of times. Transfers from Chase to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club are generally instant. We saw a similar bonus from Chase over the summer, so this seems to come around a couple of times per year (at least).
There are several great cards earning Chase Ultimate Rewards points, and it’s easy to combine points between the cards.
Should you transfer Chase points to Virgin Atlantic?
Virgin Atlantic is definitely a frequent flyer program with more niche redemption opportunities. In addition to being able to redeem Flying Club points for travel on Virgin Atlantic, there’s also good value to be had for redemptions on Air New Zealand, All Nippon Airways, and Delta.
If you want to redeem Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points for travel on Virgin Atlantic, here’s what you can expect to pay in terms of roundtrip award costs to & from London:
Route to/from UK | Economy | Premium Economy | Upper Class |
|---|---|---|---|
Israel | Standard: 18,000 Peak: 22,000 | Standard: 32,000 Peak: 40,000 | Standard: 56,000 Peak: 66,000 |
India | Standard: 20,000 Peak: 40,000 | Standard: 35,000 Peak: 55,000 | Standard: 75,000 Peak: 95,000 |
USA – Northeast (Boston, Newark, New York JFK, Washington DC) | Standard: 20,000 Peak: 40,000 | Standard: 35,000 Peak: 55,000 | Standard: 95,000 Peak: 115,000 |
Caribbean | Standard: 20,000 Peak: 40,000 | Standard: 35,000 Peak: 55,000 | Standard: 115,000 Peak: 135,000 |
USA – Midwest & South (Atlanta, Miami, Orlando) | Standard: 25,000 Peak: 45,000 | Standard: 45,000 Peak: 65,000 | Standard: 95,000 Peak: 115,000 |
Nigeria, China & Hong Kong | Standard: 25,000 Peak: 45,000 | Standard: 45,000 Peak: 65,000 | Standard: 115,000 Peak: 135,000 |
South Africa | Standard: 25,000 Peak: 45,000 | Standard: 50,000 Peak: 85,000 | Standard: 115,000 Peak: 135,000 |
USA – West (Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle) | Standard: 30,000 Peak: 50,000 | Standard: 55,000 Peak: 75,000 | Standard: 135,000 Peak: 155,000 |
Generally Virgin Atlantic’s redemption rates are on the high side, at least for Upper Class. On top of that, there are significant carrier imposed surcharges (plus the UK Air Passenger Duty), especially for travel in Upper Class. You can expect that a roundtrip itinerary from the US to UK will run you about $1,000, in addition to all the points.
Beyond that, Virgin Atlantic has several airline partners, some of which are more lucrative than others. Probably the best use of Flying Club points is for travel in ANA first & business class. You can find the redemption rates below.
Paying 95,000 and 120,000 points (respectively) for business and first class roundtrip between the United States and Japan is a phenomenal value to start with. Then when you consider the 30% transfer bonus, that means you’re just paying 74,000 and 93,000 Chase points, respectively.
All Nippon Airways’ new first & business class are amazing products as well. The major catch is that availability can be really tough to come by.
Bottom line
Through November 12, 2022, you can receive a 30% bonus when you transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. This is definitely more of a niche program, but with a specific use in mind, there’s a lot of value to be had.
With the 30% bonus, some might find it worthwhile to book on Virgin Atlantic for the convenience. Virgin Atlantic is good about releasing business class transatlantic award availability, so if you value the convenience of a nonstop and don’t mind paying the carrier imposed surcharges, there’s value there.
However, the real value here is booking with partners. The catch is that each of the partner redemption options is pretty niche in terms of availability. I’d only make a transfer with this bonus if you have an immediate award redemption in mind.
Do you plan on transferring Chase points to Flying Club with a 30% bonus?
Ben, you forgot the new catch with ANA, is that the fees are now "beefy" when redeeming VS. And as Lee said, availability is amazingly scarce.
You're right about how tough it is to get award tickets on ANA via Virgin. There's no availability up to October 2023, it's all "waitlisted" on ANA website. Do you or anyone have any suggestions?
Just in time for this...
https://youtu.be/FOoH8nO_fV0