It’s all about the sweet spots. Needless to say, when you read a headline like- 120,000 points (and minimal cash) round trip, intrigue takes over because ding, ding ding- that’s a very major sweet spot. There’s an amazing opportunity to fly ANA First Class using your Virgin Atlantic miles or credit card points and there’s no telling how much longer it will last, so here’s how to get it while it’s hot…
Many of the best opportunities in the convoluted frequent flyer world- require workarounds. In other words- it’s not just about transferring your points to the airline you’d like to fly. It’s all about seeing what their partners would charge using points. While ANA and others would charge over 200,000 points, with little opportunity to create those points without flying -Virgin Atlantic offers a steal of a deal at just 110,000 120,000 points round trip from the U.S. or Europe to Northern Asia. This work anywhere that ANA flies direct to Asia. Best of all- you can instantly create the points needed from Chase, Citi or Amex- heck, all three!
When you think about putting your butt in an airplane 120,000 points is no easy feat. That’s more than five times around the world. When you think of using credit card points – it’s a piece of cake. You can instantly transfer American Express Membership Rewards, Citi Thank You or Chase Ultimate Rewards points to Virgin Atlantic to book these flights, and if you already have Virgin Atlantic points, you can use those too. Of course, you shouldn’t ever transfer points to an airline until you find availability you can use. We’ll show you how to find that.
Back to the convoluted idea. To make this work: we search for ANA flights on United.com, and then we call Virgin Atlantic to book. If that sounds standard to you- congrats. If it sounds crazy, you’re not alone. But it WORKS. Search for availability using United.com, Aeroplan.com or ANA and when you find space- call Virgin Atlantic (you cant book online) to book for 120,000 points round trips. You must book round trip. Here are a few pro tips…
- ANA often only releases one first class seat at a time, but they often release more than one seat. Essentially, if a flight has less than 3 people sitting in First Class, there’s more a more than likely chance they’ll make a second seat available using miles. Set alerts on ExpertFlyer for the dates you want, so you’ll be first to know.
- When you call Virgin Atlantic, be sure to feed them the ANA flight numbers and all other pertinent details. It’s possible someone won’t have a clue what you’re talking about, so the more info you have to be helpful- the better. Don’t be afraid to ask for a supervisor, politely.
- As we mentioned, you shouldn’t transfer points from Amex, Citi or Chase into Virgin Atlantic until you find seats you can actually use. Once they leave the bank, they can’t go back. Enjoy!
I find it extremely difficult to book partner airlines using my Virgin Atlantic miles. I have been trying to book a round trip from Sydney to Auckland since February in any class and there is never anything available for any dates in January 2018. Very frustrating that you have to keep calling their call centre to enquire! Can’t understand why you can’t search on their website in the 21st Century!
@Mal Kiely – it is frustrating but from the point of view of the airline FFP, it’s a feature, not a bug. Making it difficult to redeem works in the airline’s favor – no real incentive to make it easy on us!
Thanks for highlighting this opportunity. Regards Alastair Majury
Hi,
I am having an issue with trying to find space. Ana and Aeroplan need a login and United dont seem to have any room Lon-Tokyo for any period that I can see next year.
I am looking to use my virgin miles for if possible 2 first class returns on ANA. Do you have a foolproof way to find availability?
Thks
Chris
1) Definitely sign up for free to ANA and or Aeroplan. There’s no reason not to.
2) Have you been able to find space in either direction? Searching for 2 first class may prove impossible. The best move is to find 1 first class ticket and 1 business class ticket. Space for a second ticket will almost always open up in first at a later date. Searching for two will yield no results whoever you search with. Best of luck. You can always amend a ticket to move it up to first, or do part business and part first, as a voluntary downgrade. Both are fantastic.
One more question, sorry to be a pain. I have joined ANA miles. When I search for availability it has different levels of award flight, ANA group, Star Alliance member airlines and other partner airlines. Which one do I need to see as open to call virgin and book?
Thanks for the advice, love the site.