Virgin Atlantic has brought back increased bonus offers on their Virgin Reward+ and Reward credit cards, issued by Virgin Money.
The current offers are:
- 25,000 Virgin miles for signing up to the Virgin Atlantic Reward+ credit card – an increase of 10,000 miles on top of the usual offer.
- 10,000 Virgin miles with the free Virgin Atlantic Reward credit card – an extra 5,000 miles compared to the usual offer.
Both are excellent offers. The bonus on the Reward+ card matches the 25,000 Avios sign-up bonus currently available on the British Airways Premium Plus card. While the 10,000 bonus miles on the free Virgin Reward card is double the current 5,000 Avios offer on the free British Airways Credit card.
Which Virgin card is best for you?
Both cards offer impressive earning rates for a UK rewards Visa/Mastercard. But which is more suited to your requirements?
Virgin Atlantic Reward Credit Card
- 5,000 bonus Flying Club miles with your first card purchase (within 90 days of account opening)
- Plus 5,000 miles when you spend £1,000 within 90 days of opening your account.
- Earn 0.75 Flying Club miles for every £1 spent
- Double miles for all direct bookings with Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Holidays
- Spend £20,000 in a year and choose a credit card reward (see below)
- 0% interest on balance and money transfers for six months (3% fee)
- No annual fee
This card has a representative APR of 22.9% variable based on a notional credit limit of £1,200.
Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Credit Card
- 15,000 bonus Flying Club miles with your first card purchase (within 90 days of account opening)
- Plus 10,000 miles when you spend £1,500 within 90 days of opening your account.
- 1.5 Flying Club miles for every £1 spent
- Double miles for all direct bookings with Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Holidays
- Spend £10,000 in a year and choose a credit card reward (see below)
- Free access to over 1 million global hotspots via Boingo Wi-Fi
- 0% interest on balance and money transfers for six months (3% fee)
- Annual fee: £160
This card has a representative APR of 63.9% based on a notional credit limit of £1,200 and a £160 annual fee. The representative APR on purchases is 22.9% variable.
Additional benefits after spending £10,000 or £20,000
Reward+ and Reward cardholders can select a further credit card reward of their choice upon hitting £10,000/£20,000 of annual spend.
The rewards vary according to your Virgin Atlantic elite status.
Red (entry level) Flying Club members
Can choose between a free upgrade to Premium Economy when flying Economy, or an Economy reward companion seat which enables them to take a companion for no additional miles (essentially a 2-4-1 companion voucher).
Silver Flying Club members
Can choose from any of the above options, as well as a Premium Economy reward companion seat or a Virgin Clubhouse lounge pass.
Gold Flying Club members
Can choose from: two Clubhouse passes, an Economy, Premium or Upper Class reward companion voucher, or a free premium economy upgrade.
2-4-1 companion vouchers will be awarded within seven days of hitting the £10,000/£20,000 thresholds.
All rewards have a 2-year expiry date – this is a major plus point for the Virgin Reward card over its British Airways counterpart. The 2-4-1 voucher on the free BA credit card is only valid for a year.
Other cardholder benefits
Free use of Virgin Money lounges
All Virgin Atlantic credit card cardholders can get free access to Virgin Money Lounges. Refreshments, use of iPads, wi-fi, newspapers etc are also complimentary.
Complimentary global Wi-Fi access with Boingo
Reward+ cardholders receive free global Wi-Fi access via Boingo. This includes in-flight access and can be used on up to four devices. Depending on your travel patterns, this may be very useful.
Verdict
I finally got round to applying for the Reward+ card in December and love the fact that I can earn 1.5 miles per £1 at places that don’t take Amex. I won’t lie, the lack of a mobile app or Apple Pay support are unnecessary drawbacks, considering we’re in 2019. Apparently, a mobile app is on the way – let’s hope so.
Virgin’s version of the 2-4-1 companion voucher also remains a frustration. I won’t deliberately be looking to trigger it, although I’ll likely end up doing so. They could solve this in an instant by allowing all cardholders to redeem their voucher for Upper Class – much like BA does with theirs.
If you can’t quite make the Reward+ card add up for you, 10,000 miles with the free Virgin Reward card will be worth a quick application in most people’s books.
The increased sign-up bonus offers end on 28th February 2019.
The Reward card application page is here
The Reward+ card application page is here
What do you make of these increased bonuses – is it enough to tempt you to apply?
Disclaimer: The information provided by Tricks of the Trade is intended solely as a helpful guide to relevant travel rewards card products and their various features and offers. You should always conduct your own research as recommendations provided within may not be suitable for your personal financial circumstances.
Header image courtesy of Virgin Money
Great post 🙂