Last month, Virgin Atlantic announced it would soon make some huge changes to its Flying Club loyalty program, including (among other things) a shift to a new dynamic pricing model. If you’ve been sitting on a stash of Virgin points, now might be the time to redeem them.
The changes are set to roll out on Wednesday, Oct. 30, and while the airline is promising a slew of new opportunities for Flying Club members to earn and redeem their points — including making every seat on Virgin-operated flights bookable with points — it’s hard to ignore the fact that they’ll also be introducing dynamic pricing for award redemptions.
While it’s difficult to say just how much of a devaluation Flying Club awards will see before Wednesday, it’s likely that there’ll be a lot more variation in the redemption opportunities that are currently on offer — particularly on Upper Class seat redemptions.
We’ll carry out a more detailed analysis on Wednesday once the changes roll out, but in the meantime, here’s a breakdown of what we already know about the changes that will soon be in play.
A move to dynamic pricing
While Virgin’s communications surrounding the changes were unsurprisingly focused on the benefits (more on this below), it’s also impossible not to notice the subtle reference to a new dynamic pricing structure.
“Flying Club members will be able to use Virgin Points to pay for any seat on the plane on any date, offering absolute choice and flexibility for our loyal customers,” said Virgin in a press release. “The price of seats will vary in line with demand, in a similar way to standard tickets.”
Related: Dynamic airline award pricing is out of control — here are some ways to beat it
It’s a short and succinct line, but it’s nonetheless clear that the airline will adopt dynamic pricing to set award fares based on demand. Invariably, this doesn’t often end well for award travelers.
Virgin has done its best to reassure its customer base that more than half of its flights with economy reward seat availability will see prices that are the same or lower than they are right now. The airline also says that a “large” number of reward seats available in the Upper Class cabin will be bookable at the same price or lower than they are currently.
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It remains to be seen how this could affect Flying Club loyalists, for better or worse. However, it’s worth noting that Virgin has not revealed whether it will cap the maximum or minimum award fares.
More award availability
OK, now that we’ve mentioned the dynamic-shaped elephant in the room, let’s look at the good stuff.
From Oct. 30, Virgin’s Guaranteed Availability system for award bookings will, depending on how you look at it, undergo something of an enhancement.
From Wednesday onward, every seat on a Virgin Atlantic-operated flight will be bookable using Virgin points — including upgrades. This is a significant shift from the current Guaranteed Availability system, which, since 2022, has made 12 award seats available on every Virgin-operated flight.
Looking at this positively, it means that you’ll have much more opportunities to redeem your points, with more seats being available. On the downside, given the new dynamic pricing structure, it’s likely that there could be a pretty wild disparity between the award prices of these seats. And once the cheap spots are gone, you can expect to splurge more points for the exact same seats.
New chances to save on award seats
In an effort to combat this, Virgin will lock prices on a select number of seats per flight in a new “Saver reward seat” product. This will lock a number of award fares at the same prices available today or even lower.
It’s currently unclear as to whether these Saver reward seats will be available across every cabin, or whether Virgin will designate a set number of seats per flight. TPG has reached out to Virgin Atlantic for clarification.
The company says that Flying Club members should see some of their lowest-ever points prices — including reward flights from the U.K. to New York City for as little as 6,000 points. Those prices are nothing to sniff at if you can take advantage of these offers before they’re snapped up.
Changes to award vouchers
We’re also going to see some changes to the way the Flying Club members can use Companion and Upgrade vouchers.
Currently, the cabins for which you’re able to redeem these vouchers are determined by your Flying Club status. Going forward, from Oct. 30, you’ll be able to use your vouchers to book in any cabin.
However, there is a catch: Your Flying Club status will determine the maximum value of your voucher.
From Oct. 30, the voucher will be valid for up to a maximum of 75,000 points for Flying Club Red tier members or 150,000 points for Flying Club Silver or Gold tier members based on your status at the time of voucher redemption. While you’ll be able to book seats that cost more points than this, you’ll be required to top up the difference.
If you were planning on using a voucher for a big return trip for two, this might be a real loss in value for some Flying Club Red members.
Increased earning opportunities on flights
The final change announced is the difference in the amounts of points travelers will earn on cash fares. Once the changes roll out, Flying Club members will earn up to 50% more on Upper Class fares and up to 75% more on Premium tickets. A new earnings chart that fully explains the amount will be available from Oct. 30.
Bottom line
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club will move to a dynamic pricing model beginning on Oct. 30. They’ll also introduce new saver award redemptions and modify how award vouchers can be redeemed as well as how much overall award availability will be open on each flight.
Stay tuned for our full analysis once the changes are fully rolled out.
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