Bits: BA Holidays sale, get 50% bonus Virgin Atlantic tier points and miles
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News in brief:
British Airways Holidays sale – from £50 deposit
The British Airways ‘Take-Off’ sale, which was due to run until the 22nd, has changed. BA will now continue discounting until 29th September but only on selected routes. Prices have returned to normal across the rest of the network. The current offers can be seen here.
Instead, BA has added a number of offers with British Airways Holidays. This includes the return of the popular ‘£50 deposit’ promotion until September 22nd.
It can often be cheaper to book a British Airways holiday package than book a stand-alone British Airways flight. Try pricing up a flight and a very poor hotel (which you don’t bother using) or a flight and a car hire and see what you get. The ability to pay just £50 down and the remainder at ten weeks prior to departure is an extra benefit!
When I say ‘BA Holidays’ you should NOT necessarily think of a Spanish beach. You can also get ‘flight and hotel’ short breaks in major cities.
The ‘£50 down’ offer is explained here. It is valid for ‘flight and hotel’ or ‘flight and car’ booking of up to £999.
Get 50% bonus Virgin Atlantic tier points on non-US routes
Virgin Atlantic has launched a bonus offer on its Delhi, Dubai, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Lagos and Shanghai routes.
You will receive 50% extra bonus miles on every return flight you take until 31st December 2015. You will also earn extra tier points: two for each Economy return trip, four for Premium Economy and six for Upper Class.
Given that you only need 15 tier points in a rolling 12 month period for Silver and 40 for Gold, this is attractive. An Upper Class return will earn 16-18 tier points under this offer which means that just two and a half Virgin Atlantic return trips before the end of the year will get you Gold from a standing start.
Learn more about this offer and register here. Note that bookings must be made before 31st October.
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How to earn Virgin Points from UK credit cards (April 2025)
As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Virgin Points from UK credit cards. Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.
You can choose from two official Virgin Atlantic credit cards (apply here, the Reward+ card has a bonus of 18,000 Virgin Points and the free card has a bonus of 3,000 Virgin Points):

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard
18,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review

Virgin Atlantic Reward Mastercard
3,000 bonus points, no fee and 1 point for every £1 you spend Read our full review
You can also earn Virgin Points from various American Express cards – and these have sign-up bonuses too.
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold is FREE for a year and comes with 20,000 Membership Rewards points, which convert into 20,000 Virgin Points.
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold
Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
The Platinum Card from American Express comes with 50,000 Membership Rewards points, which convert into 50,000 Virgin Points.
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

The Platinum Card from American Express
80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review
Small business owners should consider the two American Express Business cards. Points convert at 1:1 into Virgin Points.

American Express Business Platinum
50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold
20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review
Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Virgin Points.
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