Upper Class to London for 23,000 points
I flew Virgin Atlantic Upper Class from Bengaluru to London on 25,000 Virgin Points. Seats start at 23,000. Here's exactly how to book yours with your Amex points.
Show me howFour steps. In this order.
- Step 1
Find the seat first
Open Virgin Atlantic's Reward Seat Checker. Pick Bengaluru to London Heathrow and a month. The calendar shows the points price for every day, and the lowest prices carry a Saver tag. Pricing is dynamic, so the same seat can be 23,000 one week and much more the next.
- Step 2
Do the maths
Amex India converts at 5:4: every 1,000 Membership Rewards points become 800 Virgin Points. Divide the Virgin price by 0.8 to get the Amex points you need. The calculator below does it for you.
- Step 3
Transfer from Amex to Virgin
Create a free Virgin Atlantic Flying Club account in the exact name on your Amex card. Then move your Membership Rewards to Virgin from the Amex India rewards page. Transfers are one way and cannot be reversed, which is why you find the seat before you move a single point.
- Step 4
Book and pay the taxes
Book the reward seat on virginatlantic.com with your points. You pay taxes and carrier charges in cash: about ₹18,000 on my Bengaluru to London booking. Virgin shows the exact figure before you confirm.
+ taxes in cash
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Three things most people miss
Seats come and go
Virgin keeps releasing reward seats. If your date shows nothing today, check again in a few days. The low prices tend to appear in bursts.
Fly out of India
Taxes leaving Bengaluru were about ₹18,000. Leaving London costs far more, because of UK departure tax and Virgin's carrier charges. Price the return before you commit.
Never transfer on spec
Amex to Virgin is one way. Points sitting in Flying Club with no seat to use them on are points you can't take back.
The flight was the cheap part.
From 23,000 Virgin Points one way, Bengaluru to London, in Upper Class. My own seat was 25,000. Virgin prices reward seats dynamically, so the number moves with demand. Check the Reward Seat Checker across a few months to find the low days.
Prices, ratios and taxes checked 25 October 2026. Award pricing is dynamic and transfer ratios can change. Confirm both before you move points.
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