The Virgin Red Rewards Mastercard, a co-branded card for U.S. consumers issued by Synchrony, launched in September 2024. As its name implies, the $99-annual-fee card earns rewards for Virgin Red, the rewards program for the Virgin Atlantic airline, Virgin Hotels and Virgin Voyages cruises.
Here are five things to know about the Virgin Red Rewards Mastercard.
1. You must be a Virgin Red member to earn points
You don't have to be a Virgin Red member to apply for the Virgin Red Rewards Mastercard, but you must join in order to earn points for your spending on the card.
Note that Virgin Red is different from the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. The former encompasses the airline/hotel/cruise trifecta of the Virgin brand, while the latter is the rewards program for the airline only. However, they’re connected. You can be a member of both programs and link your accounts for more flexibility in how you earn and redeem Virgin Points.
2. Earn rewards for future vacations with Virgin
The Virgin Red Rewards Mastercard earns:
- 3 Virgin Points per $1 spent on Virgin Atlantic flights, Virgin Hotels bookings and Virgin Voyages cruises.
- 2 Virgin Points per $1 spent at grocery stores and restaurants, as well as on streaming services and electric vehicle charging.
- 1 Virgin Point per $1 on everything else.
The card also offers a welcome bonus: 60,000 Virgin Points when you spend $4,000 in the first 90 days.
That can offer a lot of value for the right traveler. But if you want the flexibility to book with different brands, consider a general-purpose travel credit card. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, for example, earns 5 points per dollar spent on travel booked through Chase, 3 points per dollar spent on dining, 3 points per dollar spent on select streaming services, 3 points per dollar spent on online grocery purchases, 2 points per dollar spent on travel not purchased through Chase and 1 point per dollar on other purchases.
You can redeem these points for many different kinds of travel and brands. New cardholders can also get a sign-up bonus: Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. It has a $95 annual fee.
3. Enjoy extra travel perks
The card offers these additional benefits:
- Once a year, if you book a two-night stay at participating Virgin Hotels, you get a third night for free.
- Earn 5,000 Virgin Points each card member anniversary.
- Earn 2,500 Virgin Points whenever you add an authorized user (up to a 10,000-point maximum).
- Earn 25 Tier Points for Virgin Atlantic Flying Club for each $2,500 of qualifying spending, up to 50 Tier Points a month. As noted above, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is the airline’s loyalty program. Earning Tier Points allows you to attain higher levels of status within that program.
For comparison's sake, the aforementioned Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card also packs a few perks. It offers a $50 annual credit on hotel stays purchased through Chase; bonus anniversary points equal to 10% of total purchases made the previous year; hotel and airline transfer partners (including Virgin Atlantic Flying Club); and primary rental car coverage. Depending on how often you fly with Virgin and whether you also book airfare or hotels with other travel brands, a general-purpose rewards card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card could offer more value and convenience.
4. Higher spenders get more
Hitting an annual spending minimum unlocks Personal Perks, which can take a vacation to the next level. If you spend $15,000 in a year, you can choose one perk, while if you spend $30,000 in a year, you can choose two.
Personal Perks include a voucher for a companion seat or cabin upgrade on Virgin Atlantic, a free night stay or room upgrade at Virgin Hotels, a $300 bar tab credit on a Virgin Voyages cruise, and a Blue Extras Perks Package on a cruise (that gets you laundry service, an exclusive cocktail party and daily coffee credits).
5. Redeem points for travel and experiences
You can cash in your Virgin Points for a variety of experiences, including hotel stays, flights, and train tickets, as well as food tours and other experiences. Point values vary based on how you choose to redeem them.
Virgin Atlantic is part of the SkyTeam alliance and also has partnerships with other airlines. This means you can earn Virgin Points when flying on partner airlines, and redeem points for bookings on those airlines.
