First of all Virgin's Upper class is not First Class, it is Business Class.

You are looking at the difference between a flexible J class fare with CDC and the ability to change dates without penalty, and a Z class with no CDC and very limited flexibility.

See V-Flyer fare codes page, for a full explanation.

If you are a leisure traveller with fixed dates, then IMHO there is no point paying the massive differential just for a CDC.

You still get Clubhouse and Revivals access and all the other UC 'extras'.

Nick