Originally Posted by
greenarmy
Delta don't fly to Bangkok or Hong Kong so you will need to depart/arrive from Shanghai if you want to use Virgin miles for Delta.
Keeping it to 40k miles will require a non-stop, so from Shanghai that means flying to/from Atlanta, LAX, Seattle or Detroit.
However - you should check the cash prices for your intended travel dates - outside of the summer period there are lots of dates where those direct delta flights are on sale for under $350 USD each way EVEN buying a one-way ticket in economy, prices at which I would strongly urge you to consider not using miles.
PVG-ATL (and vv) is my favorite Delta flight because it is well timed, and the 777 is very comfortable in economy (I like to sit towards the back because this maximizes my chance of an empty middle). That having been said, if you don't want to go to Atlanta, and your award doesn't permit connections, maybe this isn't such a good idea.
As such, I agree about using cash. I usually pay around $500 each way between PVG and JAX (via ATL), which I think is a good value.