Asia Miles (CX) vs Virgin Flying Club for HKG-LHR
Aug 4, 2021, 9:57 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 2,346
Asia Miles (CX) vs Virgin Flying Club for HKG-LHR
Hi all - just wanted to start a casual discussion on starting to collect VS FC points and CX Asia Miles for redemption on direct HKG to/from LHR flights (J class).
Some background: Embarrassingly for a FlyerTalker, I've been a typical Hongkonger in the sense that for over a decade I exclusively collect Asia Miles via credit card points or flying, and then redeem them for CX J class tickets. I usually redeem them for my parents, who greatly appreciate the lie flat seats. However, at least pre-pandemic, CX J flights to/from LHR were always hard to come by, and even BA flights were not always available (and their old Club World product is pretty dated and bad, not worth it).
During lockdown, I began thinking to expand beyond the CX world and start collecting VS flights, mainly because 1) they are the only other airline besides CX/BA that flies direct to LHR, and 2) despite recent financial troubles they made some nice changes to their FFP which now includes miles that don't expire.
I know there are a lot of HKG-LHR flyers on this forum, so I just wanted to get some feedback on if this is a worthy switch - based on availability, product, etc. Thanks guys.
Some background: Embarrassingly for a FlyerTalker, I've been a typical Hongkonger in the sense that for over a decade I exclusively collect Asia Miles via credit card points or flying, and then redeem them for CX J class tickets. I usually redeem them for my parents, who greatly appreciate the lie flat seats. However, at least pre-pandemic, CX J flights to/from LHR were always hard to come by, and even BA flights were not always available (and their old Club World product is pretty dated and bad, not worth it).
During lockdown, I began thinking to expand beyond the CX world and start collecting VS flights, mainly because 1) they are the only other airline besides CX/BA that flies direct to LHR, and 2) despite recent financial troubles they made some nice changes to their FFP which now includes miles that don't expire.
I know there are a lot of HKG-LHR flyers on this forum, so I just wanted to get some feedback on if this is a worthy switch - based on availability, product, etc. Thanks guys.
Aug 4, 2021, 6:52 pm
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2004
Programs: CX Green, QF Platinum, BAEC Silver, Hyatt Glob
Posts: 10,780
Have you done any comparison on how many miles you earn and how many you need to spend for VS? I’m curious about the comparison too.
If your main route that you want to redeem is LHR, it could be a worthwhile switch especially as you say redemption opportunities on CX are difficult.
If your main route that you want to redeem is LHR, it could be a worthwhile switch especially as you say redemption opportunities on CX are difficult.
Aug 4, 2021, 8:28 pm
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 2,346
Have you done any comparison on how many miles you earn and how many you need to spend for VS? I’m curious about the comparison too.
If your main route that you want to redeem is LHR, it could be a worthwhile switch especially as you say redemption opportunities on CX are difficult.
If your main route that you want to redeem is LHR, it could be a worthwhile switch especially as you say redemption opportunities on CX are difficult.
- VS round trip in J: 115,000 points. The AE earn rate is $5 = 15 = 1 point.
- CX round trip in J: 130,000 miles. The AE earn rate is $5 = 15 = 1 mile. However, I can get better rates with HSBC VS ($5 = 0.18 RC = 1.8 miles) for some specific categories.