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You Will Soon Get Fewer Hilton Points With Your Virgin Atlantic Miles!

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    • Signing up for credit cards through partner links earns us a commission. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Here’s our full advertising policy: How we make money.

    Update: One or more card offers in this post are no longer available. Check our Hot Deals for the latest offers. You will soon get fewer Hilton hotel points when you convert your Virgin Atlantic miles to Hilton hotel points.
    A Garden Bungalow at Hilton Moorea Costs 80,000 Hilton Points Per Night

    This is important because you used to be able to transfer the 50,000 mile bonus from Virgin Atlantic card to 100,000 Hilton hotel points!

    So you got a 1:2 ratio (2 Hilton points for 1 Virgin Atlantic mile) for transferring Virgin Atlantic miles to Hilton.  But from February 6, 2014, the transfer ratio changes to 2:3.

    But Can’t You Use Virgin Atlantic Miles for Flights?

    I prefer transferring Virgin Atlantic miles to Hilton because Virgin Atlantic charges high fuel and tax (~$500 to ~$1000+) on international flights.

    For example, a coach round-trip from Chicago to London will cost 35,000 miles and $457 in taxes and fees!

    Is 35,000 Virgin Atlantic Miles & $456 for a Coach Roundtrip from Chicago to London a Good Deal?

    The fees are over $1,000 when you book an Upper Class or Business Class ticket!

    $1,140 in Taxes When You Use Virgin Atlantic Miles for a Business Class Roundtrip Ticket from Chicago to London

    Emily and I flew on Virgin Atlantic Upper Class last year.  We used our Hawaiian Air miles so that we didn’t have to pay the high fee by booking directly with Virgin Atlantic.

    Emily and Daraius in Virgin Atlantic Upper Class

    However, the excellent 1:2 transfer ratio is about to change…

    What’s Changing?

    Virgin Atlantic announced that starting February 6, 2014 folks will no longer be able to transfer miles to Hilton at 1:2.
    You Will Get Fewer Hilton Points for Transfers Made After February 6, 2014

    These changes mean fewer Hilton points when you transfer from Virgin Atlantic.

    Soon it Will Take More Virgin Atlantic Miles to Stay at Hilton Bora Bora!

    Change Details

    1.  Starting From February 6, 2014

    The new transfer ratio starts from February 6, 2014.  So transfer before February 6, 2014 to take advantage of the higher transfer ratio.

    2.  Virgin Atlantic miles transfer to Hilton at a 2:3 ratio

    After February 6, 2014, your Virgin Atlantic miles will transfer to Hilton at a 2:3 ratio.

    This means that 50,000 Virgin Atlantic miles will get only 75,000 Hilton points instead of 100,000 Hilton hotel points.

    Minimum Transfer

    As a reminder, you have to transfer a minimum of 10,000 Virgin Atlantic miles to Hilton.

    So if you have less than 10,000 Virgin Atlantic miles you can’t transfer them to Hilton.

    And after you meet the minimum transfer of 10,000 miles, you can only transfer in increments of 5,000 mile increments.

    Fr example, let’s say that you have 27,000 miles in your Virgin Atlantic account.  So you can only transfer 25,000 miles to Hilton hotels.

    So you are then stuck with 2,000 miles in your Virgin Atlantic account.

    You can instantly transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points from the Chase Sapphire Preferred, (no longer offered) Chase Ink Bold, or Chase Ink Plus to Virgin Atlantic Airlines on a 1:1 ratio if you’re running low on Virgin Atlantic points.

    Transfer Ultimate Rewards Points to Virgin Atlantic

    You can also transfer American Express Membership Rewards points to Virgin Atlantic in a 1:1 ratio.

    This isn’t a great transfer option, but could be worth it to get to an increment of 5,000 Virgin Atlantic miles.

    How to Transfer Virgin Atlantic Miles to Hilton

    You have to call the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club Helpline at 800-365-9500 to transfer points.

    You will have to give the agent your Hilton account number and your Virgin Atlantic account number.

    It can take up to 30 days for the points to post, but in my experience, it usually takes ~15 days.

    Bottom Line

    Starting February 6, 2014, your Virgin Atlantic miles will transfer to Hilton points at a 2:3 ratio, instead of the higher 1:2 ratio.  You should get the higher transfer ratio as long as you call in by February 5, 2014.

    The (somewhat) good news is that this is still better than a 1:1 ratio or worse, to transfer airline miles to hotel points. You won’t get many high-end Hilton hotel stays with 75,000 Hilton points, but it could be worth it for 1 night at an expensive Hilton or 2 nights at a mid-priced Hilton hotel.

    Here’s a link to see how many Hilton points you need for 1 night.

    Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)