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As fixed award charts disappear in favor of dynamic pricing, it's rather refreshing to see some airlines still offering predictable redemptions. Interestingly, these charts often persist for partner redemptions. One such example is Virgin Atlantic’s award chart for flying All Nippon Airways (ANA) to and from Japan.
This guide will walk you through how to use Virgin Atlantic points to book ANA flights, where to find outsized value, and how to navigate the (sometimes complicated) booking process.
Page Contents
Virgin Atlantic Award Chart for ANA Flights
Virgin Atlantic uses a zone-based award chart for ANA flights, covering all routes from Japan to the rest of the world. It offers straightforward one-way pricing in economy, business, and first class.
Below, you'll find the award chart Virgin Atlantic posts for ANA award flights:
How To Redeem Virgin Atlantic Points for ANA Award Flights
Despite Virgin Atlantic devaluing business- and first-class award pricing in 2024, ANA awards booked with Virgin points remain one of the best-value ways to fly to Japan, especially compared to other Star Alliance partners.
Virgin Atlantic’s chart breaks the U.S. into three regions, with the following one-way pricing from Tokyo Haneda (HND) or Narita (NRT):
- Hawaii — Honolulu (HNL)
- Economy: 22,500
- Business: 37,500
- First: 57,500
- Western USA/Canada — Vancouver (YVR), Seattle (SEA), San Francisco (SFO), Los Angeles (LAX)
- Economy: 30,000
- Business: 52,500
- First: 72,500
- Central/Eastern USA — Chicago (ORD), Houston (IAH), Washington Dulles (IAD), New York (JFK)
- Economy: 32,500
- Business: 60,000
- First: 85,000
Step 1: Finding ANA award availability
Searching for ANA award space through Virgin Atlantic’s website won’t work. Instead, you’ll need to use external search tools to confirm award space and then call to book.
One of the best options for starting your award search is Seats.aero, where you can explore United MileagePlus and/or Air Canada Aeroplan award availability and filter for direct ANA flights from North America to Asia. Seats.aero even has a dedicated ANA First Class Finder.
Once you find a flight, it's worth confirming that award space exists on United or Air Canada's website directly.
The screenshots below show what you should be looking for in each program. Notice that both routes are nonstop operated by ANA planes. You can see that both United and Air Canada charge more miles for these flights than Virgin does — which is why this whole process is worth it.
Related: How To Find Partner Award Availability
Step 2: Booking ANA flights with Virgin points
Once you've found availability and verified it through United or another Star Alliance partner, call Virgin Atlantic at 1-800-365-9500. Note that Air Canada shows awards 360 days out while Virgin's calendar only extends 335 days. So make sure when searching Air Canada that the award isn't outside of Virgin's calendar window.
Virgin's agents will attempt to confirm and book the flight with ANA. This process can take time, but you don’t need to transfer your points until availability is confirmed — and most transfers are instant.
Just be aware of potential issues you may run into when booking. Award space that appears available online through other loyalty programs may not always be bookable through Virgin Atlantic. In addition, reports suggest Virgin cannot book ANA flights departing from the U.S. within 14 days of travel. This is particularly frustrating because ANA often releases last-minute premium cabin award space.
Surcharges on ANA awards
Virgin Atlantic passes along carrier-imposed surcharges when booking ANA flights. The amount varies based on fuel costs, cabin class, and even direction of travel.
To estimate these fees, we recommend using ITA Matrix and adding up all the taxes and surcharges. For example, on a Chicago to Tokyo itinerary, taxes and fees are approximately $183 across all cabins.
While these surcharges are higher than what some other programs charge, the significant point savings more than compensate.
What It's Like To Fly ANA’s Business and First Class
ANA has one of the best premium products in the sky. In 2019, ANA began rolling out its new business-class seats (The Room) and first-class suites (The Suite) on select Boeing 777-300ER routes, and these cabins have since become some of the most sought-after award redemptions.
I had the chance to fly ANA’s new first class on a recent trip back from Japan, and it lived up to the hype. The fully enclosed space felt more like a private hotel room in the sky than a typical first-class seat, and the level of service was fantastic.
Currently, ANA's most premium seats (The Room and The Suite) are most commonly found on flights to:
- London (LHR)
- New York (JFK)
- Chicago (ORD)
- San Francisco (SFO)
ANA’s website is the best way to confirm if a specific route features these premium seats. To check, search for a cash ticket on ANA’s website and look for labels like “The Room” or “The Suite” on the booking page.
Best Ways To Earn Virgin Points
Before you can take advantage of these awards, you need to earn Virgin Atlantic points. Fortunately, it’s easy to build a stash of Virgin points — especially during a transfer bonus. Virgin Atlantic has several transfer partners:
This long list of partners means you can likely book ANA flights through Virgin Atlantic, no matter which major transferable points you earn. If you're looking for a new card to build your balance, here are a few options:
$95
- 5X miles per dollar on purchases through Capital One Entertainment
- 5X miles per dollar on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
- 2X miles per dollar on all other purchases
$95Rates & Fees
- 3X points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases on travel, shipping purchases, Internet, cable and phone services, advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines each account anniversary year
- 1X point per $1 on all other purchases
$325Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
- 4X Membership Rewards® Points at restaurants worldwide, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S. (on up to $50,000 per year in purchases, then 1X)
- 4X Membership Rewards® points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per year in purchases, then 1X)
- 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com
- 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotels and other eligible travel booked on amextravel.com
- 1X on other eligible purchases
Additionally, U.S.-based travelers can currently get a 60,000-point bonus through the Virgin Red Rewards Mastercard®.
Or, sometimes it can make sense to buy Virgin points. We've seen purchase rates drop as low as 1.47¢ each. At that rate, buying enough Virgin points for a one-way ANA business class award between the U.S. and Japan costs as little as $772!
Related: How I Booked a $4k Business Class Flight for Just $1,161
Bottom Line
With demand for Japan travel at an all-time high, Virgin Atlantic’s ANA award chart offers some of the best rates to fly to Japan using points. If you can find availability, you’ll get exceptional value — especially in business and first class.
Just be prepared to search for award space through United or other Star Alliance partners — or even Seats.aero — and call Virgin Atlantic to book. The process takes extra effort, but the savings on ANA’s premium cabins make it well worth it.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (Rates & Fees), and American Express® Gold Card (Rates & Fees)
