How to Fly ANA First Class for 55K Points (Step by Step)

ANA (All Nippon Airways) First Class is one of the most coveted premium cabin experiences globally—fully enclosed suites, kaiseki fine dining, shower spas, and dedicated crew. The catch: ANA points are hard to earn directly. The solution: Transfer via Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.

This guide walks you through the exact mechanics of booking, transfer partners, and search strategies to lock in ANA First Class for just 55,000 miles.

Why Virgin Atlantic for ANA First Class Redemptions?

Virgin Atlantic is the transfer partner for ANA premium cabin awards that most US-based points collectors use because:

Lower award prices than booking with ANA miles directly (55K vs 90K+)
Easy transfers from Chase, Amex, Citi
Flexible routing (not limited to pure O&D pairs)
No fuel surcharges on ANA (unlike former BA awards)

Alternative: Book directly with ANA miles if you have 90K, but Virgin Atlantic pricing is superior for first-class availability.

The Award Chart: ANA First Class via Virgin Atlantic

Route Type	Economy	Business	First Class
Short-haul Asia (e.g., Tokyo–Seoul)	18K	42K	55K
Mid-haul Asia-Europe (e.g., Tokyo–Paris)	25K	60K	80K
Long-haul West (e.g., Tokyo–NYC)	35K	85K	120K
Positioning flights	7.5K	18K	28K

The sweet spot: 55,000 Virgin Atlantic miles = ANA First Class on dense, short-haul routes (Tokyo–Seoul, Tokyo–Honolulu, Tokyo–Singapore, Tokyo–Bangkok, etc.). These are the easiest to book and best value.

How to Earn 55K Virgin Atlantic Miles

You have 3 main pathways:

Path 1: Chase Transfer (Fastest)

Chase Sapphire Preferred: 100K UR sign-up bonus
Transfer UR to Virgin Atlantic at 1:1 ratio
Earn rate: 1.5x UR on all purchases = 1,500 UR per $1,000 spent
Timeline: 2–5 business days for transfer to post

Path 2: Amex Transfer (More Flexible)

Amex Gold: 60K MR sign-up bonus
Amex Platinum: 150K MR sign-up bonus
Transfer MR to Virgin Atlantic at 1:1 ratio
Timeline: 1–2 business days for transfer to post

Path 3: Citi Transfer (Limited)

Citi Double Cash or Citi Strata Premier
Citi ThankYou points are not directly transferable to Virgin Atlantic
Workaround: Convert to Citi cash or use pay-for-points portal (expensive)

Best source: Amex Gold + Sapphire Preferred gives you 160K combined points—enough for ANA First for two short-haul routes.

Step-by-Step Booking Process

Step 1: Sign Up for Virgin Atlantic Flying Club

Visit Virgin Atlantic (virginatlantic.com)
Create account with name, email, date of birth
Verify email address
Note your Flying Club number (starts with VACO)

Time required: 5 minutes Cost: Free

Step 2: Transfer Points from Chase/Amex

From Chase:

Log in to Ultimate Rewards dashboard
Navigate to "Transfer Partners"
Search for Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
Enter transfer amount (55,000 UR minimum)
Confirm Flying Club number
Submit transfer
Wait 2–5 business days for posting

From Amex:

Log in to Membership Rewards
Navigate to "Transfer Points"
Search for "Virgin Atlantic"
Select "Virgin Atlantic Flying Club"
Enter transfer amount
Confirm account number (on Flying Club account)
Submit
Wait 1–2 business days

Step 3: Search for ANA Availability (The Hard Part)

Virgin Atlantic uses the same Sabre GDS as United and Japanese carriers. Award availability is extremely limited for ANA First.

Tools to search availability:

Option 1: Virgin Atlantic.com (Native Search)

Go to virginatlantic.com/book
Select "Reward Flights"
Route: Tokyo (NRT/HND) → Your destination
Cabin: First Class
Click "Search"
Filter by ANA flights only (Virgin Atlantic codeshares)

Note: Virgin Atlantic's search is slow and often doesn't show all availability. Expect to search 20+ dates before finding ANA first-class seats.

Option 2: United.com (Better Search) Since United sells ANA awards via Star Alliance, you can search:

Go to united.com
Select "Award Travel"
"United and Star Alliance Partners"
Route: NRT/HND → Destination, Cabin: First
Search
Filter results to show only ANA

United's search is faster, though availability may differ slightly from Virgin Atlantic.

Option 3: Manual Guestlist Request If online search fails (common for ANA first):

Call Virgin Atlantic +1-800-862-8621
Request ANA First availability on specific routes
Provide 3–5 alternative dates
Agent will search and hold seats for 24 hours

Pro tip: ANA First seats open up 8–14 weeks before departure for most routes. Set calendar reminders to search on opening day.

Step 4: Book the Award Flight

Once you find availability:

Add to cart (Virgin Atlantic/United systems)
Confirm:
- Route, dates, cabin (First)
- Passenger name (must match ID)
- Miles: 55,000 for short-haul
Pay fuel surcharges (~$50–150 depending on route)
Add taxes/fees (usually $5–25 international)
Confirm booking
Email confirmation with booking reference

Confirmation timeline: Instant for Virgin Atlantic bookings; 24–48 hours for manual requests.

ANA First Class Experience: What You're Getting for 55K

For context on value:

Component	Typical Cost
Seat (fully enclosed suite)	$5,000–8,000
Meal (kaiseki by Michelin chefs)	$300–500
Amenities (pajamas, amenity kits, shower spa)	$200+
Lounge access (pre/post)	$100
Total cash equivalent	$5,600–8,600
Virgin Atlantic miles cost	55,000 miles (~$1,650 if 3cpp value)
Effective discount	71–80% savings

This makes 55K miles extraordinary value.

Common Booking Obstacles & Solutions

Problem 1: No availability shows for ANA First

Solution: Search United.com instead (sometimes has different inventory)
Solution: Call Virgin Atlantic and request guestlist (agent has access to unavailable seats)
Solution: Look for positioning flights (Tokyo–Honolulu on ANA is more common than transcons)

Problem 2: Booking won't go through on Virgin Atlantic.com

Solution: Call +1-800-862-8621 and book over the phone (manual system sometimes more flexible)
Solution: Try United.com to book the same flight (usually works)

Problem 3: Fuel surcharges are $500+

Cause: You're looking at long-haul routes (Tokyo–NYC). These aren't good sweet spots.
Solution: Look for short-haul routes (Tokyo–Seoul 30K, Honolulu 35K) with lower fuel surcharge

Problem 4: Routing won't allow stopover

Solution: Book two separate awards: Tokyo–Intermediate (Bangkok), then Bangkok–US
Note: Virgin Atlantic does allow stopovers on some awards (similar to United rules)

Master Booking Checklist

2–3 Months Before Travel:
  □ Sign up for Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (free account)
  □ Transfer 55K+ points from Chase/Amex (2–5 day wait)
  □ Set calendar for opening day (8 weeks before departure)

1 Month Before:
  □ Search Virgin Atlantic + United.com daily for availability
  □ Create list of flexible dates (ANA First is rare—flexibility = more options)
  □ Call Virgin Atlantic for guestlist if no online availability

1 Week Before:
  □ Book the award flight once found
  □ Pay fuel surcharges and taxes
  □ Receive email confirmation with PNR reference
  □ Add to calendar with flight details

Day of Travel:
  □ Check in online 24 hours before
  □ Arrive 3–4 hours early (international first-class)
  □ Enjoy the shower spa, kaiseki dining, and enclosed suite

Expected Value & Positioning

If you book Tokyo (NRT) → Seoul (ICN):

Miles cost: 55,000 Virgin Atlantic
Estimated cash value: $6,000–7,500
Actual retail: $8,000–12,000
Value multiple: 10–15x (extraordinary)

If you book Tokyo → Honolulu:

Miles cost: 35,000 Virgin Atlantic (short-haul from Tokyo POV)
Estimated cash value: $3,000–4,000
Actual retail: $5,000–6,500
Value multiple: 8–10x (excellent)

If you book Tokyo → New York:

Miles cost: 120,000 Virgin Atlantic
Estimated cash value: $8,000–10,000
Actual retail: $12,000–16,000
Value multiple: 8–10x (good, but requires 120K)

Loyalty Program Mechanics for ANA

While booking via Virgin Atlantic, your ANA frequent flyer number still earns:

Status miles (towards ANA Platinum/Diamond)
Mileage accrual (10%–25% of actual miles flown, depending on status)
Cabin bonus (First Class = 125% mileage earning)

This means a Tokyo–NYC ANA First flight earns ~5,000 ANA miles even though you didn't pay ANA miles directly.

Final Tips for Success

Be flexible on dates: ANA First has <5% seat availability globally. Flexibility = booking success
Search 8 weeks out: Awards open 8–14 weeks before departure. Check on opening day
Try United first: If Virgin Atlantic shows no availability, United.com often has the same flights
Use both Amex and Chase: If you need 100K+ miles, split transfers across Amex Gold (60K) and Sapphire (100K)
Track fuel surcharges: Book short-haul if possible; fuel surcharges can exceed 55K on long-haul routes
Save for peak season: ANA First to Tokyo in cherry blossom season (April) fills within hours. Plan 6+ months ahead

Booking ANA First Class via Virgin Atlantic is a marathon, not a sprint—but the 55K value makes it the best first-class redemption in the rewards world.