A 40% transfer bonus from AMEX to Virgin Points is the kind of promo that makes people start doing math in their heads.
And because you can book Virgin Voyages cruises with Virgin Points through Virgin Red, it’s natural to wonder: Is this a smart way to use Membership Rewards?
It can be — but here’s the key detail that matters for the numbers:
Virgin Voyages’ cash sales don’t change the points price. The points price is its own thing. So this isn’t about stacking a cash discount on top of points.
What you’re actually stacking is:
- Discounted Virgin Points pricing on select cruises (Virgin occasionally prices certain sailings lower in points)
- The 40% AMEX → Virgin Points transfer bonus (ends 12/31)
And here’s Virgin’s official redemption page: Virgin Red: Virgin Voyages with Virgin Points.
The simple math: a 40% bonus cuts the AMEX cost by ~29%
With the 40% transfer bonus, 1 AMEX point becomes 1.4 Virgin Points. So the AMEX cost of any points booking becomes:
AMEX points needed = Virgin Points price ÷ 1.4
That’s the whole trick: you’re effectively paying about 71% of the listed Virgin Points price in AMEX points.
But value still depends on what that points price is (and what the cruise costs in cash).
Why some redemptions still don’t feel great
A lot of Virgin Voyages redemptions land around ~0.7¢ per Virgin Point. When that happens, even a 40% transfer bonus doesn’t turn it into a “wow” deal. It mostly turns it into “fine.”
And “fine” gets less fun when you’re looking at spending 200,000–300,000+ AMEX points for one cruise.
Here’s why:
- If you’re only getting 0.7¢ per Virgin Point, the transfer bonus boosts that to roughly 0.98¢ per AMEX point (0.7 × 1.4).
- That’s the definition of “barely decent,” especially at these point totals.
Where this becomes a reasonable use of AMEX points
The strategy starts to make sense when you find a sailing priced at a discounted Virgin Points rate — the ones highlighted in this post. Those are the sailings where you can get closer to ~1.1–1.2¢ per Virgin Point, which is a meaningful improvement over the “standard” ~0.7¢ redemptions.
And once you apply the 40% AMEX bonus, that turns into:
~1.1–1.2¢ per Virgin Point → ~1.54–1.68¢ per AMEX point
That’s the range where a lot of people will say, “Okay… that’s actually reasonable for Membership Rewards,” especially if they’re cruise people and prefer to use points instead of paying cash.
Real-world examples (same cabin type, two very different outcomes)
Example #1: A points price that stays “meh” (even with the bonus)
This 4-night sailing is priced at 315,000 Virgin Points or $2,040 cash.
- Value per Virgin Point: $2,040 ÷ 315,000 = ~0.65¢
- AMEX points needed with 40% bonus: 315,000 ÷ 1.4 = ~225,000 AMEX points
- Value per AMEX point: $2,040 ÷ 225,000 = ~0.91¢
That’s the “barely decent” scenario. The bonus helps, but you’re still spending roughly a quarter-million AMEX points for under 1¢ per point in value.
Example #2: A discounted points price where the bonus finally shines
This 9-night repositioning cruise is priced at 215,000 Virgin Points or $2,448 cash.
- Value per Virgin Point: $2,448 ÷ 215,000 = ~1.14¢
- AMEX points needed with 40% bonus: 215,000 ÷ 1.4 = ~153,600 AMEX points
- Value per AMEX point: $2,448 ÷ 153,600 = ~1.59¢
Same concept (Virgin Points for a cruise), totally different result. This is where the combo works: a relatively low points price, combined with the 40% transfer bonus, yields a redemption that feels genuinely reasonable.
A quick gut-check before you transfer
If you’re thinking about doing this before the 40% bonus ends on 12/31, here’s the filter that keeps you out of trouble:
- If your sailing is only returning about ~0.7¢ per Virgin Point, the bonus usually just turns it into a barely decent use of a big pile of AMEX points.
- If your sailing is closer to ~1.1¢ per Virgin Point (or higher), the bonus is the multiplier that makes it feel worth considering, because you’re effectively getting ~1.5–1.7¢ per AMEX point.
Also worth saying out loud: once you transfer AMEX points to Virgin, you generally can’t transfer them back. So you want to be confident the sailing (and the points price) is the one you actually want before you move anything.
One note on fees: Virgin Voyages often shows service gratuities as a separate add-on. Since that cost is extra whether you book with cash or points, the comparisons above focus on the base cruise pricing (cash vs points), not the optional gratuity prepay line item.
Final Thought
The AMEX 40% transfer bonus to Virgin Points is a nice opportunity — but it’s not a guaranteed deal.
If you’re looking at a sailing where the points pricing only gives you around ~0.7¢ per point, the bonus mostly just upgrades the redemption from “meh” to “fine,” and you’ll still be burning a mountain of AMEX points to do it.
But if you find one of the sailings with discounted Virgin Points pricing — the kind that gets you into the ~1.1–1.2¢ per point range — then combining that with the 40% transfer bonus (ending 12/31) can turn it into a legit use of Membership Rewards for anyone who’d rather cruise than chase flight awards.
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