Spirit Air knows you hate airlines, so they want to give you magazine subscriptions.

Virgin America knows you hate airlines, so they want to offer bonus miles that can be used for more than just magazines.

Virgin American will give you 500 points for signing up. And then they’ll give you more bonus points for your first trip:

• 2500 points if it’s Main Cabin
  
• 5000 points if it’s Main Cabin Select
  
• 7500 points if it’s First Class

What’s more, if you sign up using an existing member’s referral link, they get points for referring you too.

Here’s my referral link to sign up. You are welcome to leave yours in the comments as well.

Terms and conditions explain that the referrer earns the same 2500, 5000, or 7500 bonus points that the new member earns based on the first trip taken by December 31. (The referrer does not get the same 500 points the new member will receive for signing up.)

There are some really amusing videos they’ve made to promote their program and the idea of switching from a legacy carrier.

This is hardly a fair characterization (such as of their competitors not having wireless internet, and that their mileage program represents a better alternative).

Virgin America’s program doesn’t offer especially outsized value because:

• Redemptions for its own flights is revenue-based, you get a fixed value per point.
  
• Redemptions on partners incur mind-blowing fuel surcharges.

It can also be a frustrating process of hunting and pecking with Virgin America agents to actually use points on their partners. They don’t have great access to Singapore Airlines awad space.

The only saving grace is that, fuel surcharges aside, awards on Virgin America nad Virgin Australia can be quite reasonable in terms of points required. (For more see here and here.)

(HT: Lucky)

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