Virgin Atlantic and Patrón bring prestige tequila experience to new Heathrow-Cancún flight

Bacardi Global Travel Retail (GTR) staged a high-profile, multi-channel activation for Patrón tequila onboard Virgin Atlantic’s new London Heathrow to Cancún service during its launch in October.

The new route, which launched on October 19, connects the UK’s leading international hub, London Heathrow, and the tourist magnet of Cancún, creating a significant consumer engagement opportunity for Patrón, the top-selling super-premium tequila in global travel retail. Virgin Atlantic’s winter-season service will operate three times weekly.

The comprehensive two-stage brand showcase for Patrón harnessed multiple Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Atlantic Holidays touchpoints across the traveler journey, while highlighting the brand’s rich Mexican provenance.

The activation spanned two key periods:

Phase One: building pre-launch buzz (August 11–24, 2025)

Virgin Hotels partnership: Patrón Silver and Patrón Resposado were the star serves at an exclusive “Afternoon Tea-quila” celebration held at the Hidden Grooves cocktail bar at Virgin Hotels London Shoreditch.

Retail promotion: The brand ran a Taste of Mexico promotion in 12 Virgin Atlantic Holidays travel agencies across the UK. Every customer who booked a trip to Cancún received a mini-bottle of Patrón El Alto.

Phase Two: launch day and beyond (October 19, 2025)

LHR Clubhouse takeover: On the day of the inaugural flight, Patrón took over the London Heathrow Clubhouse lounge, with a dedicated cocktail menu created by renowned Italian bartender Pietro Collina, Beverage Director of the acclaimed Notting Hill cocktail bar Viajante87.

Inflight experience: Collina joined the first flight to Cancún to craft memorable Patrón cocktails for invited consumer press and influencers. The full launch-day activation delivered more than 600 Patrón-based cocktails to VIP guests and passengers.

Destination activation: The partnership extended to the destination with a sponsored Patrón El Alto party held at the Hard Rock Café in downtown Cancún on October 22, 2025.

The listing onboard Virgin Atlantic’s Heathrow–Cancún service reinforces the extensive presence of Patrón across the UK carrier’s operations, with Patrón Silver served onboard several selected routes.

“As an authentic, luxury Mexican tequila, Patrón was a perfect fit for the launch of Virgin Atlantic’s exciting new service to Cancún,” commented Darragh Ryan, Bacardi GTR Marketing Director. “This partnership has elevated the onboard experience, connecting travelers to the spirit and cultural heritage of Mexico and the home of PATRÓN, from the moment they step on the plane.

“For the launch activation, we successfully transformed the inflight listing, normally a routine aspect of the inflight F&B world, into an exciting, multi-channel initiative that touched multiple travel points and generated significant traveler awareness for Patrón.”