Considering abandoning QFF

[horseman]

So I rarely fly these days (maybe once or twice a year) am on silver QFF with about 100,000 points (mostly earnt on credit card.
Every now and then I'll do a dummy booking to see how prices are going when thinking about future trips away, ( currently planning a trip around the usa)
It seems every time I do a dummy awards booking there's more and more taxes and fees involved, to the point where I could buy a ticket on another airline for around the same money without using points.
I'm aware that other one world airlines have cheaper rates but I can't see how it's possible to book with points on them without getting QF involved and getting screwed on fees.
As most of my points earning is on credit card these days (I use the woolworths EDR card) I'm looking at the $90 annual fee and thinking is it all worth it??
Unless I'm missing something here about how to get value for money awards bookings using QFF points, I'm feeling I'd be better off blowing my points on upgrades or toasters or something, get onto a CC with no annual fee, and start earning more points with velocity or someone that aren't such a rip off.

Am I missing something here or do we all think I'm on the right track?

 

[markis10]

Its getting harder to find good value Y redemptions, if not impossible. Most people these days use points for J and F where possible, where the gap is harder to fill with surcharges.

 

[dajop]

If visiting US, domestic redemptions (if you can find them) can be OK in economy as there are no fuel surcharges. Internationally these days economy points plus pay can be better value than classic awards (still less than 1c per point though).

 

[JohnK]

The surcharges levied on award bookings have gone out of control. Economy awards are not attractive at all when you can purchase the same airfare for a few hundred more.

 

[opusman]

Now that MASAs have gone the way of the dodo my points will only be used for DOM upgrades.

 

[Boris spatsky]

Not sure what to do with mine. 500k pts, am LTG already so don't need SCs from MASAs, but surcharges are too expensive for classic redemptions anyway. I don't travel o/s anymore like i used to, so i feel my points are so devalued that they are almost worthless now.

 

[Mr_Orange]

Not sure what to do with mine. 500k pts, am LTG already so don't need SCs from MASAs, but surcharges are too expensive for classic redemptions anyway. I don't travel o/s anymore like i used to, so i feel my points are so devalued that they are almost worthless now.

Domestic upgrades? WISH gift cards?

 

[Mwenenzi]

A thread in the Qantas Frequent Flyer Program sub forum on a similar topic
http://www.australianfrequentflyer....ention-relation-your-58941-5.html#post1051123

 

[dajop]

The surcharges levied on award bookings have gone out of control. Economy awards are not attractive at all when you can purchase the same airfare for a few hundred more.

Yes can forget classic awards in economy. Points plus pay may (or may not!) be better, to illustrate, using points plus pay net (accounting for points earnt by points plus pay fares - on post July earn rates)

SYD-LAX return:
Classic Award - 96k + $851
Points plus pay for Bronze: 96k + $657
Points plus pay for Platinum: 96k + $517

This based on a $1600 cash fare, which may be better anyway, but illustrates how worthless classic awards are. Of course if a sale is on points plus pay would have less cash payment than quoted above as well.

 

[Warks]

Yes can forget classic awards in economy. Points plus pay may (or may not!) be better, to illustrate, using points plus pay net (accounting for points earnt by points plus pay fares - on post July earn rates)

SYD-LAX return:
Classic Award - 96k + $851
Points plus pay for Bronze: 96k + $657
Points plus pay for Platinum: 96k + $517

This based on a $1600 cash fare, which may be better anyway, but illustrates how worthless classic awards are. Of course if a sale is on points plus pay would have less cash payment than quoted above as well.

Unbelievable isn't it? I just bought a return SYD-LAX for $1150 with VA and QF was $1250 - hard to see the value in points at all now.


I tossed up flying with QF out of loyalty and the SCs but in the end the SCs weren't going to be enough to keep me at SG so I'm going back to PS after October. Will have my remaining QP membership kick in I guess and I may pay for another year when it comes up but chasing SG isn't going to be worth it.

About three years ago I was flying QF almost exclusively (client was paying) and got to WP courtesy of a lot of DOM flying plus some JASAs. When Virgin comped me to SG (just before I went WP at QF) I thought "oh that's nice" and started using them for SYD-TSV which I ended up flying once a month for the next three years. They had a direct flight which was half the price of QF much of the time and as I'd moved towards paying all my own airfares I had to be sensible.

I managed to maintain SG last year due to a bit of INT and a JASA but this year I'm going nowhere near it. Even the double SC offer didn't do much for me.

Last time I moved points from my credit card I moved them to Velocity on one of their special bonus offers. Hard to believe it's come to this.
Flying the family on points with QF to NZ in December but not sure when I'll be flying them again at this rate. Sad but it's the way of it.

Not sure where it will all end.