Gaining Gold whilst overseas - how to get benefits?

[hobo]

So we are bookingflights from Perth to Vancouver via LAX and then return via New York, LAX andthen Perth.


With all theseflights, we're going to hit gold along the way, but unfortunately we won't behome to receive the gold card which would give us access to things such asdelta lounge access, priority check in and baggage etc

Given that we wouldhave earnt the right at that point in time, how exactly would we go aboutgetting access to the lounges etc? Would swiping my silver card tell theirsystem that I am actually gold now?

Finally - whenbooking my flight to LAX, it has a stoppover in Melbourne. Is this consideredtwo seperate legs - earning me the Perth - MEL leg of SC's and them the MEL -LAX leg?

Or is thisconsidered a straight through? They are two seperate flights and we will needto disembark. I know I can obviously book it in seperately but this willobviously be easier if I still get the same rewards for it.

 

[mella2007]

Typically the new card will take about 2-3 weeks to arrive so you won't receive in any case.

There have been cases if you call Velocity they may email you a letter stating your new status, however lounges in the States have been known to decline a letter and will only accept a card. Your silver card will not show that you are Gold.

I am pretty sure you will receive credit for both legs

 

[Jurahn]

We travelled PER-LAX return late last year, all flights were on the same booking - the outward leg went via Brisbane and the return leg via Sydney (about a 5 hour stopover each time). We received SCs for the individual legs (PER-BNE, BNE-LAX, LAX-SYD, SYD-PER), so you should receive credit for each leg of the trip.

 

[hobo]

Excellent news on the SC front

The annoying thing is that I will hit gold likely as soon as I land in LAX... which means all remaining travel (which is most of it), will not have lounge access

 

[Jurahn]

Yes, it's a bit of a PITA, especially if the lounges in the US won't accept a letter. For that very reason, I'm actually doing a status run next week (first time ever!) to pool SCs to hubby so he can hit Gold AND receive his card etc in plenty of time before his trip to the US in February.

We hit Silver after the PER-LAX part of the trip and received emails from Velocity as soon as it happened regarding the upgrade of status, so you will probably receive something similar - maybe you could print it out and try showing that instead? Although I guess if some lounges won't accept a letter, then an email won't do it either ... It didn't make any difference to us on our return legs as we were flying premium economy anyway so we actually had more benefits (priority boarding, additional baggage allowance etc) anyway. And PE also gave us domestic lounge access in Perth and Sydney anyway, so the complimentary lounge passes we got when first reaching Silver went to waste, as they were only valid for 3 months and we weren't flying again in that time period!

 

[hobo]

bummer

I'll see if I can squeeze in a SC run early next year or something then

I have paid lounge access in Australia (via work) but it seems that doesn't extend out to international travel partners either, so that doesn't help either.

 

[Jurahn]

We've never had any sort of status that allows us lounge access and we don't fly often enough to justify paying for a membership, so had never experienced what a difference it can make until our US trip. In Perth, it was great to be able to head off into the Lounge and relax instead of sitting out in the terminal with the hordes (our usual location LOL), after the red-eye to Brisbane the domestic Lounge staff there very kindly allowed us to come in and have some breakfast, freshen up etc (even though we weren't entitled to arrival access, I think they must have felt sorry for us because we looked pretty haggard - neither of us can sleep on flights). Unfortunately no access for us to an international lounge at BNE airport though. On the trip home, I was coming down with a virus and we had a long wait at LAX - thankfully we were able to buy day passes to the Alaska Airlines Boardroom lounge, which Virgin was sharing at the time (and have now taken over). It wasn't much of a lounge, but a darn sight better than being down in the zoo that was LAX T3. By the time we reached Sydney, I felt like death warmed up and it was fabulous to be able to go and have a shower, have a cup of tea and something to eat and stretch out and relax in the Lounge before the final leg home. So now we've realised what a difference it makes, I was determined to push hubby over the line to Gold before his trip so he can have lounge access all the way along the line - he's going to return the favour as he's got a Europe trip planned as well a bit later in the year so he will pool those SCs to me and I will probably have to spend the money to do a status run or two to get over the line myself before a planned solo trip to the States late in the year.