Newbie to velocity and AFF

[billm]

Hi All,

I am a newbie to AFF and Velocity however I have a fair chunk of Amex points.
I am planning on a trip to Italy in November this year, I was hoping for some tips on which airline to fly with to help improve my velocity status and accelerate my points!!

Any tip is greatly appreciated.


Cheers
Bill the newbie

 

[TomVexille]

Welcome aboard!

SQ and EY are probably the two easiest Velocity partners who will fly to Italy.

 

[Denali]

My newbie mistake was to book with SQ and/or other airlines direct which meant although I received status credits, I didn't get sector recognition with Velocity.

Also the fare class is important so check what you are buying and what that earns for you.

 

[billm]

Thanks for the tip Tom.
Denali so do you recommend booking through the velocity site? I was thinking premium economy and possible biz upgrade but I am yet to decide on an airline and convert my Amex points.

 

[TomVexille]

If you want premium economy, it will be SQ, as EY don't have it. I'm pretty sure every SQ booking class now earns points/SCs with Velocity now. If you absolutely need the sectors (ie. don't fly VA at all) then booking though the VA website with a VA code will get you those, but it's often (but not always) more expensive. Also not sure that VA can sell you PE on SQ.

 

[Milefest]

My newbie mistake was to book with SQ and/or other airlines direct which meant although I received status credits, I didn't get sector recognition with Velocity.

Also the fare class is important so check what you are buying and what that earns for you.

Indeed, and to add to this, if you book your flights with points, you won't receive status credits or points for that flight.

 

[mark4217]

If booked SQ through VA, does that exclude you from SQ upgrades Via KF.

 

[TomVexille]

If booked SQ through VA, does that exclude you from SQ upgrades Via KF.

I'd think so

 

[dec540]

A couple of quick things to note, which you may or may not already know (but can be common mistakes)...

- You only receive status credits on the fare you pay for (therefore if you book a full reward ticket i.e. just pay taxes, you don't get status credits. If you upgrade, you get status credits as per what you originally booked/paid for).
- Watch out for what fares can be upgraded - i.e. VA fares can't be upgraded unless you have gold status or above on long-haul international flights. SQ now only permit upgrading from flexible economy to premium, premium to business, or business to first. Make sure you double check upgrade availability before potentially paying for a more expensive ticket.
- You can often get extra status credits by flying via another city along the way, often for a very similar price. I.e. Melbourne-Sydney-Singapore.. as opposed to Melbourne to Singapore direct.

I'm sure there are plenty of other tips and traps that other members can offer. I'd suggest posting your proposed itinerary and what you're trying to achieve (upgrades, status, etc.) before booking, as members may be able to provide some specific tips for you.

Safe travels!

 

[Denali]

And don't forget the dreaded, can't select seats if VA booking but SQ metal.

Although I do generally book via VA, but J so it's just a phone call fix.

 

[awkwardpaws]

And don't forget the dreaded, can't select seats if VA booking but SQ metal.

someone can correct me if im wrong, but from personal experience last year with VA booking on SQ metal, you just need to get the SQ booking ref of your booking (the one you will initially get emailed is the VA booking ref) - you can do this by calling up.

Once you have those, 48 or 72 hours prior to the flight (one of them..), you can select seats via the SQ app.