Hi,
I'm a QFF gold and Virgin gold frequent flyer, entirely from work-funded discount economy flights. I've had my QFF gold for about 2.5 years and my Virgin gold (starting with a status match, and then earning enough to keep it) for about 1.5 years. But all of this is still new to me. I'm hoping some of you very helpful and knowledgable people can spare a few moments to answer some very noobish questions specifically related to QFF.
Please forgive me if these have been asked before; I couldn't find straight answers in many days of lurking.
1. My employer's travel agent books and pays for my flights, using a 'cheapest flight of the day' policy, so I usually end up with discount economy. I always try for QANTAS, but sometimes can't manage it. Assuming a QF flight number and a booked-and-paid-for discount economy or economy ticket, is there any way I can upgrade it with points and/or $ to earn points and SCs at business levels? (I can pay for an upgrade to business with points, but the QF site says I'll only earn for the original travel class.)
2. How does one actually book indirect trips? For example, I've seen people posting about multi-leg JASAs that go on trips like BNE -> SYD -> CBR -> MEL, and earn 4x the status credits and points of a plain old BNE -> MEL flight, but for the same cost. But if I search for BNE -> MEL in the QF flight search, I always seem to only end up with direct flights, and the few times I see indirect flights they always seem to cost more. Is there a magic trick that I'm missing?
3. Status runs confuse me a bit. Is this essentially a way of buying status credits with points and $? I mean, I've read about people going on trips like TSV -> BNE -> DRW -> BNE -> TSV, paying $200 and 36000 points, and earning 240 SCs, or something like that. But ... that means you end up where you started, you have a tiring day of travel, spend a couple of hundred dollars of your own money and thousands of FF points, and all you end up with is SCs? I'm not trying to offend anyone, but ... why? I guess they sound like fun, but I suspect my wife would kill me if I did something like that. I already have to travel too much for work as it is!
4. Is there any way I can I earn QFF points and SCs for an ASA flight booked for my wife, or can only she earn those points/credits, even if it's my points that pay for the flights?
5. I've never had a free QF (or Virgin, for that matter) upgrade from economy, but in the last year I've seen two other gold members get free upgrades from economy to business after boarding trans-Tasman (QF operated by JetConnect) flights. I don't know whether they actually earned points and SCs at business level for these upgrades, but a free upgrade is a free upgrade regardless! I've caught more than a dozen of these flights in this time. Does anyone know what actually prompts a free upgrade after boarding (their original economy seats were left vacant). I'm always too shy to even ask for a good seat at check-in time, let alone an upgrade!
6. I often end up with a coughpy seat. I'll be squeezed in on a full row about 5-8 rows back in economy, while others that aren't FFs at all (or at least, their boarding passes don't show any FF details, and they weren't in the lounge) are stretching out with two or three seats to themselves ahead of me, in seats that weren't even available to me to select through the QFF website when selecting my seat. Again, is there a trick to this? Do I need to be pushier at the check-in counter?
7. I always check in early: usually at least 60-90 minutes before take off for domestic flights and 120 minutes or more before take off for international flights. I had assumed this would give me a better chance of a better seat or upgrade, but as per the above points, I usually get a bad seat and never an upgrade. Should I check in later, or again, do I need to just be pushier at check-in (or even ask at the club counter after check-in)?
I think that's it for now. Again, I apologise if these have been answered before.
mrpooky
I'm a QFF gold and Virgin gold frequent flyer, entirely from work-funded discount economy flights. I've had my QFF gold for about 2.5 years and my Virgin gold (starting with a status match, and then earning enough to keep it) for about 1.5 years. But all of this is still new to me. I'm hoping some of you very helpful and knowledgable people can spare a few moments to answer some very noobish questions specifically related to QFF.
Please forgive me if these have been asked before; I couldn't find straight answers in many days of lurking.
1. My employer's travel agent books and pays for my flights, using a 'cheapest flight of the day' policy, so I usually end up with discount economy. I always try for QANTAS, but sometimes can't manage it. Assuming a QF flight number and a booked-and-paid-for discount economy or economy ticket, is there any way I can upgrade it with points and/or $ to earn points and SCs at business levels? (I can pay for an upgrade to business with points, but the QF site says I'll only earn for the original travel class.)
2. How does one actually book indirect trips? For example, I've seen people posting about multi-leg JASAs that go on trips like BNE -> SYD -> CBR -> MEL, and earn 4x the status credits and points of a plain old BNE -> MEL flight, but for the same cost. But if I search for BNE -> MEL in the QF flight search, I always seem to only end up with direct flights, and the few times I see indirect flights they always seem to cost more. Is there a magic trick that I'm missing?
3. Status runs confuse me a bit. Is this essentially a way of buying status credits with points and $? I mean, I've read about people going on trips like TSV -> BNE -> DRW -> BNE -> TSV, paying $200 and 36000 points, and earning 240 SCs, or something like that. But ... that means you end up where you started, you have a tiring day of travel, spend a couple of hundred dollars of your own money and thousands of FF points, and all you end up with is SCs? I'm not trying to offend anyone, but ... why? I guess they sound like fun, but I suspect my wife would kill me if I did something like that. I already have to travel too much for work as it is!
4. Is there any way I can I earn QFF points and SCs for an ASA flight booked for my wife, or can only she earn those points/credits, even if it's my points that pay for the flights?
5. I've never had a free QF (or Virgin, for that matter) upgrade from economy, but in the last year I've seen two other gold members get free upgrades from economy to business after boarding trans-Tasman (QF operated by JetConnect) flights. I don't know whether they actually earned points and SCs at business level for these upgrades, but a free upgrade is a free upgrade regardless! I've caught more than a dozen of these flights in this time. Does anyone know what actually prompts a free upgrade after boarding (their original economy seats were left vacant). I'm always too shy to even ask for a good seat at check-in time, let alone an upgrade!
6. I often end up with a coughpy seat. I'll be squeezed in on a full row about 5-8 rows back in economy, while others that aren't FFs at all (or at least, their boarding passes don't show any FF details, and they weren't in the lounge) are stretching out with two or three seats to themselves ahead of me, in seats that weren't even available to me to select through the QFF website when selecting my seat. Again, is there a trick to this? Do I need to be pushier at the check-in counter?
7. I always check in early: usually at least 60-90 minutes before take off for domestic flights and 120 minutes or more before take off for international flights. I had assumed this would give me a better chance of a better seat or upgrade, but as per the above points, I usually get a bad seat and never an upgrade. Should I check in later, or again, do I need to just be pushier at check-in (or even ask at the club counter after check-in)?
I think that's it for now. Again, I apologise if these have been answered before.
mrpooky
