Qantas Club questions

[ckarcher]

Hi,
I'm going to FRA in December (via SIN) on a QF flight where MEL-SIN is operated by qantas and SIN-FRA by Lufthansa.
Thinking of getting Qantas Club membership to make the waiting on the airport a bit more pleasant since I'm travelling with my wife and two children (3 and 6).
I understand that the club membership would give me access to the International Business Lounge in MEL and SIN as well as the the Sakura Lounge in FRA.

Is it correct that my wife would count as a guest but not my children - in other words, one membership would be enough for the four of us?

Thanks, Christian

 

[cmon0005]

You will only get access in Mel on the way there, and sin on the way back, as Lufthansa flights are not eligible for Qantas club access, so no access in FRA.
As for children not sure, depends on the lounge this is from the T+C's on the QF site though, best to call in advance:
(c) children aged 3 years or under are not counted as guests for the purpose of determining the number of guests of the Member. However, Qantas may limit the number of those children per Member to two. The Qantas Club Terms & Conditions

Just out of interest why didn't you take Qantas all the way to FRA on QF5?

 

[harvyk]

The kids will be no probs, but I wouldn't bother for only 1 trip.

 

[mannej]

What are the Flight numbers you are flying on between SIN and FRA and vv.?

 

[ckarcher]

Just out of interest why didn't you take Qantas all the way to FRA on QF5?

Well, that's what the travel agent came up with based on preferred airline and best price a few months ago.

 

[cmon0005]

What are the Flight numbers you are flying on between SIN and FRA and vv.?

I don't think it will be a QF number, as far as I am aware QF don't codeshare with LH?

 

[ckarcher]

I just had another look, they are in fact LH flight numbers... I was under the impression they were QFs. bad luck then I guess.

 

[ckarcher]

The kids will be no probs, but I wouldn't bother for only 1 trip.

The only reasons why I'm considering it is that I can a corporate discount, can salary package it and we'll very likely have another trip to Europe in October 13.

 

[ashleyn]

Well, that's what the travel agent came up with based on preferred airline and best price a few months ago.

Travel agent, hmmmm

 

[ckarcher]

Travel agent, hmmmm

Should I have asked here first?

 

[jetlagger]

Should I have asked here first?

Really depends on what type of airfare deal you managed to secure.. But absolutely no harm in asking

 

[ashleyn]

Should I have asked here first?

I think you know the answer to that question.

 

[ashleyn]

I think you know the answer to that question.

If there are any TA's on here I don't wish to offend but the collective knowledge of this forum would make most if not all TA's look like absolute newbies.

 

[ftm]

It would be an LH fare, and likely that it was significantly cheaper than an equivalent fare on QF, hence why the TA offered it to you. You might even be able to buy the QF Club membership & pay for one off lounge access in SIN for the fare difference!

Depends what you asked the TA for. If you'd asked for a fare where you could use QF Club everywhere, you may have been offered something different.

FTM

sent from a mobile device...

 

[harvyk]

If there are any TA's on here I don't wish to offend but the collective knowledge of this forum would make most if not all TA's look like absolute newbies.

There are TA's on here, and like everything there are some good TA's and some really really bad ones. Getting a good TA can be a blessing, getting a bad one can turn a simple trip into an absolute nightmare.

The only reasons why I'm considering it is that I can a corporate discount, can salary package it and we'll very likely have another trip to Europe in October 13.

Any other domestic flights coming up?

To get the best value out of a QP membership you really need to be flying somewhat frequently. A general rule I follow is that you'd need to use it at a minimum of 10 times a year before you started seeing any value from it, and even then it would be marginal unless you like paying the equivalent of $20 a beer.

Don't get me wrong, they are certainly a very nice place to wait for a flight, and it can be good value if you flight frequently enough. This becomes especially true if all your flights are on Sale and Red-E-Deal fares which do not earn SC's at a great rate.

But I would be considering long and hard about if you'd actually get value from a QP membership, or if that money might not be better spent getting a better hotel room / getting a better seat / eating at a better restaurant, things which will really add value to your trip away.

 

[paultiffen]

I think that Priority Pass had a lounge in Melbourne and you can buy one time passes or get them free with some AMEX cards. Not sure on the eligibility requirements

 

[serfty]

I think that Priority Pass had a lounge in Melbourne and you can buy one time passes or get them free with some AMEX cards. Not sure on the eligibility requirements

The only PP lounge in MEL is the UA one in T2 (International) - it is open daily for a few hours from Mid morning until the UA flight departs.

 

[Kangol]

To get the best value out of a QP membership you really need to be flying somewhat frequently. A general rule I follow is that you'd need to use it at a minimum of 10 times a year before you started seeing any value from it, and even then it would be marginal unless you like paying the equivalent of $20 a beer.

Solution = drink more beer.

 

[harvyk]

Solution = drink more beer.

Well you would need to have around about 70 beers to bring the price into line with airport bar prices. At even 10 visits that's still 7 beers a visit. I on average have about an hour in lounges per visit, so that's a little over a six pack per hour to start getting value from a QP membership for a year with only 10 visits to the QP in that year.

This calculation ignores any sign up fee which a person may have to pay as well, and throw in a bit of food would reduce the number of beers per visit down by one or two. Still, you'd need to pretty much drink yourself blind, and treat it as an all you can eat buffet to start getting value out of 2 visits, or even only 6 visits, esp if you also have to cover any sign up costs as well.

Edit: as a side note, that's how I worked out the value I'd get from lounge access. I worked out how much on average I was likely to eat and drink per visit, vs the cost of airport food hall prices, including the likelihood of there being food options at the airport and factor in a few dollars for comfort factor, and then multiplied it across the number of flights I was likely to do within the next year.

 

[markis10]

I would suggest you look at getting a Diners card the gets you access to their lounges in FRA and SIN, could be a much cheaper route.

Airport Lounge Details | Diners Club International