VA Flexi Fare's

[frequentflyer91]

I think domestically the only flexi fare I believe to be of value is East to West. Business upgrades are well worth it on this route as the experience is something different.

Otherwise flying between east coast cities there isn't any point in my eyes.

 

[beni050385]

What does "flexi" actually get you now? I have purchased through the VA website MEL-SIN which is on Singapore Airlines Flexi I am also Velocity Gold.

We are looking to change our flights or cancel altogether as my wife will be 32 weeks pregnant when we are supposed to fly.

 

[lukenet]

VA Flex should change its name as it is not a flexible fare!

I have found when I book a flexi and need to make a change to suit work, I am often charged a fee to make any changes via the phone and have to pay extra fare difference. They always go up closer to the flight time. It is a total pain!

So I ask, what is the point of using them?

I am now reluctant to book or use a flexi fare. I often find it cheaper just booking a fare on the day of travel as I don't get stuck with the extra fees associated with the change of ticket. (It is pot luck if these get waved and I don't expect to get them waved). This has also meant I need to fly with whatever airline I can get on on the day, because at worst, you pay flexi rate anyway if a flight is heavily booked. So VA are losing more of my business..

If they were truly flexible ticket, then they would have some value to me, as I can move them as I need with little or no fuss.

I know with fly ahead, it takes some of the need to call up and pay. Also, I have found some of the more senior VA staff are a lot more flexible if you are late to a flight and are on a flexi fare, they are more than likely just move you onto the next flight with little fuss, but it's still pot luck and not the way I like to fly.

Apart from a full price business fare, I don't think VA offer a true flexi fare anymore.

 

[anat0l]

VA Flex should change its name as it is not a flexible fare!

I have found when I book a flexi and need to make a change to suit work, I am often charged a fee to make any changes via the phone and have to pay extra fare difference. They always go up closer to the flight time. It is a total pain!

So I ask, what is the point of using them?

I am now reluctant to book or use a flexi fare. I often find it cheaper just booking a fare on the day of travel as I don't get stuck with the extra fees associated with the change of ticket. (It is pot luck if these get waved and I don't expect to get them waved). This has also meant I need to fly with whatever airline I can get on on the day, because at worst, you pay flexi rate anyway if a flight is heavily booked. So VA are losing more of my business..

If they were truly flexible ticket, then they would have some value to me, as I can move them as I need with little or no fuss.

I know with fly ahead, it takes some of the need to call up and pay. Also, I have found some of the more senior VA staff are a lot more flexible if you are late to a flight and are on a flexi fare, they are more than likely just move you onto the next flight with little fuss, but it's still pot luck and not the way I like to fly.

Apart from a full price business fare, I don't think VA offer a true flexi fare anymore.

To be honest, no airline in Australia offers a "truly flexible" fare. There will always be fare difference to be paid, even in Business Class.

Part of the idea of the more expensive flexible fares is that hopefully the bucket prices don't jump closer to your departure. Thus, if you needed that flexibility, it would be a simple change, rather than paying fare difference.

A bit off-topic, but I'm not sure about VA, but for sure due to the price point of QF Fully Flexible fares, that's almost always the case (not always! The Fully Flexible fares can jump one more bucket). QF Fully Flexible is actually fully refundable, i.e. you can get all of your money back on original payment terms with no fees; the concession is a very high price point.

I think VA's Saver was intended to be more flexible and cheaper than QF's Flexi Saver (and with one less fare type, a lot simpler than QF's domestic fare system).

 

[grubbidok]

A little off-topic (and not really relevant with Fly Ahead), but on a DCA-BOS flight last month I made the pleasant discovery that JetBlue allows for a $50 change to any other flight the day of your original booking, made on the day of that booking, to anyone regardless of status (space permitting). TBH I see far more value in something like this than a 'Flexi' ticket that still often costs an arm and a leg to change, as well as an arm and a leg to buy in the first place.

I'm only slightly considering it now for PER flights now I'm WP for upgrades, though even then the price-point makes me question the worth.

 

[drewbles]

A little off-topic (and not really relevant with Fly Ahead), but on a DCA-BOS flight last month I made the pleasant discovery that JetBlue allows for a $50 change to any other flight the day of your original booking, made on the day of that booking, to anyone regardless of status (space permitting). TBH I see far more value in something like this than a 'Flexi' ticket that still often costs an arm and a leg to change, as well as an arm and a leg to buy in the first place.

I'm only slightly considering it now for PER flights now I'm WP for upgrades, though even then the price-point makes me question the worth.

Most US airlines offer 'same day change' for $50-100, depending on the airline.

It's not cheap, but it's easier/cheaper than buying a flexi.

 

[serfty]

Most US airlines offer 'same day change' for $50-100, depending on the airline.

It's not cheap, but it's easier/cheaper than buying a flexi.

'tis what happens when there is real "competition".

 

[ms1]

A question about flexi's.

Work always books me on saver fare's on the outbound leg. In the past I've rang up VA and upgraded to a flexi fare by paying the fare difference so that I can use one of my platinum comp upgrades or upgrade using points. I was always told the $80 change fee would be waived as I'm a platinum ff and because I am just changing the booking class on the same flight. I haven't flown VA on a while as I've been working on retaining my QF platinum status but yesterday I had a SYD-PER saver fare booked on VA. I rang the platinum line and requested to upgrade to flexi but was told that the $80 cannot be waived.

I know it was an unwritten rule to begin with but does anyone know whether they've stopped waiving the change fee?

 

[Deleted member 29185]

I rang the platinum line and requested to upgrade to flexi but was told that the $80 cannot be waived

That sounds like a glib quip to me. The GCC would have to be able to make booking changes without incurring a fee for the times where bookings need to change as a result of a VA change (like a cancelled sector for example).

You did say you've done this in the past and the inference I'm getting, is that it has been multiple times. If so, I can tell you a number of years ago I requested changes from saver to PE fares (domestically) 3 times over the course of about 50 flown sectors and on the third time, the GCC lady (perhaps semi-jokingly) said she could see I was becoming (and I quote), a serial offender at changes and then went on to tell me she would waive the fee that one last time, but any more and I'd be charged! They lost a number of paid potential upgrades because of it as there is no way I'm going to pay for an upgrade and then pay a fee for the privilege, unless I'm really desperate (unlikely).

Perhaps you've been tagged a serial offender as well .

 

[kevrosmith]

A question about flexi's.

Work always books me on saver fare's on the outbound leg. In the past I've rang up VA and upgraded to a flexi fare by paying the fare difference so that I can use one of my platinum comp upgrades or upgrade using points. I was always told the $80 change fee would be waived as I'm a platinum ff and because I am just changing the booking class on the same flight. I haven't flown VA on a while as I've been working on retaining my QF platinum status but yesterday I had a SYD-PER saver fare booked on VA. I rang the platinum line and requested to upgrade to flexi but was told that the $80 cannot be waived.

I know it was an unwritten rule to begin with but does anyone know whether they've stopped waiving the change fee?

I've definitely noticed in the last 6-12 months that they have taken away freebies not waiving the change fee. Prior to this, I was also often quoted the line "seeing you're a platinum member", but there's obviously some belt-tightening and these concessions seem not to be offered as liberally, if at all. I even had an agent try to tell me one time that they are actually IATA-mandated charges, which is why they can't waive them. Phft. What do they take me for? Sure, stick to your rules if you really want to, but don't tell me lies.

 

[Shano]

A question about flexi's.

Work always books me on saver fare's on the outbound leg. In the past I've rang up VA and upgraded to a flexi fare by paying the fare difference so that I can use one of my platinum comp upgrades or upgrade using points. I was always told the $80 change fee would be waived as I'm a platinum ff and because I am just changing the booking class on the same flight. I haven't flown VA on a while as I've been working on retaining my QF platinum status but yesterday I had a SYD-PER saver fare booked on VA. I rang the platinum line and requested to upgrade to flexi but was told that the $80 cannot be waived.

I know it was an unwritten rule to begin with but does anyone know whether they've stopped waiving the change fee?

A couple of weeks ago I booked a flight for the wrong day which I only realised when the booking confirmation email came through.

I rang the GCC straight away and explained what I'd done. I had to pay for a higher fare bucket, as the one I booked was not available on the day that I needed to travel, but did not have to pay a change fee.

Slightly different circumstances to above, but does show some flexibility on behalf of the GCC for a WP.

 

[Deleted member 29185]

A couple of weeks ago I booked a flight for the wrong day which I only realised when the booking confirmation email came through.

I rang the GCC straight away and explained what I'd done. I had to pay for a higher fare bucket, as the one I booked was not available on the day that I needed to travel, but did not have to pay a change fee.

Slightly different circumstances to above, but does show some flexibility on behalf of the GCC for a WP.

That situation has been discussed previously and IIRC the upshot of it all was, that it's in their T&Cs (or perhaps a fair trading thing perhaps) that they have to be able to change bookings within a reasonable time frame due to genuine error (given their booking engine use to do odd date things during searches). Maybe it was just a "competition thing" as QF does it as well. From memory VA was within 4 hours or so of booking and QF I think was a lot more (24hrs??). Sorry for being so vague but if anyone is interested they could do a search. The thread is here somewhere!

 

[777]

A question about flexi's.

I'm not usually pedantic about these things but the gratuitous apostrophes in this thread are out of control.

 

[bullerdude]

A question about flexi's.

Work always books me on saver fare's on the outbound leg. In the past I've rang up VA and upgraded to a flexi fare by paying the fare difference so that I can use one of my platinum comp upgrades or upgrade using points. I was always told the $80 change fee would be waived as I'm a platinum ff and because I am just changing the booking class on the same flight. I haven't flown VA on a while as I've been working on retaining my QF platinum status but yesterday I had a SYD-PER saver fare booked on VA. I rang the platinum line and requested to upgrade to flexi but was told that the $80 cannot be waived.

I know it was an unwritten rule to begin with but does anyone know whether they've stopped waiving the change fee?

Yep I had this back in november - they refused to waive the change fee despite having waived it for me at least 6 times last year.

 

[TirEoghain]

I found the AMEX Free Flight redemption to be most flexible for me in the past 12 months!

Flight was due to depart BNE to go to SYD at 8am, which it did. I turned up at the checkin desk at 8:05am, and when they told me what flight I was on, they told me that it was gone, so they put me on the 9am flight in 3D. Guess I was very lucky to get such flexibility at no charge!

 

[drewbles]

That situation has been discussed previously and IIRC the upshot of it all was, that it's in their T&Cs (or perhaps a fair trading thing perhaps) that they have to be able to change bookings within a reasonable time frame due to genuine error (given their booking engine use to do odd date things during searches). Maybe it was just a "competition thing" as QF does it as well. From memory VA was within 4 hours or so of booking and QF I think was a lot more (24hrs??). Sorry for being so vague but if anyone is interested they could do a search. The thread is here somewhere!

QF are typically 24 hours, and VA are 48 from what i've heard.

 

[Deleted member 29185]

Guess I was very lucky to get such flexibility at no charge!

IME, check-in/lounge staff have far more discretionary powers than GCC staff.

 

[ms1]

I'm not usually pedantic about these things but the gratuitous apostrophes in this thread are out of control.

Wow...just wow.

 

[777]

Wow...just wow.

It's mainly the one in the title grating on me but when you managed to come up with a completely different one it tipped me over.

 

[Deleted member 29185]

It's mainly the one in the title grating on me but when you managed to come up with a completely different one it tipped me over.

Pop a quick Panadol[SUP]TM[/SUP] or two and have a lie down. (PS, I hope that gratuitous subliminal marketing by me didn't inflame your condition )