Virgin Australia Lifetime Lounge Membership now available

[straitman]

I'm still thinking this through but at first glance it is too expensive for most people.

For me as a 60 year old it is definitely too expensive.

I figure I'll always have Platinum or Gold or be too old to care about it.

 

[Globetrotter]

What a crock of....

$10,000 for life membership! I assume this price includes free air travel for life too lol? Who in their right mind would pay $10k for a single life membership. Seriously, Virgin need to wake up and smell the roses and realize they're not the flying Porsche of the airline industry, they have only just switched from a low-cost airline to, well, kind-of a full serviced domestic airline with a handful of international destinations. Yeah ok they've got reciprocal lounges but give me a break.

I bet Qantas are laughing their heads off over this!! I am.

 

[Fruitcake]

For those who feel it doesn't offer value... don't buy it? Admittedly it doesn't appear that I'm alone in struggling to think of a person for whom this makes economic sense, but obviously that means I'm not the one who is supposed to buy it. I don't see the need to take the creation of this product as some sort of personal attack by DJ - it's not as if they're booting Golds out of the lounge and telling everyone other than platinums that it's life membership or nothing for the Lounge.

In fact, if this product had been offered at half the price I suspect there would be significant noise about devaluation/overcrowding! Perhaps this one of those products that just sits on the shelf to stir conversation but is never meant to be sold.

 

[lovestotravel]

Added to the EPIC FAIL that this "offer" has all over it

Qantas club access gives you an extra 9kg of luggage or an extra bag when travelling as well.

If I had to, I'd rather buy 4 years of Qantas Club membership for $1980 and then pay for 4 year renewals at $1610 thereafter depending on the status of lounges at the times and my flying patterns.

 

[Mal]

Epic fail? Pure marketing goodness. If people choose to pay it then DJ earn a heap of money. And trust me there will be people wanting it.

If Qf still had Qp ife, it would be over $5k now, perhaps even close to these amounts.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using AustFreqFly

 

[JRT]

Hmm, price beyond current budget, but will add to the Christmas wishlist, and perhaps Santa will be kind. Given change in family and therefore work situation, am flying less these days so will be happy enough to maintain Silver over the next few years. Lounge is important to me, so would just need a little sweetener (tax deductability? Promotional) price to make it a viable option.
Please Santa (or VA)

 

[JRT]

Out of interest, anyone know (or speculate) why QP Life not available anymore?

 

[djfuzz]

I can only imagine that this being the 'list' price gives VA the opportunity to run a number of 'promotions' in which various customers are offered significantly lower prices in the future - in which case, the fact that it exists even at a high RRP is better than nothing at all?

In any case, while I am very fond of the new improved MEL and BNE Lounges and especially VA's generous anytime access policy (which you'd have to think would be included as well in a life membership of this cost), I can't imagine any sort of airline lounge product that would justify that kind of price - except perhaps an international-standard high quality business/first lounge, or perhaps a highly improved version of the QF J lounge, but certainly not a QP or regular Lounge level product.

 

[MarkD]

Added to the EPIC FAIL that this "offer" has all over it

Qantas club access gives you an extra 9kg of luggage or an extra bag when travelling as well.

If I had to, I'd rather buy 4 years of Qantas Club membership for $1980 and then pay for 4 year renewals at $1610 thereafter depending on the status of lounges at the times and my flying patterns.

QF will do what???? When I was QF club, they removed priority checkin, then luggage, then grrrrrr Only to reinstate it again. I dont trust any of them particularly, they provide a service we all require. I think a previous poster had the right idea in the fact that they dont really care if they dont sell any, it makes the benefits of gold and Platinum seem that much more elite, because of the highly inflated price of lifetime.
\
And i wouldnt be placing bets on how many will take it up, DYKWIA types will buy these. I think when/if I drop off Gold, I will purchase annual pass at discount silver rate, but honestly, if it takes 20 years to recoup at standard rates, then you really need to be early 20s to make it a worthwhile investment. The other side is of course, what will the airline be in 20 years....... Better off just flying sensibly and maximising SC where you can to retain Status

 

[coyote25]

It seems fairly obvious this is about saying we offer something QANTAS doesn't. I mean who would take it up??

You make a huge investment instead of either paying for yearly membership (saving the rest of the money $9600+) and obviously not paying the yearly fee if you travel enough for status based access.

It would be interesting to work out how many years it would take to make the membership worthwhile, I don't think it's as simple as dividing the yearly cost as with a yearly membership you might not need to pay each year or be planning enough trips to make it worth it.

Nothing wrong with what they have done. They might even find 10-20 people to take it up each year and VA get to say they have something QF doesn't. Really anything that is more than 10 years to get back is not a great investment, not with the uncertainty and losing access to the money immediately.

They could half the price at it would still be very risky and a very nice earner for VA with them having no downside for 12 years at least.

 

[casanovawa]

It probably would include ATA but sheeesh, you would want to be pretty certain that the benefits were locked in and couldn't be 'enhanced' out after 6 months to one year eh like we're seeing with QF status and QP benefits (LHR T5, ATA etc)...

In a world (and business world) changing at an ever faster pace and with so much current uncertainty lifetime memberships just may not be that attractive anymore, especially if, having done their sums, this is the price to realistically cover the cost of the offering over a 20 year period... Even allowing for inflation from the old days of QF life membership (and so what they would have to charge these days), i think most aussies would find a $10k price tag hard to swallow and so maybe Virgin should just go with some intermediate terms like 5 and 10 years offers and the realistic cost of service will be a bit more palatable...

 

[MarkD]

Well..... Even Jack Melon doesn't like it,

 

[haydensydney]

I was going to say the same thing MarkD!

Good on VA for being forward thinking and bringing something to market that isn't currently offered, but geez they could've launched with a promotional 50% off or some kind of sweetner (like free Plat for a year or something similar EDIT: maybe 4 op ups like Plat?)

 

[lovestotravel]

- This is a once off fee, with no discounts, rebates, or refunds

Added bold

 

[lovestotravel]

Good on VA for being forward thinking

Nothing forward thinking about it

Qantas did it for years

I would be more interested in what IFE is going to be installed on the fleet and also how/when the "Pacific Blue" fleet will be improved up to the same standard as the Air NZ A320 fleet

 

[nlagalle]

I was going to say the same thing MarkD!

Good on VA for being forward thinking and bringing something to market that isn't currently offered, but geez they could've launched with a promotional 50% off or some kind of sweetner (like free Plat for a year or something similar EDIT: maybe 4 op ups like Plat?)

They did. It was offered with a few things including use of the curbside entrance at T2?

 

[haydensydney]

They did. It was offered with a few things including use of the curbside entrance at T2?

And what... thats it? For $10k i'd want more than that!

 

[nlagalle]

And what... thats it? For $10k i'd want more than that!

Well apart from the usual offerings..

Im curious though, people will fork out $900 or $4200 per year for an Amex plat or centurion card. Imagine if Amex said lifetime Centurion for $84000, would you take it? (annual fee x 20 years)

 

[haydensydney]

Well apart from the usual offerings..

Im curious though, people will fork out $900 or $4200 per year for an Amex plat or centurion card. Imagine if Amex said lifetime Centurion for $84000, would you take it? (annual fee x 20 years)

Of course we wouldn't take a $85k outlay... thats just crazy... and so is $10k for a lifetime lounge access card. Imagine the outrage if VA went bankrupt in ten years (Ansett anyone?) or if you individually went bankrupt and could no longer afford flights: whats the point of lounge access if you can't afford to travel! lol

 

[haydensydney]

BUT!

What could be good is if VA had a corporate lounge access product - that allowed all company employees to use the lounge when travelling, but again - lifetime is just pointless in the corporate world. Do a 12 month / 24 / 26 month plan and maybe it could be doable.