Best Virgin Australia Velocity Status Runs in 2026

Need a few more Virgin Australia status credits to reach the next tier with Velocity Frequent Flyer? The easiest way to upgrade to Velocity Silver, Gold or Platinum status is to take a Virgin Australia status run.

Since April 2025, Velocity Frequent Flyer awards status credits for Virgin Australia flights based on the cost of your ticket. You’ll earn 1 status credit per $12 on Choice, Flex and Business fares, or 1 status credit per $24 for Economy Lite tickets. This includes VA marketed codeshare flights operated by other airlines.

In addition to awarding status credits based on spend for Virgin Australia flights, from 1 October 2025, two additional changes were introduced:

• Partner airline flights earn status credits at a reduced rate, but still based on charts which take into account the fare class and distance flown
• 50% of the status credits needed to earn or retain your tier must come from Virgin Australia marketed and/or operated flights that you have personally flown (i.e. not from family pooling, partner airlines, Flybuys or elsewhere).

You can check the number of status credits you’ll earn for partner airline flights on the Velocity Frequent Flyer website.

Unfortunately, with these changes now in effect, many flights earn fewer status credits than they did previously. As you earn Velocity status credits based on your spend, this removes a lot of the gamification. But there are still some loopholes to earn Velocity status credits at a higher rate.

Earning status credits without flying

At least 50% of the status credits you need to earn or maintain your Velocity status tier must be from Virgin Australia marketed flights. But up to 50% can be from flights booked through partner airlines, Flybuys, family pooling and even certain credit cards like the Virgin Money High Flyer or Amex Velocity Platinum cards.

Velocity Frequent Flyer’s family pooling scheme lets you combine the status credits earned by the rest of your family into your own personal account. This could be useful if you travel as a family.

Our top Virgin Australia status run picks

Looking for some Virgin Australia status run inspiration? Here is our selection of the best Virgin Australia status runs for earning Velocity status credits …

1. Virgin Australia Holidays

Virgin Australia Holidays is a little-known trick you can use to continue earning status credits on Virgin Australia domestic and short-haul international flights based on the distance you fly, instead of the amount spent.

You will need to book a return flight combined with a hotel booking through the Virgin Australia Holidays website. You can book for 1-6 people, and Virgin Australia Holidays gives you the option to fly Economy or Business Class. If you book Economy, your flights will be on an Economy Choice fare.

The rate at which you’ll earn status credits for these flights is the same as the rate applicable to “Virgin Australia flights booked on the same itinerary as other airlines”. Here is the chart:

It always pays to compare the price of the hotel to see if the deal is worthwhile, but in some cases you can get a good hotel deal and optimise your status credit earn rate.

For example, under the new earning system, where you earn 1 status credit per $12 spent, you’d earn 68 status credits for an Adelaide to Canberra (via Melbourne) return Business itinerary costing $803.26.

However, if you book through Virgin Australia Holidays, you will earn a total of 160 status credits return. That’s well over double the status credit haul!

This hack is especially lucrative when Velocity offers double status credits on flights booked through Virgin Australia Holidays, as it did in March 2026.

2. Other status runs using Virgin Australia flights

Just short a few status credits, and don’t want to use Virgin Australia Holidays or rely on overseas partner airlines to get them? You can of course still earn status credits when booking Virgin Australia flights. But there’s no particular benefit to booking a certain route over another with the new system, as you’ll earn pretty much the same amount of status credits per dollar spent.

Of course, it’s worth buying an Economy Choice, Flex or Business fare as you’ll earn status credits at twice the rate of Economy Lite.

Note that the amount of status credits earned on Virgin domestic and short-haul international flights is rounded to the nearest $12 or $24. (It’s no longer always rounded up.)

With all of this in mind, if there is a specific amount of status credits you need to earn, you might as well multiply this amount by 12 to work out the ideal ticket price for earning the amount you need. Then, find a flight that costs as close to this amount as possible.

The same earning system applies to VA-marketed codeshare flights operated by partner airlines including Air New Zealand.

There is an exception for Virgin Australia flights to/from Doha, which earn at the same (fixed) rate as Qatar Airways flights. Different earn rates also apply to Virgin Australia domestic flights booked as part of an international partner airline itinerary.

A loophole that still exists, when booking regular Virgin Australia flights, is to wait for a double status credit offer to come around. This reduces the cost per status credit from $12 to $6 on Choice, Flex and Business fares.

You can also keep an eye out for Virgin Australia’s bonus promotions. For example, Virgin offered up to 125 bonus status credits for booking and flying six eligible Virgin Australia flights between 12 January and 31 March 2026.

3. Domestic First Class on United Airlines

Thanks to its partnership with Virgin Australia, you can earn Velocity status credits on United Airlines flights.

A “sweet spot” here is domestic First Class flights, particularly on connecting itineraries, which are often well-priced.

You can earn status credits at the following rates for United Business & First Class flights:

• Up to 500 miles: 30 status credits
• 501 to 1,500 miles: 50 status credits
• 1,501 to 2,500 miles: 70 status credits
• 2,501 to 3,500 miles: 90 status credits

Some US domestic routes are over 2,500 miles, such as San Francisco-Miami.

4. Singapore Airlines Premium Economy to the USA

Singapore Airlines has reasonably competitive pricing on its Premium Economy fares from Australia to destinations in the USA including Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York (via Singapore). But the Premium Economy pricing from Asian departure points like Kuala Lumpur or Bangkok to the USA can be especially good (often under $2,300 return). Note that the intra-Asia connector flight will generally book into Economy Class.

A return Kuala Lumpur-Singapore-San Francisco flight in Singapore Airlines Premium Economy would earn you 240 Velocity status credits.

5. Hong Kong Airlines Business Class Intra-Asia flights

Hong Kong Airlines has some good value Business class fares between some Asian cities like Bangkok or Taipei. While Hong Kong Airlines mostly uses Airbus A320, some flights from Bangkok to Hong Kong use the Airbus A330 which provides a more superior hard product and features lie-flat seats.

You can find flights between Bangkok and Hong Kong for $700 return and you will earn 100 status credits.

6. Qatar Airways Business Class from Asia to Europe

Buying cash fares from Asia can be a good strategy to secure cheap Business class flights to Europe. While Etihad’s Business Class fares from Manila are consistently one of the cheapest options, Qatar Airways also provides good value fares.

Flights from Manila, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok or Jakarta to certain European destinations such as Madrid, Barcelona, Rome, Munich, Geneva, Dublin and Athens are often well priced at around $3,500 return. On a Business Class return trip from Manila to Rome (via Doha) for example, you would earn 400 status credits.