- Joined
- Jun 19, 2006
- Posts
- 7,820
I think it’s well accepted that since the removal of anytime access, Qantas Platinums have been able to access domestic Qantas lounges on arrival. According to the QF website, however, it also applies internationally. This FAQ on the QF website reads:
Question
If I am a Platinum Frequent Flyer am I able to use The Qantas Club or International Business Lounge on arrival (if available)?
Answer
Yes. As long as you have a boarding pass for a flight that day or have travelled that day with a Qantas, Jetstar Airline (JQ, 3K or VF) or a oneworld® alliance flight number you may access the lounge.
I’d always thought that the benefit was very limited internationally because of the separation of arriving and departing passengers. Singapore and, I think, Bangkok are the only two that I can think of where Qantas has lounges that can be accessed prior to arrival procedures. So I thought I’d be fine in Singapore. But apparently not.
Last Friday I arrived off what will be my last ever QF77 PER-SIN. After cruising the shops for an hour or so I proceeded to the Qantas lounge where I was politely told I wasn’t entitled to entry; I needed a boarding pass for onward travel. I showed the lovely lounge agent the above and she was a little confused but stood her ground. She asked her colleague who said ‘it doesn’t apply off-shore’ to which I said ‘it doesn’t say that’.
I was granted access while the duty station manager was called. Twenty or so minutes another lovely lady (I’ll call her Jo) approached with a printout of some QF website pages. But she, too, stood her ground. That FAQ didn’t apply because it says “if available”. To her reasoning, “if available” meant if the particular lounge chooses to offer that particular benefit and clearly this lounge did not. Jo went on to add that this was “The Qantas Singapore Lounge” and wasn’t an international business lounge. Jo said that she knows there are some lounges where this benefit does apply. When I asked where she said ‘Sydney and Melbourne’ so I went to the respective page for each and pointed out to her that according to the information there, the benefit doesn’t apply either. Jo then took the line that it’s a website and it can’t possibly have all the answers to all the questions but if I had phoned the lounge in advance I would have been told that I wasn’t allowed access. So FAQs and the Qantas website with more footnotes that a public disclosure statement aren’t enough; passengers need to phone. And can you imagine when you’re told something that contradicts what’s on the website and act according to it?
I thanked Jo and insisted I leave. She was adamant that I stay, saying the lounge manager had made an exception and I was welcome to remain but I was angry and thought it best to go.
As another member noted elsewhere, not one of the individual lounge pages listed here includes the arrivals access benefit for Platinums. Every page always says you require an onward boarding pass. And interestingly, neither the Singapore nor Hong Kong lounges appear on the main page, suggesting that, for this and maybe everything else, those lounges write their own rules.
I was very disappointed. Here I was thinking that this was one of those ‘special’ benefits that I could take advantage of. Like requesting an award seat be made available. But no. I’ve pointed out in other threads, many times, that so many different parts of the Qantas website are either ambiguous or contradict each other. And I've also bemoaned the loss of Platinum benefits over the last few years. Essentially, it seems international lounge access on arrival is not a benefit. Anywhere. Despite what the Qantas website may have you believe.
Question
If I am a Platinum Frequent Flyer am I able to use The Qantas Club or International Business Lounge on arrival (if available)?
Answer
Yes. As long as you have a boarding pass for a flight that day or have travelled that day with a Qantas, Jetstar Airline (JQ, 3K or VF) or a oneworld® alliance flight number you may access the lounge.
I’d always thought that the benefit was very limited internationally because of the separation of arriving and departing passengers. Singapore and, I think, Bangkok are the only two that I can think of where Qantas has lounges that can be accessed prior to arrival procedures. So I thought I’d be fine in Singapore. But apparently not.
Last Friday I arrived off what will be my last ever QF77 PER-SIN. After cruising the shops for an hour or so I proceeded to the Qantas lounge where I was politely told I wasn’t entitled to entry; I needed a boarding pass for onward travel. I showed the lovely lounge agent the above and she was a little confused but stood her ground. She asked her colleague who said ‘it doesn’t apply off-shore’ to which I said ‘it doesn’t say that’.
I was granted access while the duty station manager was called. Twenty or so minutes another lovely lady (I’ll call her Jo) approached with a printout of some QF website pages. But she, too, stood her ground. That FAQ didn’t apply because it says “if available”. To her reasoning, “if available” meant if the particular lounge chooses to offer that particular benefit and clearly this lounge did not. Jo went on to add that this was “The Qantas Singapore Lounge” and wasn’t an international business lounge. Jo said that she knows there are some lounges where this benefit does apply. When I asked where she said ‘Sydney and Melbourne’ so I went to the respective page for each and pointed out to her that according to the information there, the benefit doesn’t apply either. Jo then took the line that it’s a website and it can’t possibly have all the answers to all the questions but if I had phoned the lounge in advance I would have been told that I wasn’t allowed access. So FAQs and the Qantas website with more footnotes that a public disclosure statement aren’t enough; passengers need to phone. And can you imagine when you’re told something that contradicts what’s on the website and act according to it?
I thanked Jo and insisted I leave. She was adamant that I stay, saying the lounge manager had made an exception and I was welcome to remain but I was angry and thought it best to go.
As another member noted elsewhere, not one of the individual lounge pages listed here includes the arrivals access benefit for Platinums. Every page always says you require an onward boarding pass. And interestingly, neither the Singapore nor Hong Kong lounges appear on the main page, suggesting that, for this and maybe everything else, those lounges write their own rules.
I was very disappointed. Here I was thinking that this was one of those ‘special’ benefits that I could take advantage of. Like requesting an award seat be made available. But no. I’ve pointed out in other threads, many times, that so many different parts of the Qantas website are either ambiguous or contradict each other. And I've also bemoaned the loss of Platinum benefits over the last few years. Essentially, it seems international lounge access on arrival is not a benefit. Anywhere. Despite what the Qantas website may have you believe.
