Discussion/Q&A on Best QF Status Run Options

[support]

This thread is for Questions and General discussion regarding the Best Status Run Options for QFF as per this thread:

Overview of Best Status Run Options [not the discussion thread]

Please keep your questions and queries to this thread and avoid posting in the other.

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You can also get some status run inspiration from this AFF article:

The Best Qantas Frequent Flyer Status Runs

Haven't earned enough status credits in your Qantas membership year? Here is a selection of the best Qantas Frequent Flyer status runs.

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

 

[markis10]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Is trip 2 going to come to an end?
https://www.facebook.com/JetstarAustralia/posts/557995590910830

Jetstar replacing Qantas on SYD to ASP.

Uluru and ASP are not the same place????

 

[DeKa]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Uluru and ASP are not the same place????

Of course. Silly me!

 

[Henry Louey]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Of course. Silly me!

I freaked out for a 2nd too. Until i re-read the article

 

[markis10]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Post 1 will need to be updated as there has been a big increase in JASA costs, eg DRW TSV is now 45480 points.

 

[gizzard]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Post 1 will need to be updated as there has been a big increase in JASA costs, eg DRW TSV is now 45480 points.

It's a bit of an effort to keep up with the changes each time.
It might be an idea to change the post so that it uses DRW-TSV as a base cost of say 1 unit and then puts a factor against the others. For instance, if DRW-TSV is 325 points per SC and SYD-MEL 700/SC then DRW-TSV is 1.00 and SYD-MEL 2.15 (=2.15 x DRW-TSV). It assumes that QF keeps the ratios much the same, of course.

 

[Yoz]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

I've seen a lot of people list xASA status runs as X Points + $ Dollars to a particular location.

What's the rationale behind choosing to book xASAs as a combination of points and dollars rather than one or the other?

 

[markis10]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

I've seen a lot of people list xASA status runs as X Points + $ Dollars to a particular location.

What's the rationale behind choosing to book xASAs as a combination of points and dollars rather than one or the other?

The cost of the points to reduce them to a minimum level are often very cheap, unless you have a warehouse of points its unlikely that you will find better value.

 

[CaviAck]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

I've seen a lot of people list xASA status runs as X Points + $ Dollars to a particular location.

What's the rationale behind choosing to book xASAs as a combination of points and dollars rather than one or the other?

Could be because of many reasons, it all depends on what the person booking the fare sees in the cost.
For example if I were to book a JASA it would be points + cash co payment because I just don't have a lot of points. Someone else may want to save their points for something else and do a points + cash co payment. Another person might see the total points to be very good value and decide not to make a cash co payment. Someone else might be points rich but cash poor and therefore need to use points with no cash co payment.

But usually people go for the points + cash option because the JASA is being booked into a classic availability fare and will cost around the same price as a classic award, well same number of points but should attract a slightly higher cash component but represent tremendously good value compared to a pure cash fare.

 

[cove]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

With our most recent JASAs during school holidays I used the slider as the rebating of points was at about 0.95 cents per point.
i scored 2.5 points per dollar on the cash component on Amex Ultimate.

 

[Yoz]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

The cost of the points to reduce them to a minimum level are often very cheap, unless you have a warehouse of points its unlikely that you will find better value.

So it's a non-linear scale which actually values the points more highly towards the minimum level?

Seems to go against every other scheme (e.g. Credit Card rewards) which work the other way!

 

[cove]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Well when QF are offering points sub 1 cent per point that is quite reasonable with their slider. I have now used it on 6 booked flights and it is a relatively cheap source to save points. It is quite a different price from Amex direct from July 21st when they go to 2.9 cents per QF point on Amex Ultimate.

 

[k3nnis]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Are you keeping your ultimate QF when the point changes kicks in?

 

[Yoz]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

But usually people go for the points + cash option because the JASA is being booked into a classic availability fare and will cost around the same price as a classic award, well same number of points but should attract a slightly higher cash component but represent tremendously good value compared to a pure cash fare.

Hmm. I see. So the xASA fares are coming from a different fare bucket (or being treated more similarly to classic awards) thus people are using minimum points to qualify for the xASA fare bucket rather than actually worrying about redeeming points.

I've just done a preliminary look into it:

MEL -> CGK Return (Economy)
Cash Price = $1024 + 0 Points
YASA1 = $730.37 + 38,000 Points (0.7727c/pt)
YASA2 = $213.05 + 99,000 Points (0.8191c/pt)
YASA3 = $0 + 123,646 Points (0.8281c/pt)

Seems that for YASAs you are better off going full cash or full points.


MEL -> CGK Return (Business)
Cash Price = $4453 + 0 Points
JASA1 = $3026.76 + 100,000 Points (1.426c/pt)
JASA2 = $1181.5 + 300,000 Points (1.090c/pt)
JASA3 = $0 + 461,793 Points (0.964c/pt)

Seems that for JASAs you may be better off doing minimum points to maximise spend. Keep in mind that one of the legs of this JASA was very cheap (see below).

MEL -> CGK One Way (Business)
Cash Price = $4796
JASA1 = $0 + 94,302 Points (5.085c/pt)
JASA2 = $404.13 + 50,000 Points (8.78c/pt)

I'm going to be honest and say this is largely inflated as cash-only one way fares with Qantas are always hugely inflated. However, even if the MEL -> CGK leg is valued at $2,000 the ability to have enough points to book this for $404.13 + 50,000 pts (i.e. about half price!) seems like a bargain.


Summary:
It seems that it's really just worth holding onto QF Points to unlock really cheap YASA/JASA fares?


Follow-up Question:
Just looking at this now.. It seems that one-way flights are penalised quite heavily by Qantas (not sure why) but if I book a JASA out and a fully-paid cash flight back in. Am I going to get bent over hot coals by Qantas? It this even possible?

 

[Nizar]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Hmm. I see. So the xASA fares are coming from a different fare bucket (or being treated more similarly to classic awards) thus people are using minimum points to qualify for the xASA fare bucket rather than actually worrying about redeeming points.

I've just done a preliminary look into it:

MEL -> CGK Return (Economy)
Cash Price = $1024 + 0 Points
YASA1 = $730.37 + 38,000 Points (0.7727c/pt)
YASA2 = $213.05 + 99,000 Points (0.8191c/pt)
YASA3 = $0 + 123,646 Points (0.8281c/pt)

Seems that for YASAs you are better off going full cash or full points.


MEL -> CGK Return (Business)
Cash Price = $4453 + 0 Points
JASA1 = $3026.76 + 100,000 Points (1.426c/pt)
JASA2 = $1181.5 + 300,000 Points (1.090c/pt)
JASA3 = $0 + 461,793 Points (0.964c/pt)

Seems that for JASAs you may be better off doing minimum points to maximise spend. Keep in mind that one of the legs of this JASA was very cheap (see below).

MEL -> CGK One Way (Business)
Cash Price = $4796
JASA1 = $0 + 94,302 Points (5.085c/pt)
JASA2 = $404.13 + 50,000 Points (8.78c/pt)

I'm going to be honest and say this is largely inflated as cash-only one way fares with Qantas are always hugely inflated. However, even if the MEL -> CGK leg is valued at $2,000 the ability to have enough points to book this for $404.13 + 50,000 pts (i.e. about half price!) seems like a bargain.


Summary:
It seems that it's really just worth holding onto QF Points to unlock really cheap YASA/JASA fares?


Follow-up Question:
Just looking at this now.. It seems that one-way flights are penalised quite heavily by Qantas (not sure why) but if I book a JASA out and a fully-paid cash flight back in. Am I going to get bent over hot coals by Qantas? It this even possible?

Not sure which dates you're searching but I've seen (and booked, twice) a JASA MEL-CGK return for 100,000 points + ~$500 cash.
I thought that was pretty food value considering that a return J cash fare can cost upto $4,451.

 

[Yoz]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Not sure which dates you're searching but I've seen (and booked, twice) a JASA MEL-CGK return for 100,000 points + ~$500 cash.
I thought that was pretty food value considering that a return J cash fare can cost upto $4,451.

Yeah. Ironically, I'm at 180 SCs (120 to Silver) with a DSC which is why I was originally thinking of visiting a friend in Jakarta as my business trip to China looks like it might not be necessary.

Was able to find the JASA MEL-CGK for 94,000 pts (or 50,000 pts + $404) but was not able to find the return leg at such a generous price.

At this stage the best I can see is:
JASA MEL-CGK for 50,000 + $404.13
YASA CGK-MEL for 49,034 + $15.21

Would get me to Jakarta and back earning 2*(140+35) = 350 SCs which is well into Silver territory

A little bit of a pity the return leg cannot be had for such a small fee. Could have hit Gold

(Ps. Apologies for taking this thread off topic)

 

[markis10]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Yeah. Ironically, I'm at 180 SCs (120 to Silver) with a DSC which is why I was originally thinking of visiting a friend in Jakarta as my business trip to China looks like it might not be necessary.

Was able to find the JASA MEL-CGK for 94,000 pts (or 50,000 pts + $404) but was not able to find the return leg at such a generous price.

At this stage the best I can see is:
JASA MEL-CGK for 50,000 + $404.13
YASA CGK-MEL for 49,034 + $15.21

Would get me to Jakarta and back earning 2*(140+35) = 350 SCs which is well into Silver territory

A little bit of a pity the return leg cannot be had for such a small fee. Could have hit Gold

(Ps. Apologies for taking this thread off topic)

Try to Singapore then grab a cheap flight from there, should be many more options.

 

[cove]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

K3nnis I think Amex Ultimate will have to be reviewed on July21st or later seeing we will be in London.
We have run up an amazing number of QF points on our two cards so I will miss them when they are gone!

 

[Nizar]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

K3nnis I think Amex Ultimate will have to be reviewed on July21st or later seeing we will be in London.
We have run up an amazing number of QF points on our two cards so I will miss them when they are gone!

Whats happening with Amex Ultimate after July 22st ?
I thought they were increasing their points to 3 QFF per $1 spend on travel and accom booked on the QF site ?
Or is the points earn being decreased in other ways ?

 

[k3nnis]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Maybe the earth black is a good replacement??

K3nnis I think Amex Ultimate will have to be reviewed on July21st or later seeing we will be in London.
We have run up an amazing number of QF points on our two cards so I will miss them when they are gone!

 

[Yoz]

Re: Best Status Run Options - A quick overview!

Try to Singapore then grab a cheap flight from there, should be many more options.

Can't see anything ~100,000 points for SIN-MEL or SIN-SYD after about August 20th.

Is there an approximate date range that these cheaper JASA fares become available?

I'm guessing the DSC from Qantas works if I go from not really having plans to fly.. to flying return business class to hit Gold.