Has any QFF's switched over to Virgin, or may?

[greenfish]

I'm just about to make WP for the first time (just waiting for the bonus credits to credit), and thought I'd take a look at "the other side", so bought a few PE BNE-CBR reward tickets on DJ.

I've now done the first return trip, and I have to say, pretty underwhelming compared to QF. Friday evening in the DJ lounge in CBR, it was standing room only (about 5pm ish). I fly this route every week and it was far more crowded than I've ever seen the QP. Fairly tatty too, with some tape holding on a trim on one of the tables. Nice to have some different beer choice though!

The flights are on E190, so no hot meals, and Crown Lager is the "premium beer". On time performance wasn't as good as QF - though only about 15 minutes late on each sector, it means even longer in the taxi line when arriving in CBR.

So will I try fly DJ again? Well yes, but primarily to support competition. DJ are still losing money hand over fist, and I don't want them to fail. I remember flying to CBR pre DJ, and it was a very expensive experience. Right now, the QF product for BNE and CBR domestic is superior. Look forward to visiting the new DJ BNE lounge though.

 

[777]

I switched over to Virgin about 3 years ago when the route i flew most got dumped to Jetstar (MEL-NTL). I had several years of silver but no higher with QF but my flying has increased dramatically since i made the switch and now i'm a very happy VA Gold and i'd expect i'd be Plat this year as long as it's in the range of double to triple gold to attain.

If the traffic and comments around here are anything to go by there are a lot of QF flyers who are very unhappy and, in general, regular DJ flyers are pretty happy with what they get - including several who have switched of late. Obviously there's plenty of one-of bad experiences on both sides but DJ flyers seem as a group upbeat and while QF folks seem downbeat about what's happening.

There's obviously a few factors that are responsible for this. The simplest one is low expectations - people expect less of Virgin than they do of Qantas and they are often pleasantly surprised - i certainly have been. That's also the result of genuine improvement in the product, the staff are upbeat and have a spring in their step, the lounges are being revamped (As a Gold the lounges i have access to has gone from about 3 or 4 to over 130 since i joined) and the network of partners and destinations is being expanded very rapidly.

But most importantly - there's a genuine sense with Virgin that i'm a valued customer which i really appreciate. For all the talk of *A it'd be interesting to compare the number of one stop routes from Australia where you're VA status means something to the number where QF status does -- i'm guessing they are fast catching up.

On the downside: Virgin's systems are clunky, it's product is inconsistent (probably in a good way - it is being rapidly improved but that leaves pieces behind that haven't caught up), things like upgrades are anything but smooth (but can be generous as a result) and there's a few steps to go before all the pieces fall in place. If those are the most important things then you're better off to wait a little longer before thinking about switching but, on the whole, i'm happy and most of the Virgin flyers i pass in my travels are happy and are pleased about what's happening now and excited about what's happening next.

Whether the promise is delivered on remains to be seen but the good thing for all of us is that competition should drive the options up -- that's if QF take up the challenge and don't simply try to cut, slash and jetstar their way to success. Too much of that and Virgin will need to seriously expand their lounges.

 

[drron]

Well I wont be switching to DJ as my primary or even significant carrier.Although I fly QF my FF program is Aadvantage and they treat me well.Have never missed getting awards when i want,not been knocked back on upgrades.Just the 1 incident recently with loosing out on a YUPP.Velocity just doesn't stack up v Aadvantage.Then again neither does QFF-I do better as an AA plat than mrsdrron as a WP.So strike 1.
Strike 2 is that JQ have a much better service to MCY-DJ have a service to SYD and 1 to MEL.JQ have 3-4 to SYD,2-3 to MEL so much more likely to be going when I need to.Certainly JQ are not as reliable but at least if 1 of their planes goes out of Service there will be another.

No strike 3 as yet-though I could say because they dont status match AA plat.

 

[serfty]

I am Life Time Gold with Qantas so was never going to 'switch', instead, planning flying DJ domestically - hence a planned pursuit of earned velocity status.

But since the deal with AirNZ has been published I perceive no further need to chase status this since I am Gold Elite with Airpoints anyway.

I still plan to fly DJ more domestically when price as I can.

 

[Maca44]

I was WP with QF for a couple of years, but have since dropped to NB. However, I have Life QP so can still enjoy some benefits. When QF stopped flying to SFO I flew Air NZ in J a couple of times, now that is a very good product for those who have not tried it. I don't know if it is better than QF, but the service was great and I feel that QF have really dropped the ball when it comes to service. With that route, on QF you have to transit through LAX or DFW, so with transit in AKL you still only have one stop and I would rather go through customs/immig in SFO than LAX. I was lucky enough to fly QF to LAX in the A380 in F last year and although the service and food was great, you would expect it to be so.

I am not after status with any carrier nowadays, and for domestic flights will usually take advantage of the deals available. In saying that, QF do not offer many deals, and even when they do they are usually matched by DJ. JQ had a great deal recently with 2 for 1 so I jumped onto several of those but, on average, I think I fly more with DJ than OW carriers and as mentioned above its not because the others are better, its because QF have dropped the ball and seem to have lost sight of what their premium pax deserve.

 

[Noob]

I'm just about to make WP for the first time (just waiting for the bonus credits to credit), and thought I'd take a look at "the other side", so bought a few PE BNE-CBR reward tickets on DJ.

I've now done the first return trip, and I have to say, pretty underwhelming compared to QF. Friday evening in the DJ lounge in CBR, it was standing room only (about 5pm ish). I fly this route every week and it was far more crowded than I've ever seen the QP. Fairly tatty too, with some tape holding on a trim on one of the tables. Nice to have some different beer choice though!

The flights are on E190, so no hot meals, and Crown Lager is the "premium beer". On time performance wasn't as good as QF - though only about 15 minutes late on each sector, it means even longer in the taxi line when arriving in CBR.

So will I try fly DJ again? Well yes, but primarily to support competition. DJ are still losing money hand over fist, and I don't want them to fail. I remember flying to CBR pre DJ, and it was a very expensive experience. Right now, the QF product for BNE and CBR domestic is superior. Look forward to visiting the new DJ BNE lounge though.

Hot meals are determined by the route, not by the aircraft - hot meals are available on all aircraft on flights over 2hrs (some items 3hrs)

On your route you could have had a Mediterranean vegetable panini with swiss cheese and olive tapenade, or a roast beef panini with semi dried tomatoes, rocket, and horse radish cream. A Vermicelli asian vegetable noodle salad with coriander mint and Thai dressing, or simply a tomato and cheese wrap with baby cos lettuce and mayonnaise. Or maybe even a bowel of pumpkin soup? And that is before the snack menu!

But soon, all PE will be Business Class which has its own menu identical to that seen on the transcontinental flights.

Most probably lounge overcrowding at CBR will be taken care of with the terminal redevelopment.

 

[Simo]

I could consider swapping but would have to have many more lounges and also more destinations as well.

I also don't like there luggage rules either. I have only flew them once and my excess luggage bill was more that the cheap ticket we had purchased.

 

[greenfish]

Hot meals are determined by the route, not by the aircraft - hot meals are available on all aircraft on flights over 2hrs (some items 3hrs)

On your route you could have had a Mediterranean vegetable panini with swiss cheese and olive tapenade, or a roast beef panini with semi dried tomatoes, rocket, and horse radish cream. A Vermicelli asian vegetable noodle salad with coriander mint and Thai dressing, or simply a tomato and cheese wrap with baby cos lettuce and mayonnaise. Or maybe even a bowel of pumpkin soup? And that is before the snack menu!

But soon, all PE will be Business Class which has its own menu identical to that seen on the transcontinental flights.

Most probably lounge overcrowding at CBR will be taken care of with the terminal redevelopment.

Thanks for the info on the food, I did check out the menu but quite like a conventional hot meal at dinner time. The snack menu - well I did take some M&Ms home for the kids, so they were happy.

I really hope they sort out the lounge situation in CBR, now they're offering any time access it can only get worse. The BNE temporary lounge was dire, I'm hoping for great things with the new lounge.

Probably the issue I see the most going through CBR is delays impacting DJ. QF have enough flights that you can be readily shuffled on to another plane, but DJ seem to struggle on Friday nights - I know as I've looked every Friday for the past 4 months.

DJ is going in the right direction with Velocity though. When I started commuting to CBR in March, the by anniversary date + the terrible $ based status accrual (and the temporary lounge) stopped me going with DJ - and they've fixed (or nearly fixed) all of these issues.

But QF have been fantastic. I've averaged a little over 3 flights a week for nearly 5 months with an outstanding on time record, and where I've asked for an earlier flight, they've done a great job of accommodating me. One time I had an issue where the travel agent (a rare, government paid for ticket - all of the rest of my travel is out of my own pocket) had not issued a ticket properly - QF rang them, sorted it out, and upgraded me to J for my trouble.

So my plan (like many others) is make WP first (each status year), then look to build some status with DJ. I'm not going to switch as QF have done too many things right. But I need DJ to stick around as competition is a very good thing.

 

[Jack Melon]

I could consider swapping but would have to have many more lounges and also more destinations as well.

I also don't like there luggage rules either. I have only flew them once and my excess luggage bill was more that the cheap ticket we had purchased.

Well they are refurbishing all there lounges, and Brisbane opens on Wednesday, more lounges are going to be built.

As for the baggage, the rules have changed, Qantas now only permits 1 bag, and virgin now you can have as many bags as you wish and you get a whopping 69kg!

 

[tuapekastar]

As a purely leisure traveller who is still slaving over a hot desk each week I don't have the luxury, or even moreso, the time, to pick and choose too much, or 'try out' different carriers/alliances, if I want to maintain some sort of status with an airline (and I do want to). Status renewal involves plenty of planning on my part, and I find I cannot simply fly DJ (I'm a Virgin virgin ) just to check it out. So I'm a committed QF/OW flyer at the moment (though not 'blindly' so, as some may allege).

That said, I would happily consider another program and airline/alliance. All the ducks would need to line up, and suit my travel plans and patterns. For example DONE fares are quite attractive to me so I would need something similar (or better, even ) from DJ to entice me to consider swapping. drron mentions AA - a program I was once Platinum with (yep, the challenge ) - something I would also consider.

So I'm not blindly loyal to QF, and would certainly consider a shift, but need some fairly concrete grounds to do so.

Oh, and the software here alleges I spelt 'traveller' wrong (Seppo stuff! :shock

 

[Noob]

Thanks for the info on the food, I did check out the menu but quite like a conventional hot meal at dinner time. The snack menu - well I did take some M&Ms home for the kids, so they were happy.

I really hope they sort out the lounge situation in CBR, now they're offering any time access it can only get worse. The BNE temporary lounge was dire, I'm hoping for great things with the new lounge.

Probably the issue I see the most going through CBR is delays impacting DJ. QF have enough flights that you can be readily shuffled on to another plane, but DJ seem to struggle on Friday nights - I know as I've looked every Friday for the past 4 months.

DJ is going in the right direction with Velocity though. When I started commuting to CBR in March, the by anniversary date + the terrible $ based status accrual (and the temporary lounge) stopped me going with DJ - and they've fixed (or nearly fixed) all of these issues.

But QF have been fantastic. I've averaged a little over 3 flights a week for nearly 5 months with an outstanding on time record, and where I've asked for an earlier flight, they've done a great job of accommodating me. One time I had an issue where the travel agent (a rare, government paid for ticket - all of the rest of my travel is out of my own pocket) had not issued a ticket properly - QF rang them, sorted it out, and upgraded me to J for my trouble.

So my plan (like many others) is make WP first (each status year), then look to build some status with DJ. I'm not going to switch as QF have done too many things right. But I need DJ to stick around as competition is a very good thing.

Good on you! I think your action plan sounds pretty good. I honestly think if you are happy with what you are getting and they are treating you personally well at QF, why would you want to move? Keeping your foot in the door at Virgin allows you not only to keep an eye on how Virgin is developing as a premium brand but also accumulate status so if you did ever wish to change primary carriers you wouldn't have to worry about working your way up.

(Off topic but) The interesting thing about Virgin Australia lounges is that they are being aimed at offering a standard of product at and above that of Qantas J lounges, yet they cover both the QP and J market.

But from the rumors around the place and what we are seeing physically happening at Virgin it will soon be very enticing, almost irresistible...

Happy flying

 

[pshepvic]

As for the baggage, the rules have changed, Qantas now only permits 1 bag, and virgin now you can have as many bags as you wish and you get a whopping 69kg!

Slow down for a second. The baggage is as follows:

QF - 1 piece 23kg in Y or 1 piece 32kg in J, QP members get 32kg in Y or J, PS & SG get 32kg in Y and 64kg (2 pieces) in J, and WP get 64kg (2 pieces) in any class.

DJ - no bags on Saver or add $12 for 23kg, 23kg for Flexi fares and Silvers, 32kg for Golds, or 69kg in PE/J.

Your statement makes it sound like everyone gets 69kg on DJ, which certainly isn't the case.

 

[Jack Melon]

Slow down for a second. The baggage is as follows:

QF - 1 piece 23kg in Y or 1 piece 32kg in J, QP members get 32kg in Y or J, PS & SG get 32kg in Y and 64kg (2 pieces) in J, and WP get 64kg (2 pieces) in any class.

DJ - no bags on Saver or add $12 for 23kg, 23kg for Flexi fares and Silvers, 32kg for Golds, or 69kg in PE/J.

Your statement makes it sound like everyone gets 69kg on DJ, which certainly isn't the case.

I should rephrase it shouldn't i? . Yes in Premium on Virgin Any amount of bags, 69kg + Carry-on. Qantas is 64kg 1 bag and a carry-on. They have limited to 1 bag.

 

[serfty]

... They have limited to 1 bag.

And as any experienced traveller will tell you, one bag is enough.¹


¹ Or to put it another way, it's some times better to put most of "your eggs in the one basket".

 

[Jack Melon]

And as any experienced traveller will tell you, one bag is enough.¹


¹ Or to put it another way, it's some times better to put most of "your eggs in the one basket".

Nice one!

 

[nlagalle]

I should rephrase it shouldn't i? . Yes in Premium on Virgin Any amount of bags, 69kg + Carry-on. Qantas is 64kg 1 bag and a carry-on. They have limited to 1 bag.

Incorrect..

NB/Y: 23kg 1 piece
QP/J: 32kg 1 piece

PS/SG in Y: 1 piece 23kg
PS/SG in J: 2 pieces 32kg each

WP: 2 pieces 32kg each in any class.

You can take 2 pieces of carry on too, not 1..

Personally I can't imagine why I'd ever need 60kg unless it was for work (which i have a waiver for anyway :mrgreen.

 

[Gorbo]

in a year maybe do the switch not yet though

 

[UP4014]

If the traffic and comments around here are anything to go by there are a lot of QF flyers who are very unhappy and, in general, regular DJ flyers are pretty happy with what they get - including several who have switched of late. Obviously there's plenty of one-of bad experiences on both sides but DJ flyers seem as a group upbeat and while QF folks seem downbeat about what's happening.

There's obviously a few factors that are responsible for this. The simplest one is low expectations - people expect less of Virgin than they do of Qantas and they are often pleasantly surprised - i certainly have been. That's also the result of genuine improvement in the product, the staff are upbeat and have a spring in their step, the lounges are being revamped (As a Gold the lounges i have access to has gone from about 3 or 4 to over 130 since i joined) and the network of partners and destinations is being expanded very rapidly.

I think the expectation bit is spot on, DJ flyers don't expect as much however QF flyers do. When you look in the hard light of day the price difference has become minimal between the two but the expectations are wide apart for each carrier.

Matt

 

[oz_mark]

I think the expectation bit is spot on, DJ flyers don't expect as much however QF flyers do. When you look in the hard light of day the price difference has become minimal between the two but the expectations are wide apart for each carrier.

Well, I do expect less from Virgin, but that is mainly as I understand the product differences between the two airlines.

Two things have happened - one is that Virgin fares have snuck up, as they make their product improvements, but also Qantas prices are kept down by that competitive pressure. Take DJ away, and you will see what Qantas will do with prices. The downside of the pressure, though, is that Qantas doesn't have the same amount of money to spend on in flight amenities - and you see that in the quality of some of the 'meals'.

 

[connieguy]

I think the expectation bit is spot on, DJ flyers don't expect as much however QF flyers do. When you look in the hard light of day the price difference has become minimal between the two but the expectations are wide apart for each carrier.

Matt

What? You think the 38 inch seat pitch domestic QF J product is world class? Sorry but QF is providing a domestic Y+ product, calling in J and their J customers are defending it. I call that QF taking advantage of it's J customers, who up to now had no other, "Better than QF Y" product to fly on other than QF. Now QF's exposed, over sold and over valued domestic J product has placed itself in the firing line for DJ to introduce a real J product all across the domestic fleet.

Wonder what would happen if QF domestic started heading for the RED ink side of the ledger, while at the same time QF international was also showing RED ink?