New international lounge arrrangements from 28 Oct 2018

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Lord_Lenny said:
So that seems to indicate that they will essentially take over the Etihad lounge in Sydney and direct all their pax through that. If so, I wonder how this will affect VA status pax flying on SQ. I've gotten quite comfortable in the SilverKris lounge :)
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You will still have access to the SQ lounge when flying to Singapore
 
With both Manaia lounges consistently busy given that other airlines use them, I wonder how it will go adding the extra VA trans tasman flights.
Also, WLG as the first int VA lounge? interesting choice!
 
Anyone have personal experience with these 2 lounges -

Travellers on Virgin flights from New Zealand will have access to the third-party Strata lounge at Auckland and the Manaia lounges at Christchurch and Queenstown, while Wellington will see its very own Virgin Australia lounge.




by David Flynn | October 17, 2018

Virgin Australia will shift to the Etihad Airways lounges at Sydney and Melbourne, with those lounges being rebranded as The House, while also adding an all-new Brisbane space called My Lounge to its network.

Travellers on Virgin flights from New Zealand will have access to the third-party Strata lounge at Auckland and the Manaia lounges at Christchurch and Queenstown, while Wellington will see its very own Virgin Australia lounge.

The changes come as Virgin loses access to Air New Zealand lounges from October 28 as part of the airline's messy break-up – one which has seen the Kiwi carrier form a codeshare alliance with longtime rival Qantas – while Virgin also seeks to bring some more order to its lounge arrangements, which have previously varied according to where the destination of any given Virgin Australia flight.

Sydney and Melbourne will see each airport's Etihad Airways lounge taken over by operator No1 Lounges and rebranded as The House, the same as happened to Etihad's London Heathrow T4 lounge at the start of this month.

Both lounges "will provide a choice of self-service (meals) as well as a la carte dining throughout the day," says Virgin Australia, with the tended bar will remain and offering everything from fruit juice and smoothies to "a range of coffee options from around the world, coughtails, Champagne and a selection of great Australian wines."

Brisbane will get an all-new lounge dubbed My Lounge, designed in the style of a loft apartment with social lounging spaces, a games room and seating for more than 100 guests.
 
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There was a bit of drama last week about a NZ flyer being denied and sent to Strata AKL. Flyer was peeved off about the downgrade but Strata defended its lounge and offerings. I think the thread was on Flyertalk but cant remember.
 
Manaia at Christchurch is a bit of a hit and miss. Some days food offerings are decent, other days are far from it. QF/EK and priority pass members can use the lounge, so adding VA to the mix will make it busier. It's definitely not a lounge I would arrive too early for it, but better than the gate for sure.
 
ozstamps said:
Anyone have personal experience with these 2 lounges -

Travellers on Virgin flights from New Zealand will have access to the third-party Strata lounge at Auckland and the Manaia lounges at Christchurch and Queenstown, while Wellington will see its very own Virgin Australia lounge.
Click to expand...

Manaia at CHC is OK, not great but OK. Last time there the wifi password had a space in it, which is not usual.
 
Regarding Auckland, I have used the Strata lounge on a few occasions when flying JQ and found the f&b situation quite good. Better in fact than the Koru lounge which seems to be permanently overcrowded. This creates a situation where many people become pushy in the lounge, especially around the barista bar. So the comment from flyertalk is particularly apt - much like the seige of the orcs at Helm's Deep! Admittedly the Strata can be a bit crowded as well, but it seems to handle its crowd better.
As for the Manaia Lounge at CHC, that is not so good. I find the few times I've been there that the food and beverages are slow to be renewed and is not kept clean.

Brisbane holds the most interest. I'm also speculating where they will place it. Given the POM, HIR, VLI, APW, NAN, etc flights tend to leave from the gates in the 70s and also that the NZ flights sometimes leave from down there, I wonder if the new lounge will go in there. There is a really large gap around gate 77 or so which might be the area they could build in.
 
Silvia said:
With both Manaia lounges consistently busy given that other airlines use them, I wonder how it will go adding the extra VA trans tasman flights.
Also, WLG as the first int VA lounge? interesting choice!
Click to expand...

Wellington Airport is sinking a lot of money into refurbishing and expanding the whole complex and are trying to still build a case for the runway extension, so they might have sweetened the pot. That and it was likely a matter of necessity - Wellington only has Qantas and Air NZ lounges, no third parties that they can cut deals with.

Overall, as a Virgin customer from NZ who lives in Sydney, on paper at least, they seem to have stitched together a somewhat functional solution. Was considering switching my allegiance to Qantas, but am taking a wait and see approach now. My only question is what happens in Wellington until they build their lounge? Tough luck?
 
cliche_flying_kiwi said:
My only question is what happens in Wellington until they build their lounge? Tough luck?
Click to expand...

For Wellington:
Opening in the next few months. Business Class guests, Velocity Platinum and Gold members and Lounge members travelling to Australia will receive a food and beverage voucher to use at any of the outlets at the Wellington Airport until the Lounge opens.​

And for Brisbane:
Opening in the next few months. Business Class guests, Velocity Platinum and Gold members will continue to access to the Singapore SilverKris Lounge when travelling to Los Angeles until the ‘My Lounge’ opens. We are working through alternative arrangements to offer lounge access where capacity permits. In circumstances where we are unable to accommodate lounge eligible guests, they will receive a food and beverage voucher to use at any of the outlets at the Brisbane International Airport.​

Discovered all the good and bad news from today together here:
https://www.velocityfrequentflyer.com/content/ProgramBenefits/LatestNews/changes-to-the-program/
 
Well... what a day. Here's what we know...

The Australian International Lounge Network

Brisbane - My Lounge
In Brisbane the new "My Lounge" will open sometime in November but until then Platinum and Business Class have access to the Plaza Premium Lounge. Gold and Lounge Members instead get vouchers until the new lounge opens. Flights to Los Angeles (Business Class, Platinum and Gold) will continue to use the Singapore Lounge until the new Lounge opens.

Once it opens it'll be located near gate 77 from 4am until 11pm and will be staffed with a Virgin Australia host. Self-service lounge entry will apparently also happen but that'll occur after opening. The Lounge will also feature a buffet, Toilets/Showers (coming after lounge opens) and Barista Coffee (with app ordering).

Access prior to Virgin Australia and Hainan Airlines flights for Business Class (no guests), Platinum and Gold (one guest + two children for trans Tasman flights all other flights are just one guest), Lounge Members (prior to Trans Tasman flights only with one guest + two children)

Sydney - "The House" (ex Etihad Lounge)

Will become the default Virgin lounge open from 4am until 10pm daily, Self Service lounge access will also be installed. Barista coffee with an app ordering system will also be installed however again this will happen after opening.

Access prior to Virgin Australia, Etihad Airways, Hawaiian Airlines (VA code only) and Hainan Airlines flights for Business Class (no guests), Platinum and Gold (one guest + two children for trans tasman flights all other flights are just one guest), Lounge Members (prior to Trans Tasman flights only with one guest + two children)

Melbourne - "The House" (ex Etihad Lounge)

Will again become the default Virgin lounge open from 4am until 12am daily, Self Service lounge access will also be installed. Barista coffee with an app ordering system will also be installed however again this will happen after opening.

Access prior to Virgin Australia, Etihad Airways and Hainan Airlines flights for Business Class (no guests), Platinum and Gold (one guest + two children for trans tasman flights all other flights are just one guest), Lounge Members (prior to Trans Tasman flights only with one guest + two children)

Gold Coast - Virgin Lounge
Nothing changes here and normal Virgin domestic guesting policies apply.

Perth - Singapore Airlines Lounge
Nothing changes here - Access prior to Christmas Island and Cocos Island flights.


In New Zealand

Wellington - Coming Soon
For the next few months Business Class, Platinum, Gold and Lounge members will get a voucher.

Virgin Australia will then open a "Virgin Australia Regional Pop-up Lounge"

It'll be "built near the departure gates" and feature self service entry, self service dining, barista coffee and "A wide range of non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages".

It'll be open from
4:30am until 7am daily
11:30am until 4:15pm (on Sundays)
or
2:00pm until 4:15pm (all days except Wednesday)

Dunedin - Nothing Announced yet....

Auckland - Strata Lounge and Christchurch/Queenstown - Manaia Lounge

These are all existing partner lounges. Access prior to Virgin Australia Business Class (no guests), Platinum and Gold (one guest + two children), Lounge Members (prior to Trans Tasman flights only with one guest + two children).

All of the info above comes directly from Virgin Australia
http://t.e.virginaustralia.com/res/...ore&bId=690535162&acId=30112521&clid=PDM70211
https://www.virginaustralia.com/au/...port/international-lounge-access/coming-soon/
 
Flying out of Newcastle is going to be very sad. While the new terminal is actually quite nice for domestic flights, the international section has never been used and there are no shops or facilities on the other side. I’m guessing they’re going to set up some kind of temporary bar but I wouldn’t be expecting much.

There’s not much incentive for NAL or merchants to invest too much further for a seasonal service with only three flights per week which may not return after the first season.
 
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