Platinum "anytime" lounge Access ceases from 1 February 2011

[QF WP]

That'll teach me to be away for a couple of days attending to business - lots has been happening on this thread.

Whilst I'm only Gold now, I will conceivably stay this way until I reach LTG. Whilst I could get to Plat again by judicially used JASA's, I doubt the value given my travel is now mostly domestic (so multiple ODU's are probably better value). I do remember my 5.5 years of Platinum fondly...

I feel that there are other major changes to Platinum level over the horizon. I think we may be wise to wait to see when the dust has settled (perhaps early next year) and perhaps those that were swift to chide, may be a little happier.

 

[moa999]

All joking aside... seriously, how is Platinum and different to Gold when you fly domestically?

Plat uses J-Lounge, Gold uses Qantas Club. That I think is a big difference and one that may become more differentiated (per Red Roo's comments on Neil Perry)

 

[trippin_the_rift]

I feel that there are other major changes to Platinum level over the horizon. I think we may be wise to wait to see when the dust has settled (perhaps early next year) and perhaps those that were swift to chide, may be a little happier.

I would love to agree Lindsay, however history has a funny way of repeating itself.

 

[Flashback]

Just for fun, here's a list to refresh your memory of the domestic benefitss:-

Your Platinum privledges:

- 100% points bonus (most flights in .AU are under 1000 miles therefore this is useless).
- Complimenary Qantas Club membership (Gold gets this, therefore not a Plat benefit).
- On Departure Upgrades (QC, Gold get this also - therefore not plat benefit).
- Business check in (QC, Silver, Gold get this also - therefore not plat benefit).
- Extra baggage (Qc, Silver, Gold get this also - therefore not a plat benefit).
- Preferred seating (Plat only gets to choose a few rows ahead of the rest, however at -24hours it's a free for all - therefore not a plat benefit)
- Priority Economy seat purchase (my uncle - as a nobody bronze - used this last year - sure it cost him $600 1 way bne-syd, but he got it - same price as plat would pay - therefore not a plat benefit)
- Priority Baggage (QC/Silv/Gold/Biz get this also - therefore not plat benefit).
- Platinum membership tags, tick! Platinum benefit #1
- Priority phone support, tick! Platinum benefit #2
- Anytime lounge access, tick! Platinum benefit #3 ....oh wait
- Priority Boarding, no such thing


There's nothing cheap about loyalty ;-)


All joking aside... seriously, how is Platinum and different to Gold when you fly domestically?

Business check-in, PS & QP will no longer get domestically. Priority Economy seat purchase? This is WP only. If there are 0 seats available on a flight, someone will get bumped for a WP. A QFNB (or SG for that matter) would not have been able to do this.

 

[QF WP]

I can't reveal how I know, but it's more than a feeling in my water

Be patient and more will be revealed..and no, I don't know Red Roo.

 

[oz_mark]

- 100% points bonus (most flights in .AU are under 1000 miles therefore this is useless).

Anything above 500 miles would get you something extra. Most of my flights are more than 500 miles.

 

[dfcatch]

Plat uses J-Lounge, Gold uses Qantas Club. That I think is a big difference and one that may become more differentiated (per Red Roo's comments on Neil Perry)

No Dom J lounge in CNS!

But in all seriousness, I wouldn't expect there to be

 

[oz_mark]

Just had a phone call from QF Executive Relations in regards to my email to Simon Hickey basically saying that in response to feedback arrivals access/ transfer flights will still be permitted and also that access will be permitted when flying QF Partner Airline ( gave example of OT) even if not flying QF/OW. Advised that a mailout is pending.

Interesting that they say partner airlines as well. Seems additional to what was in the adjustments to access the other day (or maybe I just misunderstood)

 

[Moody]

I would like to say I'm very happy with this change, only that may offend some WTPs and get me banned, redacted, deleted, whatever; so I won't say anything except what an illuminating thread this has been.

 

[DC3]

I would like to say I'm very happy with this change, only that may offend some WTPs and get me banned, redacted, deleted, whatever; so I won't say anything except what an illuminating thread this has been.

You are very happy because others are to lose a benefit?

 

[Joshua]

I can't reveal how I know, but it's more than a feeling in my water

Be patient and more will be revealed..and no, I don't know Red Roo.

Any material benefits will most likely be well received. I think looking at trippin_the_rift's critique of QFF platinum benefits, while they are limited to domestic travellers, they could be boosted through many incidental additions. Perceptions play a bigger part than we may all want to admit and a longer list would do that.

Smaller things, such as the guest passes I previously mentioned, partner discounts, special promos (eg. 2 for 1 tickets to the National Gallery of Australia for SG/WP in January) would be nice. Why can't a Plat QF card do similar things to an similar Amex. Non air travel benefits *in addition* to some decent revisions to current WP recognition on domestic travels have to both be considered.

Can I add a +1 to Red Roo's involvement. I don't see QF as a business that engages new media much, unlike NZ & DJ. That's fine, considering the perceived core market demographic for QF is older. But seeing some involvement here is a great step and the most recent post has less of a PR tone to it which will no doubt be better received here.

 

[Princess Fiona]

Interesting that they say partner airlines as well. Seems additional to what was in the adjustments to access the other day (or maybe I just misunderstood)

I thought this was interesting also. I even gave her a scenario of being in Sydney for a meeting and flying OT from T2 afterwards with no QF flight before or after and was told that I would definitely be able to access QP. Unless there is some special treatment for me after complaining to the Big Boss ( but I somehow doubt it)

 

[bossreggie]

WP's and SG's are, no offence, 'leeches' to the QC's as a profit centre. They don't directly contribute a cent to QC's, only paying members do. The more crowded QC's are with paying members, the better it is for them. This 'overcrowding' is just saying the current crowd make-up is wrong - we need more paying members and less of these leeches. If I run the QC line of business and am required to make turn a profit each year, I sure as hell won't want any leeches hanging around...!

Personally.... I would have thought the real "leeches"... IF there are any at all...... Are those who fly 5 times a year DOM in Y and pay the few hundred $$ for QC membership.

My ONE return MEL - LHR in F (Paid) anually would give QF more profit! (Please insert a smiley here)

I'm kinda hoping that this post is a joke or an attemt to stir things up!

 

[markis10]

- 100% points bonus (most flights in .AU are under 1000 miles therefore this is useless).

?

What's flights under 1000 miles got to do with it, your confusing minimum points guarantee with mileage, the 100% bonus kicks in once you hit 500 miles or more, that almost an extra 500 miles on BNE-MEL compared to SG for instance. Pretty much once you go over an hour flying time you in bonus land, thats a lot of routes making the bonus not so useless!

 

[Keith009]

Interesting to hear that some positive changes are in the works. Looks like I made the right decision in adopting a 'wait and see' approach. But I won't get my hopes up too much just yet.

One suggestion that would be most welcome is Companion award redemptions for SGs/WPs - discounted redemption levels on QF metal for 2 or more persons traveling together would be a rather cool way of rewarding loyalty. It was a benefit I very much appreciated as a Senator with LH M&M.

Can I add a +1 to Red Roo's involvement. I don't see QF as a business that engages new media much, unlike NZ & DJ. That's fine, considering the perceived core market demographic for QF is older. But seeing some involvement here is a great step and the most recent post has less of a PR tone to it which will no doubt be better received here.

Their travel magazine does have a rather active Twitter account (@qftravelinsider). But yes generally QF hasn't optimised new media to the same extent as NZ, DJ or even JQ.

 

[Oneworldplus2]

As an example, l am using the "anytime access", right now, in the Perth QP.

FIFO flight from mine was delayed a few hours due to rain and forecast of more rain the last few days, because of this a ticket was not purchased until today. Dirt runway means that a lighter Network Aviation plane can't land if there has been rain, to a certain extent. QF is close to $800+ ONE WAY, PER-SYD tonight. Arrived in PER around 17:30 today, employer has booked me on a JQ red eye to Sydney tonight evil because it's cheaper, like half price.
I can't check-in either as check-in is only open 2 hours prior to departure on JQ flights (as most of you knows on this site already). So, l have put $10 into a luggage locker and am having a few amber ales in the PER QP.

Such is life and being a WP, in this example, is clearly working in my favor. But, things are constantly changing in the QFF scheme.

YMMV

 

[QF029]

Personally.... I would have thought the real "leeches"... IF there are any at all...... Are those who fly 5 times a year DOM in Y and pay the few hundred $$ for QC membership.

How can someone paying the market rate be a leech?

My ONE return MEL - LHR in F (Paid) anually would give QF more profit!

And the relevance is? Most people I know with money don't feel the need to talk about it.

 

[Flashback]

As an example, l am using the "anytime access", right now, in the Perth QP.

FIFO flight from mine was delayed a few hours due to rain and forecast of more rain the last few days, because of this a ticket was not purchased until today. Dirt runway means that a lighter Network Aviation plane can't land if there has been rain, to a certain extent. QF is close to $800+ ONE WAY, PER-SYD tonight. Arrived in PER around 17:30 today, employer has booked me on a JQ red eye to Sydney tonight evil because it's cheaper, like half price.
I can't check-in either as check-in is only open 2 hours prior to departure on JQ flights (as most of you knows on this site already). So, l have put $10 into a luggage locker and am having a few amber ales in the PER QP.

Such is life and being a WP, in this example, is clearly working in my favor. But, things are constantly changing in the QFF scheme.

YMMV

WP wouldn't make a difference here given the onward flight is JQ, a QP NB, QP PS, SG could also access the lounge...

 

[samh004]

Sorry samh004, I feel like a broken record - this situation more realistically represents a way to extract value from the WP, not the guest. Chances are, if the guest is being dropped off by a WP who brings them to the QP, they're unlikely to be flying enough to reach the status / pay for access themselves, or have any incentive to do so. This incentivises the WP, who is flying a lot anyway, to fly more on QF in order to be entitled to provide such access, not the guest (though there may be some peripheral halo effects).

But I don’t think QF wants the WP to fly anymore than they have to in order to provide lounge access for others. The only way they make access available for someone else is through PG and guesting when you are flying. I don’t think they ever intended WP’s to enter the lounge with friends/clients/family when they’re not flying. That should be the friends/clients/families responsibility, should it not?

Maybe that’s rhetorical, it doesn’t need an answer. I think a better tact for Qantas to take would be to confirm arrivals lounge access as a distinct benefit for WP’s, as oppose to the wording they;re using now that just suggests they’ll probably take it away again in the future. the benefit of a domestic arrivals lounge I think would be greatly received, as oppose to what it is now… a compromise, but for how long.

Sorry sam, don't agree with you here.

I fit into category 4 - only fly QF, (except if QF doesn't offer the route I need, and even then I still try and route via QF).

I use anytime access when I take my parents to the airport. They fly maybe 2 or 3 times a year max. Maybe only once. It's nice to be able to take them into the lounge when dropping them at the airport. They are not ever going to be elite status flyers, but it's a nice benefit to be able use given all the flights and money that I've spent with QF.

So is it the end of the world for me - no.

But I am disappointed with the removal of benefits and worry about the next dilution of benefits.

While not meaning to offend people in your position, this really is still taking things too far. I don’t think Qantas should be extending loyalty to your family without actually mentioning it as a benefit.

I don’t think it’s in the spirit of the program.

That being said, if they did add it as a benefit, I’m sure they could implement a system where it would be able to be verified easily and win people in your position back, but I doubt they’d want to then extend it to clients and such. It’s just not in it for them.

IMO of course.

 

[Oneworldplus2]

I think it would as haven't checked in yet. Check in doesn't open until 2 hours prior to flight. The JetStar counter is empty. I have luggage