QFF in Singapore

[sydflyer]

hi all. i'll be relocating to Singapore for a couple of years (at least). am wondering whether anyone here lives in Singapore? is it worthwhile retaining QFF WP, or should i move to KrisFlyer? my thinking is that when MAS is a full OW member my opportunities to earn and use points will increase.

 

[Isochronous]

Depends on how often you intend travelling to Australia or LHR.

The real initiative they need to grow the strong QFF business is to create card partnerships with issuers in SIN and HKG given those places have QF flagship lounges, which shows QF is committed to those ports long-term. You'll be surprised at the great deals you can get in the SIN credit card market.

 

[sydflyer]

Yep, i have done some research and there are no QFF linked credit cards available not even Amex.

Depends on how often you intend travelling to Australia or LHR.

The real initiative they need to grow the strong QFF business is to create card partnerships with issuers in SIN and HKG given those places have QF flagship lounges, which shows QF is committed to those ports long-term. You'll be surprised at the great deals you can get in the SIN credit card market.

 

[AnonymousCoward]

Been based in SG the last few years - in the process of moving back to Aus now.

Unless you're travelling back to Aus (or onto LHR), I'm not sure that QFF is worth it. There's opportunities to earn on 3K, but lounges are pretty rare, and there's no status perks on 3K.

If you're flying J/F, then SQ has PPS, which is worth getting. Otherwise you can look at other *A partners to get *G (rather than SQ), and get lounge access quicker than via SQ's program.

IMHO, CC aren't particularly good value in Singapore (well, no better than Aus). For earning points there's Citibank PremierMiles and DBS Altitude Amex (and now Visa IIRC). HSBC has a Visa Infinite card which may be worth getting for the car transfers to/from the airport, plus Jet Quay (CIP) lounge access. Note that CC protection in SG is quite a bit less than in Aus (e.g. from what I've heard charge backs can be a real PITA to organise). The only airline partners that I know of in SG are SQ, TG and CX. No card transfers to anyone else.

 

[Simo]

Biggest thing i can see is if you can travel on QF it will be very much worth keeping.

 

[Awesom Andy]

It depends on a lot of factors. e.g. if lounges are important to you, then you'll find that SQ's lounge for star gold doesn't even have showers or toilets (although they have much better lounges if you are flying J/F). For flights back to AU, you'll find that SQ has a much more extensive schedule to the main cities. SQ also charges a bit of a premium in its home market as well.

 

[ajca]

It depends on whether you mostly fly Y or J/F.

If you mostly fly Y then your WP status will be useful for lounge access, points earn, seat selection, and potentially upgrades. Also Qantas and SQ are pretty similar in product so you might as well go with the one that gets you the most status perks. Stick with Qantas / OW then you'll be able to use your WP perks, and points earn from credit card may be easier.

If you mostly fly in J or above then I would definitely move to Singapore Airlines / KrisFlyer. In my opinion SQ's product (especially on 77W and 380) is far better than Qantas's, and I would argue that status is pretty much irrelevant when you're flying on SQ J class. Over the past few months I have taken many SQ J flights as a non-status passenger and found it exceptionally comfortable and easy, and I haven't missed any my QF WP status perks at all.* In fact when I make it to PPS on my next flight I think will make zero noticeable difference to the travelling experience.

Plus out of Singapore SQ / *A has a big frequency advantage over QF / OW to almost anywhere you would want to go.

I live in Australia but spend a lot of time in Singapore, and I have moved 100% of my international travel to SQ. I still fly Qantas domestic though.

* And I certainly haven't missed Qantas as an airline either, especially the badly designed Skybeds where you get woken up three times by the slobbering drunk in the seat next to you. That's why I absolutely love SQ's 1-2-1 layout and especially the privacy of the window seats