UpgradeMe pricing and success

[simmomelb]

Haha I was thinking the same.
Suck it up buddy, you'll be fine, it's not that bad in the big picture, and all J seats are good
Although it is nice to vent sometimes, I know that feeling.

 

[kyle]

Hmm, compared to some of the issues some people have had over recent times, most notably on QF your problem does seem to be on the lighter side.

I know we all have a preference in VA J cabin, but really all the same.... Flight changed to 15min later with a further 15min delay, all while you're sitting in the lounge?

Life can be tough.

Not really complaining, but I'm only there for the day, so every minute counts!

Post automatically merged: Feb 10, 2023

Haha I was thinking the same.
Suck it up buddy, you'll be fine, it's not that bad in the big picture, and all J seats are good
Although it is nice to vent sometimes, I know that feeling.

It's alright. Arrived safely that's the important thing.

 

[kyle]

Oh this might be a PITA. The return flight from SYD already posted in Velocity but the rescheduled flight going there with the upgrade me is not. Needed the sector before end of Feb to keep gold.

 

[MooTime]

Oh this might be a PITA. The return flight from SYD already posted in Velocity but the rescheduled flight going there with the upgrade me is not. Needed the sector before end of Feb to keep gold.

It'll land just as you did.

I don't recall being on an upgrade flight so unsure of the SC & sector time scale landing in my account.

 

[kyle]

It'll land just as you did.

I don't recall being on an upgrade flight so unsure of the SC & sector time scale landing in my account.

Yeah the points for the return flight pretty much landed not long after arrival.

But the flight going there... landed in SYD 24 hours ago

 

[odysseus]

Oh this might be a PITA. The return flight from SYD already posted in Velocity but the rescheduled flight going there with the upgrade me is not. Needed the sector before end of Feb to keep gold.

It's fine. The credits and sectors are counted based on when flown/earnt, not when credited. That's why they give the extra month of grace on your account for validity, to allow late credits/sectors to come through without impacting your status.

 

[ecole16]

VA1528 SYD-HBA 20 March
Original fare $149 choice
Min bid $80
Actual bid $85
Successful -T25

Ends up totalling $234 for a 1hr 55min flight in J. Pretty damn cheap considering the cheapest available J ticket at time of upgrade was $555ish

 

[JK1964]

VA741 MEL - OOL
minimumum bid $120
bid $125 successful at -T18

 

[JK1964]

VA741 MEL - OOL
minimumum bid $120
bid $125 successful at -T18

Shame it wasn’t worth it. Service was indifferent, offhanded and bordering on disinterested. Complete opposite of flight down to MEL. Should’ve saved $250 and stayed in row 3.

 

[BRIS_VA_HAWK]

Shame it wasn’t worth it. Service was indifferent, offhanded and bordering on disinterested. Complete opposite of flight down to MEL. Should’ve saved $250 and stayed in row 3.

Submit feedback, tell VA as much. If they don't know, they can't fix it.

 

[Buzzard]

Shame it wasn’t worth it. Service was indifferent, offhanded and bordering on disinterested. Complete opposite of flight down to MEL. Should’ve saved $250 and stayed in row 3.

I've previously mentioned having a similar experience and should have stayed in row 3 too.

 

[simmomelb]

I travel bus class around once a month, probably once in every 10 flights are average customer service wise, but I just put it down to, people are people and not always in the mood to make you feel special (I know I have these days).
Perhaps I'm too forgiving?
I think this ratio was much the same as when I used to fly with QF J.
I still enjoy the comfort for domestic flights.
I fly in row 3 quite often (more than J) and it is quite good as an alternative for a great amount of leg room, but there are obvious differences (usually).

 

[Bagpuss]

I've previously mentioned having a similar experience and should have stayed in row 3 too.

Yup I've commented on this prior. My last business class experience was a queue of economy passenger through the business cabin, a person from the flight deck PLUS three cabin crew all talking to a an "economy passenger" at the front entrance. (I think leaving 1 person in the coughpit and 1 crew at the rear.)

So many flights the crew talk at the front of the aircraft can be annoying. There should be one crew there at all times, otherwise go to the rear for a chit chat.

Nearly every flight in business I have to press the call button for a drink or a snack. In business class I feel the crew should be walking through scanning people's drinks every 20 minutes.

An upcoming business class flight which I used to points to upgrade I downgraded back to economy row 3. The flight I downgraded was Sydney - Perth and didnt think it's worth the 30,000 points (no charges being plat to downgraded, a benefit I didnt know existed until I looked it up).

The reality is that being Perth when you look at economy rewards vs business class rewards it's double the points and when you think being platinum and can get row 3, the difference is purely the toilet, onboard food and a wider seat. I'd sooner spend $50 on food drink inflight (remember lounge access on departure and arrival if still open on arrival) and save the points or double the about of flights.

I appreciate there's a cost point here. If you paying $200 for a business flight is one thing, but from Perth to the East Coast you are looking at $1,500 / $1,700 ... And yes Qantas is more expensive, but to me it's just below par.

I've laid some pretty serious complaints recently to Virgin and Velocity numerous times, they just use template email responses and can contradict which I've also reported back to them. The service level at the moment is the lowest it's ever been in my opinion.

As a plat row 3 atm, you know what to expect and I've never had a bad experience in line with expectations, just annoying walking to the back for the toilet which of course fully aware of at time of booking.

NOTE : On one flight in business the cabin crew I noticed on the paper they were writing at underneath each section (for each seat) they had "VIP" / "PLAT" or was blank. I'm plat but had "VIP" and have no idea why I was "VIP". Though my service was no different to anyone else.

 

[simmomelb]

Edit. Misread.

Some great points with your post!! Have you given any of this feedback to them? I think it's important that we all pass on feedback.
I don't mind if 2 are at the front, so long as they are checking on passengers in J often, if not, then yes, this becomes annoying.

 

[Bagpuss]

Edit. Misread.

Some great points with the rest of your post!! Have you given any of this feedback to them?

If you are referring to my post. Yes I have to very high up employees and kinda gave up as no real outcome was foreseen.

 

[simmomelb]

If you are referring to my post. Yes I have to very high up employees and kinda gave up as no real outcome was foreseen.

Was that online? This is probably your best bet, I believe this goes into their monthly reports for staff/managers to review. But good on you for letting them know either way

It's funny you mentioned the Plat and VIP on the napkin, only a few days back I was sitting in row 3 and the cabin manager spoke with me by name (and 1 other passenger at the beginning and end
of the flight) to thank us for our loyalty and how they truly appreciate our business, and if there was anything he could do for us, just to let him know - got some little extras. I was a little shocked and pleasantly surprised, as I have never seen this before (I'm Plat).
This must be something new they are doing at their discretion.

 

[Bagpuss]

Was that online? This is probably your best bet, I believe this goes into their monthly reports for staff/managers to review. But good on you for letting them know either way

Via the CEO of Virgin Australia

 

[1022]

BNK-SYD VA1142
Min offer $60
Successful bid $70 cleared at T-25

I agree with sentiments that VA J service is often patchy these days. I’ve noticed a lot of very young looking CMs and the trend has been the younger they look, the lower the level of service personalisation or intuitive gestures like topups just at the right moment that their more senior counterparts (on VA and also QF) just seem to nail much of the time.

Maybe there’s been a recent big round of promotions to CM and a lot of them still have a VA (quasi LCC) Y service mentality, despite whatever training VA offers CMs. I’m sure it takes time to hone the craft of anticipating customers’ needs and making them feel welcome and valued. It amazes me that some crew can do it so very well in even the most mundane interaction like offering a PDB or checkin a seatbelt.

But having relatively little experience is no excuse for disappearing down the back for a good 15-20 minutes of a one hour flight after trays have been cleared or not asking a single passenger if an empty glass should be refilled. Both have happened on recent flights. (I had the opposite on a recent QF flight where I was questioning whether the crew had totally forgotten their RSA training. They simply wouldn’t take no for an answer and loved to chat )

 

[twinaisle]

But having relatively little experience is no excuse for disappearing down the back for a good 15-20 minutes of a one hour flight after trays have been cleared

I find that hard to believe as if it's a 1 hour flight you Technically have around 20-30 minutes for the service as it's usually around 5 minutes climb and cruise (can be longer) Y service takes at least 20 mins and descent takes from 20 mins.

You literally cannot dissapear for 20 minutes on an hour's flight. Maybe the CM went to help clear in the rubbish in Y after they finish the service to give the crew a chance to have a quick bite.

Sometimes some crew may leave your glass empty for a little bit if you're drinking too fast due to RSA. One drink in the air is equal to two on the ground.

 

[simmomelb]

But having relatively little experience is no excuse for disappearing down the back for a good 15-20 minutes of a one hour flight

I don't mean to be blunt, but I very much doubt this happens.

It is also an airline requirement to have a crew member at the front of commercial aircraft in Australia (for this aircraft capacity) and the crew are well-trained in this.

I fly around once per week with VA either in bus or row 3/4 and have never witnessed this.