If you’ve accumulated a stockpile of Virgin Velocity points, you don’t just have to redeem them on Virgin Australia flights! Velocity points can also be transferred across to the Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer program. So, how does this work exactly, and what are the benefits of transferring?
As long as you have an account with both airlines, points can be transferred instantly online. The transfer rate is 1.35:1, and vice versa. This effectively means that there is a 35% “penalty” for transfers between the programs. There is also a minimum amount of 5,000 points per transfer. Otherwise, the process is fairly straightforward.
There are numerous compelling reasons to consider transferring your Velocity points. Despite the 35% “penalty” on transfers, KrisFlyer points are considered by many to be a more valuable currency. Firstly, they come with greater access to a wider selection of seats on Singapore Airlines’ own flights. This includes Singapore Airlines’ popular First Class Suites.
KrisFlyer miles can also be used to fly on any other Star Alliance airline. This opens up almost two dozen airlines not otherwise available for Velocity flight redemptions including Lufthansa, Thai Airways, ANA and United. If you’re struggling to redeem your Velocity points for award flights, this access to greater award availability can be a huge help.
In some cases, the number of KrisFlyer miles required for a Virgin Australia award flight are actually lower than Velocity points required for the same flight. Even after transferring, you could still end up spending fewer Velocity points! This anomaly exists on longer domestic Australian routes around the eastern states, for example from Melbourne to Cairns.
A final advantage of booking with KrisFlyer is that Singapore Airlines offers complimentary stopovers on round-trip award bookings. Virgin Australia does not allow this on Velocity award bookings.
If you have a particular flight redemption in mind, why not compare the value of using both programs?
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