Gold status

I will be flying regularly (as of this year) on both virgin and SQ (equally) and will achieve gold status on either the virgin or SQ krisflyer programs in the next few months.

I would be grateful if soemone could tell me whether its better to attain gold status on SQ or VS. The reason I ask is that the benefits on virgin gold seem more geared to those with families (which i don't have!) or perhaps those flying economy where they would have priority for upgrade, UC check in and lounge access. I always travel business class whether on business or vacation and am unsure whether there is much benefit to me choosing to be a gold card holder on virgin's program compared with SQ?

[mitchja]

Hello Bizflyer and welcome to V-Flyer

Only been a VS Au card holder I cannot really comment on Gold KrisFlyer, however, here are the comparisions between the 2 programs:

VS Flying Club Gold

SQ Gold KrisFlyer

To me there seem more benifits with VS FC AU certainly if you are Uk based. I do like the 25% extra miles you get on all VS routes with FC Au.

VS also seen to have better redemption levels as well for spending miles on reward flights.

Just my take on the 2 programs though.

Regards

Still, an SQ gold = Star Alliance lounge access (a true plus for the best worldwide airline alliance!).

But, then again, you don't have the Virgin touch!

Best Regards,
A Very Jealous Flyer

Originally posted by bizflyer
the benefits on virgin gold seem more geared to those with families..

Wow - maybe you're seeing something I can't but I would never have said this. I'm not sure I find the scheme quite as unbias to families as I once did but certainly not geared towards.

To me I would second James's views about the 25% bonus and better redemption levels. But ultimately I guess it's going to depend on where you're based as to which airline you achive AU status on.

Happy Travels.

Phil (Buffy)

A* Gold status has been easy to get in the last few years though with status matching..

VS have (mostly) resisted the urge to do this..

I have a BD *A card (that I'll only use for lounge access)
as its not useful for much else!! (See FT for details of the BD changes!)

Originally posted by Jonathan
A* Gold status has been easy to get in the last few years though with status matching..

How does this work then?

Paul

[mitchja]

Paul

In the last 2 years *A (Star Alliance) have done promotions were they will match your current status of another airlines FF program. So if you are FC Au or Ag (or any other airline) they will issue you with 12 months of the equivalent status in their FF program. You were able to choose which *A program you wanted to either join from scratch or upgrade your existing status on. I too went for BD Gold as I was already a Silver member (not that it's worth much now though [:I])

All you had to do was fax them proof of your other airlines status and hey presto!!

Regards

The word d'oh springs to mind!!

Still im sure another promotion will be out next year!

Originally posted by p17blo

Originally posted by Jonathan
A* Gold status has been easy to get in the last few years though with status matching..

How does this work then?

Paul

*A have done a series of promotions where they will give you gold status to match your gold status in any non-*A airline. So many VS golds matched their status on the last promotion, and became *A golds. The promotion now seems to be becoming an annual event. See the AIRLINES forum for more info.

Also if you contact many of the *A airlines and tell them you are a VS gold they will then match it. I just managed this with Thai.

The arguement goes that with the dilution of the *A scheme by so many members who have not really worked to achieve their status, the scheme becomes devalued. I suspect this is what Jonathan was implying by saying he will use it for lounge access because a *A gold is not worth much else.

99

*A Gold is great as you get the extra millage bonuses etc

Unfortunately my choice of status match partner was poor as British Midland have changed many aspects of their program..

Still it cost me nothing to get so im not that gutted!!

So how would I go about getting mine matched? Do I ask to speak to one of the *A frequent flyer team?

Paul

Paul,
There were a few online matching promotions this year, however they've all ended now..
You can still get matched but you'd need to send a letter to the *A carrier of your choice...
Theres no guarantees of course but many airlines are happy to poach golds. Bear in mind though this strategy works once per airline so you want to make sure you will use the perks in that year!!

Otherwise wait for another offer to come out!

Theres a great thread on Flyertalk that covers various ways of getting matched that you may wish to read!

This is my first post on V-Flyer and I have chosen to revive an existing thread rather than start a new one on a similar topic, please mention if this is not the accepted protocol.

I fly MIA-LHR a half dozen times per year. Typically Upper Class, but I expect I will sometimes book Premium Economy on the westbound return. It has been my intention to earn Gold status before beginning to redeem miles for awards, but now I wonder if it would be better strategy to redeem whenever there is "G" class availability and not worry about status? Are there many "undocumented" benefits of Gold status that should influence my decision?

Also, I made one mistake. Early in 2005 I purchased a CO "Z" class ticket because it was cheaper than the VS fare, without realizing that this could not earn Virgin tier points. Has anyone succeeded in achieving Gold status with only 30 points by pointing out that they had actually flown another UC return on a CO ticket?

dennis

[mcmbenjamin]

Dennis:

Firstly Welcome to V-Flyer!

Originally posted by SW15 and 33134
This is my first post on V-Flyer and I have chosen to revive an existing thread rather than start a new one on a similar topic, please mention if this is not the accepted protocol.

Wow - Yes is is correct protocol. Makes things easier IMHO.

Hmm - My answer is circlaur. There are undocumented benefits of Au such as the possiblity of having G class openned for you. But that assumes you have gold.

Also with Au status you would be able to access the clubhouses when traveling Y and PE.

Benjamin

{edited - preiffer : corrected references from "Ag" to "Au" - Gold}

I do place some value on the Gold "departure amenities"...

Upper Class check-in
Fast track security
Lounge access

...but obviously these are available without regard to status when flying Upper Class. I find myself in the psychologically paradoxical predicament of needing to fly in Upper Class to earn status so that I can then fly in Premium Economy [n].

Originally posted by mcmbenjamin
able to access the clubhouses when traveling ... PE.

Benjamin

Back to the original post. If you're flying to SIN a lot, then you might wish to consider this. As a VS AU holder, you'll gain only a 25% AU bonus; most Star carriers and I think SQ is included within this, offer a 100% gold-tier bonus. Certainly worth it. Having the option to redeem miles on the Star Alliance rather than on VS's network is also a major benefit. As a US AU member, I have quite some difficulty redeeming miles (as noted in other threads). The decision should really be about three things:

1. Pre/During trip benefits (such as possible upgrades, priority checkin, lounge access etc)
2. Mileage awards (bonus miles associated with status etc)
3. Milesage redemption options.

You need to decide which scheme offers the best for you against these details.