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As you might guess, Virgin Australia is an Australian-based airline. The carrier flies to 33 domestic destinations and 10 international destinations in 8 countries, with hubs in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.
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Velocity is Virgin Australia’s frequent flyer program. Members from the United States can earn points by transferring from partner loyalty programs, flying Virgin Australia or with any of its airline partners, and more. Redemption options include flight awards, upgrades and other travel perks. Keep reading for all the best ways to earn and burn Velocity Points.
| Airline Alliance | None |
| Hub | Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney |
| U.S. Destinations | Los Angeles |
| U.S. Credit Cards | None |
| Transfer Partners | American Express Membership Rewards®, Citi ThankYou® Rewards, HSBC Rewards, Accor Live Limitless, Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors, IHG® Rewards Club, Choice Privileges |
| Redemption Options | Flights, upgrades, hotel stays, rental cars, merchandise, gift cards |
Velocity Elite Status
When you join Velocity, you’ll automatically become a Red member. Above Red are three status tiers: Silver, Gold and Platinum. To move up a tier, you need to collect a certain amount of Status Credits (earned on eligible flights with Virgin Australia and their partner airlines) and a certain number of Eligible Sectors (any flight that begins with a VA flight number, Reward Seats excluded) within any 12 month period:
| STATUS TIER | REQUIREMENTS |
| Silver | 250 Status Credits + 2 Eligible Sectors |
| Gold | 500 Status Credits + 4 Eligible Sectors |
| Platinum | 1,000 Status Credits + 8 Eligible Sectors |
Once you unlock a tier, you’ll have that status for the next 12 months, and you’ll enjoy the following benefits:
| SILVER | GOLD | PLATINUM | |
| Velocity Points bonus | 50% | 75% | 100% |
| Priority check-in | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Priority screening | – | Yes | Yes |
| Priority boarding | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Priority baggage | – | Yes | Yes |
| Upgrades to Business Class on domestic flights | – | – | 4 |
| Virgin Australia Domestic Lounge access | 2 passes | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Access to 150+ international premium lounges | – | Yes | Yes |
| Fly Ahead on an earlier flight | – | Yes | Yes |
| Hilton Honors Diamond membership | – | Yes | Yes |
| IHG Rewards Club Platinum membership | – | Yes | Yes |
| Gift Gold membership | – | – | Yes |
Earning Velocity Points
Compared to Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan, Delta SkyMiles and other frequent flyer programs based in the United States, earning Velocity Points doesn’t come as easily for Americans. That said, it’s not an impossible feat. Let’s go over all the ways to earn Velocity Points below.
Transfer Partners
The best way to earn Velocity Points is through transfer partners. American Express Membership Rewards members can convert their points to Velocity Points at a two to one ratio, with a minimum transfer of 2,000 points.
THE PLATINUM CARD® FROM AMERICAN EXPRESS
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
The Platinum Card® from American Express has a special offer for 100,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 in purchases within your first 6 months.
Membership Rewards® points are some of the most valuable in the market. Redeeming these points by booking travel through American Express or by redeeming for gift cards will give you a standard 1 cent per point value. The 100k bonus points are worth $1,000 going this route.
You can potentially get more value by transferring your points to Membership Rewards travel partners. Using this strategy can get you up to an average value of 2 cents per point. Get around $2,000 in value with 100,000 points this way. Read more on this here.
With this card, earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year.
The biggest drawback to this card is the $695 annual fee (see Rates & Fees, Terms Apply), which puts it in the premium class of credit cards. The card has a market because it offers premium travel benefits, such as 5X points for flights (up to $500,000 on these purchases) and eligible hotels, access to 40+ Centurion Loung and Studio locations worldwide, up to $200 airline fee credit annually, and an annual Walmart+ membership. These benefits are given as statement credits.
For frequent travelers, the added benefits make sense in terms of value and added luxury.
AMERICAN EXPRESS® GOLD CARD
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
The American Express® Gold Card has a welcome bonus for 60,000 Membership Rewards Points when you spend $4,000 within 6 months.
Membership Rewards Points have great flexibility. We value each point to be worth up to an average 2 cents per point. At this value, 60k Membership Rewards Points can be worth up to $1,200.
The Amex Gold Card has plentiful perks. You’ll get:
- Choice between Gold or Rose Gold.
- 4X points at restaurants, including takeouts and deliveries in the U.S.
- 4X points at U.S. supermarkets on up to $25,000 per year in purchases (1X thereafter)
- 3X points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com
- Up to $120 in annual dining credits (get up to $10 monthly statement credits)
- No foreign transaction fees
The annual fee is $250. See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply.
THE BUSINESS PLATINUM CARD® FROM AMERICAN EXPRESS
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express has a welcome offer for 80,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $15,000 on qualifying purchases within your first 3 months of Card Membership. We value 80k points to be worth around $1,600.
This card earns 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel (amextravel.com). Also earn 1.5X Membership Rewards® points on eligible purchases in key business categories, as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more everywhere else. Cap applies.
This is a premium business card with a $695 annual fee. See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply.
AMERICAN EXPRESS® BUSINESS GOLD CARD
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
For a limited time, the American Express Business Gold Card has an offer for 70,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $10,000 on eligible purchases within the first 3 months of Card Membership.
This card earns 4 Membership Rewards points per $1 spent on 2 select categories where your business spent the most each month. These 4X points are capped at the first $150,000 in combined purchases from these 2 categories each calendar year.
Other card benefits include an Airline Bonus, where you’ll get 25% points back after you redeem points for all or part of an eligible flight booked with Amex Travel. This is capped at up to 250,000 points back per calendar year.
The annual fee is $295 for this card. See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply.
Other transfer partners include:
| REWARDS PROGRAM | TRANSFER RATIO |
| Citi ThankYou® Rewards | 2:1 (Citi Prestige/Citi Premier) 2.5:1 (Citi Rewards/Citi Classic/Citi Gold) |
| HSBC Rewards | 2:1 |
| Accor Live Limitless (ALL) | 1:1 |
| Choice Privileges | 2,000:800 |
| Hilton Honors | 10,000:1,500 |
| IHG Rewards Club | 10,000:2,000 |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 3:1* |
| Shangri-La Golden Circle | 1:1 |
*With a 5,000-point bonus for every 60,000 points transferred.
Flights
Earn Velocity Points when you fly with Virgin Australia and the following airline partners:
- Air Canada
- Alitalia
- Capital Airlines
- Delta Air Lines
- Etihad Airways
- FlyPelican
- Hainan Airlines
- Hawaiian Airlines
- Hong Kong Airlines
- Singapore Airlines
- South African Airways
- Tianjin Airlines
- Virgin Atlantic
Other Ways
Other ways that U.S. residents can earn Velocity Points include:
- Booking hotel stays directly with Velocity hotel partners.
- Booking rental cars with Europcar, Hertz and Thrifty.
- Booking cruises with Cruisepilot.
- Completing online surveys with e-Rewards.
There are more options to earn Velocity Points, but they’re not relevant to those living in the United States.
Redeeming Velocity Points
Velocity Points are often used for award flights with Virgin Australia and partner airlines. Velocity provides a Mileage Calculator so you can easily determine the number of Points you need for a particular redemption.
You can also redeem for:
- Flight extras, like lounge passes, extra baggage, upgrades and even carbon offset.
- Hotel stays via the Velocity Frequent Flyer hotel portal.
- Car rentals with Europcar.
- Virgin Australia gift cards.
More redemption options are available, but they’re not applicable to Americans.
Velocity Points Expiration
Velocity Points expire after 24 months of inactivity. To avoid points expiration, make sure to earn or burn some at least every two years.
Velocity Important Information
Extended status. Velocity is extending most status memberships by one year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Certain individuals will also receive bonus Status Credits.
Change fees waived. Virgin Australia will waive any fees for changes you make to your award ticket for travel up to January 31, 2022. Changes must be made before the date of travel or by January 31, 2022, whichever is first.
Family Pooling. This benefit allows you to pool your family members Status Credits into one account, so you can reach the next status tier faster. You can also pool your Velocity Points to redeem sooner.
Parental Leave. This perk lets you pause your Silver, Gold or Platinum membership for six months if you’re expecting a new addition to your family.
Bottom Line
Although Virgin Australia isn’t the most valuable frequent flyer program out there, it does offer an easy way to “earn” points by transferring from popular rewards programs, such American Express Membership Rewards®, Citi ThankYou® Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy.
You might also want to look at Qantas Frequent Flyer. Qantas is another Australia-based carrier.
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