Fly Qantas and Virgin Australia for Less: Discover the Best Airline Loyalty Program

Looking For An Airline Loyalty Program That Allows You To Fly Both Qantas And Virgin Australia Using Points And Miles, And Often For Far Less?

Do you know that using the points or miles from an airline's loyalty program is not the only way to fly that airline using points and miles?

So using Qantas Frequent Flyer Qantas Points is not the only way to fly Qantas using points and miles. And using Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer Velocity Points is not the only way to fly Virgin Australia using points and miles.

What Airline Loyalty Programs Can Be Used To Fly Qantas Using Points And Miles?

Many airline loyalty programs can be used to fly Qantas using points and miles, the main ones being:

• Qantas Frequent Flyer
• Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
• American Airlines Aadvantage
• British Airways Executive Club
• Cathay Pacific Cathay
• Malaysia Airlines Enrich
• Qatar Airways Privilege Club
• Air France-KLM Flying Blue
• Emirates Skywards and,
• Loyalty programs of any other Oneworld airlines.

What Airline Loyalty Programs Can Be Used To Fly Virgin Australia Using Points And Miles?

Many airline loyalty programs can be used to fly Virgin Australia using points and miles, the main ones being:

• Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer
• Qatar Airways Privilege Club
• Air Canada Aeroplan
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club and,
• Etihad Airways Etihad Guest

What Airline Loyalty Program Can Be Used To Fly Both Qantas And Virgin Australia Using Points And Miles?

As you can see, there is one, and only one, airline loyalty program that can be used to fly both Qantas and Virgin Australia using points and miles, and that’s Qatar Airways Privilege Club.

A check of Pointr #1081 (Use Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios To Fly Other Airlines) soon confirms this and also tells you all the airlines you can fly using Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios, namely:

• Oneworld airlines – Qatar Airways, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Royal Air Maroc, Royal Jordanian, SriLankan Airlines and Fiji Airways.
• Partner airlines - Bangkok Airways, JetBlue, Latam Airlines, MEA, Oman Air, Rwand Air, S7 Airlines and Virgin Australia.

Note that Qatar Airways Privilege Club calls their points Avios. 

So, What Does All This Mean?

All this means instead of having your points spread across both Qantas Frequent Flyer and Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer, you can have your points in just one airline loyalty program, Qatar Airways Privilege Club, and then use these points to fly either Qantas or Virgin Australia.

The downside is that there will probably be fewer Qantas seats available compared to Qantas Frequent Flyer and fewer Virgin Australia seats available compared to Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer. You also need to contact Qatar Airways customer service to book Qantas flights.

The upside is that with many cities being serviced by both airlines, you can choose to fly either Qantas or Virgin Australia, meaning the combined number of seats across both airlines may be higher.

Fly For Less, And Sometimes Far Less

A big advantage of using Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios is that it is often cheaper, and sometimes far cheaper, compared to using Qantas Frequent Flyer Qantas Points or Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer Velocity Points, especially for short-haul flights.

Here's some examples.

Pointr #6133: Fly Sydney to Melbourne Business Return with Qantas (non-stop)

    • Use Qantas Frequent Flyer and pay 36,800 Qantas Points

    • Use Qatar Airways Privilege Club and pay only 25,000 Avios

Pointr #12325: Fly Melbourne to Fiji Economy Return with Virgin Australia (non-stop)

    • Use Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer and pay 44,600 Velocity Points

    • Use Qatar Airways Privilege Club and pay only 26,000 Avios

Pointr #6241: Fly Sydney to Auckland Business Return with Qantas (non-stop)

    • Use Qantas Frequent Flyer and pay 83,000 Qantas Points

    • Use Qatar Airways Privilege Club and pay only 44,000 Avios

Pointr #6385: Fly Brisbane to Bali Economy Return with Virgin Australia (non-stop)

    • Use Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer and pay 44,600 Velocity Points

    • Use Qatar Airways Privilege Club and pay only 26,000 Avios

Pointr #6192: Fly Melbourne to Perth Business Return with Qantas (non-stop)

    • Use Qantas Frequent Flyer and pay 83,000 Qantas Points

    • Use Qatar Airways Privilege Club and pay only 44,000 Avios

How Do I Earn Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios?

Earning Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios is not difficult, and in many ways no more difficult than earning Qantas Frequent Flyer Qantas Points and Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer Velocity Points.

Here are the main ways of earning Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios:

    • Through flying, credit cards, hotels, shopping, dining and more

    • By buying Avios – refer to Pointr #1005

    • By transferring Avios from other members’ accounts – refer to Pointr #6063

    • By transferring Avios from British Airways Executive Club – refer to Pointr #1126

    • By transferring points from American Express Membership Rewards – refer to Pointrs #1101, #1102, #1103 and #1104.

    • By transferring points from Commbank Awards – refer to Pointr #1095

    • By transferring points from Citi Rewards (Prestige) – refer to Pointr #1182

    • By transferring points from Marriott Bonvoy – refer to Pointr #1094

    • By transferring points from Hilton Honors – refer to Pointr #1170

    • By transferring points from Accor ALL – refer to Pointr #1171

    • By transferring points from World Of Hyatt – refer to Pointr #1172

Refer to Pointr #1002 for to find out how to transfer points and miles from other loyalty programs to Qatar Airways Privilege Club, along with the transfer rates.

How Do I Know How Many Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios I Need For A Flight And How To Earn Them?

For a particular flight, knowing how many Avios you need and how to earn them is simple. Simply choose Qatar Airways Privilege Club as the loyalty program to find out how many Avios you need and then click on “Earn Points/Miles” to find out how to earn them.

Here’s an example of how to earn the 6,000 Avios required for Sydney to Melbourne economy one-way with Qantas: 

Qatar Airways Privilege Club Promotions

When buying Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios or transferring points and miles from other loyalty programs to Qatar Airways Privilege Club, check your emails and dashboard for promotions that allow you to receive discounts or bonuses, such as these:

These promotions happen frequently and are well worth taking advantage of, especially if you have flights in mind.

Best Credit Cards To Use To Earn Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios

If you’re looking for the best credit cards for earning Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios, look no further than Pointrs #8827 and #8828.

American Express Platinum Card

The American Express Platinum Card earns 1 American Express Membership Rewards (Ascent Premium) point for every $1 spent at ATO and government bodies, uncapped and 2.25 American Express Membership Rewards (Ascent Premium) points for every $1 spent on other eligible purchases, uncapped.

You can transfer American Express Membership Rewards (Ascent Premium) points to Qatar Airways Privilege Club at the rate of 2:1, resulting in 0.5 or 1.125 Avios for every $1 spent, and usually 1.125. 1.125 is at least 50% more than you generally earn with Visa and Mastercard.

If you don't already have an American Express Platinum Card, you can apply for one below, and possibly earn a generous sign-on bonus at the same time.

Apply for an American Express Platinum Card here

American Express Platinum Business Card

The American Express Platinum Business Card earns 1 American Express Membership Rewards (Ascent Premium) point for every $1 spent at ATO and government bodies, uncapped and 2.25 American Express Membership Rewards (Ascent Premium) points for every $1 spent on other eligible purchases, uncapped.

You can transfer American Express Membership Rewards (Ascent Premium) points to Qatar Airways Privilege Club at the rate of 2:1, resulting in 0.5 or 1.125 Avios for every $1 spent, and usually 1.125. 1.125 is at least 50% more than you generally earn with Visa and Mastercard.

If you don't already have an American Express Platinum Business Card, you can apply for one below, and possibly earn a generous sign-on bonus at the same time.

Apply for an American Express Platinum Business Card here.

Happy and safe travels!