20 Best Ways to Earn Lots of Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer Points [2018]

BY 

Jennifer Koebele

- March 16, 2017October 31, 2018

1. Earn Points  / 
2. Earn Airline Points

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Virgin Australia Velocity has a stellar reputation among airline loyalty programs. It recently won several awards at the Freddie Awards, including Program of the Year and Best Customer Service from travelers and frequent flyer members.

Velocity members earn points with the program’s many travel and non-travel partners. Velocity Points can be redeemed for free flights and upgrades, hotel stays, car rentals, and a long list of other options at the Velocity Rewards Store.

By the time you finish this guide, you will be prepared to earn as many points as possible in the Velocity program. So, start thinking now about those redemptions!

Virgin Australia Velocity Frequent Flyer Program

1.  Join the Velocity Frequent Flyer Program

Virgin Australia Velocity members earn miles for travel on Virgin Australia and their international airline partners, as well as for using the program’s many global partners. Join free using the information on your passport.

2. Book a Flight on Virgin Australia

As a Velocity member, you’ll earn 5 points per $1 spent on Virgin Australia Domestic fares.

Plus, Platinum, Gold, and Silver members in the elite program (which we’ll discuss in a second) receive bonuses of 100%, 75%, and 50% respectively (not including Domestic Getaway fares).

International flights are worth up to 2 Velocity Points per mile.

Here is the chart for points earned on long-haul international flights:

Here is the chart for points earned for short-haul international flights:

3. Fly a Partner Airline

Virgin Australia’s partner airlines fly to over 600 destinations and offer up to 2 Velocity Points per mile. As with most airline loyalty programs, members can’t earn points for reward seats.

Click on an airline for terms and conditions.

4. Elite Status Credits

While you’re busy earning Velocity Points for flying Virgin Australia and partner airlines, you will also be accruing status credits.

With enough status credits you can achieve Silver, Gold, and Platinum status, and earn some terrific benefits (like bonus points!) when you fly.

One great thing about the Velocity program is that they assess member status credits daily, so you can be upgraded right away!

Here are the requirements for each status, as well as the bonus points you can earn at each level:

How fast can you move up to a higher status?

The number of status credits earned is determined by the airline, fare type, and distance flown. Domestic, international, short-haul, and long-haul tables are posted here. Status credits are valid for 12 months from the flight date.

Another method for earning elite status credits is by enrolling in the FlyBuys program and using the card for special savings.

Unfortunately, the FlyBuys program is not open to members in the U.S., just those in Australia. But it’s a great strategy for Australian travelers to earn up to 10 elite status credits a month!

5. Sharing Velocity Benefits

With Platinum status, you have the option of sharing your Velocity benefits and rewards with friends or family.

Here’s how it works:

You must earn the required status credits to maintain Platinum within the 12-month period. If you accrue an additional 500 status credits on top of that, you can gift Gold membership to someone else.

Accrue an additional 1,000 status credits, and you can gift Platinum membership!

Earning Points With Credit Card Partners

6. Virgin Australia Co-Branded Cards

There are 9 Virgin Australia co-branded credit cards available in Australia, which is super for Australian members who want to earn Velocity Points quickly.

However, no Virgin Australia credit cards are currently available in the U.S. and Canada. The good news is, there are plenty of other credit cards you can use to end up with Velocity Points faster.

Keep reading to find out all the options!

7. Hilton Honors Credit Cards

Another hotel loyalty program that lets you transfer points is Hilton Honors. Turn 10,000 Hilton Honors Points into 1,500 Velocity Points.

Choose from these co-branded cards to earn Hilton Honors Points:

CREDIT CARD	CARD INFO
Hilton Honors American Express Ascend Card	Earn 125,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $2,000 in purchases within your first 3 months of Card Membership. Plus, earn a free weekend night after you spend $15,000 on purchases on your card in a calendar year. 12X on qualifying purchases with hotels from the Hilton portfolio. Earn 6X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases on your Card at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations. Terms. Annual Fee: $95
Hilton Honors American Express Card	Earn 75,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after spending $1,000 within your first 3 months after approval. 7X points on qualifying purchases with hotels from the Hilton portfolio. Terms. Annual Fee: $0
Hilton Honors Aspire Card	Earn 100,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points Earn 14x Hilton Honors bonus points when you make eligible purchases on your Card at participating hotels or resorts within the Hilton Portfolio. Terms. Annual Fee: $450

8. Marriott-SPG Credit Cards

You can earn Marriott points and transfer those to Virgin Australia at a transfer rate of 3:1. Plus, for every 60,000 Marriott points that you transfer, you’ll receive an extra 5,000 Virgin Australia miles bonus.

Recommended Marriott-SPG Cards

SPG-MARRIOTT CARDS	CARD BENEFITS & INFO
Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express	Earn 75,000 bonus points after you make $3,000 in purchases in your first 3 months. Earn 6 points for each dollar of eligible purchases at participating SPG® and Marriott Rewards® hotels and 2 points on all other eligible purchases. Terms. $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $95.
Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express	Earn 75,000 bonus points after you make $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 3 months of Card Membership. Earn 6 points for each dollar of eligible purchases at over 6,700 participating SPG® and Marriott Rewards® hotels across 29 brands. Free Boingo Wi-Fi & Free Wi-Fi at SPG participating hotels. Terms. $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $95.
Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus Credit Card	Earn 75,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. Free Night Award (valued up to 35,000 points) every year after account anniversary. Earn 6 points per $1 spent at participating Marriott Rewards & SPG hotels. Annual Fee: $95

Virgin Australia Transfer Partners

9. Transfer KrisFlyer Miles

KrisFlyer, the loyalty program for Singapore Airlines, is a Velocity transfer partner.

All you have to do is link your Velocity and KrisFlyer accounts, and you’ll be able to convert Velocity Points and KrisFlyer Miles between them.

There’s a minimum of 5,000 points per conversion. Here are the conversion rates:

10. Hotel Loyalty Program Transfers

Here are several other hotel loyalty programs that enable transfers to Velocity.

Here are credit cards you could use to earn more points in Choice and IHG:

Earn Velocity Points With Travel Partners

11. Velocity Hotel Partners

Earn Velocity Points for hotel stays both within and outside of Australia. This is just a sample of the more than 600,000 hotels in over 37,000 cities around the world that participate in the program.

Search the complete list here.

12. Hotel Conferences and Events

Book a conference or other event at a Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts property within or outside of Australia and earn 20,000 Velocity Points.

You can also earn up to 65,000 Velocity Points for events held at the following Langham Hospitality Group properties internationally:

• Eaton Hotels
• Langham Place Hotels and Resorts
• The Langham Hotels and Resorts

13. Virgin Australia Holidays

Dreaming of a holiday in Australia, New Zealand, Asia, North America, or the Pacific? Allow Virgin Australia Holidays to create the perfect trip and you’ll earn 3 points per $1 spent.

Plus, if you have Silver, Gold, or Platinum status you will get your 50%-100% bonus too!

14. Use Cruisepilot To Book Cruises

Book a cruise and earn Velocity Points! Cruisepilot is a Virgin Australia Velocity partner. Enjoy discounts and specials offered to Velocity members throughout the year when you book through Cruisepilot.

15. Car Rental Agencies

With over 12,000 agencies to choose from worldwide, you can easily earn Velocity Points with your next car rental. See the chart below for details:

16. Airport Parking and Car Services

Select from a variety of airport parking and car service partners in Australia and increase your Velocity Points balance.

17. Book Pet Travel

Bring your cat or dog on your next Virgin Australia domestic flight and earn Velocity Points. You’ll even earn bonus points if you’re a Silver, Gold, or Platinum member.

Here are the points you can earn:

If you’d rather Jetpets handle the arrangements transporting your pet domestically or internationally with Virgin Australia, you can still earn 3 points per $1 spent. You are not required to accompany your pet.

Other Ways To Earn Velocity Points

18. Transfer Among Family Members

Put all your family members’ points and status credits together into 1 account so you can redeem for bigger rewards with Family Pooling! This can even boost you to a new membership level.

Add up to 6 family members to a pool (2 must be 18+, and 4 under 18 years of age).

Velocity members can also transfer Velocity Points (5,000-100,000) to an eligible family member’s account up to 4 times a year.

19. Australian Partner Deals

Because Virgin Australia is an Australian airline, local members have the most opportunities to earn Velocity Points.

For instance, in Australia, you can earn Velocity Points for booking entertainment tickets through Velocity Live, shopping at the Velocity e-Store, and making dinner reservations on Open Table.

There are also home and business and financial opportunities. Visit the Virgin Australia Velocity website to find all the options available to Australian members.

20. Velocity Special Offers

You’ve already learned how Velocity partners offer great regular deals to earn Velocity Points, but that’s not all!

Velocity special offers are exclusive offers for Velocity members to earn even more points. Check the Velocity special offers page on a regular basis for updated deals.

Conclusion

Virgin Australia offers so many ways to earn Velocity Points even if you don’t live in Australia. Start earning today, and you can begin redeeming for big rewards.

If you’re into space travel, you can always book a Virgin Galactic experience for $250,000. The 100,000 Velocity Points could come in handy!

Photo Credits:

Virgin Australia Featured Photo:  Ryan Fletcher/Shutterstock, Inc.

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