[AllOverTheGaff]

Californian – 10/07/2013 22:01 GMT
I would have thought airlines would want to entice frequent flyers to pay the higher fare. I note Singapore Airlines has a much nicer Business Class lounge in Singapore than the Gold Card lounge which is the lounge they send Gold card holders traveling in economy class to.

Maybe this is more the solution, offering a ‘split’ lounge, one half for those on actual high-fare tickets and one for those on their loyalty card. I know when I fly 1st or business I am often left wanting in the lounge department, that being said, it isn’t a huge hot-spot for me as I am far more interested in the on-board experience.

I still say that spending £2.5K minimum on a seat should give you a better experience than that of the guy/gal flying on a £100.00 ticket….but everyone is just lumped in together with a “get on with it” attitude.

[SimonS1]

I can see your point AOTG. Difficult one really. If I was the £2,500 traveller I would probably think I had the moral high ground. However if I spent say £5,000 a year on short haul flights I might take the opposite view. The airline is probably on a no-win as a result.

[pdtraveller]

Status based on money spent is indeed the logical way to go however how would you deal with this scenario.

silver spend £10k gold spend £15k

Businessman A spends £15k a year on travel for himself paid for his employer or business. He gets silver or gold.

Family spends £20 k ( not many I know) out of own income and taxed income at that but get nothing.

How would a carrier keep the family flying with them?

[MartynSinclair]

pdtraveller – your post made me check on my personal spend per year for family. We may not be at £20,000 but horrifically, we are close and the family do get nothing from the airlines.

Main reason why is whenever family try to keep loyalty to one carrier or alliance a cheaper price is found elsewhere. Personal travel is generally cost driven not schedule driven.

Saying that, with Amex Plat card lounge access, albeit not airline specific, is there through Priority Pass.

[millionsofmiles]

LH abolished the sector counting principle for getting a igher status (except in very few markets).
You needed 120 sectors (eco or 60 in biz) to get Senator status.
But that meant in the best case, just a meagre 14.000 € in revenues if you flew short haul only.
So nowadays they just count the “status miles”, which is corresponding to revenue, somehow (but leaving aside country specific price differences).

[SimonS1]

Pdtraveller – I guess it’s a question of the £20,000 is broken down.

A couple of biz class trips at £2,500 each for a family of 4 – you would get lounge access.

4 CE trips at £600 each – you would get lounge access.

8 short haul trips at £300 each, wouldn’t that get you to silver anyway?

There will always be exceptions but you can’t cover every eventuality.

[canucklad]

My point was that my average £ spend per mile travelled was probably much higher than my colleagues journey to india and yet the airlines choose to recognize my colleague’s loyatly more readilly than me……………

70 flights against 6…..and we are treated the same !!!!!!!!!!

[SimonS1]

And if you visited the lounge 12x as much you probably had your money’s worth in terms of food and drink.

Both of you have value to the airline in different ways, and for both of you it’s been recognised.

I don’t see what the issue is.

[Inquisitive]

Ian, Singapore Airlines changed their system sometimes ago based on actual money spent. This looks fare, but then it is difficult to attain status. For my business class ticket I get less point now as these are discounted business class tickets compared to mileage I used to get earlier. However this system is very good for very frequent fliers.

[Inquisitive]

For me lounge access is for a peaceful place for 30-40 minutes before the flight. I prefer food on air rather than lounge. If someone has lounge access, he/she already traveling too much, hence getting lounge access with a £100 ticket once in a while average out the cost for airlines.

[trippleF]

interesting thread so far.
I share the opinion that lounge access is one of the most important perks, given the amount of delays, lengthy layovers I seem to have to endure plus the extra buffer everyone needs to put in: arrive at the airport early, leave plenty of time for check-in and security, and if things work out better than worst case, you have some quality productive time to spend in the lounge!
What i find most difficult, is getting the status of both my husband and me at silver or above, as I don’t really go in the lounge if he doesn’t have access. I myself could easily get to Gold if i commit to one airline, but my husband does very little business travel so doesn’t achieve Silver without extra “tier-earning” flights.
Why do airlines not offer to share tier points within a family account?
I’d rather both of us to be Silver, which would allow us both to go into the lounge when travelling on an economy leisure trip. Do any of you have some insights or ideas to share regarding this?

[Andrew66]

Hi TrippleF , if you referring to BA silver then only one of you has to be silver , which allows you to take in a guest even if flying economy , I think the problem comes if you have children , as silver is only + 1 guest .

[trippleF]

Thank you, Andrew66 – learnt something today and it helps indeed!

[HongKongLady]

I think lounge access has become even more important now that there is limited seating in departure areas. Shop, shops and shops but very little seating. Now I like to browse the shops once in a while but sometimes you just want to sit quietly somewhere before your flight, or do some work and if you don’t have lounge access it is very difficult to do that.

[Andrew66]

Glad that helps trippleF, I was only reading up the other day about silver status ! And luggage allowances are good too , even if flying in economy .
I like to be able to use the lounges and am usually booked in CE or CW , but still like to feel relaxed before the flight , I have no interest in walking around shops , and the wife works in an airport , so when we arrive at the lounge the holiday starts , I’ve always found them good and not too busy and most guests seem relaxed and quiet , was sat near Simon Calder the last time I was in there .

[Author]

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