I was flying Melbourne-Sydney Business Class on Virgin on Sunday when I tried to bring a guest into the lounge they refused saying they don't allow any guests - even when travell

I was flying Melbourne-Sydney Business Class on Virgin on Sunday when I tried to bring a guest into the lounge they refused saying they don't allow any guests - even when travelling business.... WTF?

mmh, that seems really annoying. I am pretty sure that they let you bring in guests, maybe call up someone from virgin and actually check if you are allowed to bring guests. If you are maybe ask for some status points? 

Actually business class doesn't get you guest privileges. Most other methods of accessing the lounge do.

http://www.ausbt.com.au/virgin-australia-lounges-access-rules-explained

It seems a bit stingy on their part, but they're acting within their own rules. 

I'm not a VA customer, but your comments surprise me and made me research.  I was really surprised to read with VA J class passengers have no guest rights without status or lounge membership.  Confimred in the AUSBT article 'Virgin Austrlia Lounges access rules explained.

http://www.ausbt.com.au/virgin-australia-lounges-access-rules-explained

*Confirmed

Interesting...I read the Virgin website for information surrounding access to the Virgin lounge as a Business Class pax. There is no specific mention that guests of Business Class pax are allowed access. Admitedly the design of the website and the information published is not as clear as Qantas', which specifically spells out the provisions for the different pax category.

There's a gate nazi at Melbourne that I've seen on numerous occasions. He takes great pride in double checking your access rights once you use the auto scan and has a really awful demeanour. I've seen him refuse access, not across the reasons, but the people seemed to think they had a genuine reason for access. I wonder if he knocked you back?

I think it's a bit tight on Virgin's behalf but I can see the reasoning behind it. A business class ticket effectively buys you access or jumps the status line. It doesn't necessarily entail a guest, as they could be flying business. That said, it grates on me when I see sports team after sports team with complimentary gold. Especially when they all get priority bag tags!

I don't see why a J ticket should get a non-J travelling companion into the lounge on a free pass. There are enough people in there already, and in one way or another they have paid for the privilege.

I think that expectation has been achieved through Qantas' policy, which remains the Gold standard in the Australian market. Any new entrant to the market, who wish to provide a similar or better standard offering has to effectively communicate any deviations from the standard or face consumer backlash. 

For me, the fact that the Virgin website is not very clear suggest differences, which marks Virgin to be below the Gold Standard, is being quietly glossed over. This results in customer service outcomes which whipper has experienced.

>There are enough people in there already, and in one way or another they have paid for the privilege

Well, there's plenty of guests of golds and platinums.

In most respects a paid biz-class ticket gets you at least as many perks as a gold-level frequent flyer, so it's actually pretty surprising. And the number of non-status biz-class domestic pax travelling with economy-class pax must be pretty small, so it wouldn't seem too harmful to give them this little perk (to impress the underlings). 

Geez, if you're paying for biz-class on MEL-SYD you're spending six hundred bucks extra to sit in a comfy (not even *that* comfy) chair for an hour, you'd think they'd throw every perk they could think of at you to try and make it worthwhile. 

I class pax should really be allowed to bring up to 2 guests in.

Another reason to fly Qantas :)