I'm travelling from MEL-HKG in economy and have a 6 hour layover in Melbourne before the flight.
13 replies
Hi Guest, join in the discussion on I'm travelling from MEL-HKG in economy and have a 6 hour layover in Melbourne before the flight.
Hi Guest, join in the discussion on I'm travelling from MEL-HKG in economy and have a 6 hour layover in Melbourne before the flight.
AV
AV
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
Member since 16 Apr 2013
Total posts 49
I'm travelling from MEL-HKG in economy and have a 6 hour layover in Melbourne before the flight. Can I access any lounges in Melbourne International before the flight, even if I have to pay? I'm gold with SkyTeam, Velocity and Star Alliance but I don't believe this will be any use to me. Priority Pass seem to have dropped their Melbourne lounge. Any tips appreciated!
nmalon
nmalon
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 11 Jan 2013
Total posts 183
What airline(s) are you flying? and where are you coming from?
AV
AV
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
Member since 16 Apr 2013
Total posts 49
Sorry I left the most crucial info out. Flying with Cathay Pacific and am coming in from Launceston.
jackthomas
jackthomas
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards Gold
Member since 04 Jul 2014
Total posts 88
Provided you are flying Virgin from Launceston, you can use the Virgin lounge in domestic upon arrival...I wouldn't want to spend 6 hours in there though... Have you considered a day rate at an airport hotel?
madge
madge
Member since 07 Aug 2012
Total posts 58
You can pay your way into the Air NZ lounge - $55 for up to 4 hours of lounge time.
sgb
sgb
Emirates Airlines - Skywards
Member since 30 Nov 2015
Total posts 419
I thought AirNZ stopped that.
TheRealBabushka
TheRealBabushka
Member since 21 Apr 2012
Total posts 2,058
Arnie,
I presume there was a good reason why you didn't go with SQ?
Ryan K
Ryan K
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 30 May 2013
Total posts 160
Why would he fly SQ to HKG?
TheRealBabushka
TheRealBabushka
Member since 21 Apr 2012
Total posts 2,058
So that he/she will earn points/miles, benefit from priority check in, priority boarding, priority luggage and enjoy lounge access.
The miles/points would also go toward elite qualification for future period.
The marginal difference in price may prove to be worth it, when compared to the waste since this CX flight earns him/her zero reward benefits. The cost in terms of time saved versus benefits earned is however subjective.
Given his/her focus is the Virgin partnership and/or Star Alliance, accruing Oneworld equivalent miles/points is practically pointless.
kimshep
kimshep
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 11 Oct 2014
Total posts 412
Arnie does mention that he is Gold with SkyTeam, Velocity and Star. Nowhere does he mention any affiliation with OneWorld or what that might be.
Given his extensive Gold Tier status on these carriers, that indicates a serious amount of travel across a range of alliances. It may be that he is Silver (or lower) with OneWorld - and in that case, a Y Class trip to HKG might also advance his status in OW, mightn't it?
Always a bit dangerous to make assumptions from an external standpoint. And for a trip to HKG, I would think that a non-stop would be highly preferable over a one-stop via SIN anyway. Why would you want to endure two sets of Customs / Immigration and a layover - unless you were doing a finite 'mileage / status' run?
TheRealBabushka
TheRealBabushka
Member since 21 Apr 2012
Total posts 2,058
It comes down to how you account for the value of the overall experience.
Overall Experience = Benefits - Cost of flight, where the objective is maximum Overall Experience through minimum cost met with an associated maximum benefit.
Consequently, if you consider benefits such as lounge access to be incidental, then overall experience will be lower than if you account for all associated elements as benefits.
AV
AV
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
Member since 16 Apr 2013
Total posts 49
Singapore would have been the best in my situation, however their flight times were not convenient for me. Thanks everyone.
TheRealBabushka
TheRealBabushka
Member since 21 Apr 2012
Total posts 2,058
There we go. Timing's the factor. Now I do know there is this rather posh restaurant at MEL international terminal. I can't, for the life of me, remember the name of it. Might be worthwhile to spend sometime there.
j30max
j30max
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 13 Dec 2015
Total posts 13
macchinetta or little ludlow
http://melbourneairport.com.au/shopping-eating/restaurants/little-ludlow/