Fast-track to Gold grade perks on Virgin Australia, Star Alliance

Lounge access, priority treatment at the airport for you and your luggage, and an increased checked baggage allowance: those are widely considered to be the three top perks of Velocity Gold frequent flyer status with Virgin Australia.

They’re wonderfully practical benefits that make your domestic travels with Virgin so much smoother, and they also extend overseas when flying the likes of Singapore Airlines and United Airlines.

The thing is, getting Velocity Gold takes quite some flying – to earn the necessary 500 status credits you’d have to clock up over 30 Sydney-Melbourne or Sydney-Brisbane flights on an Economy Choice fare.

So here’s a shortcut which delivers some prized Velocity Gold perks without your needing to take a single flight.

Fancy a free year of Virgin Australia lounge access?

It’s the HSBC Star Alliance Credit Card, which unlocks Star Alliance Gold status with three international Virgin Australia partner airlines, specifically

• Air Canada Aeroplan Elite 50K
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Elite Gold
• United Airlines MileagePlus Premier Gold

By spending just $4,000 on your HSBC Star Alliance Credit Card within the first 90 days, you enjoy complimentary Star Alliance Gold status with your chosen airline for a full year.

Virgin Australia notes visitors must be flying on a same-day domestic flight with the airline, and present a valid membership card for their respective loyalty program when seeking access to the lounge. 

Singapore Airlines is the most compelling Virgin Australia partner if most of your international travels are to Asia, Europe and the UK, while United Airlines is a clear choice if you’re often headed to North America.

Both Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Elite Gold and United Airlines MileagePlus Premier Gold status qualify you (and one guest) for access to Virgin Australia’s domestic lounges, along with use of the fast track Premium Entry lane at Sydney and Brisbane airports, and Melbourne Airport’s Priority Screening lane.

You also get one complimentary checked bag up to 32kg, plus priority check-in, priority boarding and priority baggage handling to get you on the go faster.

Beat the queue with Virgin Australia Premium Entry and Priority Screening.

Air Canada is the odd one out here, as the sole reciprocal Virgin Australia perk of Air Canada Aeroplan Elite 50K status is access to Virgin Australia lounges – there’s no priority treatment and no extra baggage allowance.

That said, if you nominate Air Canada as your chosen HSBC Star Alliance Credit Card airline by February 29 2024, you’ll receive a bonus 50,000 Aeroplan points once you hit the 90-day spending target for Star Alliance Gold.

That points stash could take you all the way from Australia to North America on Air Canada, and can also be used on Virgin Australia (it’s enough for a business class flight between Sydney and Perth).

Of course, whichever airline you choose for your HSBC Star Alliance Gold status, you’ll also score Gold-grade perks across all 26 leading airlines which belong to the Star Alliance group – an impressive  roster including Air India, Air New Zealand, ANA, Lufthansa, South African Airways, Swiss, Thai Airways and Turkish Airlines.

(And with South African Airways returning to Perth and Turkish Airlines soon flying to Melbourne, there’s probably never been a smarter time to go for Star Alliance Gold.)

You can read our detailed review of the HSBC Star Alliance Credit Card here and apply today.