Booking US domestic rewards on Delta using Velocity points
11 replies
Hi Guest, join in the discussion on Booking US domestic rewards on Delta using Velocity points
Hi Guest, join in the discussion on Booking US domestic rewards on Delta using Velocity points
Spaniel
Spaniel
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
Member since 12 Apr 2017
Total posts 28
Does anyone have experience doing this?
Brassy
Brassy
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
Member since 15 Apr 2016
Total posts 36
Whenever we've done this, I've just booked through velocity website directly. Their 'book a flight' function can get you on delta domestic flights.
Brassy
Brassy
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
Member since 15 Apr 2016
Total posts 36
(Remember that domestic US business class doesn't get lounge access unless you're already gold/platinum, or flying LAX to NY etc.)
yuhaohuang
yuhaohuang
Member since 16 Jan 2018
Total posts 4
I have just recently returned from US/Alaska/Canada trip all flying Delta for domestic US. I didnt use velocity to purchase my ticket but instead just purchased economy and rang Delta for a complimentary upgrade to their comfort+ (a bit like Virgin's Economy X). For some reason their system could not see velocity tier status and hence was not a straight forward upgrade to comfort+. They ended up just changing my ticket to comfort+ and I received Velocity status credits as if I purchased the ticket which is 2x - 3x the normal economy amount. Standard complimentary upgrades like this you typically just receive the status credits for the ticket that you purchased.
JohnGB
JohnGB
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
Member since 11 Jul 2017
Total posts 22
I am really (pleasantly) surprised that they did that. The officially policy for Gold and Platinum VA is that you can only get upgraded after check in and generally about 10 mins before boarding opens. Complimentary upgrades at booking are only reserved for Delta Gold and above. When I book my VA status is always shown and a request to upgrade is accepted but not confirmed until DOD.
Spaniel
Spaniel
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
Member since 12 Apr 2017
Total posts 28
I agree!
JohnGB
JohnGB
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
Member since 11 Jul 2017
Total posts 22
I just booked a Delta One award seat through the Virgin website from JFK to Milan at a cost of 59,500 Velocity points. Delta award seats are on a revenue system, meaning that once their cheapest award seats are taken you can still book but it just costs more and more points as availability goes. I think Virgin only gets the Delta award seats at the the lowest cost and then once they are taken there is no further availability.
yuhaohuang
yuhaohuang
Member since 16 Jan 2018
Total posts 4
Actually, I was just trying to take advantage of this benefit.
buckcompton
buckcompton
Member since 30 Jul 2018
Total posts 5
So how do you book internal US flights with points?
I need to fly LAX - JFK for appx 12.5K points in Dec on the Delta website, but Virgin Aust website does not allow internal US bookings?
Do i need to call Virgin and have them search Delta manually?
Chris C.
Chris C.
Member since 24 Apr 2012
Total posts 1,116
I need to fly LAX - JFK for appx 12.5K points in Dec on the Delta website, but Virgin Aust website does not allow internal US bookings?
Do i need to call Virgin and have them search Delta manually?
If a Delta reward seat is available for booking using Velocity points, it'll appear on the Velocity website - but if you have any problems, it never hurts to call Velocity to have them double-check or to perhaps find an alternative.
Note that LAX-JFK is one of the most popular air routes in the USA and is the country's busiest domestic long-haul route with very strong demand from fare-paying passengers, so reward availability tends to be slim at best, especially when using points from partner programs like Velocity.
Note also that the number of points shown on the Delta website is irrelevant for Velocity - Delta's website shows how many of its own Skymiles are needed to book a flight, while Velocity's website or call centre communicates how many Velocity points are needed for the same.
As an aside, if you do manage to find reward space on Delta using Velocity points, the co-payment amount on the side in dollars is usually very low. I recently booked a return trip between New York JFK and Boston on Velocity points and the co-pay was just A$27.40 return, and the number of Velocity points needed is the same as to book Virgin Australia flights of the same length, as both Delta and Virgin Australia are on the same table in Velocity.
buckcompton
buckcompton
Member since 30 Jul 2018
Total posts 5
I need to fly LAX - JFK for appx 12.5K points in Dec on the Delta website, but Virgin Aust website does not allow internal US bookings?
Do i need to call Virgin and have them search Delta manually?
If a Delta reward seat is available for booking using Velocity points, it'll appear on the Velocity website - but if you have any problems, it never hurts to call Velocity to have them double-check or to perhaps find an alternative.
Note that LAX-JFK is one of the most popular air routes in the USA and is the country's busiest domestic long-haul route with very strong demand from fare-paying passengers, so reward availability tends to be slim at best, especially when using points from partner programs like Velocity.
Note also that the number of points shown on the Delta website is irrelevant for Velocity - Delta's website shows how many of its own Skymiles are needed to book a flight, while Velocity's website or call centre communicates how many Velocity points are needed for the same.
As an aside, if you do manage to find reward space on Delta using Velocity points, the co-payment amount on the side in dollars is usually very low. I recently booked a return trip between New York JFK and Boston on Velocity points and the co-pay was just A$27.40 return, and the number of Velocity points needed is the same as to book Virgin Australia flights of the same length, as both Delta and Virgin Australia are on the same table in Velocity.
Thanks for that,
Does this happen for others?
Chris C.
Chris C.
Member since 24 Apr 2012
Total posts 1,116
Have you tried checking the box near the top, along the lines of ~“show Velocity reward destinations” or similar, beyond just the “points + pay” box?