Qantas has introduced a new ‘Flexible’ membership plan for those that might want to access the Qantas Club. The new option allows you to pay for 28-day access to the 30 Qantas branded lounges.
On the plus side, the new Qantas Club Flexible option allows you to access the key perks of the Qantas Club. On the downside, not all of the perks are included (and it can end up being expensive).
The cost of Qantas Club Flexible
As with the Qantas Club annual memberships, there are two costs with the Flexible option. Firstly, there is a ‘one-off’ joining fee of $129. After that, it then costs $99 for each 28 day period.
If you wish to stop paying, you can cancel anytime up to three days prior to renewal. However, you may need to watch the way the joining fee works here. If you cancel, and then re-subscribe within 90 days, you will not have to pay the joining fee again. However, if you re-subscribe more than 90 days after cancelling. you will be up for the $129 join fee again.
All this makes it a fairly expensive proposition to subscribe on an ongoing basis. A annual Qantas Club membership will cost you $828 for the first year. If you go down the subscription path, you would be up for $1,416 in the first year, and $1,287 per year in subsequent years.
Qantas Club Flexible Benefits
As noted, the Qantas Club Flexible option gets you the key benefits of a full Qantas Club membership. The benefits you do get are:
- Access to the Qantas Club in capital city and Qantas Regional lounges when flying on an eligible Qantas or Jetstar domestic service
- Access to Qantas International Business Lounges before eligible international Qantas or Jetstar flights.
- Access to Domestic On Departure Upgrade Rewards
- 3 Qantas Points per dollar spent
- Until 31 March 2025, the additional checked baggage allowance on QF flights. This may be a time limited offer though, and disappear after 31 March.
The benefits you don’t get include:
- The ability to bring in a guest into the Qantas lounges
- Access to various partner and associated lounges (non-QF lounges). That means that you won’t get access to lounges such as the Emirates Lounges in Dubai, the American Airlines lounges, or oneWorld lounges.
- Ability to purchase an Annual Guest Card
Final Words
I guess Qantas are joining many other services that have moved onto a subscription model. Having said that, this could work out to be an expensive option. If you have an ongoing need for Qantas Club access, you’d be better off with an annual membership.
That said, if you just need it for a few months, then the subscription model may work out more beneficial. You would need to do your calculations to see if this is a worthwhile way for your situation.