Some flyers take return trips across the country in a single night or make lavish purchases solely to increase their frequent flyer ranking. One recent example involved a traveller who completed an overnight return trip from Adelaide to Brisbane for under $100 by using reward points. The journey earned enough status credits to access perks like priority boarding, lounge entry and more. Their story sparked a wave of similar admissions, with many travellers confessing to “status runs,” a term for short flights taken purely to gain loyalty rewards.
Experienced flyers also shared accounts of rapid round-trips between nearby cities, sometimes making the journey only to spend a few minutes in an airport lounge before boarding the return flight. One traveller described a day-long loop from Melbourne to Brisbane then to Cairns and back, earning nearly 1,000 Virgin Australia status credits, which nearly ensures platinum status.
While frequent flyers say the benefits are worthwhile, such as access to lounges, extra baggage allowance, free upgrades and bonus points, many outside observers are left confused. Some question why people would endure airport overnights just to take early flights for extra credits and label the behaviour as excessive or even absurd.
Even with the scepticism, loyalty programs continue to thrive. Online communities like pointhacks.com.au, thechampagnemile.com.au and australianfrequentflyer.com.au are full of user-generated strategies and discussions. Ground-based activities also earn points, with credit card sign-up bonuses, retail promotions and even environmentally conscious travel habits contributing. Both Qantas and Virgin offer 110 to 120 status credits a year without passengers needing to fly at all.
Ultimately, the frequent flyer phenomenon appears to focus on maximising everyday spending to unlock travel rewards. For some, it is a clever way to make everyday purchases go further. For others, it may seem like an inefficient use of time. However, for travellers already spending or booking regularly, it is a strategy that might offer genuine value without needing extra money or effort.
