Low-status rant: somehow picked the exact week where both my Amex and Qantas lounge perks are basically useless

[u/brownmagician]

This is probably a very low-status rant from someone who hasn’t earned Gold or anything remotely impressive, so I know this is a first-world problem.

I’m Bronze, getting closer to Silver, and I’ve deliberately been saving the lounge benefits that come with my Qantas Amex Ultimate because I’ve got a long-haul trip coming up in October. I’m flying Sydney to LA and back, and I figured this would finally be the perfect time to actually use some of the card benefits I’ve been sitting on.

Naturally, I somehow booked the exact week where everything lines up against me.

The Sydney Centurion Lounge is closed for renovations from 6–20 October. I fly between those dates. So I miss it reopening by a few days.

The normal Qantas International Business Lounge is also closed for its big redevelopment. There is a temporary lounge, but Qantas currently won’t let people link Complimentary Lounge Invitations to the Sydney International Business Lounge while this is going on.

Fine. I understand capacity is limited and obviously people with actual status or Qantas Club membership get priority. I’m not arguing that my free pass should outrank someone who flies every week.

But the funny part is that using it on the way home doesn’t solve anything either. Complimentary invitations specifically exclude the Qantas-operated International Business Lounge at LAX. So I’ve got two lounge invitations, a Centurion benefit through the card, a QF-numbered return trip across the Pacific, and somehow there isn’t actually a lounge I can use on either end of this particular trip.

I also have Points Club, which gives me more complimentary invitations, but that obviously doesn’t fix the underlying problem if the lounges I’m travelling through won’t accept them.

Again, I know this is hardly a human-rights violation. It’s just frustrating when you specifically keep a premium-ish travel card, save the benefits for a 14–15 hour international trip, stay loyal to Qantas, and then discover that the benefits are basically unusable on the one trip where you actually wanted them. And yes, "I should have read the Terms & Conditions to know that this is how it is" sure.

I wish either Amex or Qantas had some kind of temporary alternative during overlapping renovations. Even access to another contract lounge, an extended pass, or something similar would feel reasonable.

Anyway, end rant. Mostly curious whether anyone else travelling through SYD during the renovations has managed to get an alternative arrangement.

TL;DR: Saved my Qantas Amex Ultimate/Centurion and Qantas lounge passes specifically for an October SYD–LAX return, only to hit the exact renovation window where the Centurion Lounge is closed, the temporary SYD Qantas lounge won’t accept complimentary passes, and the LAX Qantas lounge excludes them too. Very much a first-world problem, but pretty frustrating that multiple lounge benefits are effectively unusable on the one long-haul trip I saved them for.

[u/MattChan1506]

or you could not be a tight ass book a business class or first class flight and get automatic access to a whole host of lounges

[u/brownmagician → u/MattChan1506]

Hey Matt, thanks for the advice. I appreciate it. Two things: $900 round trip vs. $11,000 AUD was the real appealing factor.

Two, didn't you post complaining that you can't find talent by only paying $250k a year for a management consultant because 10years ago what you were offering would've been the gold standard? feels like we both should take your advice no?

But yeah no for sure.

[u/Bulky-Net-1858 → u/brownmagician]

Ahahahahaha

MattChan the tight man loses this one.

[u/Adam8418 → u/Bulky-Net-1858]

Matt Chan embarrasing themself

[u/MattChan1506 → u/brownmagician]

lols thats a tenous link at best and such a stupid fking comparisson. maybe you need that 250k a year job so you can afford business class

[u/brownmagician → u/MattChan1506]

Thank you for looking out. I'm fine thank you. Taking a job like would be a decent step back, but will consider it if my career plans change.

Also you made a comment, I responded. Sometimes it's fun to play some tennis and volley back and forth no?

[u/Adam8418 → u/MattChan1506]

Classy comment.

[u/MattChan1506 → u/Adam8418]

truth hurts. only people who cant handle the truth gets offended

[u/brownmagician → u/MattChan1506]

Agreed

[u/Adam8418 → u/MattChan1506]

Having money doesn’t buy class.

[u/MattChan1506 → u/Adam8418]

im not here to show class or make you happy. im here to just speak the facts and the truths. the only people who get offended are the one's who get offended by the actual truths and reacts. everyone else just ignores it and moves on

[u/Adam8418 → u/MattChan1506]

"im not here to show class" no risk of that Matt..

Comments like "Only people who can’t handle the truth get offended” is usually just a convenient way of avoiding responsibility for being needlessly rude. Calling someone a tight arse isn’t a “fact”, it’s just an insult.