Virgin Australia rolls out two tempting rewards deals as the summer travel season approaches.
Nothing warms a frequent flyer’s heart quite like bonus Points. Well, perhaps a free upgrade, but let’s not get carried away.
Virgin Australia has put two treats on the table ahead of summer. From 12 October 2026, Velocity members can earn 40,000 bonus Points on some holiday packages. They can also choose double Points or double Status Credits on eligible flights.
That second choice matters. Points can help fund a future trip. Status Credits can move a member closer to a higher tier. Both deals sound sweet, but the booking rules are not mere fine print.
The timing is clever. One offer looks well beyond summer; the other rewards flights taken by the end of November. It is loyalty marketing with its sleeves rolled up.
40,000 Points for a holiday: what’s the catch?
The first offer is aimed at members ready to book a getaway. Spend at least $1,000 on a new, eligible Virgin Australia Holidays package and earn 40,000 bonus Velocity Points.
Bookings must be made from 12 to 18 October 2026. Travel can take place from 12 October 2026 to 26 June 2027. The sale closes at 11.59 pm AEST on Sunday, 18 October.
Book the package on the Virgin Australia Holidays site, run by Hopper. It must also be paid for in cash. A booking paid for in full or in part with Points will not earn this special 40,000-Point bonus.
There is more good news for Points hunters. The bonus comes on top of the usual three Points per dollar on eligible spend. Members with higher status can earn more. Platinum Plus members can earn up to 7.5 Points per eligible dollar, including their tier bonus.
So a qualifying $1,000 booking could bring in 43,000 Points before any tier bonus. Not a bad return on a holiday you may have planned to take anyway.
There is one detail to note. Only the member named as the primary guest can earn the Points. They must add their Velocity number when they book. The Points are paid after the trip is complete, not at the time of sale.
For travel agents, the direct booking rule is worth a look. A big Points offer may catch a client’s eye. Yet price, service, room choice and booking terms still count. A bonus is no bargain if the trip itself costs more.
Double Points or double Status Credits?
The second deal, called Pick Your Bonus, puts the choice in members’ hands. Pick double base Points for more rewards later. Or pick double Status Credits to help reach the next tier.
First, members must activate their choice. Then they must book and pay for a new eligible flight. Both steps must be done by 11.59 pm AEST on Monday, 26 October 2026. The flight must be taken by 30 November 2026.
Eligible flights cover Virgin Australia’s own domestic, trans-Tasman and short-haul overseas routes. The offer does not cover Reward Seats, partner-operated flights, codeshares, flights booked in Virgin Australia Holidays packages or Qatar Airways-operated flights to Doha. Some domestic flights linked to long-haul trips are also excluded. Nor does it apply to a flight booked before the offer began.
Members get just one choice, and they cannot change it later. The Points boost also applies to base Points, not every extra Point earned through status.
A Velocity Frequent Flyer spokesperson said: “These incredible offers give members more choice in how they get rewarded when they travel.”
Velocity says some short domestic Economy Reward Seats start at 5,900 Points one way. That low fare is for its first distance zone. Taxes, fees and other charges cost extra, and the cheapest seats may not be there when you want them.
The best move? Check the rules, compare the cost and book only if the trip makes sense. The Points are a fine extra. They should never be the reason to take a holiday you cannot afford.
Members can book through Virgin Australia Holidays, activate Pick Your Bonus, or join Velocity Frequent Flyer at no cost.
By: Anne Keam – © 2026.
Read Time: 4 minutes.
Author Bio:
Anne Keam’s story begins in Queensland, on a grain farm in the state’s wide western reaches, where the days were long and the lessons simple: work hard, look after your own, and don’t make a fuss. Those early years left their mark.
She later studied Arts at the University of Queensland before doing what felt natural then: heading back home to the family property. But the world was calling. Anne packed a backpack and went looking, spending years on the road and finding herself most alive in South America. She wrote everything down along the way. Those notebooks, full of dust, colour, and curiosity, eventually became her blog, a quiet, personal record of seeing the world and learning from it.
