Velocity Frequent Flyer reopens Rewards Store

In another positive step since Virgin Australia’s sale to Bain Capital was completed, loyalty program Velocity is now welcoming orders through the Velocity Rewards Store once more.

While the store offers a pared-back selection compared to before, Velocity Frequent Flyers will undoubtedly be relieved to have another avenue to redeem points opened up, amidst the current travel restrictions that make it difficult to travel interstate and overseas.

Big-name brands for sale

A range of gift cards, merchandise and charity options are now available for purchase using Velocity Points, including:

• Gift cards: Starting from 9,000 points for $50
• Charities: Starting from 3,125 points for $25
• Apple products: Up to 494,854 points for the top-of-the-range iPhone 11 Pro Max 512GB

In general, you should expect 1,000 Velocity Points to be worth around A$5.50 on the Rewards Store, except for charities where it jumps to $8.

However, it’s worth keeping in mind that this is less than what we value them at. It’s also far less than the potential value you could expect to receive by using Velocity Points for domestic flights and upgrades, even for simple Economy class bookings.

A long road to recovery

It’s been almost five months since Virgin Australia fell into voluntary administration, which triggered a big run on the Rewards Store by people eager to offload their Velocity Points.

Since then, there are increasingly more ways to use your Velocity Points again including on domestic flights and through the Velocity Wine Store. There are also bigger promotions to encourage punters to transfer points into Velocity where possible.

With parent company Virgin Australia being rescued by Bain Capital, it’s hoped that more Velocity Frequent Flyer will gradually re-introduce even more ways to use up points in the near future.

What’s on our wish list? When international borders eventually open up, it would be great to be able to snag international partner flight reward seats and the regain ability to convert points to Singapore Airlines’ KrisFlyer program, once more.

Will you use points on the Velocity Rewards Store, or hang onto it for future travel? Let us know below in the comments.