Originally Posted by
pcfool
Currently I am Silver Medallion and have a trip to Brisbane in a couple days. I have the ability to buy some MQMs that would push me into Gold after my flight from LAX-BNE. Is it worth accessing the International Virgin Australia lounge to buy those MQMs or should I just let my return leg, BNE-LAX cut me over to Gold?
Thanks in advance!
Welcome to FT! I think you are asking whether it's worth it to buy MQMs from Delta to get Gold before your trip to Brisbane so that you can access the lounge. If I am interpreting your question correctly, I don't think buying the MQMs from Delta is a very good value at all, especially if you have travel booked that will push you over the threshold anyway. I definitely wouldn't do it for lounge access only.
You would get a slight RDM bonus as a Gold vs. Silver. Is your LAX-BNE flight a Delta flight number or a VA flight number? If the former, how much did you spend on your ticket? Gold medallion earn 8 miles per dollar spent (vs. 7) which would offset a very small portion of the cost of the MQM purchase. If the latter, you would receive a 60% Gold Medallion bonus vs a 40% Silver Medallion bonus on redeemable miles (earned by distance on VA coded flights). In the case of LAX-BNE you would earn an additional ~1400 miles ($14 worth). Neither of those options are worth it, IMO.