Virgin Australia International

We bought an international flight tickets for our family of four on the understanding that they had seat selection. We then discovered that it was 24 hour before the flight check in. Virgin told us that the cancel the tickets would be $350 each. Now we've been told that the 24-hour check in is not available and we'll only get our seats when… Read more

checking in at the airport. They also cannot guarantee that our children will be seated with an adult. Our children are young. How can they expect other random people to look after them. It's been a horrible experience. How can they legally do this?

No responsibility lack of care and service – Direct flights rebooked. Charged extra to choose seats and then separated from kids. Multiple calls and emails expressing concerns over times for transfers. Ignored and told the times were sufficient ( they were not).we would up with a 7 hour lay… Read more

over die to missing the flight. Our only carry on baggage was a travel size pram, taken from us by the crew due to no space on board( we could have had 6 carry-ons) at our destination the pram was gone, given to another passenger who apparently needed help getting her kids through the airport. Never mind my kids who the pram belongs to . I managed to identify the pram ( limited colour) and retrieve it from the other passenger how ever the caddy went missing in this time. (Didn't notice until the next day when I tried to put a drink in the caddy) . Virgin's answer is its my fault as the pram was in my care ( taken by crew not a choice) and becauseI didn't immediately inform them of the missing item. All in all poor service all around Never again

Virgin customer service and their policies are worse than useless. From the looks of it the flight will be worse. The seating was the most uncomfortable I have ever been on. Avoid virgin at all costs Show details

Worst service ever – Worst service I’ve ever experienced at Queenstown airport The staff is unhelpful, rude and lies in order to avoid doing anything

I flew from Denpasar to Melbourne Australia Tuesday July 28. 2026 Flt no. VA 92 Would like to highly commend Melanie on her exceptional service Extremely polite, beautiful customer service and experience, smiled which is a great reflection on your company. She even offered a complimentary toastie, which had never happened before with Virgin.… Read more

Lovely lady, my suggestion is that she train staff in Customer service on how to treat passengers There was another stewardess on the plane that was unfortunately facing off as rude and unapproachable I will not use her name as she was unpleasant and 2 other passengers commented also on her poor behaviour. D THANK GOODNESS FOR MELANIE. An Absolute Gem

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Google Review – Virgin Australia I want to express my sincere appreciation for the outstanding service I received from Virgin Australia during a very unexpected travel issue. I was due to fly from Melbourne to Bali when I discovered that my… Read more

still‑valid passport had been automatically cancelled after lodging a renewal application. This left me unable to clear customs or board my flight. From the moment this happened, the Virgin Australia team at Melbourne Airport—especially Daniel at the service desk—were exceptional. Daniel handled the situation with professionalism, empathy, and genuine care. He arranged for my fare to be credited without any fees and ensured I was fully supported. The Virgin online service centre was equally impressive. They rebooked my flight quickly and without any hassle. When it became clear that my new passport wouldn’t arrive in time, they again showed understanding and re‑credited my full fare as a 12‑month travel credit. Throughout the entire experience, every Virgin Australia staff member I dealt with—both in person and over the phone—demonstrated excellent customer service. Their support turned a stressful situation into something manageable. This experience reinforces why I choose to fly with Virgin Australia. Their after‑sales service and customer care are truly first‑class.

Flew with virgin to bali had the best air hostess Vanessa,Nicki, Melinda,Dani were aboustle gems,Captain Oren and Steven (FO) let my daughter have a tour of the pit she was so happy, definitely will be booking with Virgin time after time. Show details

Worst flight ever. Food that was slop was expensive. Setting was shit. Some staff were dicks. Wont ever be flying virgin again. They even let some lady drunk and drugged up onto the plane who was threatening to kill people.

There was no clear information that the seat selection was not possible with the flights booked through Virgin. Then we cant cancel. Poor customer service. Its so fraud, tricking people into booking without clear information which cam disadvantage people. Never ever fly with this company ever again. Show details

This is gonna be fun, I can’t find my 10 digit number. The paragraph for some reason or other my application to join was non-compliant so I got this big red notice saying you can’t join or something. All I wanted to do was choose my seat on the way home from Bali, no big deal. Can’t join can’t do this can’t do that jump through this hoop jump… Read more

through that hoop.

My wife just found the booking reference number but if you can’t join the so-called happy family of virgin Australia, how on earth are you supposed to move forward from there? They say login or join well you’ve gotta join before you can login but joining you have to be kissed on the knob by a fairy by the sounds of it. If anything pisses me off it’s making a relatively simple action complicated to the point of object frustration. This is a classic example.

Now it seems that I can’t submit this review because there doesn’t seem to be a tab that I press that says submit, however there is something that asks me if I’ve been offered a reward for submitting this review, but if I can’t submit it, how am I gonna get a reward for submitting it. This is just simply typical of the thing that people get so I write over.

There’s no point going business class with Virgin. You get nothing for your money. No Virgin lounge at Brisbane international airport. No Virgin lounge at Queenstown airport. No meal requests, even when it’s dinner time. I was given a plate of green leaves. They used to carry a spare veg meal but no longer do. Absolutely NO inflight… Read more

entertainment even for a 3.5 hour flight. No Virgin magazine anymore. Just another pathetic business going backwards with their customer service.

Absolute nightmare! Zero communication, non-existent customer service, and abandoned in Europe. I booked a flight from Lisbon to Melbourne via Doha through Virgin Australia to fly on Qatar Airways. Our flight was on April 29, 2026, but the airlines silently cancelled it on March 31, 2026. Did they notify us? Absolutely not. No email, no text, no… Read more

call. We had to find out completely by accident. We have been left completely in the dark, with no communication and zero support from either the booking agent (Virgin) or the operating carrier (Qatar). Not once did either Virgin Australia or Qatar Airways notify us of this cancellation. We only found out by chance! Trying to get any assistance from either customer service team involves passing the blame and enduring endless hold times. Taking someone’s money and then completely abandoning them without even a cancellation notice is unacceptable. Do not trust your travel to either of these airlines, as they will gladly take your money and leave you stranded. I am utterly disgusted by the sheer incompetence of both Virgin Australia and Qatar Airways. I booked a flight from Lisbon to Melbourne (via Doha) through Virgin Australia. You would expect an international itinerary to be handled professionally, but what I got was a complete abandonment of duty. The ordeal that followed was a joke. I had to spend 9 am to 2 pm on live chat in Lisbon just trying to get answers, and then I was forced to stay up the entire following night from 9 pm to 5 am trying to get someone to fix this mess. Absolutely exhausted and stranded, neither airline took responsibility or offered a reasonable solution, so I was forced to buy my own ticket just to get home. Passing the buck between a code share partner and an operating carrier is a disgraceful way to treat paying customers. Taking our money and leaving us to fend for ourselves is completely unacceptable. Zero stars if I could!!!

Worst flight experience EVER!! 4 hour flight to FIJI return just horrible. I always said I would never fly Virgin again after a bad experience 13 years ago.. but the times fitted my schedule so I took the plunge and purchased one of their flights. I can confidently say NEVER AGAIN!. Old clapped out 737 with NO FORM OF ENTERTAINMENT ON BOARD AT… Read more

ALL. NO screens, no movie, no internet, NOTHING!! You could pay $29 for internet which I believe in this day and age should be included in your airfare. We are 2026 not 1956 after all. Offered a cup of water in a paper cup or a hot cup of water with coffee or tea flavouring. YUCK! Had to buy an over priced drink and snack and sit like a sardine for 4 hours with no entertainment and listening to screaming kids all around me. Seriously it was like a form of torture. Most stupidest thing is I paid good money for that torture. Australia’s scabbiest airline and a big embarrassment on a world stage. They don’t even offer you a headset to ABC radio so you can block out the screaming daycare darlings. Seriously I got to the other end and had high blood pressure and a massive headache. Never again EVER will I fly with this lot! Would love for an airline to come up with adults only flights and inclusions that you expect in this day and age… I paid full fare not a discounted ticked for this torture.

Disappointed with my recent experience flying with Virgin Australia. My partner and I booked our tickets together on the same reservation, expecting to be seated next to each other, which is the minimum that should be expected except in exceptional circumstances. Instead, we were split up across the cabin. They did this across both our domestic… Read more

and international legs. When we were given our tickets, there was no acknowledgement given to this fact. It feels incredibly greedy to force couples or families apart just to pressure people into paying extra seat-selection fees. I’m sure they would say the flight was full, but we were amazed to find that there were additional spaces on the flight. If you are traveling with someone, be warned that they will probably split you apart with no warning or justification. I Will think twice before booking flights with them again.

Virgin are Horrible!!! We had tickets to fly from Brisbane to Rome in April 2026. Doha Airport was closed due to the War brewing. They took 21 days to cancel the ticket, then ripped us of by $660 not refunded. DISGRACEFUL!!!!! when it was not our fault we couldn't fly Be very Careful!!! Sucks Big time

tries to book as velocity platnium memcer flight from Auckland to Melbourne. You cxan not do it on line and virgin resrvation staff did noy knew how to do it. Velocity support also could not explain how to do. Spent 2 hours trying to do it with no sucssess Show details

We recently flew Business Class with Virgin Australia from Denpasar (Bali) to Sydney on an overnight flight (2 April 2026), paying approximately 60 million IDR for two tickets. Unfortunately, the experience fell well below what we would reasonably… Read more

expect from a Business Class product. We chose Business Class specifically so we could rest during the overnight journey. However, the cabin consisted of only eight seats with no separation from Economy, and the seats themselves were only slightly wider than standard economy seats with no additional recline. In reality, this felt much closer to a Premium Economy experience than Business Class. There was also no inflight entertainment provided, which was surprising for a flight of this duration and further reduced the overall experience. The onboard service was also disappointing. The meal served after take-off was of poor quality with no choice available, and there was no breakfast service before arrival, which is typically expected on an overnight international flight. Overall service felt limited and did not reflect a premium offering. Additionally, there was no lounge access available at either Denpasar or Sydney, which is something many travellers would reasonably expect when booking Business Class. On our return journey, the priority check-in experience was also frustrating, with the queue longer than the standard line and no clear prioritisation for Business Class passengers.

For the price paid, this was extremely poor value for money and did not meet the expectations of a Business Class experience. Following our complaint, we were offered a small travel credit, which did not reflect the significant gap between what was paid for and what was delivered. I would strongly recommend that anyone considering this route carefully reviews what is actually being offered, as it may not meet typical Business Class

In my view, this product is marketed as Business Class but delivers a service far closer

My international flight from the US to Melbourne had a layover in Sydney. When I arrived in Sydney, the Virgin Australia transfer desk staff have already abandoned their job although there was still an hour before my Sydney-Melbourne flight. By not being there, I was late for my flight and have to stay in Sydney overnight. And the only choice I… Read more

had to stay in was a $300 a night hotel. Their staff just didn't care even knowing that not every client has been accounted for at the time. I've never flown with VA ever since.

Had a flight on Qatar air cancelled due to the war. When we went to cancel the covid 19 travel bank, would have expired. Thus losing $480.00. We can’t get our money back so we were forced to rebook a flight in September, but if the war is still ongoing we are going to be in the same boat being messed around by virgin. This is daylight robbery you… Read more

have had the money six years and yet you get to keep it for longer, and earn interest on it. Do not use this company.

I am writing to formally lodge a complaint regarding a very distressing experience on our recent flight. From Denpasar to Melbourne, This was not a request to upgrade to Economy X—we had already paid in full for our Economy X seats. I have attached proof of payment, along with copies of our boarding passes showing our assigned seats, as well as… Read more

the seats we were ultimately forced to occupy.

Despite presenting this evidence to cabin crew, our concerns were dismissed. We were made to feel as though we were being dishonest, and staff refused to review our proof of purchase. This situation caused significant stress and discomfort for both my husband and me.

Since the incident, I have spent over six hours on the phone attempting to resolve this matter, with no meaningful response or outcome. We also raised the issue with ground staff upon arrival, but our concerns were not addressed.

Given the circumstances, we are seeking a full refund for the seating we paid for but did not receive, as well as appropriate compensation for the distress and the considerable time spent attempting to resolve this issue.

As a regular Virgin frequent flyer, I am extremely disappointed by this experience. The level of service we received was unacceptable, and it has unfortunately impacted my decision to continue flying with your airline.

We have also reported this matter to the ACA, due to lack of communication in relation to this matter, and how unsatisfactory it has been handled,

I look forward to your prompt response and a satisfactory resolution.

If you're getting married and changing your name, don't book through Virgin, especially not using points! I booked through Virgin with their partner Airline (Singapore) using points. I made sure that my Velocity account was updated with my new… Read more

name, but it did not flow through, and the booking would not allow me to use my points with my new name. I wanted to lock in the price and the flight, so I booked anyway. But when I called to correct my name, I was told that I needed to cancel and rebook. This is very disappointing as this will end up costing double the price, and they were unable to guarantee me the same flight or price. It should have been a much easier process to correct my name, and they should have been able to at least direct me to the partner airline to update my name with them directly.

My connecting Air Vanuatu flight from Espiritu Santo to Port Vila in Vanuatu on Sunday was cancelled due to bad weather. As a result, I was forced to change my international Virgin Australia flight back to Australia at additional cost in order to complete my journey. My UpgradeMe bid had already been accepted. However, due to this forced… Read more

itinerary change, the upgrade could no longer be honoured and the bid amount was still charged.

Despite the change was outside my control and caused by flight disruption, I am told I can’t get a refund of the UpgradeMe amount for the flight that was changed at cost to me and the business upgrade not provided. I will be contacting my bank for a chargeback for “service not provided.”

I encourage everyone to get a chargeback through their bank when Virgin did not provide the paid service and escalate it through state.. NSW Fair Trading, Consumer Affairs Victoria, Access Canberra, WA Consumer Protection, Queensland Office of Fair Trading, etc and cc Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)

I won’t be putting in an upgrade bid on Virgin again.

Denied Boarding Despite Valid Visa – Extremely Distressing Experience On 21 January 2026, my 67-year-old mother-in-law, a heart patient, was denied boarding on a Virgin Australia flight from Sydney to Queenstown despite holding a valid New Zealand tourist visa. At check-in, it was clearly communicated that she held a valid NZ visa. However,… Read more

staff focused on an ETA requirement, which does not apply to Indian passport holders who already hold a valid New Zealand visa. The interaction felt rushed and dismissive, and no meaningful escalation to a supervisor was offered despite the seriousness of denying boarding to an elderly passenger.

Virgin later stated that we arrived “approximately two minutes prior to check-in closing.” This does not reflect our experience. We were at the counter approximately 1 hour and 25 minutes before scheduled boarding, and other members of our travelling party were processed during that time. The issue was not timing, but how the documentation was assessed.

The impact was significant: • A 67-year-old heart patient left distressed • Essential medication in checked luggage • Family holiday disrupted at the very start • My wife and children in tears due to the situation

Despite escalating through formal channels and the Airline Customer Advocate, Virgin has denied responsibility, relying solely on internal reports.

This was not just an inconvenience — it was a deeply distressing experience involving an elderly, medically vulnerable passenger. I would strongly urge travellers, particularly those travelling internationally with visa requirements, to double-check everything and allow significant extra time, as the margin for interpretation appears very strict.

Extremely disappointing outcome.