Retired Airline Employees – Eligibility

Like you I am a retired airline employee, having retired from Qantas in 2013 after 28 years service. Since retiring I have learnt a lot about retiree eligibility and I’d like to share this experience with you.

The good news is that as a retiree you are eligible for practically everything we have on TIDD.  

With the genuine industry rates at the 26,000+ hotels we have listed on TIDD, you will be able to use the majority of these. Almost all hotels allow retirees to access industry rates, and any that I am aware of that don’t I have highlighted on TIDD.

As a retired/redundant airline employee you should have been issued with a Retired Airline ID or Former Employee ID, and you will find most places will accept this as identification of an airline employee.
(Qantas Group Employees: if you retired or were made redundant more recently you may have not automatically received your Former Employee ID from Staff Travel. If so contact QF Staff Travel and ask to have a Former Employee ID issued for you).

Personally, as the majority of hotels offer industry discounts to retired airline employees I don’t usually check with the hotel about retiree eligibility. If I am staying overseas and the booking is for a few nights at an expensive hotel and there is a substantial discount then I will check, however for one or two nights I don’t bother. I also find that at 9 out of 10 hotels I don’t even get asked to show my retiree ID! If you look at my page about savings made with TIDD (https://www.tidd.com.au/save), with the hotels I list there I didn’t check ahead, and I only had to show my Former Employee ID at the Castle Hotel Windsor (and it was accepted as valid identification). 

I have travelled extensively since I retired, utilising hotel industry rates at Crowne Plaza, Intercontinental, Holiday Inn, Sofitel, Hilton and many others, and all have accepted me as a airline employee retiree. I’ve saved heaps!

If you are concerned that a particular hotel may not accept retired airline employees then I have included below a script that I have used in the past to make an enquiry.

If you would like any further information or advice please do not hesitate to contact me at: alex@tidd.com.au

Regards
Alex 

Suggested Script for Retired Airline Employee Enquiry:

Kerry and I travelled to Venice and decided we would like to stay at the Hotel Papdopolis by Sofitel. I checked the industry rates on TIDD and then I emailed the hotel’s reservations department advising that I was a Qantas staff retiree and asked if I was eligible for the industry rate that was available on their website. With the email I attached a scanned copy of my airline ID. Here is a copy of the email I sent:

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Dear Reservations 

I would like to make a booking at your hotel as follows: 

Arrive: 9 November 
Depart: 12 November 
Number of nights: 3 
Number of guests: 2 
Room Type: Superior Double Room with King Size Bed 
Rate: Industry Rate AUD$602.91 + Tax AUD$19.71 = Total AUD$622.61 (426.50EUR) 

The rate is a airline industry rate. Please could you advise if this rate is available to retired Qantas Airlines staff. I have recently retired and I still have access to all of my staff travel benefits. I have included a copy of my Qantas Identification below.

Regards Alex Jefferis
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Reservations came back to me straight away and advised that I was eligible for the rate.

The best flexible rate for the Hotel Papdopolis by Sofitel I could find at the time was AUD$890 for 3 days, and we paid the industry rate of AUD$622, a saving of 30% (AUD$268) – well worth the effort!