When the company "beats you up," Vueling writes me, "The club is about to change for the better," and instead...

Yesterday Vueling Club, the loyalty program of the low-cost airline that belongs to the IAG group that also owns Iberia and British Airways, sent me an email informing me loyalty program improvements, and since this is the same company that in the last 18 months has made everything it touched worse, I did not expect any real improvement.

#spoileralert I was not wrong.

"Very soon our loyalty program will change...for the better!"

Don't have status? then no Avios

The central point is simple, and for many painful: With Vueling you will no longer earn Avios on flights, unless you already have status.

From the new Vueling Club:

• you don't accumulate Avios until you make at least 3 flights or
• until you spend at least 200 euros (net, excluding tax) in one year

Only after exceeding this threshold do you receive a bonus of 500 Avios that "makes up" for those lost at the beginning.

Those who have flown at least once since January 2025 will be "saved" and leave in 2026 with the basic "Smart" level, but from there on the message is clear: if you are not a regular customer, you are no longer interesting.

Vueling Club, like its big brothers at Iberia and British, also becomes revenue based so it will no longer count on how many flights you make, but only on how much you spend: €1 spent (excluding taxes) = 1 status point.

And just as in the British Club status is achieved "only" by spending, even in the low-cost to rise to the high levels - Plus and Premium - definitely demanding sums are needed. For the top level we are talking about 4,000 euros per year Of net spending on Vueling. Now ok to be fond, but we are talking about spending more than 300€ per month on a low-cost, or you commute and they offer the perfect route, otherwise it's madness.

Okay, but what about benefits?

If you get top you have the classic things you might expect from other FFs: luggage in the overhead compartment, priority, fast track. Then there's the seat upgrade, which I guess means the ability to sit in the front or near the emergency exits.

In addition to this there is no connection with Iberia or British Airways. No equivalent status, no oneworld, no real benefits outside Vueling.

In IAG's house, the signal is quite eloquent: you want to Rewarding only those who spend a lot, not those who fly a lot.

In conclusion

I am always fascinated by how the marketing departments of certain companies have to come up with the worst things to communicate certain changes, but to have the nerve to say it changes for the better is really an outrage of modesty.

In any case on Vueling I don't think I'll ever set foot on, but in case anyone needs to know beforehand that you'll be treated like FR, but you'll probably pay more and you won't even get the bonus of miles.

• Avios