Qantas boarding passes are as ubiquitous in the hands of Australian frequent flyers as the words “currently in” are in the Instagram bios of amateur travel bloggers.

Given Qantas’ penchant for taking over the news (see, in the last few months alone, The Points Plane, the re-assignment of the A330 and the frequent flyer overhaul) this is unlikely to change anytime soon.

However, Virgin Australia — once an airline for backpackers; now a bona fide competitor — has long been creeping on Qantas’ market.

While Qantas is unlikely to drop the ‘cultural capital’ mantle for the foreseeable future, many travellers are switching to Virgin enticed by the 220+ destinations on offer, its wider range of tickets, its (slightly) more varied fleet, its friendly service and its less-trumpeted-but-equally-awesome frequent flyer program.

Plus: it’s always a bit of a thrill to be ~different~. But maybe that’s just us. To get the inside scoop we scraped the depths the travel industry, trawling Finder, Simple Flying, TripAdvisor, AusBT, Reddit and Traveller for the reasons people switch from Qantas to Virgin.

Here they are:

Virgin Australia Flies To More Destinations

With 200+ destinations on its hit list, Virgin Australia helps you earn Velocity Points when travelling to the obscure regions of Africa, Asia & The Pacific, Europe, The Americas and The Middle East. While Qantas will also fly you to each of the aforementioned regions, Finder reports that it only has 70+ destinations on its list.

While Qantas’ range of Oneworld partners somewhat makes up for this, relying on this as a method to earn points comes with a whole other set of problems, as one of our correspondents recently discovered, spending 15 hours in the worst seat on Emirates’ A380 Business Class.

Virgin Australia Is (Slightly) Cheaper

This varies case by case, however, in general, Economy tends to be cheaper on Virgin. For example, a Virgin flight from Sydney to Melbourne on a Thursday morning (for the purpose of this comparison, the 18th July) at 6am will cost you $229 — 30% cheaper than the $321 Qantas alternative for the same route on the same day.

Virgin Australia Has A More Flexible Frequent Flyer Program

Although you might earn slightly more points per trip (and have a slightly easier time redeeming your points for flights) on Qantas, “Virgin Australia’s frequent flyer program is more flexible when it comes to collecting points, point expiry and sharing points,” (Finder).

As one frequent flyer puts it: “I switched from Qantas to Virgin Australia after Virgin got ‘serious’ about business travel and took advantage of their status match promotion on my Qantas Platinum card, so I could try them out with full Velocity Platinum privileges.”

“Once the new business class was rolled out across most of the (Virgin) fleet I was pretty happy and definitely wanted to show my support of the new ‘challenger’ (plus) its cheaper fares didn’t hurt.”

Also — while Qantas’ recent frequent flyer overhaul just made ‘points bought’ Economy seats cheaper (and easier to access) its business class seats now require even more points than before.

The Virgin Australia Flight Attendants Are Younger

While one snooty-beyond-his-years ABT commenter complained, “I’m 23 years old, and many Virgin crew are around my age. I’ve found the service to be decidedly subpar and aloof from the majority of these crew members. Experience counts,” a TripAdvisor thread dedicated to the topic suggested the exact opposite, with passengers making the following observations.

• “I’ve flown both and the service on VA far outweighs anything I have experienced on Qantas.”
• “I gave up with Qantas years ago.”
• “Virgin have an excellent record with service/on time etc.”
• “I certainly will not fly domestically on a carrier that has flight attendants older than my workplace boss.”

With Virgin Australia, You Know Exactly What You Are Sitting Yourself Into (Especially With Business Class)

As Australian Business Traveller pointed out, in an article entitled, Why I Switched From Qantas To Virgin, “Regardless of which plane you’re on you pretty much know what (seat) you are going to get.” While Qantas has improved its fleet in recent years, Virgin is still ahead in terms of ‘seat quality consistency’ across jets.

Virgin Australia Converts Don’t Like Lounging About

While Qantas still has superior airline lounges, those who switched to Virgin say they aren’t too fussed about this aspect of the flight.

“I don’t ask for much from a domestic airport lounge,” (ABT).

They also said that “it’s refreshing being an airline customer who is made to feel wanted, rather than expected to fly just because its the national carrier,” (ABT).

Read Next

• How My First Ever Business Class Trip Ruined Me For Life 

The post 'Why I Switched From Qantas To Virgin'; Frequent Flyers Explain What Made Them Jump Ship appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

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With the introduction of mulled wine and winter specials to most Sydney restaurants as of late, completing Dry July has become more trouble than its worth. Fortunately, there is a new challenge on the horizon — and one more appropriate for the world we live in: a digital detox.

Before you get all evangelical about the health benefits of giving up alcohol, ask yourself — do you spend most of the day looking at a screen, or do you spend most of the day drinking? Unless you are a Sommelier or Ernest Hemingway, there is only one acceptable answer.

Hence: Digital Detox (with a twist) July.

Why ‘with a twist’? Because we left the days of floating down the river in a lie low, beer in hand and phone flipped shut back in 2006. In other words: we have to be able to return to work, and if we’re honest, smartphones are quite useful.

That said, many Australian men are jumping on board a ‘lite’ version of a digital detox — from us here at D’Marge, to the users of Chris Hemsworth’s health and fitness app Centr, to Stephen Brook, an Australian journalist, who penned an article in the Sydney Morning Herald earlier this week about his transition from Dry July to Digital Detox July.

“Life is too short for such grand gestures of (culinary) abstinence,” he said, challenging readers to instead make tech-based changes that are “too small to fail” to their lives. This attitude is also reflected in a Centr post, which prompts its users to “make peace with the fact that technology and apps are a part of our lives, but… learn to use them in a healthy way.”

So forget the internet-free glamp-sites and frozen ice hotels of the world; this month Australian men have been challenged to prune their social media (and desktop) so that Marie Kondo would be proud.

“I have to tell you, culling hundreds of accounts from Twitter and Instagram is a cathartic and liberating experience,” (Stephen Brook, SMH).

Whether this means unfollowing a couple of annoying ‘mates’ or reducing your social media circle to literally the only 5 people whose DM’s you wouldn’t mind sliding into is up to you.

Just make sure that whoever is left sparks joy.

Finding the exact number of people who have taken the challenge is an inexact art (posting about your digital detox on Instagram is fever-pitch irony) but at the time of writing 121,173 Instagram photos have been posted with the hashtag ‘digital detox’ — which suggests the actual number is far greater, as (one would hope) most people who undertake the task do it a little more quietly.

In terms of real numbers, research from Deloitte’s mobile consumer survey report suggests that 44 per cent of Australians think their phone use is a problem and are trying to reduce how much time they spend on it.

Read Next

• Luxurious Off Grid Escapes For Those Who Need A Break From The Real World
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The post New Mental Health Challenge Gains Momentum With Australian Men appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Men’s sneakers are, without a doubt, the most popular footwear style worldwide. While boots and dress shoes are must-haves in any man’s wardrobe, sneakers have earned their number one status in the realm of footwear because they come in a huge number of styles, colours, and materials that allow us to show off our individual personalities. And, because of their ubiquitous nature, pretty much every fashion brand under the sun has its own pairs for you to buy.

This means that all budgets are catered for. Whether you want something cheap and cheerful that you don’t mind giving a beating to, or something on the more luxurious end of the scale – including the likes of rare and collectible sneaker models that hypebeasts go gaga for – that only make an appearance for special occasions, there is a sneaker brand out there for everyone.

Features to look out for if you want the best sneaker

• Use of expensive high-grade leathers e.g. pebble leather, which doesn’t crack as much over time.
• Thicker leather – this ensures the shoe retains its shape and looks newer for longer.
• Tumbled leather – some mid-range shoe brands use this to achieve a balance between quality and affordability.

How to determine whether a pair of men’s sneakers are high-quality

• If the men’s sneakers are made out of suede or leather, test how flexible it is by bending the shoe; you should be able to move it quite easily if it’s high-quality. If you find the shoe is rather stiff, it’s cheaper quality leather.
• Smell the inside of a shoe and if it smells like glue you know it’s been made on the cheap; a good quality shoe needs to smell like good quality leather.
• If the men’s sneakers are lightweight when you pick them up they will be using more expensive soles which are generally better quality.

Now that you know what you’re after in a decent sneaker, check out the best sneaker brands to shop from below. The majority of brands and pairs featured fall into the affordable category, but we’ve also included a few luxury options for those who want to splash a little more cash on new men’s sneakers.

The post 28 Best Sneakers For Men | As Worn By Our Editors [2022] appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

The 70s are back, baby. Well if only for one night thanks to Donald Glover’s latest appearance at ‘The Lion King’ premiere in Hollywood. And there’s a reason every man should pay close attention.

Glover stepped out in one hell of a 70s throwback suit by Gucci which featured double breasted detailing, bell bottom trousers, a knotted French dress shirt and a pair of single strap mahogany leather boots. Quite frankly, it’s like Glover walked out of a 70s fashion mag and straight onto today’s red carpet. And you have Alessandro Michele’s creative direction at Gucci to thank for that.

A closer look at the suit pattern shows off a bold cream and big red check patterning. Bar for Glover’s subtle necklace, minimal accessories like pocket squares, ties and watches are needed here as the suit itself is already a big throwback statement in one of the most laid back ways.

Read Next

• A Double Breasted Suit Will Turn You Into A Sartorial God; Here’s How To Wear It
• 32 Sharpest Dress Shoes To Own For Your Next Business & Formal Adventure

The post Donald Glover's 'Lion King' Suit Is Your Masterclass In 70s Style appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Need a restaurant recommendation? A last-minute hotel room? A petsitter for Spot? Fresh ideas to liven up the bedroom? There's an app for that.

We now rely on our smartphones for just about everything -- including our relationships -- and with the range of apps on offer (for everyone from candle...

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Have you ever had an argument with your partner, kissed and made up, gone on with your life, only to discover that — days later — their texts are still inextricably cold?

As an iPhone user, whenever I found myself in this situation I would always find myself lobbing ‘witty’ one-liners or casual “everything’s normal” texts at this void of passive aggression, either not realising something was still wrong — or simply not believing I needed to apologise again.

Upon switching to Android, however, I discovered a little known (to Apple fanboi’s like myself anyway) feature exists which has turned out to be a date-night saver — the auto-reply suggestions which pop up at the bottom of your phone screen when texting.

Before you write this off as a glib attack on men’s stereotypical inability to express their emotions, hear me out.

I know how to apologise; I just don’t know when. And although I like to think I appreciate my partner as much as I should do, we can all do with a little reminder every now and then.

Which is why Android’s auto-reply suggestions have been so helpful — and not just for me. As the D’Marge editor recently discovered, this auto-reply feature, even if you don’t use it as intended, can be a get out of jail free card for any argument you might be having with your partner.

While the situation in the photo above may look dire, after sending a screenshot of Android’s injunction to apologise to his partner, the D’Marge editor says the mood lightened and everything turned out ok.

“You have three options: apologise, apologise or apologise.”

And it’s not just arguments. This feature has helped me out too, by prompting me to check in with my partner more often, and even providing the conversation starters…

Read Next

• I Switched From iPhone To Pixel For 30 Days; Here’s The Cold Hard Truth About Making The Switch 

The post How Switching From iPhone To Pixel Made Me A Better Boyfriend appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

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Daubed blue walls. Pastel plant pots. Fresh couscous. Chaufchaouen is a melting pot of Spanish, Jewish, and Berber influences, more scintillating views than you can throw a tagine at, and over 357,668 Instagram hashtags.

It’s no surprise then that the “blue pearl” of Morocco is slowly coming out of its shell, as tourists world-wide make the North Moroccan pilgrimage, inspired by travel bloggers, mint tea and the Rif Mountains.

 

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A post shared by Chefchaouen City Vibes (@chefchaouenvibes) on Jul 9, 2019 at 4:10pm PDT

However, as The Lonely Planet recently pointed out, Chaufchaouen is becoming oversaturated (and not just with Instagram filters). So if you want to get the authentic experience, you’ll have to become part of the problem — and visit asap.

 

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“Go before it loses its charm, but don’t just go for the photo op!”

The one saving grace is that it is hard to get to: “6.5 hours through mountain roads from Casablanca and 3.5 hours from Fes.” But as most everyone is charmed with this hidden gem’s “picturesque blueness,” expect more and more travellers to be making the pilgrimage.

 

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A post shared by ANNA Travel girl (@ms.coco.nut) on Jul 8, 2019 at 3:49am PDT

Read Next

• Morocco’s ‘Secret Garden’ Is Yet Another Natural Phenomenon Instagram Has Exposed 
• How Not To Get Shot Or Arrested In Morocco 

The post The Truth About Morocco's Fabled Blue City appeared first on DMARGE Australia.