Hotel and Airline Loyalty Programs

Do you have much loyalty to airlines or hotel chains? It's probably not worth trying to keep up with various rewards programs and frequent flyer miles if you are rarely travel but for the frequent traveler, being loyal to an airline or hotel chain has its perks. Most rewards programs give you points every time you fly or spend a night in a hotel. Frequently 10 nights at one of the member hotels or 10 flights on a partner airline (depending on the length of the flight) is enough to earn a free night or a free flight.

As a resident of Atlanta (or just outside Atlanta), I am naturally a frequent flyer on Delta. A round trip between Atlanta and New York is around 1600 miles while a round trip between Atlanta and the west coast is over 4000 miles and it typically takes 25000 miles to get a free round trip flight within the USA. A couple of years ago I was able to redeem 48000 miles for a free round trip ticket between Atlanta and Manila. That was quite a bargain. Generally speaking, 10000 miles is worth about $100. The cost of the ATL-MNL ticket is usually around $1,400 so being able to take advantage of that reward deal was making 10000 miles worth close to $300 for me. Delta also frequently runs promotions where you get double miles for certain flights or to fly from certain cities. Be on the lookout for these deals and you can save hundreds of dollars. Of course, it helps to be near an airport where one airline has such a strangle-hold on the market. In other cities, it may be more difficult to stay loyal to one airline because no one airline may fly virtually everywhere you would want to go like Delta does in Atlanta.

Hotels rewards are generally less lucrative and less worth the effort, even if you are away every other weekend at a hotel. The problem is that priceline and hotwire can too frequently save you money up front, while using a hotel chain's rewards program saves you money in the form of a free room later on. I have rewards accounts with Hilton (which includes several other other hotels like Hampton Inn and Embassy Suites), Choice Hotels, and Wyndham (which includes cheaper places like Microtel, Days Inn, Ramada Inn) and have accumulated points for a free night at a Wyndham hotel and at a Hilton hotel. However, my loyalty is not strictly to one hotel brand. When I go to Columbia, SC, I typically stay at a Wyndham because they are cheaper - even cheaper than priceline. When I need a hotel in Atlanta, Hilton often gets me a good deal at a Hampton or Hilton Garden Inn - these are definitely more upscale than the Choice of Wyndham hotels but it is worth it sometimes. Like the airlines, these hotels frequently run promotions where you can earn double or triple or even quadruple points during a certain time period or in certain cities.

Being loyal to one airline or hotel group can save you money but more than anything it might get you better treatment if the staff sees that you are a Gold symiles member or something equivalent. Plus, it can make planning easier and cut out some of the shopping for deals if you just stick to one company and assume that in the long run you'll at least come out about even and have fewer headaches and hours spent searching the internet for deals.