Travel Loyalty News

Those who fly on partner carriers and accrue miles to AAdvantage won't be happy with American's new unannounced changes to its loyalty program.

Consumers, especially millennials, want loyalty points that aren't so difficult to redeem. To address that issue, startup Loyyal is now developing a universal point system based on blockchain technology that allows cross-partner redemption.

Despite the radical changes to airline loyalty programs, the branded credit card remains one of the industry's most profitable and productive marketing programs.

The points' match from JetBlue shows the extent to which the airline will go to compete with Virgin America, its soon-to-be-stronger adversary.

When it comes to regulating frequent flier programs, the U.S. Department of Transportation has little authority.

Fewer upgrades are on the horizon for the 1% as airlines start to shift upgrade processes.

American's AAdvantage members are NOT happy.

How the ranks of AAdvantage members expand or contract after these changes will now largely depend on whether American can compete on product instead of loyalty.

Loyalty isn't necessarily a dying breed among millennials if a brand knows how to make a program appealing to their spending and lifestyle habits outside of travel. That means doubling down on experiences and diversifying how points are earned.

Hotels are getting more people to join their loyalty programs than ever before. Now they just need to raise their engagement levels to keep them coming back — booking direct, as they'd prefer.