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It’s not the first time, but easyJet has once again announced a proper customer loyalty program. This time, however, it seems to be true and it is expected to be launched in late 2027, with details to be announced in early 2027. Given the previous experiences with easyJet and the customer loyalty issue – and their general attitude towards customer friendliness – one should probably issue a warning that expectations should not be set too high.

Air India’s low-cost subsidiary, Air India Express, has probably done better here, as it is now a full partner in its parent company’s Maharaja Club. The Maharaja Club itself does not necessarily have to be counted among the most generous programs on the market, but it remains to be seen whether the attractiveness of an easyJet program will come close to that. And with a bit of luck, this is just the first step for Air India Express and – similar to Eurowings from the Lufthansa Group – in the future, we might even see some partnerships with other, more attractive Star Alliance programs.

In addition to several full airline partners, Bangkok Airways’ FlyerBonus program also has some airlines as redemption partners only, which adds an interesting dimension to the program.
The latest award partner is Etihad, so now all three major Gulf carriers are represented in the program.

Where things get complicated, however, is that the program applies a separate award chart for each partner. For example, a one-way flight from Bangkok via the respective hub to London shows that such a flight costs 261,000 points with Etihad in Economy Class, but only 83,500 points with Emirates and 157,000 points with Qatar Airways. In Business Class, the prices are 520,500 points (Etihad) and 296,000 points (Emirates) and 313,500 points (Qatar Airways) respectively.

So, where exactly the value of this new partnership lies, is likely to remain rather obscured for the 99.9999% of FlyerBonus members who are not based in Abu Dhabi.

Sun Group is a Vietnamese conglomerate in the local travel sector that will significantly shape Vietnamese tourism. It includes its own airline (Sun PhuQuoc Airways), (luxury) hotels and entertainment facilities.

Now, a group-wide customer loyalty program called Sun Signature has been launched, in its initial phase being limited to the airline and hotels, as well as a local credit card. While Sun PhuQuoc Airways is currently limited to the Asian market, this will change quickly as the company has ordered 20 Dreamliners, with options for 40 more aircraft, with which a global network will be established. This is likely to quickly give the Sun Signature program greater significance – and turn tourism in Vietnam into true mass tourism.

In the travel sector, there are more and more subscription offers, where the question of profitability arises.

Horizons Club is one of the latest offers on the market. Offered in two forms, it is available in all the Minor Hotel Group’s properties in Europe and America, with the exception of Brazil. The group includes brands such as NH Hotels, Tivoli and Anantara, while being itself part of the Global Hotel Alliance.

The main benefits are a direct reduction on the published rates as well as on additional services, but also a credit of 150 DISCOVERY Dollars in the Minor DISCOVERY program (or any other DISCOVERY program of the Global Hotel Alliance). From the second stay onwards within a year, you receive an additional credit of 50 DISCOVERY Dollars per stay, with a corresponding redemption value in USD.

With an annual fee of 179 EUR for the basic version Open, the offer becomes a no-brainer for anyone who books at least two stays per year in Minor Hotels.

Although Sixt recently launched its own loyalty program, SIXT ONE, Sixt remains closely connected to its numerous Frequent Flyer partners.

And until the end of June, Miles & More plays a particularly important role here: For reservations made by June 30 and rentals of at least two days until July 31, you will receive a points credit depending on the performance of the German national team in the FIFA World Cup. For an exit in the group stage, you get 2, 3 or 4 miles per euro spent, depending on the car category. With each additional round, you receive 1 more mile, up to 8 to 10 miles in the case of a tournament victory.

The miles will be credited retroactively in August, when the outcome of the tournament is known.
Small tip: Of course, you can wait for Germany’s last group stage match on June 25 to understand whether you should really bet on this card or not…

It is always commendable when programs announce changes to reward prices in advance.

But when Emirates announces changes starting from May 20 without providing any further details, the practical value is very limited. Especially in the current situation, it is up to each individual to speculate in which direction the Skywards rewards will go. However, if Emirates was planning a fundamental price reduction, it would probably have been communicated differently.
In the last price adjustment, award levels in Economy Class were lowered, while awards in Business and First Class became more expensive.

Especially in the Middle East, you can currently see various attractive hotel promotions. The reason for this is logical: While foreign airlines can relatively flexibly adjust their route networks to the demand situation – for example, the Lufthansa Group has suspended all flights to Dubai until September 13 – this is not really feasible for hotels.

Especially in the programs of Accor, ALL, and Global Hotel Alliance, GHA Discovery, both of which are relatively strong in the Gulf region, offers for program members are piling up, combined with a generally low price level.

GHA is currently going so far as to give certain local members, after corresponding registration, 50 Discovery Dollars (worth 50 USD), which can then be redeemed in hotels in the region within two months…

As times (unfortunately) change, this is also reflected in the Miles+Bonus program of Greek airline Aegean Airlines.

Not too far away geographically, Greece is indeed dealing with two politically uncomfortable neighbours in Russia and Iran. As in more distant countries, military service is regaining importance here as well.

As it has been the case in the program for young parents during parental leave, Miles+Bonus now allows you to maintain your elite status even in the case of military service without corresponding program activity. This is the first time in the world that a program plays such a role in contributing to the security of its country.

After the demise of Spirit Airlines, many are questioning the future of low-cost carriers in the US. With the major, financially stronger U.S. airlines all introducing a basic fare to better compete with them, their room to manoeuvre has indeed shrunk.

Frontier is now the largest remaining (ultra) low-cost airline and has the answer for its Frontier Miles members: For every round-trip booked by May 31 and flown by August 31, you’ll get a bonus of 5,000 miles. For this, you already get a one-way award flight in the program.

This bonus can be collected up to four times, and perhaps this could be a good opportunity to support the sector – and thus the competition – in the USA a bit!

Uber is indeed entering into more and more partnerships with Frequent Flyer programs, but these are each country-specific and, by nature, of limited use to frequent flyers. For example, as a Delta SkyMiles member, you only earn miles in the US, and as a Flying Blue member with Air France KLM, you only earn in France – without the ability to link your Uber account to multiple programs.

There is now hope thanks to a newly announced partnership with Accor’s ALL program, where members will be able to earn points in multiple countries. Details are not yet known, but there is hope that one will indeed be able to benefit from the partnership across borders.

The partnership will start in the second half of the year in France, Germany, Poland, Morocco, and the Gulf States, both for Uber rides and orders with Uber Eats.