Marriott and Emirates this month became the latest hotel group and airline to establish a reciprocal loyalty program—and we’re not upset about it. The move is part of what has become a larger trend in hotels and airlines linking up to offer their members (usually elite ones) the opportunity to earn hotel points when they fly, and miles when they stay at hotels, so basically double the points.
The Marriott-Emirates partnership comes after Hyatt and American Airlines launched a loyalty collaboration this past spring, allowing AAdvantage elite members to earn bonus miles during Hyatt stays and World of Hyatt elite members to earn bonus points on American Airline flights. That union was made even sweeter by the fact that World of Hyatt recently added the boutique Joie de Vivre Hotels and Thompson Hotels into its loyalty program, as well as dozens of hotels that are part of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World group.
Last month, Accor Group and the Air France–KLM Group announced a dual reward offering that is available to their entire global loyalty customer base (not just elite members). Every time loyalty members fly with Air France or KLM, or stay at an Accor hotel, they will now earn both Flying Blue miles (Air France–KLM’s loyalty program) and Le Club AccorHotels reward points.
The Marriott-Emirates collaboration is available to Marriott Bonvoy (the hotel group’s loyalty program) Gold Elite, Platinum Elite, Titanium Elite, and Ambassador Elite members, who will earn three points for every dollar spent on all eligible Emirates flights in addition to Skywards miles (Emirates’ loyalty program). Similarly, Emirates Skywards Silver, Gold, and Platinum members will earn one Skywards mile for every dollar spent on all eligible Marriott Bonvoy hotel stays.
Marriott Bonvoy elite members will also benefit from Emirates elite member perks, such as priority check-in and priority boarding. Conversely, Emirates Skywards Silver, Gold, and Platinum members will be able to ask for a late check-out and will receive complimentary in-room Wi-Fi.
The alliance is the rebirth of a similar one that was forged between Emirates and the former Starwood loyalty program, which was absorbed into Marriott Bonvoy following Marriott’s acquisition of Starwood.
