The Latest in Travel Rewards News

News on points, miles, credit cards, loyalty programs, airlines, hotels and more from NerdWallet writers.

Kevin Berry, Meghan Coyle, Elina GellerApril 19, 2021
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April 19 - Capital One Adds Airline Transfer Partners, Set To Open Airport Lounges

There were already over a dozen airlines and hotel partners you could transfer your Capital One miles to, but today, Capital One announced four more. They are: British Airways (Avios), Choice Hotels (Choice Privileges), TAP Air Portugal (Miles&Go) and Turkish Airlines (Miles&Smiles). Additionally, Capital One is improving the transfer ratios — at least for some mileage programs (nine to be exact) — by launching a new, 1:1 transfer tier.

In other news, Capital One previously announced that it would launch a couple new airport lounges, and the company just revealed new details as to what they’ll be like. The lounges will be located at Dallas-Fort Worth, opening in late summer 2021, and Washington-Dulles, opening in 2022.

Get all the details of the new transfer partners, improved transfer ratios and perks of the new lounges in our full Capital One article.

April 14 - Travelers Can Earn Marriott Points on Uber Rides and UberEats

Marriott members can now earn points whenever they use Uber when they link their Marriott Bonvoy account to their Uber app. The earning rate is:

  • 6 points per dollar spent on Uber Eats orders delivered to Marriott properties (minimum $25 purchase).

  • 3 points per dollar spent on Uber XL, Uber Comfort, Uber Black and Premium rides.

  • 2 points per dollar spent on all other Uber Eats orders (minimum $25 purchase).

For a limited time, when members link their account and make at least one of the qualifying purchases to earn points, they'll earn an additional 2,000 bonus points. This bonus points promotion ends May 31, 2021.

April 13 - JetBlue Adds Codeshare Flights with Qatar Airways

JetBlue is expanding its partnership with Qatar Airways. JetBlue customers will now be able to book nine new routes from the U.S. to Doha, in addition to flights to Jordan, Malaysia, the Maldives, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore and Uganda. All of these flights will be operated by Qatar Airways, which is consistently ranked as one of the best airlines in the world. Its Qsuite product is known as one of the best in business class for privacy and comfort. Later this year, members of the JetBlue TrueBlue loyalty program and Qatar's Privilege Club will be able to earn miles on these new codeshare flights and in the future, they'll be able to redeem their miles for flights on either carrier as well.

April 12 - HawaiianMiles Don't Expire Anymore

Hawaiian Airlines' loyalty program is making another consumer-friendly change that's here to stay. HawaiianMiles will no longer expire. Previously, miles would expire after 18 months of account inactivity, but the airline had paused expiration through Dec. 31, 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hawaiian Airlines joins Delta, JetBlue, Southwest and United in allowing their members to keep their miles indefinitely. Read our full guide to find out more about when your frequent flyer miles expire (and how to prevent them from expiring).

April 8 - New Welcome Bonus and Airline Credit Card

American Express rolled out an increased welcome offer on The Business Platinum Card® from American Express and United Airlines launched a new co-branded card.

The boosted welcome offer on The Business Platinum Card® from American Express is: Earn 100,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases with the Business Platinum Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership. Terms Apply.

In other credit card news, the New United Quest℠ Card went on the market today. The welcome offer is: Earn 80,000 bonus miles after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. Plus, an additional 20,000 bonus miles after you spend $10,000 in the first 6 months. The card has a $250 annual fee. Learn more about the card launch here.

March 31 - Delta Announces Status Accelerators

Good news today if you're a regular Delta flyer: The airline has announced several improvements to how you earn status in 2021. Beginning with flights on April 1 and continuing through the end of the year, you'll earn more as follows:

  • 50% or more Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs), Medallion Qualification Segments (MQSs) and Medallion Qualification Dollars (MQDs) on Delta flights.

  • This 50% bonus includes award travel as well as tickets booked with Miles + Cash.

  • An additional 25% bonus (so 75% total) on all premium cabins and upgrades purchased after initial ticket purchase (both cash and miles tickets)

  • These bonus MQMs will also count towards Million Miler status.

Check out our full explainer and breakdown of these changes and how you can make the most of them.

March 31 - Capital One Rolls Out Limited-Time Offer

If you're looking to scoop up a boatload of travel points in preparation for your return to the travel world, Capital One is offering a new limited-time deal with the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: Earn 100,000 bonus miles when you spend $20,000 on purchases in the first 12 months from account opening, or still earn 50,000 miles if you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. Get more details on the offer here.

March 30 - Chase Extends Pay Yourself Back Benefit and Adds up to 10X Points on Peloton for Sapphire Cardholders

Chase announced it will extend some of the flexible benefits that were added in the last year as the pandemic brought travel to a halt. Both the Pay Yourself Back option and the special offer on Chase dining, which make points 25% or 50% more valuable when they're redeemed for statement credit for certain categories or food orders through the Chase Dining portal, are now available through Sept. 30, 2021.

Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholders also now have until the end of the year to count grocery store and gas station purchases toward their annual $300 travel credit.

Through March 2022, Chase is also expanding its partnership with Peloton to offer 10x points for Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholders (up to 50,000 points) or 5x points for Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card customers (up to 25,000 points) on each purchase of a Peloton Bike, Tread, and accessory purchase over $1,800. This new offer is in addition to a previously announced credit of $60 or $120 annually (depending on the card) for a Peloton digital subscription when you enroll through onepeloton.com/ChaseSapphire.

March 24 - Capital One Travel Powered by Hopper Will Launch in Late 2021

Capital One is teaming up with the app Hopper to revamp the card issuer's portal for booking travel with miles. The new Capital One Travel portal is set to launch in late 2021 for credit cardholders to earn and redeem rewards. Capital One says Hopper's AI technology will help travelers get the best deal by improving price predictions and alerts for the lowest-price flights, hotels and rental cars. The new portal will also make it easier to change or cancel bookings at a time when airlines and other travel companies are embracing flexibility to retain customers.

How to Maximize Your Rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2021, including those best for: