The top four finishers in this category: Priority Club IHG, Hyatt Gold Passport, Starwood Preferred Guest and Taj Hotels & Resorts InnerCircle.
Taj InnerCircle members could earn up to 700 bonus points when booking the Surprises rate at Taj locations worldwide. Members earned 500 bonus points for the first four nights, plus up to an additional 200 bonus points at Luxury hotels.
The top four finishers in this category are Marriott Rewards, Choice Privileges, Club Carlson and IHG Priority Club Rewards.
Marriott Rewards has been offering its MegaBonus for several years running and there is no end in sight for this popular promotion. In an ever-changing industry, members have grown to expect the trustworthy MegaBonus to return year after year and continue to rate this bonus as best in class.
The winner is Flying Blue Promo Awards! Congratulations Flying Blue.
“Next year we’ll make an even better promotion, thank you.”
For a limited time, Air France / KLM Flying Blue offered a discount of 25 percent on Promo Awards to all European destinations served by both airlines. Members who booked an eligible flight between Oct. 30 and Nov. 29, 2012 for travel between Nov. 1, 2012 and March 26, 2013 could receive a 25 percent discount.
When Jet Airways JetPrivilege offered a 20 percent discount on award tickets booked online for flights within India, they gave members nearly an entire year to take advantage of the offer. From March 25, 2012 until March 31, 2013, members could redeem award tickets on Jet Airways and JetKonnect in economy and Premiere class for 20 percent fewer miles on domestic routes.
“Thanks to the members – this award means a lot to us.”
The crowd cheers for American AAdvantage – congrats to American!
American AAdvantage offered double elite-qualifying miles and points on all American Airlines, American Eagle and American Connection flights between Nov. 1 and Dec. 31, 2012. Elite members also earned double award miles on all travel while non-elites could earn double miles on travel between Nov. 16 and Nov. 26, 2012. This was a much appreciated boost for members who still needed to log some miles before the end of the elite-qualifying year.
“Thank you Starwood Preferred guests, the best members in the world.”
Starwood Preferred Guest is no stranger to winning this category. Starwood’s nine-year winning streak was interrupted by Hilton, Marriott and IHG from 2009 to 2011, but the program resumed its first place spot last year and continues the trend this year. Starwood pioneered making all standard rooms available for points, and other hotel programs have followed their lead.
Hyatt Gold Passport nudges past Taj Hotels & Resorts InnerCircle to take the Freddie for Best Redemption Ability in Middle East /Asia /Oceania. This is the first time Hyatt Gold Passport has won for Best Redemption Ability in any geographical region. Hyatt’s portfolio includes truly aspirational properties and when it comes time to redeem your points, there are no unpleasant surprises. Hyatt Gold Passport has a reputation for keeping members well-informed about changes to award categories. When the program announced in December 2012 that several hotels would be changing categories, the program gave members six weeks advance notice.
“Thank you to all of our members.”
Marriott Rewards wins in this all-important category for a second year in a row. Marriott has plenty of properties, in locations where their members want to stay, and at different levels of service. Members report that redeeming points for Travel Packages continues to offer a great value. When redeeming for a vacation package of seven nights or longer, points can be redeemed for hotel nights and flight miles with several participating airlines.
“Of course we want to use our airline miles too,” says Gary Leff. The winner as spoken by the members is Flying Blue! Congratulations!
“Thank you very much! It means a lot.”
This is a first time win for Air France / KLM Flying Blue in the Best Redemption Ability category. Award sales are a sure way to win the heart of many a frequent flyer and Flying Blue offers up to 50 percent off promo flight awards every couple of months. Hotel stays, car rentals, extra baggage allowance and in-flight meals are just a few of the other types of awards available to members.
The winner is Virgin Australia. “Thank you very much – appreciate it!”
This is the fifth Best Redemption Ability Freddie Award win for Velocity. Velocity members who plan in advance can get award flights for fewer points and they also have the option of using points for any available flight—including peak holiday travel times when the number of points is based on the cost of the fare. We saw Virgin America, Virgin Atlantic Airways and Virgin Australia finally become full earning and redeeming partners in 2012, giving Velocity members the ability redeem miles across the network of Virgin carriers.