Airfares and some airline fees are rising this summer amid higher jet-fuel costs, and that shift is undercutting the value some travelers expected to get from airline-branded credit cards, travel rewards cards and loyalty programs, according to the Associated Press. The AP reported that airfare in April was 21% higher than a year earlier, citing Labor Department data released the week before.
The AP said the higher prices affect not only cash ticket costs but also fees such as checking bags. That means travelers who planned trips around earning airline miles—or around redeeming points for a preferred cabin or route—may need to adjust plans or spend additional cash to complete the same itineraries.
In its reporting, the Associated Press tied the summer price pressure to the Iran war’s impact on oil supply and jet-fuel costs, and said airlines are also dealing with peak-season demand as summer travel approaches. As a result, it noted, flights priced in points can end up requiring more loyalty credits even when travelers are following the same “earn and redeem” pattern they used in earlier years.
The AP said that in the early years of frequent flyer programs, airlines provided tables showing how much different flight classes or distances would cost in miles. It said nearly all airlines now continuously adjust those costs using dynamic pricing, including for “award” seats priced in points.
Dynamic pricing for award travel means the points value of a seat can track demand the way cash fares do, the AP reported. The article said frequent-flyer experts describe the cash value of points seats as often roughly matching the comparable cash fare, with higher airfares translating into needing more miles or points for the same ticket.
Long before the current disruption to global oil supplies, the AP said U.S. lawmakers and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg criticized practices that, it said, could make it harder to use loyalty stockpiles before people redeem them—such as changing the number of points needed or offering fewer redeemable seats. Brian Kelly, a travel and credit card rewards expert known as The Points Guy, told the AP that “There’s no question that dynamic award pricing, higher redemption rates on some domestic routes, and added fees have made it harder to find the outsized deals that travelers enjoyed a decade ago,” adding, “But that doesn’t necessarily mean points have lost value.”
The AP’s reporting also highlighted the other side of the story: travelers can still earn miles and points in multiple ways, and many airline miles do not expire. The article said signing up for a frequent flyer program is often the simplest path, with members earning miles by flying and redeeming them for benefits such as discounted flights, seat upgrades and checked bags, and that upper tiers can add perks like priority boarding or waived baggage fees.
It said major airlines also partner with banks to sell co-branded credit cards that earn miles when users make purchases, and it quoted Adam Morvitz, a credit card miles expert and CEO of point.me, saying, “When you’re going to spend money anyway, you might as well get something back for it.” Morvitz told the AP that travel rewards cards can turn everyday spending into points that fund future trips.
For travelers planning summer trips around airline status or credit cards, the AP cited recent changes to checked baggage fees and said some loyalty tiers and certain co-branded cards can still cover a free checked bag. The AP reported that United raised the price of the first checked bag from $40 to $50 and that Delta Air Lines increased the first checked bag fee from $35 to $45, while saying upper-tier loyalty members and cardholders such as Delta SkyMiles Card customers with American Express or customers holding United’s card with Chase could check a bag for free.
The Associated Press said travelers who prefer flexibility may also look beyond airline-specific offerings to bank-issued travel credit cards that generate points transferable across loyalty programs. It said those cards can include benefits such as airport lounge access, travel insurance, no foreign transaction fees, and credits for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry.
The AP also pointed to sign-up bonuses during the early months of summer planning, including offers of 100,000 miles or 150,000 miles or points to new customers who spend enough within a set period. Kelly told the AP those bonuses can make cards more attractive for travelers who need additional points, while Morvitz said consumers should track minimum spending requirements closely and consider card features that match their spending habits, such as bonus categories for groceries or dining.
Morvitz told the AP that value can evaporate if a credit card balance carries over because the average credit card interest rate runs between 21% and 24%. He cautioned that rewards accounts are designed for people who treat them like a debit card—quoting him as saying: “Travel rewards cards are one of the best financial tools available to responsible cardholders, but they’re designed for people who treat them like a debit card,” and “Spend what you’d spend anyway and always pay the balance in full each month. The moment you start carrying a balance and paying interest, the math works against you.”
Finally, the Associated Press said the summer rewards outlook can vary beyond airlines. It reported that hotels may become less predictable for points value as programs change, noting that Hyatt overhauled its loyalty program and that one travel blog estimated some of Hyatt’s most elite properties could cost as much as 67% more with points under the new system. Sally French, who covers credit cards and loyalty programs for Nerd Wallet, told the AP, “If you’re sitting on hotel points, don’t sit and hoard them. … They quickly seem to be getting less valuable.”