Emirates partners Starwood Hotels

The program, Your World Rewards, begins No. 19 and allows Skywards and SPG elite members who register for the program, to elevate their earnings and benefits when they fly with Emirates or stay with Starwood.  

 

With Your World Rewards, registered Emirates Skywards and SPG members will now earn in the air, on the ground and around the world. 

 

Whether on business or leisure, Emirates Skywards and SPG members will enjoy the best in travel from take-off to check-out with rich benefits, personal service and extensive access around the world through this partnership of two loyalty programs.

 

Elite Emirates Skywards and SPG members will receive exclusive rewards of each loyalty program. Skywards Gold and Platinum members will have the opportunity to upgrade their hotel experience, receiving exclusive benefits including access to SPG elite check-in, 4:00 p.m. late check-out and complimentary in-room Internet access. 

 

In turn, all SPG Platinum members will enjoy some of the advantages of Emirates Skywards elite like priority check-in and priority boarding when flying Emirates. Members will also receive complimentary e-gate access for flights in and out of Dubai. 

 

Members will also earn bonus Starpoints when they fly with Emirates and bonus Miles when they stay with SPG on top of their usual earnings. Elite SPG members will earn one Starpoint per dollar, in addition to Skywards Miles, for all eligible Emirates operated flights; and all Emirates Skywards Silver, Gold and Platinum members will earn the equivalent of one Mile per dollar, on top of Starpoints, for all eligible stays at Starwood hotels and resorts worldwide. Conversion rates will be adjusted for local currencies. 

 

“The combination of Emirates’ growing global network, Starwood's innovative take on hospitality and our top-rated loyalty programs allow us to recognize our most valuable customers with a heightened level of service and greater rewards wherever they travel – be it to one of our more than 140 destinations or at any of Starwood’s 1,200 hotels," said Thierry Antinori, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer of Emirates Airline. 

 

“This partnership unites two like-minded companies with complementary global footprints, putting more rewards on the map and taking our most loyal guests’ travel to new heights," Thierry said.

 

As one of the leading global airlines, Emirates is constantly adding new routes and new destinations, connecting more people with more places. In the past 29 years, Emirates has flown over 42 million passengers between India and the UAE. 

 

With the Indian market witnessing an increase in traffic from all 10 ports, Emirates upgraded its routes to Mumbai to an A380, Delhi and Hyderabad to a B777. In total, Emirates serves more than 140 destinations in more than 80 countries across six continents. With its hub in Dubai, it connects the East with the West – providing customers from the Far East and Australasia, West Asia, Indian Ocean and Middle East service to destinations in the Americas, Europe and Africa and vice versa.

 

“We are living in a new Golden Age of Travel with more people from more places traveling than ever before,” said Mark Vondrasek, Senior Vice President, Distribution, Loyalty and Partnership Marketing at Starwood. “Your World Rewards allows us to cultivate even greater loyalty with travelers from the world’s fastest-growing travel markets. As Emirates increasingly connects East with West, and the emerging markets to the developed world, their reach dovetails perfectly with Starwood’s preeminent high-end, global footprint and our pipeline of new hotels, 75% of which will open in emerging markets.”  

 

According to Vondrasek, SPG membership has grown 400% in key emerging markets over the last five years. Over the years, Starwood has gained great insights into the Indian market and the Indian consumer. 

 

As domestic travel increases and Indian travellers continue to demand more sophistication in terms of both quality and experience, Starwood believes it has a significant opportunity to grow its brands across the luxury, upper upscale and mid-market segments in gateway cities, tertiary markets as well as in resort destinations. 

 

The Indian market is strategically important for Starwood. Starwood has been present in India since 1973 and today has a strong footprint with 40 hotels operating and a robust pipeline with 36 hotels in the pipeline.  India is Starwood’s 4th largest market and is well poised to soon emerge as the third.  Starwood aims to have 100 hotels in operation, under development or management contracts signed by end of 2015.

 

The Emirates Skywards Program witnessed a world-wide growth of 20% and enjoys a membership of over 1 million in India.