Nearly half (48%) of Americans have membership in at least one of these kinds of travel rewards program. Three in ten Americans are members of airline or hotel rewards programs (with 31% of Americans confirming membership in each), while a quarter have a credit or payment card with travel rewards (26%).
NEW YORK – Rewards programs are everywhere nowadays; from the grocery store to the pet store and everything in between, anyone can sign up to receive perks offered by various vendors to members only. When it comes to travel rewards, there are a few main types: programs for airlines and for hotels, along with credit and payment cards that offer travel reward perks. But just what do Americans think about all of these options?
Nearly half (48%) of Americans have membership in at least one of these kinds of travel rewards program. Three in ten Americans are members of airline or hotel rewards programs (with 31% of Americans confirming membership in each), while a quarter have a credit or payment card with travel rewards (26%).
Membership in each increases significantly when looking at those who travel by commercial airline at least one time per year, with over half (56%) using an airline program, nearly half (47%) members in a hotel program, and over four in ten (42%) using a credit or payment card with travel rewards. With just over half of air travelers members of an airline rewards program, there’s certainly room for growth in the industry.
These are among the findings from a Harris Poll of 2,215 U.S. adults (aged 18 and older) surveyed online from April 16-20, 2015.
Interestingly, older generations are more likely than their younger counterparts to be members of each of these types of programs:
– Membership in airline rewards program(s): 36% Matures, 36% Baby Boomers, 32% Generation X, & 24% Millennials
– Membership in hotel rewards program(s): 41%, 36%, 31%, & 23%, respectively
– Credit or payment card(s) with travel rewards: 38%, 30%, 21%, & 22%, respectively
But are they useful?
Whether or not someone personally takes advantage of the aforementioned programs, everyone has an opinion on them. Overall, equal percentages of Americans (46% each) view credit or payment cards with travel rewards and hotel rewards programs as very/somewhat useful, with slightly less saying the same for airline rewards programs (43%). Not too surprisingly, those who have each of these rewards programs are more likely to consider the programs very/somewhat useful:
– 70% of travel rewards credit/payment cardholders say these are useful
– 64% of hotel rewards members feel this way about these programs
– 59% of airline rewards members find these programs useful
However, on a more surprising note, Millennials are more likely than their older counterparts to find each of these programs to be very/somewhat useful, despite being the least likely to have membership in any of them. Millennials are most likely to find credit or payment cards with travel rewards (55% compared vs. 36% Gen Xers, 44% Baby Boomers, & 45% Matures), hotel rewards programs (54% vs. 42%, 44% & 39%) and airline rewards programs (53% vs. 36% Xers, 38% & 42%) useful.
And do they affect travel choices?
For travel rewards members, participation has at least some impact on a variety of travel decisions. Over six in ten (61%) say their memberships impact their decision on both selecting which hotel to stay at and which airline to fly on. Memberships affect decisions related to rental companies less so, but still, 40% say memberships impact which company they rent a car from.
These sentiments increase when looking at which type of program one participates in. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of those who have a membership in a hotel program say it impacts which hotel they choose and the same is true for those with an airline membership (75%) and which airline they choose.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
