New Starwood Delta Partnership: SPG Crossover Rewards

On Tuesday, Loyalty Lobby reported on some leaked details about Starwood Preferred Guest’s upcoming Crossover Rewards partnership program with Delta. I just received the official details on the new joint program directly from SPG myself and here are the specific confirmed benefits.

Starwood Preferred Guest Elite Members Flying with Delta:

-Bonus Points: SPG Gold and Platinum members will receive bonus Starpoints based on purchased Delta fares. As an SPG elite member, you must book a Delta marketed and operated flight (excluding bookings made through online travel agencies, e.g., priceline.com, expedia.com, booking.com, orbitz.com, elong.com) and will receive either:

• 1 Starpoint for every one U.S. dollar or its foreign equivalent spent on Delta fares (excluding taxes and fees), OR
• 500 Starpoints for special Delta fares, often referred to as unpublished fares, including but not limited to consolidator fares, tour, groups, merchant marine and cruise packages.

All segments of the flight must be Delta-marketed (e.g., has a DL flight number) and operated to qualify. A flight is not considered Delta-operated if it is operated by a SkyTeam, Delta codeshare, or other alliance partner carrier.

These points are in addition to the normal SkyMiles you earn!

-Priority Check-In: SPG Platinum members will receive priority check-in at designated Silver Medallion and SkyTeam elite check-in lanes where Delta offers this service (currently, Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Memphis, Minneapolis, New York City – JFK, New York City – LGA, Salt Lake City, Tokyo-Narita) or at designated Sky Priority check-in lanes at all other airports.

-Priority Boarding: SPG Platinums will get Zone 1 priority boarding on qualifying Delta flights for themselves and up to 8 additional passengers traveling under the same reservation as the Crossover Rewards Participant is on. Priority boarding is not offered on Delta Shuttle flights.

-First Checked Bag Free: The first checked bag is free for SPG Platinums and up to 3 additional passengers traveling under the same reservation as the Crossover Rewards Participant. This waiver is only for standard first checked bag fee, if any fee applies, for a bag that is not overweight and not oversize under Delta’s applicable rules in Delta’s contract of carriage. Additional checked bags will be subject to the applicable baggage fees as outlined by Delta’s rules and the purchased fare set forth in Delta’s contract of carriage.  The first checked bag fee waiver will only be applied on flight segments which originate on a Delta or Delta Connection carrier when you check-in with Delta for both a Delta-marketed and Delta-operated flight.

Delta Medallion Members Staying with Starwood:

-Bonus Miles: Delta Silver, Gold, Platinum and Diamond Medallion members will receive 1 SkyMile per $1 of eligible room revenue (so the room rate but not taxes)

-Hotel Recognition: Delta Platinum and Diamond Medallion members will receive elite check-in line access, free in-room high-speed internet access, late check-out.

Loyalty Lobby also reported on some unconfirmed details about the new program including rumored airline upgrades on Delta for SPG Platinum members, but my Starwood contacts have said unequivocally that this is not a benefit of the SPG Crossover Rewards program.

At this time, the SPG Crossover Rewards will only be in partnership with Delta, and per my sources at Starwood, there are no current plans to roll out these benefits with additional airlines.

What This Means For You

At a very minimum, this is a great way to double dip and earn valuable Starpoints when you fly Delta. Likewise, you can earn SkyMiles when staying at SPG properties and you don’t have to bank your points to Delta SkyMiles! Later this spring there will be a website where you link your Delta and Starwood accounts and it will automatically recognize your status in both programs.

Even though I’m a Platinum Medallion and won’t be getting any more perks than I currently get, I look forward to banking Starpoints whenever I do fly Delta. I think this partnership is smart – both Delta and Starwood have strong American Express ties and will probably end up generating more loyalty through Crossover Rewards.

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