A New, Easy Way to Earn "Elite Status" with Norwegian Air

March 09, 2016

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4 min read

A New, Easy Way to Earn "Elite Status" with Norwegian Air

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Norwegian Air has been expanding its route network, with the most recent flights linking Paris to New York, Fort Lauderdale and Los Angeles. With its low fares and consistently good products, Norwegian Air is increasingly becoming a more attractive option for transatlantic travelers. Until now, the carrier had a pretty nonexistent frequent flyer program, but that's about to change thanks to major improvements to Norwegian Reward, which now offers frequent flyers an opportunity to earn elite-like benefits.

Enjoy more benefits from Norwegian Reward.

Previously, its frequent flyer program Norwegian Reward gave you 2% CashPoints for LowFare tickets and 20% for Flex tickets based on the fare amount (excluding taxes and fees). Thanks to some updates, this rewards program is now quite a bit more attractive.

Here's how it works: For every six flights you fly with Norwegian (including connecting flights), you'll receive a new reward of your choice. Options include a 2% CashPoint boost on all LowFare tickets (this can be selected five times for up to a 10% CashPoint boost), free fast track on all flights, free seat reservations on all flights or free baggage on all flights. The reward you choose will be valid for 12 months from the date you earn it and can be used for as many flights as you'd like.

Your first reward is chosen for you — a 2% CashPoint boost, which you'll get after your first six flights. After your next six flights, you can select another option that will best suit your travel preferences. It's worth noting that you can only select the free baggage option after you've reached 18 flights. You can get up to eight rewards in total, so after 48 flights, you'll have received the maximum number of rewards. You can choose the 2% CashPoint boost as many as five times, which will earn you a total of 12% CashPoints on all LowFare tickets with the other three rewards as alternative options.

For every six flights with Norwegian, you get to choose a reward.

Once you've hit the six-flight mark, your account will automatically receive the 2% CashPoint boost and following your subsequent six flights, you'll be able to select your next reward on NorwegianReward.com. During the 12 months each reward is active, it can't be changed, so choose wisely.

There are some pretty valuable award options here and it's a simple way to earn "status" with Norwegian Air with these elite-like benefits. Arguably, the two most valuable options are the free seat reservation — which will cost you 250 NOK (~$29) on US flights when booking through the Norwegian version of the site or $45 when booking on the English version — or the free baggage option, which can vary in price. Of course, if you don't like waiting in lines, the fast track option can also be extremely valuable as well.

While this may be an easy way to get elite status with Norwegian Air, there are easier ways to get elite-like benefits with other carriers. Certain credit cards offer perks like a checked-bag fee waiver and priority boarding with the Gold Delta SkyMiles Credit Card from American Express and a free checked bag, two United Club lounge day passes each year and priority boarding with the United MileagePlus Explorer Card, among others. There are many other cards that give you elite-like benefits, check out this post for full details.

Featured image by Norwegian will fly its Dreamliner from JFK, FLL and LAX to CDG.

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.