Delta Changing Award Charts, Doubles Southeast Asia Awards
Earlier this week I applauded Delta for their generally positive 2011 Skymiles program enhancements - like doing away with Skymiles expiration and giving Skyteam ElitePlus status to Gold Medallions. What they forgot to include, was that they are changing their award charts - especially on international routes. No official announcement on all of the new changes has been made, but from what I gather, they will be splitting Asia up into different regions; such as Asia 1 (Japan, Korea), Asia 2 (China), Asia 3 (Thailand, Singapore, Philippines, etc).
Currently Asia is one region, so you pay the same price for awards, whether you fly from Tokyo to Seoul or Shanghai to Kuala Lumpur. For "low level" awards, the redemption for coach is 20,000 miles and 40,000 for business - roundtrip.
New changes:
Asia 1= 15,000 miles for coach, 30,000 business
Asia 2= 25,000 miles for coach, 45,000 business
Asia 3= 45,000 miles for coach, 70,000 business
While Asia 1 comes down, Asia 3 is increasing drastically- over 100% for coach redemptions.
Savvy Flyertalkers started to notice these dramatic increases in miles required for intra-Asia awards and in an effort to quell the rabble-rousing, Delta's social media ambassador Michelle, tried to clear up the "confusion."
Official quote from Delta on Flyertalk:
"You guys are quick! Here's the scoop with regard to award levels - first of all, we'd like to apologize for any frustration or confusion resulting from a lack of communication in announcing our award level adjustments. Some items got pushed out earlier than others. Changes have in fact been made to select markets, and a few more are coming early next week. You'll be able to see all the details when we release our much-awaited international award charts (thank you for your patience!).
Delta periodically reviews all mileage award levels to ensure they are appropriately aligned in the context of pricing and competitive environments. As a result of a recent review process, some adjustments were made on transpacific routes, intra-Asia markets and flights to/from South Africa. Some markets saw award increases, some decreases.
Example: previously all flights between US and Asia were the same award level, as were intra-Asia levels, despite being very different in terms of length of haul and market. Both NRT-ICN and NRT-SIN flights were previously priced at 20,000 miles for our low roundtrip award, even though the SIN flight is several times the distance of ICN.
The new zoning will price NRT-ICN at 15,000 miles for a low roundtrip award, and NRT-SIN at 45,000 miles. When you consider that NRT-SIN is about the same distance as a flight from JFK-LHR priced at 60,000 miles low roundtrip for a similar product, it makes sense.
Customers will also see some decreases on premium high level awards between US and Europe, Middle East, Southern South America and Northern Asia because, frankly, we felt some of the levels were getting too high.
Watch for the new international award charts that will be released on delta.com next week under SkyMiles Award Mileage Charts. Once again, we're sorry for any confusion this may have caused and appreciate your patience as we work to get you all the information in the coming days.
Michelle, SkyMiles | Delta Social Ambassador
Connect with us at Twitter.com/Delta & Facebook.com/Delta"
Here are my thoughts:
1) I personally thought the Asia redemptions were generous, so I'm not too surprised by this move (but I am disappointed because it devalues the worth of a Skymile). 20,000 miles roundtrip from Tokyo to Singapore? That route is longer than Boston to London, which is a 60,000 mile low level redemption for coach.
Competitively, this places them behind the other US carriers for these types of awards. For those who redeem intra Asia, United/Continental may be a better program (though their chart may change in the future).
Continental and United (who have the same award charts) also have two Asia regions, but Asia 1 to Asia 2 is 20,000 coach and 30,000 business (an AMAZING deal). Oddly their North Asia to North Asia awards are more expensive, at 25,000 miles for coach and 30,000 for business.
I had to look at the chart several times because this made no sense.
AA has two Asia regions and Tokyo to Singapore is 40,000 coach, 60,000 business.
US Airways has two regions, North and South Asia, and their North to South is 40,000 coach, 60,000 business.
Air Canada Aeroplan has Asia 1 and 2 and to travel between costs 35,000 for coach and 60,000 business.
2) Delta does not have an international award chart, which is absolutely ridiculous for an airline that touts its global reach. They've been promising one since the Northwest merger, but they've never come through with that promise (I mean - how hard can it be? The award levels exist, you just need to call and manually get the phone reps to price the award). If you don't believe me, you can check out Delta.com's award chart here and it only has a section for awards originating in North America.
3) I understand why they'd want to change their award structure, but communicating with your customers is critical! Don't make the changes and then decide to create a communication strategy. Frequent flyer programs are meant to build loyalty - not mistrust. When Delta doesn't provide its international members with an award chart and then makes changes without announcements, it creates a sense that they are trying to "pull one over" on us. I think a lot of people would have understood the need for changes if explained correctly and would have appreciated a little lag time to make any pending awards at the old level. The hotel chains are very clear about their hotel category adjustments every year and allow their members to book at the current rates for a period of time. While the message may be hard to swallow that hotel categories are going up, at least they allow the customer to get used to it.
Overall, I'm interested to see what Delta comes out with in terms of awards, but I doubt its going to be pretty. My gut is that US to Southeast Asia awards will increase from 60,000 miles to at least 75,000 for coach. I'll do a competitive analysis once the award charts are released so you can determine whether giving your loyalty to Delta makes sense for your award needs.
On another note, Delta sent out Medallion packets this week and they were riddled with confusing and incorrect statements, like all Medallion members get 50% bonuses on flights (when in reality, they just meant on expensive Y, B, M fares) and also that certain Medallions were eligible for upgrades on all flights (when they actually meant domestic). Delta needs to upgrade it's communication strategy, because they are sending out unclear and inconsistent messaging. Sending reps to do damage control after changes are made is not the most productive way to interact with, ostensibly, some of your top customers.
Overall, Delta has been keeping me busy this week. I'm trying to not be too Delta-centric on The Points Guy, but there's been so much going on, I have to speak my mind about it!
[card card-name='Gold Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card from American Express' card-id='22034414' type='javascript' bullet-id='1']
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 5X | New! Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App, or purchased directly from airlines. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Valuable dining and food-related credits
- Flexible rewards with airline and hotel transfer partners
- Multiple travel and purchase protections
- No foreign transaction fees
- Access to Amex Offers for additional savings (enrollment required)
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- New! Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App, or purchased directly from airlines.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- Pay It® lets you tap in the American Express® App to quickly pay for small purchase amounts throughout the month and still earn rewards the way you usually do. Plan It® gives you the option to split up big purchases into equal monthly payments with a fixed fee. You’ll know upfront exactly how much you’ll pay.
- Updated! $120 Dining Credit: Earn up to a total of $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the Gold Card at Grubhub (including Seamless), Buffalo Wild Wings, Five Guys, The Cheesecake Factory, and Wonder. This can be an annual savings of up to $120. Enrollment required.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year at over 10,000 qualifying U.S. Resy restaurants after you pay for eligible purchases with the American Express® Gold Card. That’s up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: Earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin’ locations. Enrollment required.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Enjoy up to $120 in Uber Cash annually with your Gold Card. Just add your Card to your Uber account and you'll get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an Amex Card for your transaction.
- New! As an American Express® Gold Card Member, you can enjoy complimentary Hertz Five Star® Status. Enjoy benefits like skipping the counter at select locations, adding an additional driver at no additional cost*, and vehicle upgrades**. Benefit enrollment and Hertz Gold+ registration are required. *Additional drivers must meet standard rental qualifications and must be a spouse or domestic partner to qualify as complimentary. Other additional drivers subject to fees. **Benefits are subject to availability and vary by location. Additional Hertz program Terms and Conditions including age restrictions apply.
- Take advantage of a $100 credit towards eligible charges* at over 1,300 upscale hotels worldwide when you book The Hotel Collection through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App **. *Eligible charges vary by property. **The Hotel Collection requires a two-night minimum stay.
- Book your travel through the Amex Travel App with added peace of mind – backed by American Express® service and support. Only for American Express® Card Members.
- Whenever you need us, we're here. Our Member Services team will ensure you are taken care of. From lost Card replacement to statement questions, we are available to help 24/7.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.