PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – If you’re a traveler or frequent flier, we have some words of wisdom — use your travel points…now!
Your points may soon lose value and that may come with little-to-no warning.
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Some people rack up points, hoping to use them for a family vacation, save them for their next big flight, or just a fun getaway.
But, if you use rewards points through airlines or a hotel, things could soon be changing.
“Don’t be a points hoarder,” says Zach Griff.
Griff knows points, he’s a senior reporter with the popular travel website The Points Guy.
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“They’re not adjusted for inflation, they don’t earn interest, and the airlines, hotels, the credit card companies, it is exclusively in their power to make changes to the valuation of the points,” he says.
He says that changes are coming as soon as March for Marriott-Bonvoy customers.
“We have at least three months to go until Marriott eliminates their award chat, so you can make three months’ worth of speculative bookings when you’re of what your summer or fall or even winter of next year looks like,” Griff says.
However, he says not every hotel chain, credit card, or airline will give such long, advanced notice.
“The valuation of these loyalty programs is at an all-time high and the airlines obviously need to generate revenue off of these programs and it’s a very similar thing with hotels as well,” he explains. “Thinking about your points as currency that you want to use now. They do not generate interest. You really want to be earning and burning.”
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That means locking in your travel now, making sure there’s flexibility to cancel or rebook if needed later.
Heather Abraham
