Delta Air Lines and Starwood Introduce Industry-Leading Joint Loyalty Partnership

ATLANTA and STAMFORD, Conn., Feb. 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE: DAL) and Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) announced a comprehensive new partnership that offers exclusive new benefits to Delta SkyMiles Medallion members and Starwood Preferred Guest® (SPG®) elite members.  The program, called Crossover Rewards, begins March 1 and provides elite members of both loyalty programs reciprocal benefits.

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Crossover Rewards allows Delta and Starwood elites to share program benefits and earn more miles and Starpoints. SkyMiles Diamond and Platinum Medallion members will have access to added benefits including priority check-in, 4 p.m. late checkout and free in-room internet access when staying at Starwood Hotels and Resorts. All Delta Medallion members also will earn one mile per dollar spent on eligible room rates when staying with Starwood in addition to the Starpoints usually earned for their stay.  In turn, SPG Platinum members will receive one free checked bag, priority check-in and priority boarding when flying Delta. SPG elite members will earn one Starpoint per dollar spent on eligible flights in addition to the miles usually earned for their flight.

"Crossover Rewards allows Starwood and Delta to extend loyalty outside of our hotels and beyond the window seat by giving our respective elite members reciprocal benefits and earning power," said Frits van Paasschen, president and CEO of Starwood.  "This enriches the experience for our most valuable travelers, and gives both Delta and Starwood an opportunity to target frequent travelers who aren't already part of our programs, enabling us to capture greater share of the global, high-end traveler." 

"Crossover Rewards is another example of Delta's commitment to making the travel experience more beneficial and enjoyable for our customers," said Tim Mapes, Delta's senior vice president – Marketing. "For our loyal customers, hotel accommodations are a vital component of the travel experience, which makes this new alliance with an innovative company like Starwood a strategic addition to the SkyMiles program."

The companies' global alignment was key to uniting the two organizations for the creation of Crossover Rewards. With flights to more than 300 destinations and hubs in markets like Tokyo, Paris, New York City and Atlanta, Delta's global reach complements Starwood's worldwide hotel footprint including nine hotel brands in 100 countries around the world.

"SPG continues to invest in one-of-a-kind benefits to truly reward those who reward us with their unwavering loyalty and business," said Mark Vondrasek, senior vice president - Distribution, Loyalty and Partnership for Starwood. "More and more we look to extend our relationship with our guests beyond the four walls of our hotels, which we believe is a way to cultivate 'loyalty beyond reason.' Delta shares with Starwood a spirit of innovation and a truly global reach that aligns with our global footprint, and we are thrilled to welcome their most loyal Medallion members as our own." 

Beginning March 1, customers can register for Crossover Rewards by linking their Delta SkyMiles and SPG accounts at delta.com/crossoverrewards or spg.com/crossoverrewards.  Benefits will begin once Delta Medallion or SPG elite status is reached. For additional information on Crossover Rewards and to view a complete list of benefits, please visit delta.com/crossoverrewards or spg.com/crossoverrewards.

About Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with 1,134 properties in nearly 100 countries and 154,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. Starwood is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels, resorts and residences with the following internationally renowned brands: St. Regis®, The Luxury Collection®, W®, Westin®, Le Meridien®, Sheraton®, Four Points® by Sheraton, Aloft®, and Element^sm. The Company boasts one of the industry's leading loyalty programs, Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG), allowing members to earn and redeem points for room stays, room upgrades and flights, with no blackout dates. Starwood also owns Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., a premier provider of world-class vacation experiences through villa-style resorts and privileged access to Starwood brands. For more information, please visit www.starwoodhotels.com.

About Starwood Preferred Guest

Starwood Preferred Guest® (SPG®) is an innovative, award-winning frequent traveler program that unites each of Starwood's 9 distinctive hotel brands and includes more luxury hotels in more destinations around the world.  SPG reinvented the hospitality loyalty landscape when it launched in 1999 with its breakthrough policy of no blackout dates, and over the years has continued its tradition of innovation with enhancements such as Cash + Points, SPG Moments^SM, and most recently Your24TM and SPG Lifetime™.  In addition to Free Night Awards at over 1,100 hotels and resorts and Award Flights on over 350 major airlines without blackout dates, the Starpoints® that members earn through SPG can be redeemed for access like to no other to experiences in music, sports and the arts through SPG Moments.  SPG also has an ongoing commitment to digital innovation to meet the needs of today's connected global traveler – from the SPG app for iPhone that utilizes state-aware technology to create a more personalized hotel stay to Starwood's Best Rate Guarantee on SPG.com, to SPG's integration within various social media platforms.  Offerings such as these have helped SPG build a passionate member base among the world's most frequent travelers.  Learn more at spg.com and spg.com/moments and connect with us on facebook.com/spg, twitter.com/spg, foursquare.com/spg, pinterest.com/spglife, and youtube.com/spg.

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines serves more than 160 million customers each year. During the past year, Delta won 33 airline industry awards sweeping the major corporate travel surveys including Business Travel News, Travel Weekly, TravelAge West, Recommend Magazine and The Beat. Delta was also a recipient of the Secretary of Defense Freedom Award for exceptional support of National Guard and Reserve employees. With an industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to nearly 319 destinations in 59 countries on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs 80,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 700 aircraft. A founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance, Delta participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 13,000 daily flights, with hubs in Amsterdam, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York-LaGuardia, New York-JFK, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City and Tokyo-Narita. The airline's service includes the SkyMiles frequent flier program, a world-class airline loyalty program; the award-winning BusinessElite service; and more than 50 Delta Sky Clubs in airports worldwide. Delta is investing more than $3 billion in airport facilities and global products, services and technology to enhance the customer experience in the air and on the ground. Customers can check in for flights, print boarding passes, check bags and review flight status at delta.com.

SOURCE Delta Air Lines