I made my annual pilgrimage to the Freddie Awards yesterday, something I look forward to every year. Due to inclement weather in Las Vegas, this year the festivities were held on the floor of the brand new T-Mobile Arena just around the corner from the Monte Carlo casino on The Strip. Industry insiders and representatives from various hotels and airlines were present for what turned out to be a fun evening.
Here is a list of the 2016 winners:
Airline (Americas)
Program of the Year — Southwest Airlines – Rapid Rewards
Best Elite Program — American Airlines – AAdvantage
Best Promotion — Avianca – LifeMiles
Best Customer Service — Southwest Airlines – Rapid Rewards
Best Redemption Ability — Avianca – LifeMiles
210 AWARD — Avianca – LifeMiles
Hotel (Americas)
Program of the Year — Marriott Hotels – Marriott Rewards
Best Elite Program — Hyatt – Gold Passport
Best Promotion — MGM – M life
Best Customer Service — Marriott Hotels – Marriott Rewards
Best Redemption Ability — Marriott Hotels – Marriott Rewards
210 AWARD — MGM – M life
Credit Card (Americas)
Best Loyalty Credit Card — Starwood – Starwood Preferred Guest from American Express
Airline (Europe and Africa)
Program of the Year — AIR FRANCE/KLM – Flying Blue
Best Elite Program — Lufthansa – Miles & More
Best Promotion — AIR FRANCE/KLM – Flying Blue
Best Customer Service — AIR FRANCE/KLM – Flying Blue
Best Redemption Ability — AIR FRANCE/KLM – Flying Blue
210 AWARD — Norwegian Air – Norwegian Reward
Hotel (Europe and Africa)
Program of the Year — Accor Hotels – Le Club Accorhotels
Best Elite Program — Starwood – Starwood Preferred Guest
Best Promotion — Accor Hotels – Le Club Accorhotels
Best Customer Service — Accor Hotels – Le Club Accorhotels
Best Redemption Ability — IHG – IHG Rewards Club
210 AWARD — IHG – IHG Rewards Club
Credit Card (Europe and Africa)
Best Affinity Credit Card — Flying Blue American Express Card
Airline (Asia and Oceania)
Program of the Year — Virgin Australia – Velocity
Best Elite Program — EL AL – Matmid Club
Best Promotion — EL AL – Matmid Club
Best Customer Service — Virgin Australia – Velocity
Best Redemption Ability — Virgin Australia – Velocity
210 AWARD — Jet Airways – JetPrivilege
Hotel (Asia and Oceania)
Program of the Year — Accor Hotels – Le Club Accorhotels
Best Elite Program — Hyatt – Gold Passport
Best Promotion — Accor Hotels – Le Club Accorhotels
Best Customer Service — IHG – IHG Rewards Club
Best Redemption Ability — IHG – IHG Rewards Club
210 AWARD — ITC Hotels – Club ITC
Credit Card (Asia and Oceania)
Best Affinity Credit Card — ADIB Etihad Guest VISA Card
One of the highlights of the evening was talking to Jaimin Barot, head of loyalty with Spirit Airlines. Spirit is a truly low-cost carrier and thus the concept of loyalty is almost counterintuitive, yet Spirit has built a very loyal following and its $9 fare club has been very successful. Certainly we can see the success and viability of Spirit simply by looking at what United, Delta, and American have done in the introduction of new no-frills, base fares.
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