ATLANTA and SEATTLE, April 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) and Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) were honored at the 26th Annual Freddie Awards with an Industry Impact Award for introducing Crossover Rewards with Starwood Hotels. Freddie Awards founder Randy Petersen created the award named for Sir Freddie Laker in honor of his accomplishments in marketing travel during the 1970s to recognize airline, hotel and credit card loyalty programs for their efforts each year.
Recognized as an industry-first, Crossover Rewards is a comprehensive partnership offering exclusive benefits to Delta SkyMiles Medallion members and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) elite members. Crossover Rewards allows select Delta and Starwood elite members to receive shared benefits such as late checkout and free in-room Internet for hotel stays as well as a free checked bag and Priority Boarding for air travel in addition to earning points in both programs whether flying or spending the night. 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.
"Delta and Starwood forged an outstanding partnership that enabled us to extend the benefits of loyalty beyond our customers' seats and outside their hotel rooms with a revolutionary new program in Crossover Rewards," said Jeff Robertson, vice president – SkyMiles. "We're pleased to be recognized for an innovative concept that changed the way an entire industry thinks about rewarding customers."
"Through Crossover Rewards a friend of Delta's is a friend of ours and vice versa," said Chris Holdren, senior vice president of Starwood Preferred Guest. "Our similar philosophies and spirit of innovation allowed our teams to create a program that ensures our guests and their passengers who fly Delta and stay Starwood are recognized for their loyalty throughout their entire trip, deepening our relationships with our most valuable guests."
The annual awards ceremony closed with the announcement of the Delta Flight Museum as the location for the 2015 Freddie Awards which will be held in Atlanta on Thursday, April 30, 2015. Currently in the final phase of a more than $8.4 million renovation project the museum will be one of the premier event venues in the southeastern U.S. The museum is scheduled to open in June and will accommodate private events for groups of up to 1,200 for a seated meal service. The museum will feature a full-motion 737-200 flight simulator, 'The Spirit of Delta' Boeing 767 purchased by Delta employees in 1982 for $30 million as a gift to the company, and other exhibits that chronicle the history of aviation. Additional information is available at deltamuseum.org.
The iconic "Freddie" trophy has been awarded to some of the most respected travel loyalty programs throughout the world. The obelisk-shaped statuette is a symbol of excellence and respected voice of the frequent traveler from an industry of more than 300 million frequent flyers worldwide.
Delta recently introduced a new mileage earning structure and redemption options for SkyMiles members. Members can access the U.S. Award chart online at delta.com/skymiles2015 which will be effective for new Award Tickets booked beginning Jan. 1, 2015. Customers will continue to have access to every seat on every Delta flight as an Award seat with no blackout dates.
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, and most recently Your24 and SPG Lifetime. In addition to Free Night Awards at nearly 1,200 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 and SkyMiles
Now in its 33rd year, SkyMiles is one of the longest-running and most successful loyalty programs in the travel industry. Delta is the only major airline that offers elite perks such as unlimited complimentary upgrades, no mileage expiration, no Award fees, a published Diamond Medallion tier and rollover Medallion Qualification Miles. The SkyMiles program offers many ways to redeem frequent flyer miles, including airline tickets on Delta and 28 partner airlines, mileage upgrades, car rentals, hotel stays and Delta Sky Club memberships. For more information on the SkyMiles program, Medallion status and mileage-redemption options, visit delta.com/skymiles.
Delta Air Lines serves nearly 165 million customers each year. This year, Delta was named the 2014 Airline of the Year by Air Transport World magazine and was named to FORTUNE magazine's top 50 Most Admired Companies in addition to being named the most admired airline for the third time in four years. With an industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to 324 destinations in 59 countries on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs nearly 80,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 700 aircraft. The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance and participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia as well as a newly formed joint venture with Virgin Atlantic. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 15,000 daily flights, with hubs in Amsterdam, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York-JFK, New York-LaGuardia, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has invested billions of dollars in airport facilities, global products, services and technology to enhance the customer experience in the air and on the ground. Additional information is available at delta.com, Twitter @Delta, Google.com/+Delta, Facebook.com/delta and Delta's blog takingoff.delta.com.
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SOURCE Delta Air Lines