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Airport lounges used to be inhabited by two kinds of travellers: business or first-class passengers, and passengers who spend half their lives in transit, living by departure boards, fuelled by airport flat whites.<\/p>\n
But as travel patterns change, so too does the idea of loyalty. The most sought-after perks are no longer reserved for frequent flyers alone. Increasingly, airlines are rewarding travellers not only for the number of miles they fly, but for how they spend in their day-to-day lives.<\/p>\n
There are two primary ways airlines reward loyalty: miles and status.<\/p>\n
Miles, sometimes called points, can be exchanged for flights or purchases with partner retailers. On Singapore Airlines\u2019 KrisFlyer program, for example, a one-way business class ticket from Perth to Singapore costs about 42,500 miles, while a one-way economy flight from Melbourne or Sydney to various destinations across South-East Asia typically costs between 29,000 and 44,500 miles, depending on the route and availability.<\/p>\n Status, meanwhile, refers to your tier level within the program, and it unlocks the travel privileges that make transit that little bit easier. On KrisFlyer, Elite Silver offers priority check-in, priority boarding and extra baggage, while Elite Gold adds access to more than 1,000 Star Alliance lounges worldwide, regardless of whether you\u2019re travelling in economy or business.<\/p>\n While customers have long been able to earn miles on the ground through shopping and credit cards, historically, earning status has meant flying often. But that\u2019s beginning to shift.<\/p>\n What\u2019s changing is how travellers can achieve status. Instead of requiring frequent flying, programs are increasingly rewarding members for everyday financial behaviour, including spending on their credit cards.<\/p>\n The HSBC Star Alliance Credit Card, for example, allows travellers to fast-track to KrisFlyer Elite Gold by selecting Singapore Airlines as their status carrier and meeting an eligible spend threshold of $4,000 within the first 90 days of account opening*. KrisFlyer members can now also earn status on the ground by making retail purchases or booking tickets and travel experiences.<\/p>\n This shift reflects changing customer priorities and needs. Data shows international travel has rebounded<\/a> since the pandemic. But many Australians are changing the way they travel. For example, the trend<\/a> towards blended business-and-leisure travel indicates some people may be taking longer, but less frequent trips. Spend-based pathways offer these kinds of travellers other ways to be rewarded.<\/p>\n The shift in loyalty programs isn\u2019t necessarily about travelling more or less; it\u2019s about flexibility. For many passengers, the perks that matter most aren\u2019t just upgrades, but the freedom to move through airports with less stress.<\/p>\n Lounge access can turn a layover into downtime, and priority boarding can take the edge off a hectic schedule. By opening up new pathways to earn both miles and status, programs are acknowledging that loyalty isn\u2019t defined by flight frequency alone, but by how travel fits into someone\u2019s life.<\/p>\nAn evolving landscape<\/h2>\n
Flying on your own terms<\/h2>\n