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This promo has ended.
New member bonuses are a great way to earn bonus points and free nights when signing up for airline and hotel programs. Here's a round-up of the car rental, hotel, and airline loyalty programs currently giving bonuses for new members.
Page Contents
- IHG Rewards New Member Bonus
- Hertz Gold Plus Rewards New Member Bonus
- Hilton Honors New Member Bonus
- Japan Airlines Mileage Bank (JMB) New Member Bonus
- Marriott Bonvoy New Member Bonus
- Emirates New Member Bonus
- Etihad Guest New Member Bonus
- TAP Miles & Go New Member Bonus
- Choice Privileges Referral Bonus
- WorldHotels New Member Bonus
- Recently Expired Promotions
- Final Thoughts
IHG Rewards New Member Bonus
Now's a great time to join the IHG Rewards program — if you aren't already a member. New members (or those who joined in the last 30 days) who enroll via this link by November 30, 2021 can earn a free award night worth up to 40,000 IHG Rewards points. To earn this bonus, you'll need to complete two qualifying stays by December 26, 2021.
Key Terms
- This offer is only open to new members of IHG Rewards or those who signed up within the last 30 days
- Complete two qualifying stays between October 4 and December 26, 2021.
- Qualifying stay requires booking a Qualifying Rate with total spend exceeding $30 per night.
- The free night award will be deposited 2-6 weeks after completing the stays.
- The free night award is valid for 120 days from issuance.
- Valid for U.S. and UK residents only.
- Free night award not valid at IHG Army hotels.
Hertz Gold Plus Rewards New Member Bonus
With extremely long lines and car availability shortages, rental car elite status has never been more valuable. There are plenty of ways to get rental car elite status — including through credit cards and perks of airline and hotel elite status. But now, all you need to do is sign-up!
Now through December 24, 2021, all new members of Hertz Plus Rewards will automatically be upgraded to Five Star elite status for the remainder of 2021. You can extend that elite status through the end of 2022 by completing just three qualifying rentals by the end of 2021.
Hilton Honors New Member Bonus
New Hilton members can earn 5,000 bonus points on each of their first two stays. At least that's how it's advertised on Hilton's homepage:
Unfortunately, we can't find any terms and conditions for this offer. This banner links you to this sign-up page which doesn't mention the bonus. We've reached out to Hilton to try to get more details — such as how long new members have to complete these stays and any limitations.
If you want to play it safe, you can earn 5,000 bonus points after joining the program and completing your first two stays within 6 months of enrollment:
Key Terms
- This offer is only open to new members of the Hilton Honors program.
- You must enroll by December 31, 2021.
- Receive 2,000 bonus points after completing your first stay.
- Receive a further 3,000 bonus points after completing your second stay.
- To be eligible for the offer, the stays must be completed within 6 months of your enrollment date.
- A “stay” is defined as a consecutive number of nights at the same property regardless of check-in/check-out activity.
One thing to note with the Hilton promotion is that you need to complete your stays within 6 months of enrolling. Make sure to plan your stays and enrollment in advance to ensure you hit the offer's six-month window.
Another way of boosting your Hilton Honors account balance is by getting a new Hilton Honors credit card.
Japan Airlines Mileage Bank (JMB) New Member Bonus
The new member bonus is a bit tricky, but you can get 100 free miles. You will first need to create an account and then claim the offer.
Key Terms
- Click on the region where you live and create an account from this page.
- Return to the offer page after creating an account, in order to claim the offer.
- Receive 100 bonus miles.
- Additionally, each month (November 2021, December 2021 & January 2022) has a drawing for 6,000 free bonus miles to 20 randomly-selected winners. Entrants are those who joined JMB during that month.
- Bonus miles will be credited according to the table above.
Marriott Bonvoy New Member Bonus
The Marriott new member bonus isn't quite as generous as Hilton. Marriott is offering a promotion to earn 2,500 bonus points after your first stay.
Key Terms
- You need to join Marriott Bonvoy as a new member with this link.
- Receive 2,500 bonus points after completing your first stay.
- At this point, the promotion does not stipulate if there is any date by which you must complete your first stay.
- A “stay” is defined as consecutive nights spent at the same hotel, regardless of check-in/check-out activity. Must book a points-earning rate to qualify.
Emirates New Member Bonus
To celebrate the Expo 2020 being held in Dubai, travelers can get 2,020 bonus miles upon enrolling for a new Skywards account using invite code EXPO2020. There are no terms and conditions that we can find for this promotion. So, it's unclear how long this promotion will be valid.
Etihad Guest New Member Bonus
With no announced end date, this appears to be an ongoing promotion. Simply enroll for an account and get 500 free miles. Sign up here.
TAP Miles & Go New Member Bonus
Simply sign up and get 200 free miles. It's not much, but 200 free miles are better than nothing. Sign up for an account with this Star Alliance partner here. This is an ongoing benefit with no end date or activity requirements to earn the bonus miles.
Choice Privileges Referral Bonus
Choice Privileges doesn't have a new member bonus, per se. But, new members can earn 500 bonus points by signing up for the Choice Privileges program through a referral link and completing their first stay. If you don't have a friend that can refer you, you can sign up through this referral link.
In most cases, the 500 bonus points should post within 72 hours of completing your first stay. However, allow up to 20 days after check-out for international hotels.
WorldHotels New Member Bonus
WorldHotels is a subsidiary of Best Western and is offering a promotion for complimentary Gold status for new members. Join by December 31, 2021 using this link. While Gold status does not offer much (10% bonus earning on points), it could be used for status match perks to other programs or to get you started if you have upcoming stays with WorldHotels properties.
Recently Expired Promotions
The following promotions have expired. But, we are listing them for reference in case you're able to find something similar.
Qatar Airways New Member Bonuses
You can't be blamed for ignoring the Qatar Privilege Club before now. For the past few years, Qatar offered sub-par award rates and high fees. But then, Qatar slashed award rates by up to 49% and ditched fees. Now, you can book business class awards to the Middle East for 70,000 Qmiles or to the Maldives for 85,000 Qmiles and minimal fees.
Even if you aren't quite ready to transfer Citi ThankYou Points to Qatar Privilege Club to book these awards, now is a great time to sign up for the program.
There are two offers for late 2021 under which you can get free miles:
[Expired Early] Offer 1 – 5,000 Miles With No Activity
This one is easy. Just sign up as a new member of Qatar Airways Privilege Club and use the promo code FLYQR21. Here are the relevant terms:
- Register here with the promo code FLYQR21
- Enroll by May 31, 2022
- Receive 5,000 miles in your Privilege Club account without any need for activity (purchases, flying, etc.)
If you have no plans to fly with Qatar Airways, this is an easy 5,000 free miles in your account.
[Enrollment Closed] Offer 2 – 7,500 Miles After Activities
Enrollment is closed for this promotion. However, those of you who signed up need to remember to complete your qualifying activities.
Here are the relevant terms:
- Register here with the promo code OALSMH121
- Enroll by September 30, 2021 and travel before December 31, 2021
- Receive 2,500 miles just for signing up
- Purchase and fly on a flight marketed by and operated by Qatar Airways to receive 5,000 bonus miles and 50 Qpoints (will post within 30 days of the flight)
If you have plans to take a cash flight with Qatar Airways, consider whether this bonus is worth it. Remember to check WhereToCredit.com to see your options and decide whether crediting this flight to another program might be more beneficial.
[Expired] Alaska Airlines New Member Bonus
Ahead of its merge with Oneworld Alliance, Alaska Airlines has announced a bonus for new members signing up before February 5, 2021.
Key Terms
- You need to join the Alaska Airlines New Mileage Plan as a new member with this link before February 5, 2021.
- Receive 2,500 bonus points after completing 2 flights (potentially just 1 round-trip) with Alaska before May 31, 2021.
- Receive an additional 2,500 bonus points after completing 2 more flights (i.e. 1 round-trip flight) with Alaska before May 31, 2021.
- To qualify, the flight must be eligible to earn Mileage Plan miles and must be credited to the new Mileage Plan account.
- Travel is valid on Alaska Airlines flight 1-1999, 2000-2999, and 3300-3450.
- Codeshare flights and flights with partner airlines do not qualify.
[Expired] Singapore Airlines New Member Bonus
There's a lot to like about the Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer program. AwardWallet members average 2.49¢ per KrisFlyer mile on recent redemptions. And KrisFlyer is a transfer partner of all major transferable programs (Amex Membership Rewards, Capital One Miles, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Citi ThankYou Points, Marriott Bonvoy).
If you aren't a member yet, you can sign up for a new KrisFler account using promo code 500JOINKF to earn 500 bonus miles. But, you'll have to act fast. This promotion is only available for new members through March 31, 2021.
[Expired] Southwest Rapid Rewards New Member Bonus
Southwest is one of our favorite airline loyalty programs — despite a recent devaluation. If you aren't a member yet and you're planning to travel soon, now's the time to join the Rapid Rewards program. You can earn up to 5,000 bonus points for taking just two roundtrips:
Key Terms
- Join Rapid Rewards through this link by May 31, 2021
- Earn 3,000 bonus points for flying one roundtrip (or two one-way flights)
- Earn another 2,000 bonus points for flying a second roundtrip (or two one-way flights)
- Flights must be booked by and flown by May 31, 2021
- Your Rapid Rewards account number must be entered at the time of booking qualifying flight(s) to earn bonus points
Final Thoughts
If you're not already a member of these programs, now is a great time to join and get the bonus miles/points. It's always good to check for sign-up bonuses like these when signing up for a new mileage/point account. Some of the rewards can be great!
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We’ve used both the Delta AMEX and the United Explorer card welcome bonuses with a lot of success. We’ve signed up both me and my wife. You just have to pay attention to the details of the offer and spend the required amount by the required date. We earned 70,000 miles for me this year and 80,000 for my wife in 2019 on Delta by only spending $2,000 in the first 3 months. Once we spent the $2,000 to donate to a charity we had already planned to give to, and another time we used it to pay for a car repair. It’s not that hard; you just have to keep track closely. And 70,000 miles is certainly worth it! When you sign up, it’s best if you don’t put your spouse as an additional card member because that might make them ineligible to receive the bonus miles when they sign up since they give the bonus only for new cardmembers. Also, beware of the annual fees. Often they will give you a statement credit to offset the first annual fee or waive it for the first year. But then you need to remember to cancel at the one year mark to avoid being charged the annual fee again. Just read the terms carefully, but if you make a little effort, you can be rewarded!
A free night is a nice, little bonus. Maybe I can join again 😀
Just tried signing up for Qatar but said the offer code FLYQR21 is no longer valid…
Thanks for the heads up on that. I flagged it as expired.
Note, BOTH Qatar Air bonuses are dead. Tried today, 10/28. Only the larger one is marked expired.
Thanks. It seems we had a bug that kept the post from being updated. It should be correct now.
Lots of points earning options and all easy to conquer. Come on guys. Let’s enjoy.
Are these bonuses also for those who have expired accounts or those with zero balances? Can I just create another account?
If your account has been closed for inactivity, you should be able to open a new one using a promotion code.
Nice promo from QR!
Quite a few choices for new members to take advantage of.
Free sign up miles like qatar airways are super friendly and welcome!
The QR bonus is transferrable to Accor after a few days with no restrictions, which gives it some use even if you never plan to use the QR account again.
Can these bonuses generate diminishing returns for the hotel chains? Just asking.
So if all new members are elite, that’s bad news for existing members. Anything preventing us from signing up again for example on Hertz?
The Qatar promotion using FLYQR21 has expired. It hasn’t lasted through May 31, 2022. Tried on 10/23/21.
Shoot! Thanks for the heads up. I marked it as expired.
Are there any perks to use in South America?
Most of the promos listed in this post should be available in South America. Double check the T&C before adjusting your travel plans though.
Useful information.
Thanks for these perks.
It would be great if long time members could benefit from some of the new offers.
Agreed. But loyalty programs seem really focused on growing their user numbers recently.
Excelente nota. Gracias por la información y por las muchas posibilidades que nos ofrecen de obtener millas a través de las mismas. Para lugares como Argentina donde la oferta de este tipo de beneficios no se encuentran, AwardWallet, The Blog, me permite enterarme de cada nueva oportunidad de recibir este tipo de obsequios. Genial.
just fyi that the Qatar Airways new sign-up bonus is only 3,000 miles for the promo code: JOINAMER21 instead of the advertised 5,000 miles. Still a great deal.
Thanks Jonathan! I tested it out and got the same result.
Ive never been a fan of these new member bonuses, longtime loyalty should be rewarded first.
As always new menmbers get more than old ones.
It is curious that you can complete the first stay whenever you want for the Marriott new member bonus.
Just by registering on the Hertz website can I get elite status? Really? (is too good to be true)
I´m really sad, when I signed up to IHG no offer was available
Same here. It was not so generous many years ago.
Too bad so many are restricted to new members, but I get it.
What does Qualifying Rate mean exactly for IHG? Is there any limitation as to when you can book the free night?
Good questions!
For this promotion “A Qualifying Stay is defined as a minimum 1-night stay booked under a Qualifying Rate, with total spend exceeding US $30 per night.” And generally speaking “Qualifying Rates include most business and leisure rates, such as Advanced Purchase rates, Best Flexible rates, Global sales negotiated rates (including but not limited to Corporate Gold rates), national/regional/local government rates, and specified leisure rates as confirmed by SCH’s reservation systems.”
The only limitation on the free night is that the night can’t cost more than 40k IHG points to book. Due to IHG’s dynamic pricing scheme, point rates can vary from one night to another. So, you just need to find a night at 40k or less.
Great info!
Marriot is a best network. It’s a good incentive for new members.
The next few years are going to be very interesting in the miles and points game.
This is pretty unreal given the state of international travel. These programs risk death spirals of cutting benefits, forcing attrition.
Hmm … food for thought … always new useful opportunities to be found on this website. Wish I had known this sooner.
This are good to take advantage of if you have upcoming trips with these airlines and hotels and you are still not a member of their program.
I’m a member of most of these but I’ll let my children know so that they can time signing up just right when they go on vacation.
I had never heard that Airlines offered bonuses for enrollment in their programs! This is completely new information and is so valuable. It will help extend our ability to travel in the coming year.
It is incredible that Singapore offers this bonus, however small, as it is a very good airline.
I wish I’d seen this article earlier! I didn’t realise Qatar had improved their award rates as I generally ignore anything to do with Qmiles because they are (or maybe were) too pricey. Are their surcharges reasonable? Is there any way to find them out bar ringing Qatar if you don’t have a Qmiles account?
i tried the qatar airways bonus but never received it.
I’m already enroled in the majority of these programmes. Maybe a new coming programme in the future. Even though not a lot of interesting programmes have been created lately.
Something for loyal, existing members would certainly be welcomed. 🙁
I took advantage of the Singapore bonus offer. I’m not sure I’ll be flying Singapore any time soon but at least I now have an account so I can receive email offers. The 500 free miles is good too!
Muy buena información para mantenerse actualizado de los programas de beneficios para viajeros. Ojalá volvamos a volar pronto.
The Alaska offer says by Feb 5th of this year…. Is that right?
Correct.
This is a great deal. You get some extra miles and at the same time keep you informed about traveling information
Great summary, thanks! I’m very new to rewards programs like this as it isn’t as big a deal here in the uk (at least for non-business travelers). As I normally only fly on package trips in Europe or on budget airlines it never came up. When we were given compensation miles after a 3day (yes 3 day) delay flying back from Florida to Edinburgh in 2019 I became more interested. Lockdown over the last year has made me desperate to travel again so I might as well sign up for these programs now!
Thanks
These are great, but i wish some of the loyalty programs would do more to for current-loyal customers! Not devaluing and extending the length of time would be appreciated! (I know some are doing that and it’s a tough time for everyone, but some of the biggest players could do a little more, or at least keep the playing field level!)
guau !!! excelente noticia para sumar puntos en Hilton, estaba programando mi proximo viaje alojarme alli, buen dato !!
Like the options for new members.
What will count toward Platinum Pro in 2021 since Covid is artificially limiting travel?
We dig into the details of 2021 AA elite status in this post: https://awardwallet.com/blog/american-airlines-aadvantage-elite-status/
AA has reduced (but only slightly) the requirements. But the good news is that you can spend on credit cards to get an EQD waiver up to Platinum Pro.
I can imagine post-Covid the battle for loyalty will increase, as everyone tries to recoup their losses.
I guess that an end to “devaluations” will really help.
I would join Alaska Airlines and HIlton on this but apparently it is pass the date for Alaska Airlines.
Great summary! Thinking of joining the Hilton Honors as I will be traveling soon.
It is much easier to earn the hotel program new member bonuses because it is much easier to undertake regional / domestic travel.
Do you get part of the 5000 HHonors points for just 1 stay in 6 months? Asking for P2 who just opened an account.
Yes, you should receive 2,000 bonus points after P2 completes the first stay.
great way to get some free points.
Is there a known deadline for the Marriott offer? I see that the date for the first stay is not specified, but I’m wondering if I should jump on the offer now or wait until I have specific travel plans first
There isn’t a known deadline for this offer. However, we have seen better new member promotions from Marriott. So, personally, I’d wait until you have travel plans to sign up.
Appreciate the heads up. Was going to create an account but will hold off for a better promotion.
I am not currently a member of Alaska airlines mileage program. Living in Chicago I will probably not fly them between now and May 31. Not sure if I should sign up anyhow?
I’m a member of all of these already, would be curious how many signups of new travelers they will get during these times.
I am wondering if the hotels are needing an infusion of new members or just get people to stay more right now. Are there more and more people getting into the points and miles game to do this? The average person probably wouldn’t know about the bonus. I wonder if they are having front desks mention it.
I believe the hotel chains and airlines are trying to incentivize more customers to stay / fly now.
I am a member of all of the ones mentioned. However I hope you will keep posting new ones. Thanks!
We will! We work to keep this post up to date with the latest offers that we find. Let us know if you find any we should add!
I signed up for Aegean with each of my family members. Then I tried putting them on AwardWallet. Mine is not a problem.
I can’t get the others to go through because of ” Aegean Airlines (Miles & Bonus) website is asking you to accept their new Terms and Conditions, until you do so we would not be able to retrieve your account information.”
I can’t find anywhere on the Aegean Airlines site to do that though. I can log in no problem. Just can’t find whatever Terms and Conditions I need to accept.
Any hints from those of you who needed to do this and did?
It seems that you have figured it out? If you need any further assistance, please contact our support team:
https://awardwallet.com/contact
How odd. No, I never did get it figured out. It must have taken care of itself somehow.
Thanks for looking at it!
Took advantage of the Aegean program for all family members. 6K miles bonus that can be transferred to other STAR Alliance accounts is a great deal. So glad I decided to join AwardWallet today and found this offer that I would never have known about otherwise. THANKS!!!
Woohoo! Glad to help!
I’m a member of Aeroplan frequent flyer program, it looks like Aegean is far better than Aeroplan. Can someone tell me if Aegean has the option of getting miles by doing surveys?
Can the bonus miles from the Aegean program be transferred to any other Star Alliance program?
I’ve done the Aegean one for my wife and myself, hoping to transfer to Accor. Don’t think I could get any value from the others though.
Unfortunately I am already a member of all these hotel programs.
I think the program has excellent Star Alliance award redemption rates.
wow i wished i signed up now rather than last year! this deal is so good for new customers
Aegean offer taken up points posted right away! 1 out of 4 ain’t bad
The Marriott free night promotion is a pretty good deal for new folks. Two stays in the next four months is very doable.
Not too good, too many requirements to complete.
I think that the bonuses award that give these hotels are a great deal because you can save money, buyt one think that they do not tell you are the restrictions that they say like except for weekends or holidays so you must take that in count ir order use the bonuses.
… and we wonder how many people actually travel for business during the week nowadays.
I don’ like Qatar program. I prefer other Oneworld program like AAdvantage
The pandemic makes the major & established loyalty programs more attractive in comparison.
I’m already a member of those programs other than Qatar which is a bad program even with a 5,000 mile bonus to sign up.
Yes, and I wonder what kind of people will actually sign up for AND use the program?
According to one of the earlier posters, I’m definitely not in my right mind! I am traveling as much these days as I used to but that’s because I’m an essential worker. I’ll probably join the Qatar program to get the bonus but I’ve been a member of the other programs for years. My travel doesn’t take me anywhere that Qatar flies so I’ll not be able to take full advantage of the bonus.
Thanks for the info. This is good motivation for me to finally sign up with Qatar Airways.
Nice, this is very clear for all the different sign-ups and suggestions, especially with hotel prices being a bit lower now. Thanks!
The IHG offer is VERY straightforward and accessible.
I like Marriott off which can be get one free Cat-4 level night after have 2 stay in hotels. But unfortunately i have registered a marriott account have not register this offer.
Thanks for the post – A very useful list.
Great list for those new to the travel points world.
Big fan of these types of sing up bonuses that don’t cost you anything extra if you are already booking
Good offer. Always ahead in promotions I need to match my status with Bonvoy
Too much information all the time on award wallet, too much to digest and irrelevant in many cases
Hey there, we’re working on ways to deliver curated content that is relevant to you. For example, we’re looking at adding the option to receive only content related to loyalty programs you track with AwardWallet or to let our members pick from a list of topics they find useful. I’d love to know if you think that would be helpful.
If you don’t mind, how do you normally follow our content? (RSS, check the website, mobile app/email notifications?)
Thanks for your feedback!
These seem very generous!
Great airline among other NON US carriers
Hopefully someday Hilton will offer those juicy bonus for existing members. I’ve been a member for years …
Why do new members always matter more than the existing ones? Are the potential new members more loyal?
New members always get all the fun bonuses ☹️
I am currently a member of Hilton, IHG and Marriott reward programmes.
For the programme of Qatar I don’t find it much interesting (at least from my point of view) and so the bonus miles would be useless for me.
Why they don’t do these kind of promos also for customers who have not stayed in the hotels of the chain or traveled with the airlines in the previous year? I understand that for the airlines would be more difficult because a person can use an airline and earn the miles in a partner programme.
The link says 8,000 bonus points, but the math adds up to 5,000 bonus points for the Hilton promotion. I followed the link and it confirms 5,000. Is there a hidden promotion to get the extra 3,000 (to add up to 8,000) points or is it a typo?
That’s definitely a typo. Fixed, and thanks for catching that!
I will be register a new member of Marriott Bonvoy Plan, just need have two stay at Marriott hotel, they have some of chip hotels but i can use free stay at a 25000 points hotels which is Cat4 level. It’s much more valuable than Hilton Honors plan .
I am not sure that the offer from Qatar will win it any businesses and customers.
Offering miles just for signup will certainly get them more loyalty program members. And, such initial, membership contact is a decent start to winning customers in the end.
They will have your data and a spot in your email intray/headspace for potentially years. That’s worth a lot to them!
The airline bonuses are not particularly attractive. Hopefully, more enticing offers will appear soon.
This is not a great time to fly but it is a great time to obtain the Qatar bonus for joining without having to do anything else.
Im a manner of all these programs except Qatar. I guess it’s a good time to join. Normally I would expect any bonus on joining a frequent traveler program so I can’t complain, even if I never use it.
Exactly! The Qatar miles won’t expire until the end of 2023 so it’s worth grabbing the free miles now.
Will have to take Hilton up on that offer, maybe take a weekend getaway!
It would be great to see Hilton step up to Marriott’s level on this. 5,000 Hilton points are a drop in the bucket towards a free night, even at their cheapest properties.
This is good for those with no existing accounts and have plans for travel in the next few months. I just wish that the pandemic is not still ever present with us.
Question: Who in the right mind is traveling these days and staying in hotels
downmarket = good for consumers. Every little bit helps!