AwardWallet receives compensation from advertising partners for links on the blog. The opinions expressed here are our own and have not been reviewed, provided, or approved by any bank advertiser. Here's our complete list of Advertisers.
ITA Airways, Italy’s flag carrier formerly known as Alitalia, has announced it will be sunsetting its loyalty program Volare, advising members of next steps before it ceases to exist.
The loyalty program, which started in May 2022, will be no more by the end of March 2026. The announcement came from ITA Airways in an email to members with very few details about the retirement of the program. “The Volare program has reached its final destination and will end on 30 March 2026.”
ITA Volare Point Redemption Options
If you have accrued any redeemable points (non-qualifying Volare points), you can still book award flights on ITA Airways or its partners — either booked solely with points or with cash and points. These flights may depart up to 12 months in the future, but you must book them before March 30, 2026.
Members who do not have a specific flight in mind for which to redeem their Volare points can convert those points into a Volare gift card. This will ensure they can put that voucher toward a future cash ticket on ITA Airways or its partners.
These gift cards can be used by the members themselves or gifted away as the vouchers are transferable. Members will only be able to use those gift cards during a rather short window, from April 1, 2026 to June 30, 2026. Tickets must be purchased via ITA’s website for flights on the airline or its partners and must be flown within the 12 months following the validity window mentioned above.
Alternatively, the gift cards can be used towards the purchase of products and services at any of ITA’s partners or simply donated to one of the many charities available for selection.
What’s Next for ITA’s Loyalty Program?
Starting April 1, 2026, Lufthansa’s Miles & More will become the official loyalty program of ITA Airways. The German carrier’s frequent flyer program will then be open to all passengers of the Italian airline, who will need to register for an account if they don’t already have one. ITA had been a partner with the Miles & More program as of early 2025 in addition to having its own.
Lufthansa Group has been gobbling up multiple European airlines in recent times and leveraging Miles & More as a shared loyalty program across brands. Airlines that use Miles & More as their loyalty program include Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings, and soon, ITA Airways will also use Miles & More exclusively.
It's disappointing that ITA is not allowing you to move your Volare points into the Miles & More program, especially considering many members may have been saving up for a vacation of their dreams.
There are also no details on how elite members of Volare will fare in the new Miles & More program as of yet. As per the Lufthansa press release: “For ITA Airways customers who already have frequent flyer status, an attractive offer to switch to the Miles & More program via a status match will also be published.”
Final Thoughts
ITA Airways loyalty program Volare never really took off and was short-lived, but that doesn’t mean you should be leaving any value on the table. If you have any points accumulated on your Volare accounts, make sure you either book a future flight or cash those points out into a gift card so they don’t go unused.
