Official partnership between Amex and ITA Airways. Here's how NOT to waste membership rewards points

American Express e ITA Airways have announced the signing of a new agreement that will enable the Transferring points from American Express' Membership Rewards Program to ITA Airways' Volare loyalty program..

The novelty

American Express Cardholders can now transfer points accumulated under the Membership Rewards Program to ITA Airways' Volare program. To take advantage of the ability to transfer points to the Volare program's loyalty account, Cardholders must already be members of one of the Volare Clubs. The four Volare Clubs (Smart, Plus, Premium and Executive) offer a high level of dedicated benefits and services, such as priority baggage and boarding, seat selection, reserved lounges and more. Volare Clubs also provide access to a wide network of partners to earn and use points.

American Express Cardholders will be able to transfer Membership Rewards program points by logging into their personal area within the Volare Club they have joined, and search for the desired flight or service by selecting the "Use Volare Points" option. Thereafter, American Express Cardholders can use Volare points to purchase the ticket or one of the services available under the program. Should the balance of points related to the Membership Rewards Program not be sufficient to cover the price of the ticket (net of taxes and fees, which must always be paid in currency), thanks to the Cash&Points mode, a supplement with a payment in currency will be possible.

Why you should not transfer MR points into Volare points.

As an example, yesterday we wrote that, with Air France's Flying Blue program, it is possible to book a round-trip economy ticket to Montreal this summer for only 15,000 FB points + taxes. Also the currency of the Air France and KLM partners with American Express, To get 15k points you need to transfer 22,500 MR points.

The same points transferred into Volare are equivalent to the pittance of 112.50 euros, because as of today Volare is the only loyalty program in the world that does not offer a rewards table, but only and only cash and points that turns 1,000 volare points into 5€.

In addition, If you buy a Volare ticket using the cash and points feature, even partial and not covering the full cost of the ticket, you will not accumulate Volare points of any kind, as if you were flying on an award ticket and not on a ticket paid cash.

The statements

"Since its founding, American Express has been by the side of all travelers around the world, at every moment of their journey, whether for leisure or business. A long history that today is enriched with a new important chapter with ITA Airways, the new Italian Flag Company. The new partnership offers our Cardholders many opportunities to be rewarded at every moment of their journey, making their travel experience richer and offering travelers greater flexibility", stated Enzo Quarenghi, Managing Director of American Express Italy.

"I am pleased to announce that American Express today becomes a strategic partner of ITA Airways and Volare, through an agreement that allows American Express cardholders to convert MR points into Volare points, which can be used to purchase ITA Airways flights with complete freedom, on any date, destination and class of travel. This agreement enables ITA Airways and American Express to achieve their common goal of providing their audience with an increasingly personalized travel experience. In particular, the partnership goes a long way toward confirming the core values of our loyalty program: flexibility, personalization, choice and connection" stated Emiliana Limosani, Chief Commercial Officer of ITA Airways & CEO Volare.