What You Need to Know About Expedia One Key

Expedia Group is making a bold move by introducing a unified loyalty program known as expedia one key that simplifies earning and redeeming travel rewards across Expedia, Hotels.com, and Vrbo.

 What is Expedia One Key?

One Key is the new loyalty program for travelers that was has officially launched on July 6 2023. It merges the existing Expedia and Hotels.com rewards programs while also allowing travelers to earn benefits through Vrbo bookings.

It’s free to join, and it’s easy for frequent and occasional travellers to earn points and increase loyalty levels.

It is currently in operation only in the United States but will be being rolled out globally in the near future, providing additional ways to earn travel points and discounts.

Win Free Travel For a Year

To commemorate One Key’s debut One traveler will be able to take home $60,000 worth of OneKeyCash rewards and travel one year for free. The prize is the winner a monthly credit of $5,000 for a period of 12 months. The cash rewards is available for suitable travel booking through Expedia, Hotels.com, or Vrbo.

One Key Loyalty Tiers

Four loyalty levels: Blue and Silver, as well as Gold and Platinum. The benefits for members increase in increments with higher level of tier.

New members can  enroll with the basic Blue tier with the possibility of saving 10% due to the Member Price at over a thousand hotels and the possibility of earning OneKeyCash rewards currency to use on future reward trips.

Members can move up to the next stage by finishing “trip elements” which are diverse travel purchases on Three Expedia Group platforms.

Trip Elements

An element of a trip is a other travel item that is worth at least $25 in US dollars. It also includes:

• Eligible flight
• Hotel room at night
• Vacation rental night
• A round trip ground transport ticket (airport shuttles transfer, airport shuttles, etc.)
• One ticket per activity (private tour or theme park ticket etc.)

For instance, a round trip flight 5 nights in a vacation home and five days in a car rental totals twelve travel segment. This is enough to earn the level of elite status (Silver).

Below is a brief summary of the segments you require for each loyalty level:

• Blue: Zero segments
• Silver Five trip pieces within one year
• Gold The Gold program has 15 elements of trip within the year
• Platinum thirty trip components within one year

Here are a few extra benefits for members of loyalty clubs.

VIP Access Properties

Additionally, you can save at least 10% on more than 10,000 hotels around the world Additionally, on-site benefits are includes in the VIP Access collection on Expedia along with Hotels.com. These properties are consistently rated with the top reviews from guests from the booking site and are in line with the standard of excellence.

The benefits of this include:

• Earn Bonus OneKeyCash for stays
• Additional perks for free (food and drinks discounts, a complimentary bottle of wine, etc.)
• Room upgrades are free when they become are available
• Check-in early
• Late check-out

Price Drop Protection

An important benefit that is available to Gold or Platinum Members is price Drop Protection on eligible flight reservations made via Expedia. Customers can get an automatic refund if the fare price decreases after time of booking.

Earning OneKeyCash

The new reward currency is OneKeyCash that can be used to pay for future trips on all three platforms.

The typical rate of earn is 2% back for every $1 spent at qualified hotels, vacation rentals packages, activities cars, packages and cruises. The flights that qualify will earn 0.2 percent back.

Earn Up To 6%  VIP Properties

Elite members get bonus points on stay in VIP Access properties on Expedia and Hotels.com.

Here is a list of the segments you will need to meet the requirements for each loyalty tier:

• Blue: Zero segments
• Silver five trip components within one year
• Gold The Gold program has 15 elements of trip within a calendar year
• Platinum thirty trip components within one year

Here are a few additional benefits that members of loyalty clubs.

VIP Access Properties

In addition to saving at least 10% on over 10,000 hotels across the globe Additional benefits on-site are included in the VIP Access collection on Expedia along with Hotels.com. These properties are consistently rated with the best reviews from guests from the booking site and are in line with the standard of excellence.

A few of the benefits are:

• Earn Bonus OneKeyCash for stays
• Additional perks for free (food and drinks discounts, free wine bottle and more)
• Room upgrades are free when they become they are made available
• Check-in early
• Late check-out

Price Drop Protection

An important benefit that is available to Gold or Platinum customers is the Price Drop Protection on eligible flight reservations made via Expedia. Members can receive instant refunds if the price falls after the reservation date.

Earning OneKeyCash

The latest rewards currency is OneKeyCash that can be use to pay for future trips on all three platforms.

The typical earnings rate of 2% per dollar on hotels that are eligible vacation rentals, packages, activities cars, packages cruises, and car rentals. Flights that are eligible earn 0.2 percent back.

Earn 6%  at VIP  Properties

Elite members get bonus points on stay in VIP Access properties on Expedia and Hotels.com.

It is possible to make up to 6 percent in cash at participating properties. You can more perks, including:

• Silver 3.3% cash back plus an additional perk at certain locations (i.e., access to food and beverages).
• Gold 4% back as well as an additional perk and free upgrades to your room in the event that they are they become available
• Platinum Back 6 with an additional perk and room upgrades that are space-available

The cash will be available in your rewards account approximately three days after you have completed the trip by using”Pay Now. “Pay Now” booking feature. It can take between up to 90 days following the completion of your trip when you choose to use using the “Pay Now” payment method.

You can also earn and utilize OneKeyCash to pay for eligible reservations through Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo.

Redeeming One Key Cash

You can use your travel rewards US dollars “Pay Now” bookings and holiday rental.

For award flights, you’ll need enough money to pay for the entire cost of the flight including taxes and fees. You can also arrange flights under the name of a third party. You cannot use your award currency to purchase optional extras like checked bags or seat upgrades.

The rewards you earn are not transferable and are not redeemable to cash.

Summary

Combining multiple loyalty programs on one platform is advantageous when you are switching among Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo to get the most competitive deals on travel. This is logical since each of the three platforms is an integral part of the Expedia Group umbrella and it makes award travel more affordable for both individuals and families.