Delta is adding three new routes to Europe in 2027, with new nonstop flights to Athens, Venice, and Paris.
The airline announced Thursday, September 25, that it will begin flying from Detroit (DTW) to Athens (ATH) and Boston (BOS) to Venice (VCE) next summer. Those flights will join a previously announced route from Austin (AUS) to Paris (CDG), which begins in March.
Delta is also stretching several seasonal Europe routes farther into the spring and fall, giving some destinations a longer window than the usual summer schedule.
Delta Adds New Flights to Athens, Venice, and Paris
Delta will begin flying from Detroit to Athens three times weekly on June 8, 2027. Flights will operate through October 28 aboard an Airbus A330-200.
It will be the first nonstop flight between Detroit and Athens, making Detroit Delta’s fourth U.S. gateway to the Greek capital.
Boston gets a new route of its own beginning May 7. Delta will fly four times weekly to Venice through October 29 using an Airbus A330-300.
That gives Boston another nonstop option to Italy, where Delta has been steadily adding service over the past few years. The airline will also increase its Boston-Milan route to daily service in 2027.
Farther south, Delta will begin daily flights between Austin and Paris on March 27, 2027, giving Austin its first nonstop connection to the French capital. The route will use an Airbus A330-900neo.
All three routes will offer Delta One business class and Delta Premium Select premium economy in addition to economy.
The additions are part of a broader period of international growth for Delta. The airline is also preparing to launch its first flights to Riyadh (RUH) on October 23, 2026, adding Saudi Arabia to its route map.
Delta Is Lengthening the Europe Season
The new routes aren’t the only change coming to Delta’s Europe schedule.
Several seasonal flights will start earlier in 2027, while others will stick around longer.
Flights from Minneapolis-St. Paul and Detroit to Rome will begin in early March, for example, while Seattle-Rome will start in April. Delta is also bringing back several routes earlier in the year, including New York-JFK to Catania, Porto, Prague, and Copenhagen.
Boston and Seattle flights to Barcelona and Atlanta-Edinburgh will return earlier as well.
Some routes are also getting more service. Detroit-Rome and New York-Copenhagen will operate daily when they return, while Cincinnati-Paris will continue three times weekly from January through March.
That makes Delta’s transatlantic network a little less dependent on the traditional summer rush.
American Express has spent more than a decade building one of the largest credit card airport lounge networks in the world.
The first Centurion Lounge opened in 2013. Since then, the network has expanded across the United States and into airports from London to Tokyo, with more locations on the way.
Unlike airline lounges, access isn’t tied to flying a particular airline or sitting in a premium cabin. It comes primarily through a handful of premium American Express cards.
Here’s where to find Centurion Lounges, who can get in, and what to know before your visit.
Where Can You Find American Express Centurion Lounges?
American Express operates Centurion Lounges across the United States and at several international airports.
The network is still growing, with additional Centurion Lounges already announced.
Airport
Location
Expected
Newark (EWR)
Terminal A
2026
Boston (BOS)
Terminal C
2029
Sidecar by the Centurion Lounge
American Express is also experimenting with a smaller lounge concept called Sidecar by The Centurion Lounge.
Sidecar is designed for shorter visits, with drinks and light bites rather than the broader dining and amenity experience found at a full Centurion Lounge. Visits are limited to 90 minutes before departure.
The first Sidecar opened at Las Vegas (LAS) in 2025, and another is planned for Charlotte (CLT) in 2027.
Who Can Access a Centurion Lounge?
You can’t purchase a Centurion Lounge membership or simply pay for a day pass.
Instead, complimentary access comes primarily through eligible American Express cards, including:
Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business cardmembers (when flying Delta)
Guest access depends on which card you use.
Platinum Card and Business Platinum Card members generally pay $50 per adult guest and $30 for children ages 2 through 17. Cardmembers who make $75,000 or more in eligible purchases during a calendar year can unlock complimentary access for up to two guests at eligible Centurion Lounge locations.
You’ll also need a same-day boarding pass. Access is generally limited to within three hours of your scheduled departure. If you’re connecting, you can enter up to five hours before your next flight.
What Can You Expect Inside a Centurion Lounge?
Centurion Lounges share many of the same basics, but American Express doesn’t make every location identical.
Food, drinks, artwork, and design often incorporate elements of the city or region surrounding the airport. Some locations take that further with amenities you won’t find elsewhere in the network.
At New York (JFK), there’s a speakeasy called 1850. Seattle (SEA) has a full-service coffee bar inspired by the city’s coffee culture. At Tokyo Haneda (HND), chefs prepare nigiri from an open kitchen.
The rest will feel familiar if you’ve spent time in airport lounges. Expect complimentary food and drinks, Wi-Fi, power outlets, and places to work or relax. Depending on the location, you may also find showers, family rooms, outdoor spaces, or other amenities.
A Few Things to Know Before You Go
A few rules are worth checking before heading to a Centurion Lounge:
Bring a government-issued photo ID. You may be asked to show it at check-in.
Your boarding pass must be for a same-day departing flight.
Entry is subject to capacity, and popular lounges can have a wait during busy periods.
Amenities vary considerably between locations.
International locations can have different access and guest policies, so check the rules for the specific lounge you’re visiting.
Because lounge access policies can change, confirm the latest rules with American Express before traveling if Centurion Lounge access is important to your plans.
American Airlines and STARLUX have officially launched their codeshare partnership. But for anyone with American miles, the more interesting part is what could come next.
American says the airlines are working toward mileage redemptions and additional benefits. If that happens, STARLUX would become another way to use AAdvantage miles to get to Asia.
That’s already one of the more useful aspects of American’s program. AAdvantage miles can be used on American’s own flights across the Pacific, along with partners including Japan Airlines and Cathay Pacific. Malaysia Airlines can help with trips farther into Southeast Asia, while Qantas opens up additional possibilities through Australia.
STARLUX could add another piece to that network, with flights from several U.S. cities to Taipei and connections throughout Asia.
The codeshare is the first step. American is now selling select STARLUX flights from Los Angeles (LAX), Ontario (ONT), San Francisco (SFO), and Seattle (SEA) to Taipei (TPE), with Phoenix (PHX) expected to follow pending approval.
AAdvantage members can earn miles and Loyalty Points when those STARLUX flights are sold under an American flight number.
What isn’t possible yet is booking a STARLUX flight with AAdvantage miles.
American says the airlines will work together on future opportunities including “mileage redemption and additional travel benefits,” but hasn’t said when that will happen, what flights will be available, or how many miles they’ll cost.
STARLUX isn’t the only potential addition, either. Philippine Airlines is preparing to join Oneworld, the airline alliance that includes American, Japan Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Qantas, and several other carriers. Its membership should eventually create another way to use American miles for flights in Asia.
There’s plenty left to learn about both additions. But the direction is pretty interesting. AAdvantage already offers several ways to cross the Pacific using miles, and that list looks likely to get longer.
Alaska Airlines is planning a sizable expansion at Paine Field, giving the Seattle area’s secondary airport considerably more service over the next year.
The expansion includes one new destination, San Jose, along with more flights or larger aircraft on several existing routes.
Alaska plans to begin twice-daily flights between Paine Field and San Jose on April 14, 2027, operated by Horizon Air with Embraer E175 aircraft.
Los Angeles will also increase to twice-daily service, with both flights moving to larger Boeing 737 aircraft. Portland grows to two flights per day, while Alaska is adding seats to San Diego and San Francisco.
Paine Field Is Becoming a Bigger Part of Alaska’s Seattle Network
None of the individual route changes is especially dramatic. Taken together, though, a 50% increase in seats is meaningful for an airport that offers an alternative to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA).
Paine Field sits roughly 25 miles north of downtown Seattle in Everett, making it considerably closer for parts of northern Seattle and communities north of the city. Its small passenger terminal also offers a very different experience from Alaska’s much larger operation at SeaTac.
The expansion doesn’t turn Paine Field into another major hub. Most of Alaska’s Seattle-area flying will continue to operate from SEA.
But by summer 2027, PAE will offer substantially more Alaska capacity to several major West Coast destinations. For anyone living north of Seattle, that makes checking both airports before booking a trip a little more important.
Flying between Sydney and New York is about to get a little more direct, even if it won’t get much shorter.
Qantas announced September 22 that it will launch nonstop flights between the two cities in mid-2028 as part of its long-planned Project Sunrise. The roughly 18-hour flight will be the first nonstop commercial service between Australia and New York.
Tickets are expected to go on sale in August 2027.
Qantas already flies between Sydney and New York, but the current route stops in Auckland. Removing that stop is expected to cut more than three hours from the total trip.
Qantas Is Building a Plane for Some Very Long Flights
The New York route will use Qantas’ specially configured Airbus A350-1000ULR, with ULR standing for Ultra Long Range. The aircraft will first enter commercial service on nonstop Sydney to London flights in October 2027.
Those flights will spend roughly 20 hours in the air, giving a sense of what Qantas is building these aircraft to do. The airline says the A350-1000ULR can fly for up to 22 hours nonstop.
Qantas is configuring its 12 Project Sunrise aircraft with just 238 seats across first class, business class, premium economy, and economy. The planes will also have an additional 20,000-liter fuel tank to make these ultra-long flights possible.
There’s even a dedicated Wellbeing Zone where passengers can stretch, grab a drink or snack, and follow guided movements on large screens. Spending the better part of a day on an airplane makes that sound a little less gimmicky.
The first aircraft is expected to arrive in April 2027.
New York will be the second confirmed Project Sunrise route after London. Qantas hasn’t released the Sydney to New York schedule or said how frequently it will operate.
There’s also no word yet on what tickets will cost or how many seats might eventually be bookable with Qantas points or through partners such as American Airlines.
Those details are a ways off. But beginning in 2028, getting from Sydney to New York should no longer require landing somewhere in between.
Eighteen hours in a middle seat, on the other hand, is one problem Project Sunrise can’t solve.
Turkish Airlines is moving ahead with plans to add a lot more airplanes.
The airline finalized an order Wednesday for 100 Boeing 737-8 aircraft, with options for another 50 737 MAX jets. Turkish can also substitute some of those planes for the larger 737-10.
For passengers, the useful part isn’t necessarily the aircraft itself. It’s what Turkish could do with a fleet that continues to get much bigger.
More planes give the airline room to add flights, destinations, and seats over time. Turkish hasn’t said where these particular aircraft will fly, and some could replace older planes rather than represent entirely new capacity.
But this order is part of a much larger growth plan.
Turkish Airlines Is Building Toward More Than 800 Aircraft
The 787 order includes 35 787-9s and 15 of the larger 787-10, which Turkish plans to use to support long-haul growth. Boeing has said the 787 and 737 MAX deals together will double Turkish Airlines’ Boeing fleet.
Turkish has an even bigger target beyond Boeing. The airline wants its overall fleet to exceed 800 aircraft by 2033 while sustaining average annual growth of 6%.
The 737 MAX aircraft are intended for shorter routes, while the additional Dreamliners give Turkish more room to grow long-haul flying. That combination matters at Istanbul, where shorter flights from across the region feed Turkish’s much larger international network.
None of that guarantees more seats on a particular route or the introduction of new ones. But Turkish is planning for a substantially larger fleet, and more aircraft give it more room to add capacity.
Amtrak is Bilt’s first rail transfer partner and its 26th travel partner overall. And the partnership could be particularly useful in situations where taking the train can make more sense than flying.
Bilt Points transfer in increments of 1,000. Members who have earned Bilt status can transfer as few as 1,000 points at a time, while members with entry-level Blue status (which everyone receives when joining Bilt) need to transfer at least 2,000.
Amtrak tickets can start at 400 Guest Rewards points, or 100 points when combining points and cash. Points can also be used for lounge passes starting at 1,500 points and one-class upgrade coupons starting at 2,500 points.
The important number to check before transferring is how many Amtrak points a particular trip requires. Since Bilt Points become half as many Amtrak points, a ticket costing 2,500 Amtrak points would require transferring 5,000 Bilt Points.
Bilt Continues to Expand Beyond Traditional Travel Rewards
Amtrak also fits into something broader happening at Bilt.
Airline and hotel transfers are still a big part of the program, but Bilt has increasingly added ways to use points outside the usual airline-hotel playbook. Points can go toward fitness classes, student loan payments, and other expenses tied more closely to everyday life.
Train travel fits neatly into that expansion. It’s transportation, but for plenty of people, especially along the Northeast Corridor, it’s also part of life in a way that an airline transfer partner might not be.
Capital One Offers are easy to forget about. But a batch of limited-time mileage bonuses showing up right now is a good reason to take another look before making a purchase.
Current offers cover flights, hotels, rideshares, activities, and plenty of things that have nothing to do with travel.
Some offer a certain number of miles per dollar spent. Others are more interesting: spend a relatively small amount and earn a fixed number of bonus miles.
British Airways, for example, is offering 4,000 Capital One miles after spending $75. Expedia has 2,000 miles after spending $40, while Klook and Lyft each offer 1,000 miles after spending $20.
Those aren’t huge spending requirements. If a purchase was going to happen anyway, checking Capital One Offers first could mean picking up a few thousand extra miles along the way.
Some Offers Are Better Than Others
Offers vary by account and change regularly. On eligible miles-earning Capital One cards, current bonuses include:
British Airways: Spend $75, earn 4,000 miles
Expedia: Spend $40, earn 2,000 miles
Hotels.com: Spend $30, earn 1,500 miles
Priceline: Spend $30, earn 1,500 miles
Lyft: Spend $20, earn 1,000 miles
Klook: Spend $20, earn 1,000 miles
Airalo: Spend $20, earn 1,000 miles
CAPITAL ONE
Other offers work differently. GetYourGuide is currently offering 25 miles per dollar spent, for example, while Viator has an offer for 6 miles per dollar.
Check Before Hitting Buy
Capital One Offers can be found at CapitalOneOffers.com or by logging in to a Capital One account and looking for the offers section.
Finding an offer isn’t enough on its own. The purchase needs to start by clicking through the offer, and each one has its own terms, including eligible purchases and restrictions.
The practical takeaway isn’t to find something to buy because an offer exists. It’s to check whether there’s an offer for something already being purchased.
A flight, hotel, rideshare, eSIM, or activity could already be sitting on the list. It takes a few seconds to look, and right now some of those few seconds are worth a few thousand miles.
Australia isn’t exactly a quick trip from the U.S., but American Airlines is offering a cheaper way to get there for anyone with some flexibility this fall.
For a limited time, American is offering one-way economy award tickets to Sydney (SYD) for as few as 25,000 AAdvantage miles. That’s 10,000 miles less than the 35,000-mile starting price on American’s award chart.
There’s one big catch, though: both booking and travel need to happen by October 31, 2026.
That leaves just over a month to make the trip happen.
What to Know Before Booking
The offer covers Main Cabin awards between the contiguous 48 states and Sydney. These tickets start at 25,000 AAdvantage miles one way, plus applicable taxes and fees.
American says availability is limited, and the mileage price can change depending on the flight and date.
There’s another important restriction. The discounted awards must be on flights marketed and operated by American Airlines or American Eagle. Codeshare flights aren’t eligible, so don’t expect the 25,000-mile price on a Qantas-operated flight just because it appears on AA.com.
The offer can’t be applied to an existing reservation, either.
That gives this deal a pretty narrow window:
Book by 11:59 p.m. CT on October 31, 2026.
Complete travel by October 31, 2026.
Fly in Main Cabin.
Travel between the contiguous U.S. and Sydney.
Stick to American-operated flights.
AA.COM
A Long Flight, but a Lower Mileage Price
There’s no getting around the obvious part. Australia is a long way to fly in economy. American’s nonstop from Los Angeles to Sydney spends roughly 15 hours in the air.
At 25,000 AAdvantage miles one way, though, the savings are pretty meaningful. A round trip at the lowest price would cost 50,000 miles, although finding that rate in both directions from a home airport isn’t guaranteed.
It’s worth searching from American’s major gateways, too. If the deal doesn’t appear from a home airport, a positioning flight could open up more options.
But the bigger limitation here isn’t the long flight. It’s the calendar. Anyone who can make Australia work before the end of October has a lower mileage price available for a limited time.
When U.S. Bank launched points transfers to airline partners less than a month ago, one addition caught my eye: Ethiopian Airlines ShebaMiles.
It got me wondering whether ShebaMiles could be the next non-U.S. airline program to make a bigger push into the U.S. points and miles market, following programs such as Avios, Aeroplan, LifeMiles, Flying Blue, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, and Japan Airlines Mileage Bank.
Airline points and miles are a multibillion-dollar business and a reliable cash cow for carriers. Airlines sell billions of dollars’ worth of miles to banks and other partners every year, and during COVID, several pledged their loyalty programs as collateral to raise billions in cash. More recently, Air Canada sold a 25% stake in Aeroplan for C$2.5 billion.
The U.S. is by far the largest miles market globally, followed distantly by Brazil. Given how profitable selling miles can be, more and more non-U.S. airlines want a piece of that cash flow.
Domestically, the U.S. “Big Three” each pursue their own strategy, backed by a physical presence across the entire country. Foreign airlines, by contrast, have a much smaller footprint in the U.S., so they lean on miles sales and bank partnerships to generate cash and attract members from the world’s largest points and miles market.
Origins of the Non-U.S. Airline Playbook
The strategy was pioneered by British Airways Avios, under International Airlines Group (IAG), and later refined by LifeMiles after its parent airline, Avianca, joined Star Alliance in 2012. The formula included:
Buy-miles promotions
Bank transfer partnerships and promotions
Intentionally curated redemption “sweet spots” to generate word-of-mouth buzz, particularly for partner redemptions
Change, cancellation, and partner-redemption fees as additional revenue streams
Other non-U.S. and regional carriers later adopted a similar model to attract members outside their home markets. Air France-KLM’s Flying Blue and Air Canada’s Aeroplan are chief among them, particularly because the U.S. market dwarfs their home markets in size.
MTCURADO / ISTOCK
COVID as a Turning Point
When COVID hit, people stopped traveling and airlines across the industry were suffering. Several major airlines turned to their loyalty programs as collateral to raise billions in cash, making the value of these businesses impossible to ignore.
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club is a prime example of how programs have evolved since then. In just a few years, it transformed from a currency centered largely around Virgin Atlantic flights into one of the more prominent programs in the space by expanding bank transfer partnerships, joining SkyTeam, launching online partner redemptions, and shifting to dynamic pricing on its own flights and select partners.
As a side note, Alaska Airlines’ Atmos Rewards program took a slightly different path. Still U.S.-based and historically regional, it broadened the program’s appeal by pairing a highly competitive elite program on the West Coast with a unique co-brand credit card, a broad range of airline partners, and other benefits that extend beyond Alaska’s traditional footprint.
The Next Movers
More recently, the spotlight has shifted to Japan Airlines Mileage Bank, which has added partnerships with Bilt, Capital One, and most recently Citi.
Now, it may be Ethiopian Airlines ShebaMiles’ turn. The program has already checked several boxes:
Star Alliance membership
A website supporting partner redemptions
Buy-miles promotions
Its first U.S. bank partnership
If ShebaMiles continues following the playbook used by programs such as Avios, LifeMiles, Aeroplan, Flying Blue, Flying Club, and JAL Mileage Bank over the past 15 years, I think there are several likely next moves:
Creating/Maintaining a few redemption sweet spots to generate buzz, potentially while continuing to use an award chart for the time being
Adding more bank partners with attractive pricing for those partners, potentially below 130 basis points per mile
Launching bank transfer promotions
Introducing multi-tier and eventually dynamic redemptions on Ethiopian’s own flights, with some inventory reserved exclusively for ShebaMiles members rather than relying on the current single-tier, inventory-based system
Improving customer service and adding online changes, or at least cancellations, paired with change and cancellation fees
Adjusting fees over time as members become more familiar with the program
Africa has also become an increasingly popular destination in recent years. I’ve personally visited the continent six times over the past 15 years and traveled through about half of it.
There are very few places Ethiopian Airlines doesn’t fly across Africa today, apart from some North and Southern African markets served by partners such as EgyptAir and Airlink. That’s the result of a network Ethiopian began building years ago.
Fathala Wildlife Reserve. TROY LIU / POINTS INSIDER
Sure, United MileagePlus, Air Canada Aeroplan, and Turkish Miles&Smiles can already be used to book Ethiopian flights, but those programs only have access to the award inventory Ethiopian makes available to partners.
If ShebaMiles eventually introduces multi-tier redemptions on Ethiopian’s own flights, with additional inventory reserved exclusively for its own members, that could become a real competitive advantage.
U.S. customers would have another option when choosing a miles program, and I’ve never been more bullish on the future of this industry as more banks and programs enter the market.
And with ShebaMiles becoming more relevant in the U.S., we’ve added the program to PointsYeah Live Search, making it possible to search ShebaMiles award availability alongside other supported programs.
