Good afternoon everyone.  Generally, at the end of the year, I like to review my travel predictions for the past year and make new predictions for the coming year.  After a long streak of poor prediction performance (2018 prediction results, 2017 prediction results, and 2016 prediction results), I decided not to make any travel predictions for 2019.  But my predictions are coming our of retirement / hibernation today.  I really recommend reading the travel predictions that Stephen at Frequent Miler made, especially his top 5 predictions:

1. Capital One To Add Virgin Atlantic As Travel Partner
2. Amex Membership Rewards To Transfer To JetBlue On A 1:1 Basis
3. Free Breakfast For IHG Spire Elite Members
4. Citi To Allow Card Referrals
5. Chase And/Or Amex To Increase Referral Limits

I am going to piggy back on his predictions and add a few of my own.  So without further ado, here are my travel predictions for 2020

My 2020 Airline Predictions

• Alaska, American, Delta, or United will introduce a “Cash and Miles” payment option for award tickets.  Clarification: This is not to be confused with Delta’s “Pay with Points” option where you get 1 CPP for each Delta SkyMiles for paid flights.  I’m thinking more along the lines of the way British Airways and Avianca do it for award tickets.
• Allegiant Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Spirit Airlines, and Sun Country will announce a merger, but I’m not sure who will merge with who.

My 2020 Hotel Predictions

• Marriott will not charge resort fees on award stays.
• Marriott Free Night Certificates will be tied to a category, not the 35K or 50K points price.
• IHG or Hyatt will transition their Free Night Certificates to a Free Weekend Night Certificate with no cap (similar to the Hilton Free Weekend Night Certificates).
• Radisson Rewards will bring back the “Last Night Free” benefit for award reservations.
• The Radisson Rewards Free Night Certificates for spending $10K, $20K, and $30K will be valid at international properties, not just domestic hotels.
• Best Western, Choice, and Accor will announce a merger, but I’m not sure who will merge with who.

My 2020 Credit Card Predictions

• The Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card has lost a lot of ground / wallet share, so I expect to see new features added.  Maybe 4x on travel and dining, to compete with the American Express Gold Card.
• Chase or American Express will introduce a credit card to complete with the Citi Rewards+ Credit Card (round up points earned to the nearest 10 points and provide a 10% rebate on redeemed points).
• Citi Thank You Points will be transferable to travel partners without needing to have a Citi Premier Credit Card or Citi Prestige Credit Card.
• Citi Thank You Points will be transferable to American Airlines.
• Bank of America or Discover will introduce a credit card that offers transferable points to compete with American Express, Chase, Citi, and Capital One.
• American Express will remove the 5 credit card limit and have no hard limit.
• A new credit card that offers top tier hotel elite status just for having the credit card, similar to the American Express Hilton Aspire Credit Card.  Maybe we will see a Chase Hyatt Globalist Credit Card or an American Express Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Credit Card.

Just like in previous years, my predictions are wildly ambitious, so it will be interesting to see if any of my predictions come true.  What are your travel predictions for 2020?  Share your predictions in the comments below.  Have a great day and happy New Years everyone!