Icelandair is the flag carrier of Iceland that is headquartered near the capital city of Reykjavik. As of December 2020, the airliner operates services to 34 cities in 16 countries on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. This airline is a popular choice for flights between the United States and Europe, thanks to its free stopovers in Iceland and low cash fares.
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If you’re a fan of this airline, check out their frequent flyer program Saga Club. Although it lacks major airline credit card partners, they still have value if you know where to look.
Saga Club Summary
| Hubs | Reykjavik |
| Alliance | None |
| Redemption Options | Flights, upgrades, leg room, onboard purchases, hotel stays, car rentals, gift certificates, donations |
| Transfer Partners | Hilton Honors, Radisson Rewards |
| Cobranded Credit Card | Icelandair Premium Mastercard from FNBO |
Saga Club Elite Status
When you join Saga Club, you’ll automatically become a Saga Blue member. Move up status tiers when you collect enough Tier Credits – by flying with Icelandair, Air Iceland Connect, Alaska Airlines and JetBlue – within a 12-month period.
| STATUS TIER | TIER CREDITS REQUIRED |
| Saga Blue | None |
| Saga Silver | 40,000 |
| Saga Gold | 80,000 |
Once you unlock a tier, you’ll have that status for the next 12 months. Status benefits include:
| BLUE | SILVER | GOLD | |
| Earn Saga Points | x | x | x |
| Tier Credit bonus | 10% | 20% | |
| Upgrade between classes | x | x | |
| Airport lounges | x | x | |
| Saga Premium check-in | x | x | |
| Priority on waiting list | x | x | |
| Baggage benefits | x | x | |
| Spouse card | x | x | |
| Limousine service | x | ||
| Parking at Keflavik Airport | x | ||
| On-board WiFi | x | ||
| Fast track through security | x | ||
| Priority phone number | x |
Earning Saga Club Points
Earn Saga Points for:
- Flights with Icelandair and partner airlines
- Onboard purchases with Icelandair and partner airlines
- Icelandair Hotel and Hotel Edda stays
- Hotel stays booked through Icelandair’s Voyage or Icelandair’s Booking.com hotel search
- Car rentals booked through Rentalcars.com, Hertz or Sixt
- Car rentals booked through Icelandair’s Voyage car rental search
- Booking activities through Icelandair’s activity search
- Using the Gray Line Iceland shuttle service between Keflavik Airport and Reykjavik
- Transferring from other award programs, e.g. JetBlue, using Points.com
As we mentioned earlier, partner airlines include Air Iceland Connect, Alaska Airlines and JetBlue.
You can earn even more points if you pair your purchases with the Icelandair Premium Mastercard from First National Bank of Omaha. As a cardholder, you get Saga Points on everyday purchases, like gas and groceries. For Icelandair purchases, you earn double the amount of Saga Points.
The card also features no foreign transaction fees, a low annual fee of $39 and a 10,000-point welcome bonus with your first purchase.
Earning Sage Points With Transfer Partners
As mentioned above, some of the best ways to earn Saga Points as an American, besides having the Icelandair Premium Mastercard, is to transfer your Hilton Honors or Radisson Rewards points, both at a 10 to 1 ratio.
 The Hilton Honors American Express Card offers 70,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points plus a Free Night Reward after you spend $2,000 in purchases on the Hilton Honors American Express Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer Ends 4/29/2025. You'll earn: • 7X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your Card directly with hotels and resorts within the Hilton portfolio. • 5X Points per dollar on purchases at U.S. restaurants, at U.S. supermarkets, and at U.S. gas stations. • 3X Points for all other eligible purchases on your Card. Enjoy complimentary Hilton Honors Silver status with your Card. Plus, spend $20,000 on eligible purchases on your Card in a calendar year and you can earn an upgrade to Hilton Honors Gold status through the end of the next calendar year. This card comes with $0 annual fee and no foreign transaction fees, so you can enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad. (See Rates & Fees) Terms Apply. |
 The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card offers 130,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points plus a Free Night Reward after you spend $3,000 in purchases on the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass(R) Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer Ends 4/29/2025. Get up to $50 in statement credits each quarter for purchases made directly with a property in the Hilton portfolio on your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card. That's up to $200 in statement credits annually. You'll earn: • Get up to $200 back each year on eligible Hilton purchases after you use your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card. • Earn 12X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your Card directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton portfolio. • Earn 6X Points for each dollar of purchases on your Card at U.S. restaurants, at U.S. supermarkets, and at U.S. gas stations. • Earn 4X Points for each dollar on U.S. Online Retail Purchases. • Earn 3X Points for all other eligible purchases on your Card. Earn a Free Night Reward from Hilton Honors after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Enjoy complimentary Hilton Honors Gold Status with your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card. Spend $40,000 on eligible purchases on your Card in a calendar year and you can earn Hilton Honors Diamond Status through the end of the next calendar year. This card does carry a $150 annual fee & no foreign transaction fees. (See Rates & Fees) Terms Apply. |
 The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card offers 175,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points when you spend $6,000 in purchases on the card within your first 6 months of card membership. Offer ends 1/8/2025. Plus, enjoy a free Weekend Night Reward within your first year and every year after renewal. You're able to earn: • 14X Hilton Bonus Points when you make eligible purchases on your Card at participating hotels or resorts within the Hilton Portfolio; • 7X Bonus Points for eligible purchases: on flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com, on car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies & at U.S. restaurants. • 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases on your Card. This card does come with a $550 annual fee, however, you get $200 Airline Fee Credit ($50 statement credits per quarter) and $400 Hilton Resort Credit ($200 every 6 months/semi-annually). In addition, you can benefit with a complimentary Diamond status with your Hilton Honors Aspire Card. Terms Apply. |
Redeeming Saga Club Points
Saga Club Points expire after 36 months of inactivity. In order to keep your account active, you need to earn or burn points at least every three years.
Use your Saga Points for:
- Icelandair, Air Iceland Connect and Alaska Airlines flights
- Icelandair upgrades
- More legroom on board Icelandair flights
- Onboard purchases
- Hotel bookings
- Car rental bookings
- Gift certificates for Icelandair flights
- Special Children Travel fund
Redeem Saga Points via Points.com for gift certificates with major retailers like Amazon and Target. Or, gift or share your points with friends and family. Keep in mind, there is a booking fee for all transactions.
Saga Club Tips & Tricks
- One-way awards are available.
- Saga Club does not charge any change fees on Saga and Economy Comfort class tickets.
- Best value awards are on flights to Iceland from smaller airports in North America that would require a connection to a hub.
- Take advantage of Alaska Airlines stopover rules and book multi-day stopovers on award tickets.
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Bottom Line
Although Icelandair isn’t part of any airline alliance nor does it have its own Saga Club credit card transfer partners, you may want to still consider it if you have the Icelandair Premium Mastercard, regularly fly Alaska Airlines, or if you earn Hilton Honors or Radisson Rewards points.
While you’re here on HMB, you can check out out our Best Travel Credit cards and learn how to earn even more bonus points and miles that you can use towards your future travels!
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