artLIVE – Lunar New Year travel is increasingly seen as a personal reward after a busy year, with holiday experiences becoming more flexible, personalized, and accessible.
Lunar New Year is no longer just a time for family reunions. For many, it has also become an opportunity to reward themselves and their loved ones with a gentle getaway, a chance to recharge for the year ahead. Amid increasingly busy lifestyles, Lunar New Year travel trends are gradually shifting, from chasing complicated deals to embracing experiences that are more flexible, personalized, and accessible.
In this context, partnerships between travel platforms and payment ecosystems, transforming reward points into real travel experiences, are becoming an increasingly notable trend.
This Lunar New Year, let your reward points become an experience worth looking forward to
Many cardholders are familiar with accumulating reward points, only to leave them unused, often due to complicated redemption processes or rewards that simply aren’t compelling enough.
That, however, is beginning to change. Agoda, the digital travel platform, and Mastercard, the global payment brand, have officially partnered to integrate Agoda’s extensive global travel inventory into Mastercard’s rewards ecosystem across the Asia–Pacific region.
By integrating Agoda’s interface, technology, and global inventory into Mastercard’s solutions, cardholders can now redeem reward points directly for accommodation and flights on Agoda, in real time, within their bank’s loyalty program.
As a result, whether you are considering a short spring getaway or a post – Lunar New Year escape from the city, this approach offers an additional option: traveling without waiting for major promotions or spending excessive cash.
Lunar New Year travel: A story of flexibility and personalization
Shifts in the way people travel and spend are also clearly reflected in industry trend reports. According to Skift’s State of Travel 2025, what keeps travelers engaged with loyalty programs is no longer the number of points they accumulate, but the practicality of the benefits, such as easy-to-use travel perks, seamless redemption, and access to better experiences. These factors are quietly shaping booking decisions and influencing long-term customer loyalty.
From a broader perspective, Arrivia’s 2025 Loyalty Panorama Report points to the same direction: loyalty programs are increasingly prioritizing travel-related benefits, as consumers seek rewards that can be converted into real, tangible experiences. Within this context, partnerships between banks and travel platforms are emerging as a timely response to evolving expectations, allowing reward points to be effortlessly transformed into memorable journeys.
No longer confined to one-size-fits-all rewards, this new collaboration introduces a more intuitive approach to modern travel, one that allows reward points to be used in step with individual lifestyles and personal needs. It may take the form of a tranquil resort stay for families after the hustle of the Lunar New Year, a spontaneous getaway for the young at heart, requiring little more than a backpack and the urge to go, or a quiet retreat where office workers can take a breather from the familiar rhythm of early-year work.
Different choices, yet all these experiences can be personalized and seamlessly connected within a single, familiar travel platform.
When technology powers memorable journeys
Mr. Damien Pfirsch, Chief Commercial Officer at Agoda, noted that many reward points remain unused simply because customers do not clearly see their value. By directly integrating accommodation and flight inventory into Mastercard’s solutions, reward points can now be turned into instant experiences, rather than remaining idle numbers in an account.
Echoing this perspective, Mr. Matthew Driver, Executive Vice President, Services, Asia Pacific, shared that Mastercard is expanding the very notion of “loyalty.” Beyond discounts and perks, the company is moving toward a digital experience ecosystem, one that is personalized and closely connected to meaningful moments in everyday life.
The partnership between Agoda and Mastercard reflects a distinctly lifestyle-driven shift in how people travel and consume today, favoring smarter choices, prioritizing experiences that truly deliver value, and viewing reward points not merely as numbers, but as opportunities to create meaningful memories along the way.
At the start of a new year, as many begin planning short getaways, reward points, when used thoughtfully, have the power to turn intention into a journey worth remembering.
