NEWS & OFFERS: Air fares already rising, Melia up to 40% off and Club Eurostar 20% off Reward seats

 Air fares already rising due to the war in the Middle East

If you are planning to buy flights in the next few months, it may be worth buying them sooner rather than later. While many people are aware of the rise in oil prices, which is affecting the petrol pumps, I thought we would have a little breathing space before airlines started following by raising prices or adding fuel surcharges. However,  Qantas,  SAS and Air New Zealand have already announced surcharges and price increases.

While many airlines hedge fuel which should protect them in the short term, a new interview with United CEO Scott Kirby reveals that this is not so common among US airlines. 

During a recent discussion at Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby didn’t sugarcoat the situation. Following the recent escalations between the U.S., Israel, and Iran, he revealed that jet fuel prices have absolutely skyrocketed, jumping a staggering 58% in less than a week. 

Kirby also spoke about how the practice of fuel hedging has largely fallen out of fashion with US carriers. 

“No one hedges anymore,” Kirby explained. “And even if you do, hedging the crack spread is really hard to do.” For those of us without an economics degree, the crack spread is simply the price gap between raw crude oil and the refined products we actually use, like jet fuel. 

To put the scale of the rises into perspective, if we take just one standard Boeing 737-800 that holds about 6,875 gallons. At current prices, filling the tank costs around $27,000. Other airlines outside the US have revealed that they have increased their hedging, such as Air France and Air New Zealand, who have hedged the majority of their fuel.

Easyjet said in January it had hedged 84% of its fuel needs for the first half of 2026, 62% for the second, and 43% for the first half of 2027, which should keep budget airline fares more stable. IAG revealed in February that its fuel and currency hedging was down about 9% in 2025 compared to the year before, but the group had hedging of up to ‌75% of expected short-term requirements, and up to 80% for the low-cost airlines.

With demand still there in the US market (which is up 20% on last year on forward booked travel) it is likely that transatlantic and domestic US travel will be one of the areas most likely to be hit with surcharges. Even for European airlines that have a reasonable amount of fuel hedged, if US carriers add fuel surcharges for transatlantic routes, it is likely that they will follow suit.

So if you are considering any transatlantic travel, it may be prudent to book sooner rather than later. In terms of the Middle East carriers, it will also depend on how demand is affected by the conflict in the future once the airlines are operating normally.

Melia Wonder Week is here with up to 40% off

Every year Melia hotels run a “Wonder Week” with some heavy discounts and special offers. This year’s week has just started with up to 40% off. It is worth checking back during the week to see if they launch any more deals. 

While Melia is a Spanish chain, they have hotels in many countries, including the UK, Maldives, Thailand, and the Americas. I recommend their Level rooms, which include lounge access and often special facilities such as a private pool or additional perks. Amex Platinum gives you Gold status for Melia. 

Here are the details of the 40% off deal:

Club Eurostar is giving 20% off Reward seats

Club Eurostar is launching a limited-time promotion giving members 20% off reward seats across Eurostar’s direct network. During the promotion, reward seats will be available from as little as 800 points one way, helping members make their points go further. Even if you don’t have a Club Eurostar account, if you have an American Express Platinum, you can transfer points across at a rate of 1500 Membership Rewards points = 100 Club Eurostar points. Transfers take up to 5 working days.

The offer runs until 16:00 GMT on Thursday 19^th March, and is open to all Club Eurostar members who can log in to their account and book reward seats using points during this window.

Reward tickets can be booked in Eurostar Standard, Eurostar Plus or Eurostar Premier. The promotion is valid on all direct year-round Eurostar routes, with no blackout dates and travel available until December 12^th 2026.

You can join and find the details here.