()
NORWALK, Conn., July 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The United States Department of Defense (DoD) officially announced the expansion of American Forces Travel, a leisure travel site created with Priceline, for current and retired members of all six branches of the U.S. military, the National Guard, and their families, along with DoD civilians. The program's expansion extends benefits to all Veterans of the United States Armed Forces with a discharge status of honorable or general under honorable conditions, allowing an additional 16 million users access to the full-service travel booking platform.
Introduced in 2019 to thank the military community for their service, American Forces Travel is a unique and unprecedented travel platform: a global collection of exceptional deals, assembled in a single place exclusively for those who have served on behalf of our nation. The site is the result of a joint service initiative among the six branches of the United States Armed Forces—the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force and Coast Guard—and the National Guard, along with the Office of the Secretary of Defense and Priceline, which operates the platform at no cost to the DoD.
In addition to improving access to Armed Forces' Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) benefits, every booking on American Forces Travel generates revenue used to support critical quality of life programs for Service members and families.
The platform features privately negotiated deals on the world's most popular hotel, flight and car rental brands with over a million deals in more than 71,000 destinations globally, providing fast, easy access to a broad selection of deeply discounted leisure travel for the military community and their families. Eligible users can save up to 40% - 60% on leisure travel.
"Priceline is proud to support American Forces Travel by providing the best travel deals the industry has to offer for the brave Americans who support our country through military service," said Brett Keller, Priceline's CEO. "We are pleased to expand this program to an additional 16 million Veterans who have served in the United States Military."
MILITARY STAR Card As part of the expansion, the MILITARY STAR card is now available as a payment method on thousands of deeply discounted hotels. The MILITARY STAR card is part of The Exchange Credit Program under the Army & Air Force Exchange Service and offers exclusive credit benefits to military personnel and their families, including a competitive APR regardless of credit score and interest reduction during deployment.
Eligibility Verification American Forces Travel is open to all military and military affiliated personnel who are eligible to use Morale, Welfare and Recreation programs. First-time users will be asked to verify their eligibility with the Department of Defense through the site. Once verified, they are free to use the site to book discounted travel around the world. The verification process is secure and requested information will not be retained.
Under the expansion, 22 million personnel will now have access to the site, including:
All current active duty military who serve in the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force and Coast Guard
All members of the Reserve components and National Guard
Coast Guard Auxiliary Active Duty
All current active duty and retired National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
All current active duty and retired US Public Health Service (USPHS)
All retired military, including those in the Reserves and National Guard who are retirement eligible
Eligible family members who are officially sponsored (ID card holder) by authorized patrons in the above categories
All Medal of Honor recipients
All Veterans of the United States Armed Forces with a discharge status of honorable or general under honorable conditions
All Veterans with service-connected disabilities, all Veterans who are Purple Heart recipients, all Veterans who are former prisoners of war, all individuals approved and designated as the primary family caregivers of eligible Veterans under the Department of Veterans Affairs Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers.
All Department of Defense and Coast Guard civilians, including appropriated funds (APF) employees and nonappropriated funds (NAF) employees
Full-time, paid employees of the American Red Cross and United Service Organizations (USO) hired in the United States and serving at U.S. DoD installations overseas
Eligible patrons can sign up, book travel, and find more information by visiting here.
Connect with Priceline on:
