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If your family flies Alaska or Hawaiian Airlines or wants to find great award flight prices to places like Hawaii, Europe, and Asia, the Atmos™ Rewards Ascent Visa Signature® credit card is worth a serious look. It has a modest $95 annual fee, a free checked bag for the whole crew, and an annual companion fare that can save you real money on a family trip.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Atmos Rewards Ascent Card Details
Limited-time online offer: 70,000 bonus points and a $99 Companion Fare, plus taxes and fees from $23, after $2,500 in purchases within 90 days of account opening.
Annual fee: $95
Related: All About Atmos Rewards
Ascent Benefits
The Ascent earns:
- 3x points on eligible Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines purchases
- 2x points on eligible gas, EV charging, cable, streaming, and local transit, including rideshare
- 1x points on everything else
And the perks:
- 10% bonus points on card purchases if you have an eligible Bank of America or Merrill account
- Free checked bag and preferred boarding for you and up to 6 guests on the same reservation
- Annual $99 Companion Fare (plus taxes and fees from $23) after $6,000 in purchases during your prior anniversary year
- 20% statement credit rebate on eligible Alaska Airlines onboard food, beverage, and Wi-Fi purchases
- $100 off an annual Alaska Lounge+ Membership when purchased with the card
- No foreign transaction fees
- 1 status point per $3 spent on eligible card purchases, with no earning cap
How the Companion Fare Actually Works
This is a great card welcome offer perk, so it’s worth explaining how it works.
After you meet the spending requirement, you’ll receive a $99 Companion Fare. So, you can book a ticket for yourself, then pay $99 (plus taxes and fees starting at $23) to add a companion to your flight. After the single companion fare that comes with the welcome offer, you’ll earn a new one every account anniversary as long as you spend at least $6,000 on the card in the prior anniversary year.
A few things to know before you use it:
- It only applies to a companion, not yourself. You still pay full fare for your own ticket.
- Both tickets need to be booked together, directly on alaskaair.com.
- The entire fare (yours and your companion’s) has to go on your Atmos Ascent card.
- It works on eligible one-way or round-trip Saver or Main Cabin fares within North America on Alaska or Hawaiian.
- You have 12 months to redeem the code once it’s issued, though your actual travel can happen after that expiration date once the ticket is booked.
If your companion’s fare would otherwise cost $322, dropping it to $99 base fare plus $23 in taxes/fees saves you around $200, which, on its own, covers the annual fee.
Using Your Points
Atmos points work differently than transferable bank points. There’s no separate “transfer” step; you’re earning directly into your Atmos Rewards account (the loyalty program for Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines), and you redeem straight from there.
Book award flights on Alaska or Hawaiian
This is where your points go the furthest. Atmos publishes starting award rates based on region and distance, with short-haul awards starting as low as 4,500 points each way. Actual prices can vary based on the route, demand, partner pricing, number of segments and availability.
To book:
- Log in to your Atmos Rewards account (through Alaska Airlines or Hawaiian Airlines).
- Enter your travel dates and route, and select “Use points” instead of paying cash.
- Click “Find Flights” to see award availability.
- Select your flight and follow the prompts to complete the booking with points.
Look at these low points and taxes flights!
Los Angeles to Maui:
Seattle to Tokyo:
Book award flights on oneworld and other partners
Alaska is a member of the oneworld alliance, so your points can also be used to book flights on partners like American Airlines, British Airways, Qatar Airways, Japan Airlines, Cathay Pacific, and Qantas, plus non-alliance partners including Icelandair, Korean Air, and Condor. That gives you access to over 1,000 destinations worldwide, not just wherever Alaska and Hawaiian fly directly.
The process is the same as booking a flight on Alaska itself: just search your route and select “Use points,” and eligible partner flights will show up alongside Alaska’s own flights.
Once again, low points and taxes, even with partner airlines:
Short haul domestic US from just 4.5k points!
Dallas to Paris:
New York to Frankfurt:
Use your Companion Fare
Once your Companion Fare is issued, log in to your Atmos Rewards account, click your profile icon, then Discounts / Companion Fare. You’ll see the code and its expiration date. Click “Use to Book” and it’ll carry the discount straight into the Alaska Airlines booking flow for you.
Who This Card Is Best For
Consider the Ascent if you:
- Fly Alaska or Hawaiian often enough to use the checked-bag and boarding benefits
- Can spend $6,000 in a given anniversary year and will actually use the resulting Companion Fare
- Want to start building an Atmos Rewards balance (which you should start doing because these points are valuable).
- Have an eligible Bank of America or Merrill account for the 10% bonus
Card Recap: Frequently Asked Questions
What is the annual fee on the Atmos Rewards Ascent card? $95, with no foreign transaction fees.
What is the current welcome offer? 70,000 bonus points plus a $99 Companion Fare (plus taxes and fees from $23) after $2,500 in purchases within the first 90 days. This is a limited-time online offer, so terms and availability can change.
How do I earn the annual Companion Fare? Spend at least $6,000 in purchases during your prior cardmember anniversary year.
Does the 10% bonus require a special BofA Rewards tier? No, you just need an eligible personal Bank of America checking or savings account, or a qualifying Merrill investment account.
Do Atmos Rewards points expire? No, as long as your account stays active.
Is the free checked bag good on every flight? Only on reservations marketed by Alaska or Hawaiian and operated by Alaska, Hawaiian, Horizon Air, or SkyWest. Codeshare flights operated by other carriers don’t qualify, and the airfare needs to be purchased with your Ascent card.
Wrapping It Up
The Atmos™ Rewards Ascent Visa Signature® credit card is an excellent, low-fee card for anyone who wants to find great award seats. The free checked bag alone can offset the fee on a single trip, and the Companion Fare is a genuinely useful perk if you travel with a partner or family member.
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Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.