Epic Brings Monero Into Mainstream Travel Checkout

Points of Focus

• Epic now accepts XMR for flights and more than 2 million hotels.
• Monero hides the public payment trail, but travel still requires personal data.
• Epic has not explained its refund or conversion process.

Monero (XMR) holders can now spend their crypto on flights and hotels through Epic’s Travel platform.

Epic announced the new payment option on Tuesday, stating that users can spend XMR across its travel marketplace, which includes flights and more than 2 million hotels.

Monero ($XMR) is now accepted on Epic.

You can now use your Monero ($XMR) to book 2M+ flights and hotels at up to 30% below Booking,com.

Epic is crypto's travel layer accepting 200+ cryptocurrencies, including Monero (@monero). pic.twitter.com/7O1AfT0tO2

— EPIC Travel (@EpicOnChain) August 25, 2026

Now, users can spend Monero outside of traditional crypto ecosystems, but one may wonder how this affects the asset’s privacy capabilities. Capabilities that made it popular in the first place.

Epic expands its crypto travel checkout

Epic calls itself a travel platform built for crypto users, with its website stating the service accepts more than 200 cryptocurrencies alongside cards and fiat payment methods.

You live and breathe crypto. Until it's time to book your next trip.

Then you get two options. Off-ramp and pay Booking,com prices. Or book with a crypto travel platform and pay 10–15% more just for using crypto.

Sound familiar?
Neither should exist. So we built Epic Travel.… pic.twitter.com/SC3a2R2aXP

— EPIC Travel (@EpicOnChain) June 26, 2026

The company also advertises hotel and flight prices up to 30% below competitors like Booking.com, potentially exposing more fiat-focused customers to the world of digital assets. It also plans to offer its travel system to other crypto companies.

That said, travel platforms that utilize XMR aren’t exactly new. Alternative Airlines, for instance, already offers Monero support for users to book flights, though Epic’s white-label approach might appeal more to the masses.

Private payments don’t create anonymous trips

Of course, Monero hides more payment information than most public blockchains, concealing the sender, receiver, and amount in each transaction. This privacy stops onlookers from following a customer’s payment through a public block explorer.

Monero provides selective transparency with various features such as view keys, transaction keys, and transaction proofs. Full-Chain Membership Proofs (FCMP++) will strengthen privacy and enhance Monero's selective transparency with new features such as outgoing view keys! https://t.co/f1s8FvK00t

— Monero (XMR) (@monero) December 30, 2025

Epic, however, can still learn about the person making the booking, even if they’re using Monero. The platform’s privacy policy says it may collect IP addresses, locations, browser information, visited pages, and travel searches. It may also request personal information needed to provide certain services.

A flight reservation must also identify the passenger. Hotels may request identification during check-in. The list goes on.

Some Monero users might not be okay with Epic becoming aware of their information, even if they can keep the public blockchain side of their payments private.

Refunds are another situation. Confirmed Monero transfers cannot be reversed, so Epic would need to send a separate payment if it ends up offering crypto refunds. The announcement did not explain whether refunds would use XMR, fiat currency, or the original exchange rate.

The company has not explained what happens to the XMR after checkout, either. Epic may keep your Monero, or a payment partner may convert it into dollars or another asset before paying the hotel or airline.