I just received an email from Aeroplan for the American Express AeroplanPlus Platinum Card. Normally I just quickly look it over if anything has changed on the card since it was introduced 4 or so years agoand then delete it. But this time, the email really caught my eye. Why? They are offering 50,000 Bonus Aeroplan miles to new applicants for the card. You get 25,000 upon the first use of your card and 25,000 when you spend $1,000 within the first three months. In my history of tracking reward programs I have never seen a credit card bonus offer this high in Canada. In the U.S., sure you had the British Airways 100,000 BA Miles credit card offer and the American Airlines 75,000 AAdvantage mile offer but here in Canada, the highest sign up bonus in recent history came from the Capital One Aspire World MasterCard with 35,000 bonus miles!The AeroplanPlus platinum card is not for everyone as it comes with a hefty annual fee of $499 but for the frequent traveller (or even relatively frequent) the annual fee can pay for itself with free access to business class lounges, priority check in, a yearly short haul companion ticket, increased earning of 1.25 to 1.5 Aeroplan miles on all spending and other typical features seen on premium cards. This offer of 50,000 miles is valid for new applications made up to December 28, 2010.
Now, the question to ask is whether other card issuers in Canada will follow. We have seen the trend in the U.S. with increased card offerings as most credit cards there are now offering a minimum of 30,000 miles or points with quite a few in the 50,000 mile/point range. I know many frequent travellers here in Canada who have complained about the paltry sign up bonuses along with annual fees more then double that of our counterparts to the South. So lets keep our fingers crossed that this is the start of hefty....I mean healthy trend of increased sign up bonuses in Canada.
American Express® AeroplanPlus®* Platinum Card / American Express® AeroplanPlus®*Gold Card is no longer available as of August 26th, 2020. For more information, please visithttps://www.americanexpress.com/ca/en/credit-cards/aeroplan-cards/
I am Air Canada Elite so the benefits offered are minimal to me as I receive most of them as an Elite customer.
ReplyDeleteI also only collect Aeroplan miles on my flights as they are too difficult to redeem and I do not receive miles or credit for flying on reward tickets as compared to using points on an Aventura or Avion Card. (You can also convert Aventura points to Aeroplan on a 1 for 1 basis at any time).
American Express recently offered me a standard Platinum Card that also came with 50,000 bonus points. The advantages are you are not tied to one program, you earn Aeroplan Status Miles when flying Star Alliance on "points tickets", you can convert your Amex points into Aeroplan Miles (and several other airlines), you can access airport lounges around the World regardless of who you're flying (Servisair in Canada instead of Maple Leaf Lounges),and you earn automatic Gold Status with Starwood Hotels (Westin, Sheraton, etc), you also earn Fairmont Platinum Status after only 5 stays.
A much better card if you're a frequent traveler.
Hey do you have a link for the platinum card with the 50000 bonus? I can only find the link for the Aeroplan Plat 50000 bonus which superdawg has posted.
ReplyDeleteI also got in the mail an American Express platinum offer but not Aeroplan just Platinum Amex (Which I prefer) $399/year and 25000 bonus points when I sign up and the other 25000 after spending $3000 in the first 3 months. But I have no idea what 50000 Amex points will get me, any idea?
ReplyDelete50,000 Membership Rewards points can be converted to 50,000 Aeroplan Miles or a $500 credit towards any travel booked on the Platinum Card. There are other options as well but those are the two best options.
ReplyDelete