RBC ups the sign up bonus for WestJet MasterCards

One of the weakest components of the WestJet RBC MasterCards has been the relatively low sign up bonus. Most premium travel rewards credit cards in Canada offer a large enough bonus to get a free flight within Canada or North America (short haul or long haul depending on the card), the premium card for WestJet is the WestJet RBC World MasterCard and since the launch it has only offered a $100 WestJet Dollars sign up bonus, nowhere near a free flight. That has changed, well at least for a limited time only.

As of yesterday you can now get a $350 WestJet Dollar sign up bonus for the WestJet RBC World MasterCard, which according to WestJet's promo material is enough for a free flight in most cases (not including taxes and fees). Overall the WestJet Frequent Guest program is average however if someone is planning a flight with WestJet in the near future, then this sign up bonus would be well worth the $79 annual fee on the card as you will end up saving $271 on your flight(s). There could also be a chance of lowering that annual fee if you cancel the card before you renew and they prorate it for you and refund the difference. Some card issuers (like TD) are known to do this so RBC may do it also. (just make sure you redeem your WestJet dollars before cancelling)

The lower end WestJet RBC MasterCard has also had its sign  up bonus upped to $100 and carries a $39 annual fee. Definitely not as good of a deal like the one above.

For complete details on this promotion please see here.