January 31 Update: Air Canada to get rid of plastic stir sticks, Stream Apple Music on AA flights, IHG Rewards Club redemption rates for Regent Hotels

 

Starting sometime this summer Air Canada will being replace their plastic stir sticks with bamboo ones. The company is looking at ways to curtail waste and they state this is "a move that will save 35 million plastic stir sticks annually – enough if laid end-to-end to join Halifax and Vancouver." (Source Air Canada)

Yesterday we brought you some news on American Express' Centurion Lounges and earlier in the month we mentioned how several locations were closing for renovations. The good news is the Miami location is now open for business again! You can access this lounge with a Canadian issued Platinum Card or Centurion Card. (Source DoC)

Starting tomorrow if you are flying on American Airlines flights within the U.S. you will be able to stream Apple Music at no extra cost. (Source Apple)
 

IHG Rewards Club has now revealed the redemption rates for the six luxury Regent Hotels that have joined the hotel chain. The hotels range from 50,000 to 60,000 points per night and will be officially bookable with points as of tomorrow (Feb 1). Find out more here.

Per night redemption rates are as follows:

• Beijing: 50,000 points
• Berlin: 55,000 points
• Chongqing: 50,000 points
• Porto Montenegro: 60,000 points
• Singapore: 55,000 points
• Taipei: 60,000 points

Posts since our last update:

• Marriott New Hotel Openings in Canada for 2019 - 22 hotels in the works
  With over 6,500 hotels Marriott Hotels is one of the largest hotel companies in the world and with the…
• Air France KLM Flying Blue Promo Rewards - Save 50% on economy and business class awards from Montreal to Europe, other Canadian cities see 25%
  The newest set of Air France KLM's Promo Rewards are now listed on Air France's website however they won't…
• Last day to book the Hilton Winter Sale - Save up to 25% on weekend stays in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa
  Today is the last day to book Hilton's weekend sale where you can save up to 25% on stays…

Travel Deals
 

KLM has launched a new Dream Deals sale for their flights out of Canada. Both Economy and Business Class are on sale with fares starting as low as $765 and $3,600 respectively. Find out more here!

Atlantis Paradise Island has a new sale! Rates from US$219 + Up to $300 Resort Credit! Ends Feb 11th! Find out more here.

Marriott is offering 20% off best available rates when you stay 2+ nights Thursday-Sunday at 6 great locations in Toronto and Edmonton. Valid for stays until Feb 28, 19 . Full Details and online Booking

Hilton APAC Year End sale - Save up to 25% when you book by Feb 2 for stays until Sep 30, 2019!

Remember to visit Rewards Canada's Travel Booking site to book travel directly with many of your favourite airlines, hotels and more!


Canadian Bonus Offers
Air France KLM Flying Blue
- February Promo Rewards - Save 20% to 50% on the Award Miles usually required for an award ticket. More... Book by Feb 28 for travel Apr 1 - May 31, 19
Edmonton - 25% off business class
Montreal  - 50% off business and economy class
Toronto - 25% off economy class
Vancouver - 25% off economy class

Other Bonus Offers
Copa ConnectMiles
- Earn up to 40% Bonus ConnectMiles when you buy or gift miles. More... Until Feb 28, 19

IHG Rewards Club
- 50% Bonus IHG Rewards Club Points for stays at select new and featured IHG Hotels in the Americas on the bonus points rate. More... Book by Mar 31 for stays until Apr 30, 19
Marriott Rewards
- 4,000 Bonus Rewards Points for stays at the Liverpool Marriott Hotel City Centre. More... Until Mar 7, 19
- 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT for stays at the Fairfield Inn & Suites Victoria. More... Until Mar 7, 19
- 2,000 Bonus Rewards Points for stays on Friday-Sunday nights at Protea Hotels in South Africa. More... Until Mar 4, 19
- 3,000 Bonus Rewards Points when you stay 2+ nights at the AC Hotel Atlanta Midtown or Moxy Atlanta Midtown. More... Until Mar 15, 19

Voila Hotel Rewards
- 5,000 Bonus VHR Points for every stay completed at a participating VOILÀ hotel. More... Until Apr 30, 19


Follow Rewards Canada:

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Marriott New Hotel Openings in Canada for 2019 - 22 hotels in the works

With over 6,500 hotels Marriott Hotels is one of the largest hotel companies in the world and with the recent takeover of Starwood they are one of the biggest in Canada. The chain comprises of a whopping 29 brands ranging from mid-level budget locations to high end luxury resorts.

Marriott is looking to add nearly two dozen more hotels to their Canadian portfolio in 2019.  To the best of our knowledge this is largest growth out of any of the major hotel chains.

These are the hotels and their anticipated opening dates (of course these are subject to change):

• Residence Inn Calgary Downtown/Beltline District
  
  • Slated opening March 15, 2019
• The Westin Calgary Airport
  
  • Now open - opened last week of January
• Courtyard by Marriott Halifax Dartmouth
  
  • Slated opening April 2019
• Residence Inn by Marriott Halifax Dartmouth
  
  • Slated opening April 2019
• JW Marriott Edmonton ICE District
  
  • Slated opening March 2019
• TownePlace Suites by Marriott Fort McMurray
  
  • Slated opening March 2019
• Delta Hotels by Marriott Kamloops 
  
  • Rebranding of the Hotel 540 - Slated opening April 2019
• Delta Hotels by Marriott Toronto Mississauga
  
  • Slated opening April 2019
• Residence Inn by Marriott Toronto Mississauga West
  
  • Slated opening February 2019
• Fairfield Inn & Suites Montreal Downtown
  
  • Slated opening March 2019
• TownePlace Suites by Marriot Edmonton Sherwood Park
  
  • Slated opening September 2019
• Delta Hotels by Marriott Thunder Bay
  
  • Slated opening April 2019
• Four Points by Sheraton Vaughan
  
  • Slated opening May 2019
• Four Points by Sheraton Windsor Downtown
  
  • Slated opening April 2019
• Residence Inn by Marriott Winnipeg
  
  • Slated opening February 2019
• TownePlace Suites by Marriott Brantford and Conference Centre
  
  • Slated opening May 2019
• Courtyard by Marriott Oshawa
  
  • Unknown opening date
• TownePlace Suites by Marriott Oshawa 
  
  • Unknown opening date
• Fairfield Inn & Suites Edmonton International Airport
  
  • Unknown opening date
• TownePlace Suites By Marriott Petawawa
  
  • Unknown opening date
• TownePlace Suites By Marriott Medicine Hat
  
  • Unknown opening date
• Delta Hotels by Marriott Mont-Sainte-Anne
  
  • Unknown opening date

Artist rendering of the JW Marriott ICE District

 I would say the most anticipated hotels of the bunch are definitely the JW Marriott ICE District Edmonton Hotel and The Westin Calgary Airport, the latter of which literally just opened a few days ago from the time of posting this!

JW Marriott ICE District Suite

The JW Marriott in Edmonton has 356 rooms with an executive level and executive lounge while the Westin Calgary Airport has 247 rooms and includes a club floor with a club lounge. The  JW Marriott ICE District Hotel is a Category 5 hotel in the Marriott Rewards program and the new Westin is only a Category 4 hotel which means you can utilize the new free night anniversary benefit from the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card at both of these locations! Both hotels also sport indoor pools and fitness rooms. The JW also has a spa while the Westin has a large conference centre built in to the hotel which has the largest hotel attached ballroom in Calgary at 16,621 square feet.

Remember to take advantage of all the possible Marriott Rewards/Bonus bonus points offers that are on offer if you plan on staying at any of these new Marriott hotels or any other Marriott hotels for that matter! You can find all the promotions listed on our Marriott Rewards Bonus Points page.

Are you excited about any of the new Marriot hotels opening up this year? Are there any locations or brands you'd like to see in your neck of the woods? Let us know in the comments below.

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Air France KLM Flying Blue Promo Rewards - Save 50% on economy and business class awards from Montreal to Europe, other Canadian cities see 25%

The newest set of Air France KLM's Promo Rewards are now listed on Air France's website however they won't be bookable until 6pm ET time tonight!  With promo awards the discount ranges from 20 to 50% off the regular amount of miles required to redeem for these flights. As you can see just by the discount this can be a very good offer if you get 50% off for Business Class! This month Montreal gets lucky with 50% off business and economy class tickets! Edmonton gets 25% off Business Class while Vancouver and Toronto get 25% off for Economy Class.

Offer details
February Promo Rewards - Save 20% to 50% on the Award Miles usually required for an award ticket. Destinations vary by each promotional period. Full Details  Book by Feb 28 for travel Apr 1 - May 31, 19
Edmonton - 25% off business class
Montreal  - 50% off business and economy class
Toronto - 25% off economy class
Vancouver - 25% off economy class

Here are the mileage requirements for flying from Canada to  Amsterdam and/or Paris (the mileage amount will vary for other cities in Europe)

 

As we mentioned above you can book these just yet which also means we can't provide you with snap shots of availability like we usually do (we'll have a follow up post tomorrow for that) You'll have to wait until about 6pm tonight to see availability on the routes and to book them. The mileage amounts required will vary by the location you want to fly to,  for example you can usually fly to Brussels, Milan, Athens and other cities for even less than what is listed above for Amsterdam or Paris.

The Montreal offer is amazing no matter what city you pick whether it is 50,000 or 53,000 miles round trip for business class - and this is for Spring when the weather is nicer, the sun is out longer - a perfect time to visit Europe!

If you don't have enough miles for a Promo Reward your best bet is to convert Marriott Rewards points to Flying Blue on a 3:1 basis. Remember you'll earn 5,000 bonus miles when you convert 60,000 points at a time (a total of 25,000 miles per 60,000 points) That means 129,000 points will get you to 53,000 miles which is enough to cover the round trip Montreal to Europe flight in Business Class! Or just convert 60,000 to get the 25,000 miles which covers the round trip Montreal flights in Economy Class.

If you don't have any Marriott Rewards Points you can always look at getting the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express to top off your account. Currently the card comes with a 50,000 point sign up bonus when you spend $1,500 on the card and then you could also grab the Starwood Preferred Guest Business Credit Card from American Express as it also has 50,000 point sign up bonus. You would then ultimately be able to have 100,000 points not including what points are earned on spending. Of course timing of getting the card(s) now, spending and getting the points will likely not happen for this month but it sets you up for future offers.  Need to grab two tickets for an itinerary? You could choose to get one SPG card for yourself and one for your partner or spouse and you'll have a lot more points!

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Last day to book the Hilton Winter Sale - Save up to 25% on weekend stays in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa

Today is the last day to book Hilton's weekend sale where you can save up to 25% on stays in Europe, The Middle East and Africa!

Make the festive season one to remember with the Hilton Sale and save up to 25% off breaks across Europe, The Middle East and Africa. For the best savings, simply join Hilton Honors for free while you book. Need some inspiration? Take a look below at some of our fantastic locations on offer to create your perfect break.

Stays must be booked by January 31, 2019 and completed on weekends until May 29, 2019. Remember that you should also be earning 2,000 bonus points on these stays with the current winter Hilton Honors promotion that runs until May 5. Find that and all other Honors bonuses here.

Discounts are up to 15% off the Best Available Rate and Best Available Bed & Breakfast Rate and vary by property. The Winter Sale Hilton Honors member rates are an additional 10% off of the Best Available Rate and the Best Available Bed and Breakfast Rate.

Click here to take advantage of the Hilton Winter sale 

January 30 Update: Hyatt opens 9th location in Canada and adds 56 more SLH properties to World of Hyatt & new Amex Centurion Lounge restrictions

 Hyatt officially added their ninth location in Canada yesterday with the Hyatt Place Calgary Airport opening its doors. As far as we know there are six more Hyatt properties slated to open in Canada this year. We'll have a post detailing those hotels soon! (Source Hyatt)

and continuing with Hyatt news, the World of Hyatt program announced today that a further 56 SLH (Small Luxury Hotels of the World) properties have now joined the program for earning and redeeming points. The sole Canadian SLH property is still not participating. (Source VFTW)

New restrictions are coming to American Express' Centurion Lounges on March 22 for Platinum Cardholders. The restrictions are as follows:

The Centurion Lounge is a day of departure lounge. We will not admit arriving Platinum Card Members with boarding passes for flights that have just landed. We will admit Platinum Card Members with layovers or connecting flights who produce proof of connecting flight. 

We will not admit Platinum Card Members more than 3 hours before the departure time on the Platinum Card Member’s same-day, confirmed boarding pass. This does not apply to Platinum Card Members with a connecting flight. 

As you can see you will no longer be able to access the lounges as an arrival lounge and you are now limited to stays of 3 hours. This is good to curb the crowding of these lounges. If you have gone to any of the lounges you'll know they have been a victim of their own success. American Express has taken two avenues to help with crowding, renovating and expaning some lounges and of course this route of limiting access. Of course if you hold the Centurion Card from American Express you are not subject to these new restrictions. No matter what, if you don't have the Platinum Card from American Express we recommend it not only for the Centurion Lounge access but for its other lounge and travel benefits! (Source American Express)

Posts since our last update:

• Rocketmiles: 3,000 Bonus Miles/Points in the program of your choice including Aeroplan for your first booking made by January 31
  If you have signed up with Rocketmiles but haven't booked with them yet you would have received this email!…
• Only a few days left for the Hilton Winter Sale - Save up to 25% on weekend stays in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa
  You only have a few days left to book Hilton's weekend sale where you can save up to 25%…
• IHG Rewards Club: Up to a 75% bonus when you buy points until February 28
  Just like in January of 2018, we see an up to 75% bonus for buying IHG Rewards Club points. The…

Travel Deals
 
Atlantis Paradise Island has launched a new sale! Rates from US$219 + Up to $300 Resort Credit! Ends Feb 11th! Find out more here.

Marriott is offering 20% off best available rates when you stay 2+ nights Thursday-Sunday at 6 great locations in Toronto and Edmonton. Valid for stays until Feb 28, 19 . Full Details and online Booking

Hilton APAC Year End sale - Save up to 25% when you book by Feb 2 for stays until Sep 30, 2019!
 

Remember to visit Rewards Canada's Travel Booking site to book travel directly with many of your favourite airlines, hotels and more!


Canadian Bonus Offers
N/A
Other Bonus Offers
IHG Rewards Club
- Up to a 75% Bonus when you buy IHG Rewards Club Points online. More... Until Feb 28, 19

Marriott Rewards
- 4,000 Bonus Rewards Points for stays at the Renaissance Manchester City Centre. More... Until Mar 26 19
- 2,000 Bonus Rewards Points when you stay any night Sunday through Thursday at the new Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center in Aurora. More... Until Mar 18, 19
- 2,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT for stays at the Moxy NYC Downtown. More... Until Mar 3, 19

Radisson Rewards
- 1,000 Bonus Points for stays at select new Radisson Hotel Group Hotels in North, Central, and South America. More... Ongoing

Images courtesy of American Express, Hyatt and others. 

Follow Rewards Canada:

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Rocketmiles: 3,000 Bonus Miles/Points in the program of your choice including Aeroplan for your first booking made by January 31

If you have signed up with Rocketmiles but haven't booked with them yet you would have received this email! Even if you didn't or haven't signed up with them you can take advantage of this offer.

Offer details:
3,000 Miles/Points in the partner program of your choice for your first stay booked via Rocketmiles. Stay must be booked via the special promotion page at www.rocketmiles.com/2019-travel/. The bonus can only be earned once per member. Book by Jan 31, 19

Only a few days left for the Hilton Winter Sale - Save up to 25% on weekend stays in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa

You only have a few days left to book Hilton's weekend sale where you can save up to 25% on stays in Europe, The Middle East and Africa!

Make the festive season one to remember with the Hilton Sale and save up to 25% off breaks across Europe, The Middle East and Africa. For the best savings, simply join Hilton Honors for free while you book. Need some inspiration? Take a look below at some of our fantastic locations on offer to create your perfect break.

Stays must be booked by January 31, 2019 and completed on weekends until May 29, 2019. Remember that you should also be earning 2,000 bonus points on these stays with the current winter Hilton Honors promotion that runs until May 5. Find that and all other Honors bonuses here.

Discounts are up to 15% off the Best Available Rate and Best Available Bed & Breakfast Rate and vary by property. The Winter Sale Hilton Honors member rates are an additional 10% off of the Best Available Rate and the Best Available Bed and Breakfast Rate.

Click here to take advantage of the Hilton Winter sale

IHG Rewards Club: Up to a 75% bonus when you buy points until February 28

Just like in January of 2018, we see an up to 75% bonus for buying IHG Rewards Club points. The main difference from 2018 to 2019 is the level of points required to buy to receive the 75% bonus has gone up by 5,000 points. IHG tends to run lots of offers where you can buy points for 100% so I wouldn't jump on this unless you really need to points to top off for award nights.

Offer details:
Up to a 75% Bonus when you buy IHG Rewards Club Points online. Buy points here.
Until Feb 28, 19
Buy 5,000 to 19,000 points, receive a 50% bonus,
buy 20,000+ points receive a 75% bonus.

Find many more IHG Rewards Club Bonus Points offers here!

January 29 Update: 100% Bonus when you convert Radisson Rewards points to Aeroplan and Aeroplan loses Toyota as a partner

Check out the latest Radisson Rewards to Air Canada Aeroplan transfer bonus. Right now when you transfer points from your Radisson Rewards account to Aeroplan you'll get a 100%. What's curious about the promotion is the 100% bonus is split between Radisson and Aeroplan. Radisson will give 70% of the bonus miles while Aeroplan will give you the other 30%. Hopefully this posts correctly if you do choose to do this transfer. If you do, you have until February 15th to take advantage of the bonus. You need to convert a minimum of 2,000 Radisson Rewards points for the bonus to kick in. Points covert 10 to 1 so with the promo you'll get 2 Aeroplan Miles for every 10 points. Find out more about this offer here.

Speaking of Aeroplan, their partnership with Toyota apparently ended on December 31st. There is no news on the Aeroplan website about this, I found out when I took my Toyota in for service and pulled out my Aeroplan card. The service advisor advised me the partnership ended at the end of 2018 (even though the dealership still had a big Aeroplan banner hanging on the outside)

Posts since our last update:

• Rewards Canada miles and points resources you should frequently check and bookmark
  RewardsCanada.ca is a huge website in terms of the number of pages we have on the site.  Some often overlooked…
• Podcast Episode 51 is here! We discuss Canada's Top Travel Rewards Credit Cards for 2019
  Episode 51 - January 29, 2019 Canada's Top Travel Rewards Credit Cards for 2019!This is a special week! We…
• Save up to 25% with the Hilton Asia Pacific Sale - Must book by February 2 for stays until September 30
  Hilton Honors members can save up to 25% on stays across the entire region when you book by February…

Travel DealsMarriott is offering 20% off best available rates when you stay 2+ nights Thursday-Sunday at 6 great locations in Toronto and Edmonton. Valid for stays until Feb 28, 19 . Full Details and online Booking

Hilton APAC Year End sale - Save up to 25% when you book by Feb 2 for stays until Sep 30, 2019!
 

Remember to visit Rewards Canada's Travel Booking site to book travel directly with many of your favourite airlines, hotels and more!

Canadian Bonus Offers
Air Canada Aeroplan
- 100% Bonus Aeroplan Miles when you redeem Radisson Rewards points for Aeroplan Miles. More... Until Feb 15, 19

Other Bonus Offers
Air France KLM Flying Blue
- Triple Flying Blue Miles for stays at participating Golden Tulip Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Feb 28, 19

Marriott Rewards
- 500 Bonus Rewards Points when you stay at the AC Hotel Innsbruck. More... Until Feb 28, 19

Miles & More
- Earn up to 2,100 Bonus Miles & More Miles for rentals at participating Enterprise locations in Europe and North America. More... Book by Apr 30 for rentals until May 31, 19

United MileagePlus
- OFFER EXTENDED Elite Status Match that offers top-tier flyers of most other airlines a comparable status in the MileagePlus® program. More... Until Dec 31, 19



Follow Rewards Canada:

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Rewards Canada miles and points resources you should frequently check and bookmark

RewardsCanada.ca is a huge website in terms of the number of pages we have on the site.  Some often overlooked pages are those where you can earn more miles and points (or use less miles and points) when you fly, stay at hotels, rent cars and more.  To help compile those large number of loyalty promotions there are certain pages on the main Rewards Canada website that are summaries of these offers  and it is these pages that you should always keep an eye on. For those of you who are new to the Rewards Canada world or even if you have followed us for years but forgot where these pages were or have never heard of them, here they are. I hope they help you like they have me and many other Rewards Canada users in ensuring that you earn more Miles more Points more Rewards.

Route Bonus Listing (http://www.rewardscanada.ca/routebonus.html)
A complete list of all the airline bonus offers for flights/routes that are on RC. This list gives you the most up to date and near-complete listing of publicly available flight bonuses.

Car Rental Bonus Offer Listing (http://www.rewardscanada.ca/carbonus.html) Much like the route bonus above, this table lists all the car rental bonuses we have posted onto RC for the various airline, hotel and car rental programs. It's sorted by Car Rental company first and then by program. Much like the route bonus listing this page should be visited before you are planning any car rental bookings to ensure you  are not missing out any bonuses. 

Elite Status Bonus Mile and Point Offers (http://www.rewardscanada.ca/statusoffers.html)
Looking for status matches or flight, hotel and other offers that award status miles or points? That's what this FFB page for. Once again it pulls offers from across the entire FFB site into one page that offer some sort of Elite Status Bonus.

Buy, Gift, Transfer Mile and Point Bonus Opportunities (http://www.rewardscanada.ca/buymilesoffers.html)
The number of buy, gift and transfer bonus offers has skyrocketed in the last five or so years as the programs fully discovered the value of selling their loyalty currencies. On this page I try to capture all these offers and update it as each new one gets added to RC.

Discounted Mile and Point Redemption Offers (http://www.rewardscanada.ca/discounted-rewards.html)
What's better than redeeming your miles for a flight? Getting a discount on that redemption! This page covers any discounted rewards that we list on RC.

Free Mile and Point Offers (http://www.rewardscanada.ca/freemiles.html)
Free miles are the best. Granted you usually can't get very many miles or points that come at no cost (credit cards excluded) but they are very worthwhile nonetheless. Who knows when that 500 free miles offer will get you over the hump to an award flight or just happen to keep your account active when it may be expiring due to lack of activity!

Top Bonus Mile & Point Offers (http://www.rewardscanada.ca/topoffers.html)
This page is a summary of all the best flight, hotel, car rental and other bonus offers out there. Only the top offers will be found here - they tend to be the most lucrative, most popular and/or the easiest to take advantage of.