You can buy British Airways Executive Club Avios for as little as 1.3 cents with a subscription to The Economist

 
There are a few times per year when British Airways Executive Club and The Economist provide a increased bonus for subscribing to the latter. That bonus has returned and awards up to 18,000 Avios for new subscriptions. Unlike some other frequent flyer programs that team up with The Economist, BA's offer is available to Canadians. Why is this noteworthy? It's actually a way to 'buy Avios' cheaper than truly buying Avios through BA! Although you are limited to earning only up to 18,000 Avios with this offer rather than being able to purchase hundreds of thousands of Avios in one go. That being said this is a good way to top off an account for an award, to keep your account active or even for a short haul redemption as we show below.

February 3 Update: Earn up to 49,000 Aeroplan Points or 25,000 Avios for free, Aeroplan Valentine's Day Bonus Point offers & 50,000 bonus PC Optimum points with Shoppers online

Here's your Rewards Canada Daily update! Your daily dose (or near daily dose) of loyalty program, credit card and travel news, bonuses, deals and more. This update is brought to you by the HSBC +Rewards Mastercard which is currently offering a welcome bonus of up to 30,000 bonus points, no annual fee in the first year and a low 11.9% interest rate! 

 
We've updated our venerable post entitled Travel Hacking 101. This post that has been continually updated since 2013 shows how you can earn Aeroplan Miles and/or British Airways Avios for free. The latest update sees the newest offers for the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card, CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card and Choice Card from American Express being added. All told you can earn up to 49,000 Aeroplan Points or 25,000 Avios at no cost other than credit card spend. Read the post here.

Utilizing British Airways' Executive Club for flights in North America - updated!

Our feature Utilizing British Airways' Executive Club for flights in North America has been very popular on our site for well over 5 years now. It had been last updated in 2016 and was in need of an overhaul thanks to changes in routes and of course, BA's changes to partner award flights earlier this year. I am happy to tell you that I have completed that update! It shows all the current routes in North America that you can use British Airways Executive Club Avios on that are a better or as good as deal as competing programs like Aeroplan.

 Here are the routes we detail in the feature:

This feature is a good starting off point to show you the value in programs outside of our main Canadian ones and how we should have a narrow focus on only a few programs. It also shows the value in programs like American Express' Membership Rewards, RBC Rewards, HSBC Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy as they are flexible in allowing you multiple reward program options, of which in the case of this article is British Airways Executive Club.

Click here to read the entire feature!

Earn Double Avios on all British Airways flights from Canada to London (and all other BA flights worldwide)

The British Airways Executive Club Double Avios on all flights offer is back! Just like the previous iteration the double Avios is limited to 10 sectors or flights however this time the actual flight period is quite long as flights until June 30, 2020 count for this offer. This means if you are flying point to point it would be valid for up to five round trips however if you are say flying Toronto-London-Milan-London-Toronto that would count as 4 sectors alone. Simply register and book by December 13.

Offer details
Earn Double Avios on all British Airways flights from Canada to London and beyond. British Airways flights operated by American Airlines, Iberia and Finnair when travelling between Europe and North America are also included. Full details, online registration & booking (Registration is required)
Register and Book by Dec 13 for travel Until Jun 30, 20
Bonus will be awarded for up to 10 flights (one way sectors, round trip counts as two)

Here are some more ways to earn even more Avios:

• Earn 50% Bonus Avios for stays at all participating Accor Hotels Worldwide  Full Details and online booking
  Select automatic conversion to convert your Le Club AccorHotels points into Executive Club in your Le Club AccorHotels account preferences
• 30% Bonus Avios when you buy or gift Avios online. Full details 
• 30% Bonus Avios when you covert American Express Membership Rewards points to Avios. Full details

Find many more bonus Avios offers here 

One of the best ways to earn British Airways Executive Club Avios in Canada is the American Express Gold Rewards Card which at the time of posting offers a bonus of 25,000 Membership Rewards Points which can then be converted to BA at a 1:1 rate however until Oct 31, 19 that will be bonused by 30%!

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British Airways Executive Club's new Avios redemption rates for partner airlines are here

Late in April we brought you the details of changes coming to the British Airways Executive Club program.  The changes are to Avios redemption rates on Executive Club partner airlines award tickets and they are officially live as of today.

The airlines affected by these changes are:

Alaska Airlines, Air Italy, American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Japan Airlines, LATAM, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, S7, Sri Lankan and Royal Jordanian Airlines.

As you can see British Airways, Aer Lingus and Iberia are not in the mix. Those airlines will retain their original redemption rates for the time being.

Here is the new chart of Avios redemption rates on British Airways Executive Club partner airlines ( North America short haul 1-650 miles remains at 7,500 economy, 15,000 business and 30,000 first class):

Chart courtesy of Karfa on Flyertalk

As mentioned above North American short haul flights are not affected in today's changes. Still prices out at 7,500 Avios one way in economy:

For a lot of us Canadians this now means that popular redemption options for flying from Canada to Europe, Asia, etc. on American Airlines, Cathay Pacific and JAL have now become more expensive.

For example, one popular redemption of our readers for their Avios is on JAL from Vancouver to Tokyo:

You can see the cost is now 25,750 Avios for a one way economy class redemption, 750 Avios more than what was previously required.

Overall the changes aren't huge for most of those redemptions, in the neighbourhood of only a few percent however if you were one who took advantage of the great short haul 4,500 Avios option for travel within Europe, the Caribbean, Asia etc. those have now jumped 30%! Yes the percentage is big but in the long run 6,000 Avios for those flights is still a great deal when you compare it to other frequent flyer programs.

Related:  How you can easily get a free flight between Toronto and Dublin, Ireland (pre taxes/fees) or 4 flights for $240+fees

Earning British Airways Executive Club Avios in Canada is relatively easy thanks to a generous list of credit cards that earn Avios or points that can be converted to Avios! These include but are not limited to the RBC Visa Infinite Avion Card , the RBC British Airways Visa Infinite Card, the American Express Gold Rewards Card, the  Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card and the mbna Best Western Mastercard®

Related: 30% Bonus Avios when you convert RBC Rewards Points (Avion cardholders only) to British Airways Executive Club Avios. Full details

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Image courtesy of British Airways

February 11 Update: 50% bonus for buying British Airways Avios, Aeroplan Miles Matching weeks revealed & more!

British Airways Executive Club launched a buy or gift Avios sale today! This one runs for two weeks and is better than the one we saw this past fall! The bonus is a flat 50% when you buy 1,000 or more Avios. The more Avios you buy the cheaper it gets per Avios. Buy the maximum 200,000 Avios and you'll get 300,000 for US$5523 or about 1.84 cents per Avios. Now that's a lot of cash to outlay buy being able to buy under US 2 cents a piece is a good deal. Even if you only buy 30,000 Avios (45,000 with the bonus) you are getting them for just under 1.9 cents each. This may not be for everyone but there are definitely some really good sweet spots in the program where you can pull a lot more value out of the Avios than 1.9 cents US! Find out more here.

 

Aeroplan has released the 2019 Miles Matching weeks for donating miles! This annual initiative sees Aeroplan matching the miles donated to the charities listed during specific weeks during the year

Aeroplan’s Miles Matching Weeks will be held during the following weeks:

The Stephen Lewis Foundation (February 11 ‒ 17) ‒ The Stephen Lewis Foundation works with community-level organizations which are turning the tide of HIV/AIDS in Africa by providing care and support to women, orphans, grandmothers and people living with HIV and AIDS.

David Suzuki Foundation (March 4 ‒ 10) ‒ The David Suzuki Foundation’s mission is to protect the diversity of nature and our quality of life, now and for the future.

Veterinarians without Borders(April 22 ‒ 28) ‒ Veterinarians without Borders Canada works with those in need to foster the health of animals, people and the environments in which they interact.

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (May 6 ‒ 12) ‒ MSF is an independent international humanitarian organization that delivers emergency medical aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, natural and man-made disasters or exclusion from healthcare in more than 70 countries around the world.

MusiCounts (June 10 ‒ 16) ‒ MusiCounts, Canada's music education charity associated with the JUNO Awards, is keeping music alive in schools and communities across Canada by putting musical instruments into the hands of children that need them most.

Engineers Without Borders (September 2 ‒ 8) ‒ Engineers Without Borders Canada brings people and ideas together to tackle the most crucial causes of poverty and inequality.

War Child Canada(October 7 ‒ 13) ‒ War Child protects children from the brutal impact of war.

Air Canada Foundation(December 2 ‒ 8) ‒ Through its Hospital Transportation Program, the Air Canada Foundation helps sick children reach medical treatment not available in their community allowing them to receive the best medical care possible.

Posts since our last update:

• Marriott Bonvoy reveals March 5 as the date that Category 8 comes into effect as well as 380+ hotel category changes
  Since last August, there has been somewhat of a sweet spot (if you want to call it that) for…

Travel Deals
Hertz: Weekend rates start at $12.99/day. Book by May 18 Find out more here

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
British Airways Executive Club
- 50% Bonus Avios when you buy or gift Avios. More... Until Feb 24, 19

La Quinta Returns
- Earn up to Triple Returns Points for stays at participating La Quinta locations in the U.S. More... Until Mar 7, 19

Le Club AccorHotels
- Quadruple Le Club AccorHotels Points for stays at participating new Accor Hotels Worldwide. More... Book by Mar 25 for stays until May 12, 19

Marriott Rewards
- Earn up 2,000 Bonus Rewards Points per night for stays at any one of 33 hotels in California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia  or Washington. More... Until Mar 31, 19

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Triple KrisFlyer Miles for stays at Anantara Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. More... Until Mar 31, 19
- Triple KrisFlyer Miles for stays at Avani Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. More... U ntil Mar 31, 19
- Triple KrisFlyer Miles for stays at Tivoli Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. More... Until Mar 31, 19


Follow Rewards Canada:

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The Ultimate British Airways Executive Club Credit Card portfolio!

In this feature of Rewards Canada' Ultimate Credit Card Portfolios we look at the ultimate one for earning British Airways Executive Club Avios. Avios is the currency of BAEC much like most programs have miles or points. We have always recommended that you should carry a Visa, a MasterCard and an American Express card in your wallet. The reason why is that there benefits, promotions and earning potential unique to each brand of credit card. We won't go into detail here as you can read all about it in our feature on how to Maximize your Miles and Points but here we outline one card from each brand that will help you build up those Avios faster than ever. Ultimately there are various options that could be utilized for an Avios portfolio but we look at one card from each issuing family that won't totally break the bank on annual fees but will provide strong Avios earning along with very strong insurance benefits.

What is Rewards Canada's Ultimate British Airways Executive Club Credit Card Wallet?
Continue reading this article on the main Rewards Canada website to find out!

RBC and British Airways bring back the 50,000 Avios sign up bonus for their Visa Infinite Card

The 50,000 Avios sign up bonus for RBC British Airways Visa Infinite Card has returned!

The sign up bonus remains the same at 15,000 Avios however 35,000 additional Avios will be awarded to any new cardholder who applies by Nov 15, 15 and spends $9,000 within the first 3 months of card membership. That's right $9,000! Remember back in 2012 when it used to be $5,000 for that extra 35,000!

What can you get for 50,000 Avios? Just one example is 11 one way or 5 round trip short haul trips between Canada & North America in Economy Class(+taxes/fees). Read all about that here

Some additional details of the card are:

• Receive 15,000 Avios upon approval^Λ.
• Receive 35,000 bonus Avios when you spend $9,000 in the first three months account opening^Λ.
• Collect 1 Avios for every $1 CAD spent on qualifying net purchases*.
• Collect double Avios when you shop with British Airways and BA Holidays*.
• Earn a companion voucher when you spend $30,000 CAD annually˜.
• 250 bonus Avios when you rent a car with Avis and pay with your RBC British Airways Visa Infinite card†.
• 10% off British Airways flights when you book and pay with your RBC British Airways Visa Infinite card∞.

For complete details please visit BA.com

50% Transfer Bonus for RBC Rewards (Avion only) to British Airways Executive Club is back - Nov 1 to Dec 31

Many of you have been asking and we are pleased to let you know  that the much coveted 50% transfer bonus for RBC Rewards points to British Airways Executive Club Avios is back! This offer is for all of you RBC Avion cardholders (Infinite and Platinum) and runs from tomorrow November 1st to December 31st so now is the time to ramp up your spending if you have been planning to take advantage of this great transfer bonus! As always BA Avios are a great option for flights to Asia (via Cathay Pacific), short to medium haul within North America (Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, US Airways see this post here) and even though huge surcharges are added to their UK/Europe redemptions they can still be an alright value because of this bonus transfer based on your spend with the credit card (see my post about Earn & Burn for an explanation). As always though with any frequent flyer program you will have to be flexible in your options when redeeming due to seat availability issues (ie it may be hard to get tickets to Europe in Summer etc.) so take this into consideration before transferring.

Full details will be found here

British Airways improves online flight award search tool

British Airways released an updated online flight award search tool overnight and while most of the changes were insignificant, one of them is a great new addition. Now the Executive Club Award flight search engine will show availability of all classes of service versus the previous version which only showed space in the specific class you searched for. This is very useful for those who are flexible in which cabin they want to fly in and overall since the BA award search tool is one of the best for oneworld it can be used to look at availability for other programs such as AAdvantage, Asia Miles, Mileage Bank and virtually any other oneworld airline.

I gave it a quick spin looking up availability between Toronto and London in February 2014 and this is what the result was:

As you can see it shows what classes are available and the number of seats left as well for not only British Airways but also their partners, AA in this. Of course you can give it a spin or book your award online at britishairways.com

What are your thoughts on this improvement? Will it make your Avios or other oneworld redemptions easier?

50% Transfer Bonus for RBC Rewards (Avion only) to British Airways Executive Club is back this July

I am happy to let you all of you RBC Avion cardholders (Infinite and Platinum) that the much coveted 50% transfer bonus for RBC Rewards points to British Airways Executive Club Avios is coming back soon! The promotion will run from July 1st to 31st so now is the time to ramp up your spending if you have been planning to take advantage of this great transfer bonus! As always BA Avios are a great option for flights to Asia (via Cathay Pacific), short to medium haul within North America (Alaska Airlines, American Airlines) and even though huge surcharges are added to their UK/Europe redemptions they can still be an alright value because of this bonus transfer based on your spend with the credit card (see my post about Earn & Burn for an explanation)

Full details will be found here although this link is not live yet.

COMING THIS JULY!!!

Amex Membership Rewards 50% Bonus when transferring to British Airways Avios

American Express just advised me that the 50% BA transfer bonus is back for American Express Cardmembers that participate in the Membership Rewards program. This is one of the offers I look forward to (just like the RBC Avion 50% bonus that should be coming soon again) especially since the base transfer rate was increased to 1:1. What does this mean? Well you can redeem for my too often mentioned YYZ-NYC roundtrip flight for only 6,000 Membership Rewards points as that flight can be had for 9,000 Avios* (or $3,000 in spending on the Amex Gold Rewards Card), I believe no other card can match that little of spending for that flight! Or you can get business class to Europe from Toronto for 65,334 Membership Rewards Points but you will have to tack on BA's large fuel surcharges, but once again if all that spend came from the Gold Rewards Card (as little as $32,667) spending $600-$900 in fuel surcharges is way better than spending thousands of dollars more on another card to reach a business class reward flight level. Remember people its all about the EARN (or what you spend to get the miles) and the BURN, not just one of those two! Too many blogs focus on one or the other but not both combined. Anyway enough of that, here are the details of the offer as provided by Amex:

50% more Avios!
From March 1 to 31, 2013, 1,000 Membership Rewards® points = 1,000 1,500 Avios.
For more details or to transfer visit membershiprewards.ca



* Updated this post for greater clarification

Legal Terms and Conditions:
From March 1 to March 31, 2013, when you transfer Membership Rewards points to Avios you will receive 50% more Avios points on the total number of Membership Rewards points transferred. For example, if you transfer 1500 MR points to Avios, you will be credited a total of 2250 Avios points. Please allow up to 5 working days to receive Avios points in your British Airways Executive Club Account. British Airways is responsible for fulfillment of this offer. Membership Rewards point transfers must be made in increments of 100 points with a minimum transfer requirement of 1,000 points for each transfer. 1,000 Membership Rewards points = 1,000 Avios points. Avios are subject to British Airways Executive Club terms and conditions.

Last Day: 50% Transfer Bonus for RBC Rewards to British Airways Executive Club

The ever popular 50% transfer bonus from RBC Rewards to British Airways Executive Club for RBC Avion Cardholders comes to an end today. If you were planning on transferring and forgot to or if you are planning on redeeming some Avios in the near future be sure to take advantage of it by the end of today. Full details can be found here.

Nov 16 Update: 250 AAdvantage Miles/day with Avis, 50% Bonus Avios from Diners Club, $25 HBC Gift Card with Marriott in Canada

News, Tips & Tricks
Just bonus offers today!

Bonus Offers
Air Canada Aeroplan
- 10,000 Bonus Aeroplan Miles when you purchase a Miele CM5200 Barista Coffee System directly from Miele. More... Until Jan 31, 13

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
- Super Saver Mileage Plan Reward Sale enjoy discounted Super Saver award travel between select California cities and Hawaii (16,000 miles one way); and between Portland and San Diego or Las Vegas (8,000 miles one way). More... Book by Dec 13, 12

American AAdvantage
- 250 Bonus AAdvantage Miles per day on rentals of 1 or more consecutive days at participating Avis airport locations in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Middle East, Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. More... Until Dec 31, 12

British Airways Executive Club
- 50% Bonus Avios Points when you transfer your Diners Club Club Rewards Points to British Airways Executive Club. More... Until Dec 31, 12 Residents of Canada only

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- Triple Asia Miles when you book hotel accommodation with Agoda.com and stay within the promotion period. More... Until Mar 31, 13


Etihad Guest
2,000 Bonus Guest Miles on all Avis rentals in Europe, the Middle East or Africa. More... Until Jan 31, 13

Hyatt Gold Passport
- Triple Gold Passport Points for stays at the Hyatt 48 Lex New York. More... Dec 21, 12 - Feb 28, 13

Iberia Plus
- Double Avios for stays of 3 nights or more at participating Hace Hotels in Spain. More... Until Dec 31, 12
- Double Avios when you rent with Europcar in Spain. More... Until Dec 31, 12
- Double Avios for prepaid Atesa rentals in Spain. More... Until Dec 31, 12

InterContinental Hotels Group Priority Club
- Earn up to 5,000 Bonus Priority Club Points for individual hotel stays in China. More... Until Jan 31, 12

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
- Double Mileage Bank Miles for stays on "JAL Mileage Bank, Double Mileage Plan" at Imperial Hotel Tokyo. More... Until Feb 28, 13
- Double Mileage Bank Miles for stays at participating Peninsula Hotels Worldwide. More... Dec 1 - Feb 28, 13 except Chicago Dec 17 - Mar 31, 13

La Quinta Returns
- Earn up to Triple Returns Points for stays at select La Quinta locations in the United States and Mexico. More... Until Dec 6, 12

Marriott Rewards
- Receive a $25 HBC gift card per night and free breakfast for stays at participating Marriott hotels across Canada. More... Until Dec 30, 12
- 2,000 Bonus Points per night for stays at the SpringHill Suites Fairfax Fair Oaks. More... Until Jan 16, 13

Remember to follow Rewards Canada on Facebook and Twitter or subscribe to our RSS feed

Nov 1 Update: Coast Hotels Sale, Skywards Nov. Miles Accelerator, Bonus Avios for Accor stays and more!

News, Tips & Tricks
I've already mentioned these in separate posts but the RBC Avion 50% transfer bonus to British Airways Executive Club and the 100% Bonus on buying US Airways Dividend Miles both launched today. These are great offers to take advantage if they fit your travel and reward plans!

Travel Deals
Coast Hotels is running a Coast Rewards member exclusive sale offering $98 rates for stays on Friday and Saturday nights at many of their hotels. The offer also includes some other benefits like free upgrades, breakfast etc. depending on the location. Reservations must be booked by Nov 7 for stays until Dec 30, 12. You can join Coast Rewards for free although they are no longer offering 500 free Aeroplan miles for joining.

Bonus Offers
Air China Phoenix Miles
- Double Phoenix Miles Kilometers for Avis rentals of 3 or more days in the US, Canada and Australia. More... Until Dec 31, 12

Belavia Leader (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double Leader Points for Belavia flights between Minsk and Riga (flights B2 841/B2 842), Moscow (flights B2 983/B2 994), Stockholm, Helsinki, or Prague (flights B2 861 / B2 862). More... Until Nov 30, 12

British Airways Executive Club
- 2,000 Bonus Avios on your first or next Accor Hotels stay of 2 nights or more Worldwide. More... Book by Dec 31, 12 for stays until Jan 31, 13
- 50% Bonus Avios Points when you transfer your RBC Rewards Points to British Airways Executive Club. More... Unitl Nov 30, 12 Residents of Canada only

Emirates Skywards
- Earn up to 16,000 Bonus Skywards Miles with Emirates' October Miles Accelerator offers which enables you to earn more Skywards Miles when you fly with Emirates, irrespective of the fare you pay or where you buy your ticket. More... Nov 1 -30, 12

TAP Portugal Victoria
- Triple Victoria Miles on TAP Portugal flights between Lisbon and Horta, Ponta Delgada or Terceira. More... Until Nov 30, 12
- Double Victoria Miles for Avis car rentals of 2 days or more Worldwide which are reserved via the website flytap.com at the time of booking the flight. More... Until Dec 15, 12

US Airways Dividend Miles
100% Bonus Dividend Miles when you buy US Airways Dividend Miles online.More... Until Nov 30, 12
Please note that Dividend Miles accounts less than 12 days old are not permitted to Buy, Share or Gift Miles.

Remember to follow Rewards Canada on Facebook and Twitter or subscribe to our RSS feed to make sure you don't miss out on amazing travel rewards deals, news and more!

RBC Avion 50% Transfer Bonus to British Airways is in full swing

One of the best credit card transfer bonuses for Canadian's is back in full swing until the end of the year.

This offer allows holders of any RBC Avion Visa Card (Infinite, Platinum, Business Infinite) to transfer their RBC Rewards Points to British Airways Executive Club and earn 50% Bonus Avios in doing so. Despite some having some of the highest fuel surcharges for award redemptions to England and Europe this is still an amazing deal since you don't have to redeem Avios for flights to England or Europe alone (although it is not a bad option if your travels take you there!) Some of the best options are for redeeming on BA's partners for flights to Asia (Cathay Pacific/American) or the often exampled on Rewards Canada short haul flight between Toronto and New York City on American Airlines. This only takes 9,000 Avios (or 6,000 RBC Rewards Points with this promo) for the round trip + your taxes and fees. The same flight using the RBC Avion redemption schedule would cost you 15,000 RBC Rewards Points + taxes and fees.

Another option is using Avios to upgrade lower fares classes to higher fare classes. For example you can book and pay for an economy class flight between Canada and the UK or Europe on BA then use Avios to upgrade to Economy Plus or Business Class. The amount required depends on which city you leave from and are flying to:

For more details on this promotion please visit: http://www.britishairways.com/travel/avion50/public/en_ca/en_ca

British Airways: Earn up to 100,000+ Avios between Canada and Europe

Following in the footsteps of their American compatriot, British Airways has launched their own version of the premium fare class promo for Transatlantic flights. Depending on your program of choice you can choose from the American AAdvantage offer or this one (plus the Delta match which I have also uploaded onto Rewards Canada)

Here is the BA offer as posted on the Rewards Canada Executive Club page:

Earn up to 100,000+ Bonus Avios when you fly round trip on British Airways, American or Iberia between the U.S. or Canada and London/Europe on First Class, Business Class or select Economy Class fares*. Earn 15,000 bonus Avios on your first round trip, 35,000 on your second and 50,000 on your third and every subsequent round trip.
Full Details, Online Registration and Booking (Registration is required) Until Jan 31, 12
Valid for residents of the U.S. and Canada only.
*(i) on British Airways operated flights, includes fares booked in First Class, Club World Business Class, World Traveller Plus Premium Economy or flexible/non-restricted World Traveller Economy Class: F, A, J, C, D, R, I, W, E, T, Y, B or H;
(ii) on American Airlines operated flights, includes fares booked in First Class, Business Class or flexible/non-restricted Economy Class: F, A, J, R, D, I, Y, B or H;
(iii) on Iberia operated flights, includes fares booked in Business Class or flexible/non-restricted Economy Class: J, C, D, R, I or Y;
(iv) on OpenSkies operated flights, includes fares booked in Biz Bed/Business, Prem Plus/Premium Economy and flexible/non-restricted Eco/Economy: J, C, D, R, I, W, E, T, Y, B or H.

RBC and British Airways bring back the 50,000 Avios sign up bonus for their Visa Infinite Card

When the new RBC British Airways Visa Infinite Card was launched back in March it came with an introductory offer of 50,000 Avios. That dropped down to the regular offering of 15,000 Avios after May 31. Well those of you who missed out on that offer and have be holding out can rejoice as it has returned!

The sign up bonus remains the same at 15,000 Avios however 35,000 additional Avios will be awarded to any new cardholder who applies by Nov 30, 12 and spends $5,000 within the first 3 months of card membership.

What can you get for 50,000 Avios? A round-trip economy class flight to England on British Airways (+taxes/fees) from anywhere in Canada or 10 one way trips between Toronto and New York (+taxes/fees). There many other options as well including upgrading paid tickets to the next higher category on BA flights (i.e. Economy to Economy Plus; Economy Plus to Business etc)

Some additional details of the card are:
- Earn 1 Avios for every $1 CAD you spend on the card.
- Earn double Avios for every $1 CAD you spend on British Airways purchases
- Receive a complimentary Companion Award Ticket~ when you spend $30,000 or more on your card in any calendar year*.
- Enjoy Comprehensive Insurances including 31-day Out-of-Country/Province Emergency Medical Insurance.
- Minimum credit limit of $5,000 (provided income requirements of $60k personal or $100k household are met).

For complete details please visit RBCRoyalbank.com

RBC Avion to British Airways 50% Transfer Bonus is back

One of the best conversion/transfer bonuses from a Hybrid card in Canada is back! We last saw this offer run from November 2011 to January 2012 and chances are it will be back later this fall as we have seen over the past few years.

The offer is the RBC Avion transfer bonus to British Airways Executive Club where you get 50% bonus Avios points when you convert a minimum 10,000 RBC Rewards points to the British Airways Executive Club program. Normally the transfer ratio is 1:1 but until the end of July it is 1:1.5.

This transfer bonus means you can fly between Toronto and New York for only 6,000 RBC Rewards Points (The RBC Avion redemption schedule requires 15,000) as the British Airways Award ticket requirement for a flight on American is 9,000 Avios. Flights to the U.K. run between 40,000 - 50,000 Avios (26,667 to 33,333 RBC Rewards Points) in economy from Canada which means with this offer you have get to spend less on your card for these redemptions. You do have to beware of high fuel surcharges on British Airways redemptions to the UK and Europe, however even with the high fuel surcharges they can still be worthwhile when utilizing the bonus considering how much more money you would have to spend on the credit card to get the redemption without the bonus or if you used the Avion Redemption schedule where you would need at least 65,000 RBC Rewards points before taxes and fees.

For more details on this offer please visit British Airways

Thanks to Christopher L. for the heads up on this version of the offer!

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Great Business Class fares from Canada to the U.K. - Book by July 3

British Airways has trumpeted another amazing Business Class deal that many other airlines have begun to match, it's not as cheap as those during the Diamond Jubilee but still for the middle of summer to have business class deal like this is amazing!

Fly from to London or Manchester from any British Airways Canadian gateway (Calgary, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver) in Business Class for only $2012 including all taxes and fees! Book by July 3rd for travel between July 16th and September 2nd. For complete details and/or to book please visit British Airways

Virgin Atlantic has gone even cheaper for their Vancouver - London flights with their Upper Class (Business Class) coming in at $1849.31 including all taxes and fees! Book by July 3rd for travel between July 16th and September 2nd. For complete details and/or to book please visit Virgin Atlantic

Air Canada has matched the sale as well although it is not advertised like BA or VS. I love seeing pricing for Executive First being less than Tango Plus! Visit AirCanada.com to book