Feb 4 Update: Icelandair YYZ flight goes year round & many more bonuses for Malaysia Airlines flights

Welcome to the first full week of February on Rewards Canada! Other then the regular daily dosage of bonus offers and news, this month you can expect to see Part 4 of my "Other Options" feature, another new travel credit card in the Canadian market, and if time allows another great credit card comparison chart!

News, Tips & Tricks
Icelandair announced year-round service Toronto and Keflavik starting on March 8. Previously the route was summer seasonal. They will continue to offer summer seasonal service from Halifax as well. (Source: Icelandair)

Bonus Offers
airberlin topbonus
- Double topbonus Miles on eligible flights and fares with Malaysia Airlines Worldwide. More... Feb 15 - Apr 15, 13

British Airways Executive Club (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double Avios when you spend a minimum of £400 or 400€ at any one Chic Outlet village on any one day. More... Until Feb 28, 13

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- Double Asia Miles on eligible flights and fares with Malaysia Airlines Worldwide. More... Feb 15 - Apr 15, 13

Germanwings Boomerang Club (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double Boomerang Miles for stays in all Lindner City hotels in Europe. More... Until Mar 31, 13

Iberia Plus
- Double Avios on eligible flights and fares with Malaysia Airlines Worldwide. More... Feb 15 - Apr 15, 13

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
- Double Mileage Bank Miles on eligible flights and fares with Malaysia Airlines Worldwide. More... Feb 15 - Apr 15, 13

La Quinta Returns
- OFFER EXTENDED Gold Elite Status when you complete two paid nights at points-eligible rates, and each with check-in within 60 days from your enrollment date. More... Enroll by Dec 31,13

Middle East Airlines Cedar Miles
- Triple Cedar Miles when you download the Hertz app and make a 7+ day reservation Worldwide through your mobile device. More... Until Feb 28, 13
- Double Cedar Miles for stays on the Best Available rate at any participating Rotana Hotel Worldwide. More... Until Apr 30, 13

Philippine Airlines Mabuhay
- Double Mabuhay Miles when staying at Dusit Best Available Rates for a minimum of 2 consecutive nights at participating Dusit hotels & resorts in Thailand, Philippines, U.A.E or Maldives. More... Until Feb 28, 13

S7 Airlines Priority
- Double Priority Miles on eligible flights and fares with Malaysia Airlines Worldwide. More... Feb 15 - Apr 15, 13

Starwood Preferred Guest
- Double Starpoints for stays at the Le Méridien Dallas, The Stoneleigh. More... Until Mar 31, 13

United Airlines Mileage Plus
- OFFER EXTENDED Elite Status Match that offers top-tier flyers of most other airlines a comparable status in the MileagePlus® program. More... Until Feb 28, 13

Feb 1 Update: Malaysia Airlines joins oneworld = Double Miles and AAdvantage buy miles bonus,

News, Tips & Tricks
Malaysia Airlines officially joined oneworld today and we are starting to see the release of Double Miles bonus offers from the various oneworld airlines. The best offer on paper is the Malaysia Airlines version of the double miles promo. Why? Their offer is not limited to flights on MH like the other oneworld airlines but it is valid on all oneworld carriers except LAN. I have posted a couple more of the other oneworld airline offers below (AA, QF) and will post more next week as they go live on the airline websites.

Travel Deals

Voila Hotel Rewards, which I have covered here on Rewards Canada and Frequent Flyer Bonuses since their inception, has partnered up with the St. Regis Hotel in Vancouver. The St. Regis will be offering all VOILÀ members a complimentary room upgrade during any stay between January 1st and May 15th, 2013. After booking directly with the St. Regis Hotel online at www.stregishotel.com or by phone at 800-770-7929, VOILÀ members simply present their proof of membership and they will be upgraded to the next room category (upgrades subject to availability at check-in). Full details can be found here

Bonus Offers
American AAdvantage
- Double AAdvantage Miles on eligible flights and fares with Malaysia Airlines Worldwide. More... Feb 15 - Apr 15, 13
- Earn up to 30,000 Bonus AAdvantage Miles when you purchase AAdvantage Miles online. More... Until Feb 28, 13

Best Western Rewards
- Triple Rewards Point for stays of 2+ nights at the Best Western Irida Resort Kyparissia. More... Until Jun 30, 13

Delta SkyMiles
- 1,500 Bonus SkyMiles after you spend $40 dining in your first 30 days of joining SkyMiles Dining with the 2013 New Member Bonus. More... Until Dec 31, 13

Ethiopian Sheba Miles
- 100% Bonus Sheba Miles for flights between Point Noire, Brazzaville or Addis Ababa and Dubai. More... Until Feb 28, 13

InterContinental Hotels Group Priority Club
- Earn Double, Triple or up to 2,000 Bonus Priority Club points for individual hotel stays in the Middle East and Africa. More... Until Apr 30, 13

Malaysia Airlines Enrich (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double Enrich Miles for travel on Malaysia Airlines or any oneworld member airline Worldwide. More...http://www.frequentflyerbonuses.com/enrich.html  Feb 15 - Apr 15, 13

Qantas Frequent Flyer
- Double Frequent Flyer Points on eligible flights and fares with Malaysia Airlines Worldwide. More... Feb 15 - Apr 15, 13

Jan 29 Update: Malaysia Airlines set to join oneworld, Bonus Starpoints in Hawaii, SAS EuroBonus sign up offer

A quiet day here in the world of Rewards Canada and FFB as witnessed by the below!

News, Tips & Tricks
With the inclusion of Malaysian Airlines into oneworld on February 1st, Japan Airlines has officially announced their Mileage Bank frequent flyer partnership with Malaysia Airlines. Mileage Bank members will now be able to earn and burn miles on MH as they would with any other oneworld partner airline. Full details

Scandinavian Airlines now allows you to make request for upgrades (using EuroBonus points) to Economy Extra or Business starting 30 days before departure until 48 hours before departure on all SAS intercontinental flights. If your upgrade request is fulfilled you will be informed 24 hours prior to the flight. Full details

Bonus Offers
Carlson Hotels Club Carlson
- 2,000 Bonus Gold Points and a chance to win one of three dazzling Gassan diamonds for stays on the Diamond Valentine Package at select Park Plaza Hotels and art'otels in Europe. More... Book by Feb 13 ,13 for stays Feb 11 - 16, 13

Frontier Airlines Early Returns (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double EarlyReturns Miles for every trip you take on Frontier Airlines between Denver and Cincinnati. More... May 16 - Jun 16, 13

Hyatt Gold Passport
- Double Gold Passport Points for weekday stays (Mon-Thu) at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok. More... Until Feb 14, 13

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
- Double Mileage Bank Miles for stays of 2 or more nights on the Best Available Rate at PARKROYAL on Pickering. More... Feb 1 - May 6, 13

Qatar Airways Privilege Club
- Double QMiles for stays at First Hotels, Lungarno Collection, Pan Pacific Hotels and Resorts, PARKROYAL Hotels & Resorts and Shaza Hotels Worldwide. More... Feb 1 - Mar 28, 13
- Triple QMiles for stays at The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts India. More... Feb 1 - Mar 28, 13

Scandinavian EuroBonus
- 100 Bonus EuroBonus Points when you join the EuroBonus program. More... Until Mar 31, 13

Starwood Preferred Guest
- Double Starpoints, Up to 35% Off and 5th night free for stays in Hawaii, Tahiti or Bora Bora. More... Until Jun 30, 13

News Round Up: Aeroplan, Xiamen Airlines, Delta, United and Malaysia Airlines

With quite a few new developments in the airline and travel rewards industry I thought it would be better to round up all the news snippets in one blog post rather then inundating you with multiple posts.

Aeroplan now providing status of 7 Year Old non-redeemed miles
Tying in to some of our earlier blog posts and interviews in the Canadian media about Aeroplan's 7 Year expiry, this new feature can be found when you log in to your Aeroplan account. Once logged, click on the 'Your Account' tab and about 1/3 of the way down there is a heading labeled "Account Expiry Status" and there you will find the link to inquire about when your non-redeemed miles are set to expire. The response is not automatic, you will receive an email within 3-4 business days with your mileage status or if they do not have an email address on file you can expect a letter to be sent to you within 20 business days.

Xiamen Airlines to join SkyTeam
The subsidiary of China Southern Airlines (already a member of SkyTeam) is planning on joining the SkyTeam alliance. The airline was approved for membership by the alliance and is slated to be a member by the end of 2012.

Delta and United Continental to raise bag fees again
This time the increase in bag fees is for International flights. The first checked bag still flies free but a second bag on United Continental has been increased to $70. Delta new charges are $60 for a second bag if checked online and $75 if checked at the airport. For Delta flights to Mexico and Central America the second bag no longer travels for free as they have now implemented a $30 fee.

Malaysia Airlines set to join OneWorld Alliance
Earlier this month MAS announced their plan to join the OneWorld Alliance and expects to have full membership within 12-18 months.