News, Tips & Tricks
Potentially big news on the shopping side of loyalty programs coming out late yesterday with the announcement of Sobey's buying the Canadian operations of Safeway. No word yet on what exactly is going to happen to the 200+ Safeway stores out west but chances are they will eventually be re-branded as Sobey's which would also mean the integration of the Club Sobey's program into all these stores. If this happens the big loser will be Air Miles as Safeway has been the place to be for earning hundreds if not thousands of Air Miles Rewards miles since 1992! In fact Safeway has been the one of if not the most lucrative partner for Air Miles Rewards Miles. Back in the day it wasn't unheard of to earn hundreds of Air Miles when buying a few dollars worth of Safeway brand dish sponges! I've scoured the news sources and such but have not heard mention of what will happen to the Safeway stores and as a result the Air Miles earning. There is talk of integrating management, distribution etc. but maybe one of our readers has found these details, if so please let us know!
On a great news note, Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan has added many more of their airline partners to their online award ticketing and it includes the ability to book one way tickets on those partners for exactly half the cost of the round trip award ticket. The online booking engine now includes AeroMexico, Air France, Air Pacific, Emirates, KLM, and Qantas. This change makes the Alaska Airlines program even more lucrative because of certain redemptions like First Class on Emirates and Qantas and even though Alaska only flies to Alberta and BC you can see that through their partners you can redeem for flights out of other Canadian cities like YYZ (Emirates, AF KLM), YUL (AF KLM) etc. Outside of flying on Alaska and their partners the best way to earn Mileage Plan miles in Canada is via credit card spend. The best cards for this are the MBNA Alaska Airlines Platinum MasterCard, the Starwood Preferred Guest Card from American Express and the Diners Club Club Rewards MasterCard (well for those of us who hold this card). For details on redeemind Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles see here.
Over on the FFB Blog I explain how you can use the bonus for buying Melia International Mas Rewards points to get a $2500+ Business Class ticket on airberlin for only $1140.
Travel Deals
Emirates is offering summer flights from Canada to India, Africa, the Middle East and Asia from $1425 all in. Tickets must be booked by June 14 for travel until July 31. Visit emirates.com/ca for more details.
Bonus Offers
Air Baltic BalticMiles (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double BalticMiles Points when you book a stay of two nights or more at prepaid rates at least 20 days in advance at participating World Hotels locations Worldwide. More... Jul 1 - Aug 31, 13
Emirates Skywards
- Double Skywards Miles when you travel in First Class or Business Class between New York JFK and Milan Malpensa. More... Register and Book by Jul 20 for travel Oct 1 - Nov 30, 13
La Quinta Returns
- Earn up to Triple Returns Points for stays at participating La Quinta locations in the U.S. More... Until Jul 11, 13
Le Club accorhotels
- Double Le Club Accorhotels Points for stays at participating Sofitel Hotels in Australia, New Zealand, or Fiji. More... Until Jul 31, 13
- 500 Bonus Le Club Accorhotels Points for stays at the ibis Barcelona Centro (Sagrada Familia) or Mercure Barcelona Augusta. More... Until Jul 31, 13
Malaysia Airlines Enrich (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double Enrich Miles for stays at the G Tower Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. More... Until Jul 31, 13
- Double Enrich Miles for stays of 2 or more nights at participating Mandarin Oriental Hotels worldwide. More... Until Jul 31, 13
- Double Enrich Miles for stays of 2 or more night at the Pan Pacific Singapore. More... Until Jul 31, 13
- Earn up to Quadruple Enrich Miles when renting a Group C or higher car with Avis for 3+ days in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the USA, Canada, Australia or New Zealand. More... Until Jul 31, 13
- Earn up to Quadruple Enrich Miles when you rent a car on an Affordable Rate (leisure retail rate) from a participating HERTZ location in the USA, Canada, Europe, Australia or New Zealand More... Until Jul 31, 13
Melia International Mas Rewards
- 25% Bonus Mas Points when you buy Mas points online. More... Until Jun 28, 13
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- Double Flying Club Miles when you book a stay of two nights or more at prepaid rates at least 20 days in advance at participating World Hotels locations Worldwide. More... Jul 1 - Aug 31, 13
