Rewards Canada's Travel Rewards Credit Card Comparison - Updated again!

It has only been a little over two weeks since our last update of the most popular feature on Rewards Canada, the Canadian Travel Credit Card Comparison chart but we have updated it even more. This time round we have added three new cards, the BMO World Elite MasterCard (which we will also have a complete review of posted later today or tomorrow) and the upcoming Aspire Travel™ World MasterCard® and Capital One Aspire MasterCard.

The Aspire World MasterCard appears that it will set a new standard for travel rewards cards with a great signup bonus, a high renewal bonus and both of the Aspire cards are featuring a Canadian first, Price Protection insurance. If you find a lower price within 60 days of purchasing something, Capital One will give return the difference up to $100 per item and a maximum of $500 per year. We will have a complete review of these Aspire cards on RewardsCanada.ca soon!

You can view the chart at:
http://www.rewardscanada.ca/cccompare.html

“The interest rates, fees, rewards details, benefits and other details of the Capital One product(s) described in the article may have changed since the time of publication. Please consult the product information pages on the Capital One website for accurate product details. In the event of any conflict between the product details in this article and the Capital One website, the details on the Capital One website shall prevail.”

Aeroplan Members Can Now Book One-Way Flights Online

From Newswire.ca

"MONTREAL, May 17 /CNW Telbec/ - Aeroplan today announced that Aeroplan Members can now book ClassicFlight one-way rewards online at aeroplan.com.

Aeroplan originally launched ClassicFlight one-way rewards as a pilot in Aeroplan's Contact Centre in May 2009. Due to a strong member response, Aeroplan has now made the rewards available online.

Starting at 10,000 Aeroplan Miles, ClassicFlight one-way rewards are available anywhere Air Canada flies, increasing the flexibility and accessibility of flight rewards by providing members with the option of using miles for just a portion of their trip and ultimately planning it to their advantage. For example, Aeroplan Members can earn miles when they purchase an Air Canada flight at aircanada.com and redeem miles for a ClassicFlight one-way reward seat on their return trip - or vice-versa.

"Aeroplan is excited to launch ClassicFlight one-way rewards on the web. Based on the one-way flights redeemed through our Contact Centre last year, we know that over a third were booked within 14 days prior to departure. This kind of flexibility is important to our members and we're pleased to make it even easier for them to travel when and where they want to go," said Craig Landry, Senior Vice President, Commercial, Aeroplan. "This is a great option for those members who don't have enough miles for a roundtrip or aren't sure when they'll be coming home, such as university students and snowbirds."

Aeroplan also offers ClassicPlus one-way flight rewards both online and through the Aeroplan Contact Centre. Visit: www.aeroplan.com for more details."

Become a Koreanair.com member to win prizes from Korean Air

Exclusive to residents in Canada, Korean Air is giving away some small prizes (USB Drives & Mirror Clocks) for those who become members on the Koreanair.com website. Membership involves becoming a member in their frequent flyer program SkyPass and setting up an online account. The contest is open until July 31, 2010 with winners announced on or around August 5.

Full details and online enrollment can be found here.

Air Canada to launch Montreal - Phoenix service

Air Canada has announced that they will offer direct non-stop service between Montreal and Phoenix for the Winter 2010/2011 season. The flights which will operate on Saturdays and Sundays will run from Nov 6, 10 to Apr 30, 11

Flight Timings:
Montreal-Phoenix Dep 0805 Arr 1140
Phoenix-Montreal Dep 1220 Arr 1856

Source: Air Canada

Lufthansa makes Montreal-Munich service year round

According to Lufthansa's updated winter schedule they will continue to operate their Montreal to Munich route over the winter season for 2010-11. This route has been flown as summer season only service since 2003.

American Airlines and Marriott part ways

Much to everyone's surprise, this is an email that was sent out late last week from American Airlines :

We would like to provide you with an important update to the American Airlines AAdvantage® program. Effective July 1, 2010, the Marriott Rewards program will no longer offer AAdvantage miles for stays at Marriott hotels.

All qualifying stays at participating properties completed by June 30, 2010 will be eligible to earn AAdvantage miles. It is also important to note the final date to convert your Marriott Rewards points to AAdvantage miles will be June 30, 2010.

Speculation comes down to the two companies not being able to agree on a price for the AAdvantage miles. It really is unfortunate for the split as most everyone expects major airlines and major hotel chains to be aligned in some sort of partnership. The end of this partnership will actually force some hardcore AAdvantage Miles earners to look at other hotel options when they are available, and with all the seemingly endless bonus offers out there, why wouldn't they?

Hyatt Gold Passport Award Chart Changes

Hyatt Gold Passport is the latest hotel program to make changes to their award charts in regards to the amount of points needed to redeem for free hotel nights. The changes take effect on June 4, 2010 and will see the introduction of a new Category 6 consisting of only 20 hotels. Along with the new category, 65 hotels will be moving to a lower category while 89 will be moving up.

Overall it does seem like a devaluation of the program but nowhere near as bad as Hilton HHonor's earlier this year. So if you are planning any reward stays be sure to book them before June 4 to get the old redemption rates on those hotels that are going up.

For complete details on this change and to see all the hotels in their new categories, please visit Goldpassport.com

WestJet, Cathay Pacific sign partnership deal

From the Globe and Mail

"WestJet Airlines Ltd. and Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. have signed a partnership deal, one in a series of co-operation pacts that WestJet is targeting with foreign carriers.

Calgary-based WestJet has been looking to forge links with the Hong Kong-based carrier for nearly six years, but they needed to overcome technology hurdles. With WestJet recently upgrading its computer reservations system, the two airlines will be taking their first step in the partnership.

“We signed and are in the process of implementing an inbound interline agreement with Cathay Pacific that should be in place later this month,” WestJet chief executive officer Gregg Saretsky said during a conference call Tuesday.

The “interline” pact calls for co-operation on ticketing and baggage handling, making it easier for a traveller on a Cathay trip into Canada to catch a connecting flight operated by WestJet. The partnership should be rolled out over the next several weeks, said Cathay spokeswoman Jennifer Pearson, who added that the Asian carrier already has an interline agreement in place with Air Canada."

Rewards Canada's Credit Card Comparison Chart Updated

At the end of last week I finally had a chance to update our very popular Credit Card Comparison chart. The update was to add two new cards that were released this year, the Starwood Preferred Guest Card from American Express and the WestJet RBC MasterCards.

You can view the updated chart here to see how these two cards stack up against other popular travel rewards credit cards.

Over the next few months you will some more credit card related items on Rewards Canada. The second annual Top Canadian Travel Rewards Credit Cards is in the works, we are working to put a portion of our comparison chart into the Financial Post (4th year running) and will be adding another card that was released in March, the BMO World Elite MasterCard into some of our charts and if time allows, we'll provide a complete review of that card as well.

Continental & United agree to merge

Continental and United Airlines have agreed to merge the two airlines to create the worlds largest airline. Not too many details have been released and the deal will be subject to government approval. What we do know is that should the merger go through, the airline will be called United Airlines but will use the Continental colors and logo. Chicago will be the headquarters of the new airline however it appears Houston will be the main hub. At this point, the announcement does not affect any of the airlines flights or frequent flyer programs, both will continue to run independently until the merger closes, which is expected to happen by the end of 2010.

We will continue to keep our readers up to date on the merger, primarily on the frequent flyer side as more news develops. You can also visit the website created by CO and UA which details the merger.