Canada's Top Travel Rewards Credit Cards for 2012

Today on RewardsCanada.ca we posted our fourth annual picks for Canada's top travel rewards credit cards. We have combed over 70 different credit cards offering travel rewards for Canadians and of those there are a few that really stand out. While it is practically impossible to give this question a perfect one card answer, we can breakdown the market of Canadian Travel Rewards credit cards into five major categories that these cards fall into. Without further ado, here are the top travel rewards credit cards for 2012 as picked by RewardsCanada.ca:

Top Travel Points Credit Card (with annual fee)
1. Capital One Aspire Travel™ World MasterCard®
2. TD First Class Infinite Visa

Top Travel Points Credit Card (with no annual fee)
1. American Express Blue Sky Credit Card
2. Capital One Aspire Travel Platinum MasterCard

Top Hybrid Travel Credit Card (with annual fee)
1. American Express Gold Rewards Card*
2. RBC Visa Infinite Avion

Top Airline Credit Card
1. CIBC Aerogold Visa Infinite
2. Capital One Delta SkyMiles World MasterCard

Top Hotel Points Credit Card
1. Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express
2. Priority Club® World MasterCard® from Capital One

For the complete article, details on each card plus runners up in each category please visit the full Canada's Top Travel Rewards Credit Card for 2012 page on the Rewards Canada website

Care to comment on our choices? Want to voice your opinion on the good and the bad of all the Travel Rewards Credit Cards in Canada. Share you views and experiences by leaving a comment below.

Rewards Canada Daily Update: June 25, 2012

News, Tips, & Tricks
Nothing new to really add here as I worked primarily on a big feature being release on Rewards Canada tomorrow.

Bonus Offers

Best Western Rewards
- Double Rewards Points on all eligible stays at the Best Western Cape Suites Hotel Cape Town. More... Until Jul 31, 12
- Double Rewards Points on all eligible stays at the Best Western Golden Prairie Inn & Suites Sidney. More... Until Jul 30, 12
- Triple Rewards Points for Sunday thru Thursday stays at the Best Western Plus Lehigh Valley Hotel & Conference Center Bethleham. More...  Jul 1 - Sep 6, 12
- Double Rewards Points on stays of 3+ nights ont Standard, Corporate, AAA or AARP Rates at the Best Western Cresson Inn. More... Until Aug 17. 12

Hyatt Gold Passport
Earn up to 30% Bonus Gold Passport Points when you purchase Gold Passport points online.
Buy 1,000 - 9,000 points and get a 10% Bonus
Buy 10,000 - 29,000 points and get a 20% Bonus
Buy 30,000 - 40,000 points and get a 30% Bonus
Full details Until Aug 31, 12

Rewards Canada Daily Update: June 22, 2012

News, Tips, & Tricks
One of our readers, Bill passes along this story on getting bonus Air Miles reward miles from Shell:

A quick note with regards to Shell and their current bonuses. Until July 8th, they are running 2 promotions. The first one is get 3X or 10X Air Miles (depending on grade)with minimum $30 fuel fill. This one does not require any coupons and is administered automatically. The other one is for bonus coupons with merchandise purchase in-store. Each of these 4 coupons offer 3 bonus points per coupon. These are also conditional on a fuel purchase being made, except that they only require $20.

The kicker is that one will override the other. So, you automatically get the 3X or 10X just by fuelling up, but if you use one of the coupons, it will cancel out the first promo. So, if you buy $30.00 of premium fuel, you get 10 Air Miles. But, if you use the coupon on this purchase, you will only get 3 Air Miles, not 13 (10+3).

One of the clerks at my local Shell told me about this, so I called Air Miles. They couldn’t find anything that specifically indicated that this was the case, but the CSR I spoke with tended to agree that this is how it worked. I told him that if this is how the program is set up, then the coupons are worthless, they have no value (you can’t use them without a fuel purchase). No point in using the coupons to actually get less Air Miles. He suggested buying $30.00 worth of gas and paying for it on one transaction, then buying another $20.00 and using the bonus coupon. (I did enough of the small transactions (Esso) getting the 15,000 Aeroplan miles last month….).

Air Miles checked my account and said that I did get the 10X bonus for the 2 transactions I did last week, but there was no indication that any 3 point bonuses were being credited to my account. He did add the 6 points onto my account right away. He said that if the bonus points do come through, then I will have an extra 6 points. If not, then at least I got the points. That was fair enough and not expected, but appreciated.

I’ll let you know if I actually do get the bonus points credited, but Shell is notorious for posting points loooooooong after the promotion is over…..

I am glad Bill sent this over as I had no idea it worked this way as I don't really use Shell that often. So the moral of the story here is to make sure you only take advantage of one offer and that should be the one that provides you with the biggest bonus!

Are you holder of a Capital One Aspire Travel World or Platinum MasterCard? Have you redeemed any of your miles yet? If so please tell us your redemption story and if it was good, bad or ugly. You can do so here.

Finally, if you are Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express check out the offer below for 1 Bonus Starpoint for every dollar spent at Starwood hotels until the end of July!

Bonus Offers
Best Western Rewards
- 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points for all Best Western stays in Denmark that are booked via the Best Western Denmark site. More... Ongoing

Etihad Guest
- Double Guest Miles on Etihad flights between Abu Dhabi and Addis Ababa or Ahmedabad. More... Nov 1 - 30, 12
- Double Guest Miles for stays at the TilalLiwa Hotel. More... Until Aug 15, 12

Hertz Gold Plus Rewards
- Double Gold Plus Rewards Points on all weekly rentals of an Economy through Full-Size car at airport locations in the U.S. and Canada. More... Jul 1 - Aug 31, 12 Valid for residents of the U.S. and Canada only

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
- 1,000 Bonus Mileage Bank Miles for Hertz rentals of 3+ days at participating locations Worldwide. More... Until Sep 30, 12

Qatar Airways Privilege Club
- Double QMiles for stays on the Jumeirah Summer Breaks package at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel Dubai, Madinat Jumeirah Dubai, Jumeirah Zabeel Saray Dubai, Jumeirah Creekside Hotel Dubai and Jumeirah Emirates Towers Dubai. More... Until Sep 30, 12

Starwood Preferred Guest
- 1 Bonus Starpoint for every eligible dollar charged to your Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express at over 1,000 participating hotels and resorts worldwide in the SPG®* program. More... Until Jul 31, 12 Residents of Canada Only

Rewards Canada Daily Update: June 21, 2012

News, Tips, & Tricks
Congratulations to @cecilialu who won the $100 Best Western Travel Card with our Twitter Contest! Thanks to everyone who participated! Make sure you keep following us for all the latest travel rewards news, information, bonus offers and of course for more contests!

The Star Alliance welcomed Avianca TACA and COPA Airlines into the alliance which means that you can earn and burn Aeroplan miles for flights on these airlines. These latest additions to the alliance give them some strength in Central and South America that has been lacking since losing Varig a few years ago. Watch for Avianca TACA LifeMiles buy miles offers which seem to run every 3 months or so where they give you double miles and the opportunity to fly in Business Class on the cheap.

Bonus OffersAmerican AAdvantage
- 100 AAdvantage Miles for 'liking' American Airlines in Facebook and joining the Summer Miles challenge. More... Until ?

Hilton HHonors
Earn up to Triple HHonors Points when you stay at any participating hotel and resort in the Hilton Worldwide portfolio. Earn Triple points for stays on Friday, Saturday or Sunday nights, Double points for stays on Monday through Thursday nights. Full Details, Online Registration and Booking
For a list of excluded properties please see here
Jul 1 - Sep 30, 12

Marriott Rewards
- 2,000 Bonus Rewards Points per stay Thursday-Sunday (Friday or Saturday required) at the Boston Marriott Burlington. More... Until Sep 2, 12
- 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points + a free Upgrae for stays at the Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel. More... Until Aug 31, 12
- 2,500 Bonus Rewards Points for stays at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center. More...  Until Sep 3, 12

Miles & More
- Earn up to Triple Miles & More Miles for stays at any Shangri-La hotel, Shangri-La resort, Traders hotel or Kerry hotel Worldwide. More... Until Aug 31, 12

United Mileage Plus
1,000 Bonus Mileage Plus Miles on rentals of 3 or more days at any participating National location in the United States or Canada. Full Details Until Dec 31, 12

Rewards Canada Daily Update: June 20, 2012

News, Tips, & Tricks
Air Canada is offering an Elite Status Match for bmi Diamond Club Elite members in an effort to keep them flying with the Star Alliance versus oneworld. Learn more...

Don't forget to enter our Twitter contest, just over two hours left at the time of posting this!

Travel Deals
Air France sale to North Africa, Montreal, Ottawa or Toronto to Casablanca, Tunis or Rabat from $749 incl taxes roundtrip. Book online at AirFrance.ca

Emirates Two Week Business Class Promotion - $1000 Off Restricted and Advanced Purchase Fares from the U.S. to Dubai including Seattle, so this is a good offer for those of you in Vancouver/Victoria area. More... Book by Jul 5 for travel until Aug 31, 12

Receive breakfast for 2 and a late checkout or Save up to 25% by booking early for stays at Sheraton, Westin, St Regis, W, Le Méridien, Four Points and Aloft hotels in Asia Pacific. Full Details & Online Booking Book by Jul 31 for stays until Aug 31, 12

Bonus Offers
Avianca TACA LifeMiles
- Double LifeMiles for Avis rentals in United States, Europe, Latin America, Mexico and the Caribbean. More... Until Aug 18, 12

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- 500 Bonus Asia Miles when you stay at any of Ascott’s participating serviced residence Worldwide. More... Until Sep 30, 12
- Double Asia Miles when you stay or dine at Hotel ONE in Taichung, Taiwan. More... Until Aug 31, 12

Miles & More
- Quadruple Miles & More Miles + Complimentary Internet for stays at all Movenpick Hotels in Europe. More... Jul 1 - Aug 31, 12

Scandinavian EuroBonus
- Double EuroBonus Points and 20% off for stays 2+ nights that are booked at least 20 days in advance at participating World Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Sep 30, 12

Starwood Preferred Guest
- Double Starpoints for stays at the Sheraton Fuzhou Hotel. More... Aug 1 - Dec 31 ,12
- 1,000 Bonus Starpoints for stays at the Sheraton Asunción Hotel. More...  Until Dec 31, 12
- Earn up to 500 Bonus Starpoints for dining out at the Sheraton Golf Parco de Medici Hotel & Resort Rome. More... Until Aug 31, 12
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Air Canada Aeroplan Status Match for bmi Elite Diamond Club members

You may have noticed this in yesterday's Daily Update but it is significant enough to warrant its own blog post. Now that bmi (British Midland) has been taken over by British Airways, the airline is no longer part of the Star Alliance. To try and keep the higher spending elite flyer in the Star Alliance and more so move them over to Air Canada, AC is offering a status match for bmi Diamond Silver and Gold Diamond Club members as follows:
Diamond Club Gold = 2012 Air Canada Elite status
Diamond Club Silver = 2012 Air Canada Prestige status

Here are the details straight from Aeroplan's UK site:

About this offer: 

Your current bmi Diamond Club membership status will be matched as follows:

• Your request must be submitted between June 15 and July 15 2012.
• To be eligible, you’ll need to be an Aeroplan member. Not a member yet? Sign up now.
• You can expect to receive your new 2012 Air Canada Top Tier status within 6 to 8 weeks.
• The 2012 Air Canada Elite or 2012 Air Canada Prestige status will be valid until February 28, 2013. 
• Any Miles accrued with your bmi Diamond Club membership will not be transferred into your Aeroplan account.

How to request your Air Canada Top Tier status match:

• Submit your request between June 15 to July 15 2012, by email with the following information:
  • Your full name
  • Your current Diamond Club membership number
  • Your Aeroplan number. Don’t have one? Sign up now.
  • A scanned copy of your current bmi Diamond Club membership card. Please make sure the name, status and expiry date are clearly visible.
  • Your consent to the Terms and Conditions related to this offer.

For complete offer details please visit the BMI Status Match Offer on Aeroplan.com

Rewards Canada Daily Update: June 19, 2012

News, Tips, & Tricks
I had a great phone call with one of our fans today, Julian, and he let me know about a feature on the BMO Elite World MasterCard that I was unaware of. Apparently when you call into the BMO call center you do not get a regular customer service agent but you will always get a more experienced supervisor.  This is similar to the service provided by the Platinum Card from American Express and I am glad he let me know this so that I could let all of our readers know.

Don't forget to enter our Twitter contest, Wednesday is the last day to enter!

Bonus Offers
Amtrak Guest Rewards (on FrequentFlyetBonuses.com only)
200 bonus Tier Qualifying Points per qualifying partner transaction . Transactions with Points for Shopping, Buy Points, Share Points, Transfer Points or purchases made with the Amtrak Guest Rewards® World MasterCard® from Chase® do not qualify for this promotion. A maximum of 1,000 bonus Tier Qualifying Points may be earned through this promotion. Register Online (Registration is required)

AeroMexico Club Premier
- Double Club Premier Kilometers on Hertz rentals of a compact car larger for 5 days or more at participating locations in the United States. More... Until Jul 31, 12

airBerlin Top Bonus
- Earn up to 1,500 Top Bonus Miles for stays at any participating Grand City Hotel. More... Until Aug 31, 12

Air Canada Aeroplan / bmi Diamond Club
- Elite Status Match to Air Canada Aeroplan - Air Canada is offering the chance to match your current Silver or Gold bmi Diamond Club membership status to an equivalent 2012 Air Canada Top Tier status. More... Until Jul 15, 12

Czech Airlines OK Plus
- Earn up to 2,000 Bonus OK Plus Miles for flights between Prague and Bucharest. More... Jun 20 - Aug 31, 12
- Double OK Plus Miles and 20% off for stays 2+ nights that are booked at least 20 days in advance at participating World Hotels Worldwide. More...  Until Sep 30, 12
- Earn up to Triple OK Plus Miles for Budget rentals in Czech Republic, Ukraine, France, Italy, Spain, Denmark and Sweden.  More... Until Aug 31, 12

Etihad Guest
- Earn up to Triple Guest Miles for Avis rentals in Europe + receive a 10% discount voucher for 1 of 9 Chic Outlet Shopping Villages in Europe. More... Until Jul 31, 12

Marriott Rewards
- 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT when you stay any night Thursday-Sunday up to a maximum of 8,000 points per stay at the Courtyard Greenville Downtown. More... Until Aug 31, 12
- 5,000 Bonus Rewards Points when you stay a minimum of three nights Thursday-Sunday (Thursday or Friday night required) at the Residence Inn Montreal Westmount. More... Aug 14 - Oct 22, 12
-2,500 Bonus Rewards Points per stay when your stay includes a Sunday-Thursday night at the JW Marriott Guanacaste Resort & Spa. More...  Until Aug 23,1 2
- 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points per stay when your stay includes a Sunday-Thursday night at the JW Marriott Hotel Mexico City Santa Fe. More...  Until Aug 30, 12

Rewards Canada Daily Update: June 18, 2012

This will be a new daily feature on the Rewards Canada providing an update of anything new, updated or changed on the main RewardsCanada.ca website and also the world of Rewards Canada including articles, mentions and more.

Monday's are typically quieter on my websites as I get the newsletters out for the two main websites and other items to start out the week. So for today the new updates are strictly a few new bonus offers (oh and don't forget to enter our twitter contest!):

Aeroflot Bonus
- Double Bonus Miles for stays at the Azimut Moscow Tulskaya Hotel. More... Jul 1 - Aug 30, 12

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
- Double Mileage Bank Miles for stays on the "JAL Mileage Bank Stay Plan" ("JAL Mileage Bank Kaiin Goshukuhaku Plan") at participating Prince Hotels in Japan. More... Until Jul 31, 12

 Miles & More
Triple Miles & More Miles for stays at any participating Mandarin Oriental Hotel Worldwide. Full Details Until Aug 31, 12
- Double Miles & More Miles for stays at all brands of Meliá Hotels International in Spain or Germany. More... Until Jul 31, 12
- Earn up to Triple Miles & More Miles at all participating Hertz locations Worldwide for rentals of three days or more. More... Until Jul 31, 12

Hyatt Gold Passport
- 2,000 Gold Passport Points for stays on eligible rates at the Park Hyatt Sydney. More... Until Aug 31, 12
- 2,000 Bonus Gold Passport Points when you stay a minimum of three consecutive nights at Hyatt Hotel and Casino Manila. More... Until Sep 30, 12
- 2,000 Bonus Gold Passport Points for eligible weekend stays (Fri, Sat and Sun) at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok. More... Until Aug 31, 12

Fairmont Hotels: Receive a free night or $150 Credit toward Dining + Double Miles.

Fairmont Hotels has run an Everyone's an Original Summer and Winter offers for quite a few years now. The offer typically has a discounted rate and double miles with Fairmont's airline partners. The current Everyone's an Original summer offer runs until September 30th but if you book by July 3 Fairmont will also add in extra incentives like a free night or a dining credit. For more details or to book online visit Fairmont's Everyone's an Original Summer offer page

Rewards Canada Twitter Contest: Win a $100 Best Western Travel Card

I haven't done any contests or giveaways since the big Rewards Canada 10th Anniversary back in November so I figured it was time for another contest!

This one is simple all you need to do is follow Rewards Canada on Twitter and retweet with our Hashtag for a chance to win a C$100 Best Western Travel Card.

1. To follow Rewards Canada simple go to http://www.twitter.com/rewardscanada and click follow!

2. Then tweet: " Follow @RewardsCanada and retweet with hashtag #winwithRC for a chance to win a $100 Best Western Travel Card.  http://bit.ly/LLKFLZ "( feel free to copy and paste this, retweet our tweet of it or make up your own tweet with @RewardsCanada and #winwithRC )

3. Contest closes on at 11:59pm MST on Wednesday June 20, 2012 and is open to all residents of Canada who have reached the age of majority in their province.

4. Winner will be choosen at random from all qualifying tweets that include @RewardsCanada and hashtag #winwithRC. Winner must be following @RewardsCanada on twitter to be eligible for the prize.