Oct 5 Update: Hilton HHonors Q4 Promo offers 1,000 points per night

News, Tips & Tricks
Hilton HHonors officially released their fourth quarter promotion today and overall the offer is so-so for a hotel promotion. If you are loyal to Hilton, you will at least get some bonus points out of your stays at participating locations but some of the other hotel reward programs do have better Q4 promos. One saving grace is the fact that it is stackable with this Virgin Atlantic Hilton promo which can in turn make your first five Hilton stays more worthwhile in the bonus offer department.

There is another free miles promo to tell you about today: an increased sign-up bonus for Southwest's Rapid Rewards program. Normally it has been at 750 points for the past few years but that has now jumped to 1,000. Its always nice to get free points although I don't know how many Canadians will really be able to make use of them unless you do some flying with the U.S. on Southwest or set your car rental/hotel earning preferences to Southwest to earn more points. You can see the offer below in the Bonus Offers section.

Bonus Offers
Air Baltic Baltic Miles (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Triple Baltic Miles on all eligible stays at any property in the Hilton Worldwide portfolio of brands. More... Until Dec 31, 12

ANA Mileage Club
- Earn up to 4,009 Bonus Mileage Club Miles when you fly on ANA flight NH1009 between New York and Tokyo. More... Oct 28 - Mar 31, 13
- Earn up to 4,075 Bonus Mileage Club Miles when you fly ANA between San Jose and Tokyo. More... Jan 11 - Mar 31, 13
- Earn up to 10,000 Bonus Mileage Club Miles for new and approved applicants of the ANA Card USA Visa for ANA flights between San Jose and Tokyo. More... Apply by Mar 31, 13 for travel Jan 11 - Apr 30, 13

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
- OFFER EXTENDED Triple Mileage Bank Miles for Alamo rentals of three or more consecutive days in the USA or Canada. More.. Until Dec 31, 12
- 1,000 Bonus Mileage Bank Miles for Hertz rentals of 3+ days at participating locations in the US or Canada. More... Until Dec 31, 12

Southwest Rapid Rewards (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Earn up to 1,000 Bonus Rapid Rewards Points when you join the Rapid Rewards program. Earn 500 for joining, 250 for signing up for your email summary and 250 for the email update. More...

Oct 4 Update: 1,000 Free HHonors Points, 1,500 Aeroplan Miles with CIBC & Speedpass, Double Miles for Fairmont stays

News, Tips & Tricks
In case you missed it earlier today, here is another free points tip: You can earn up to 1,000 Hilton HHonors points for free for a couple of simple Facebook actions with a couple of Hilton Brands. Check out my post from earlier today to see how.

Bonus Offers
Air Canada Aeroplan
- 1,500 Bonus Aeroplan Miles when you enroll for an Esso Speedpass by Nov 30, link your Speedpass to your CIBC Aerogold® Visa Card or CIBC Aerogold Visa Infinite Card and then use your Speedpass on any eligible purchase at participating Esso stations by December 31, 2012. More...
- Double Aeroplan Miles when you book an Everyone's an Original winter rate at participating Fairmont Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Apr 30, 13

American AAdvantage
- Earn up to 20,000 Bonus AAdvantage Miles for select AAdvantage® members who travel on flight 967 or 966 between New York (JFK) and São Paulo.More... Until Nov 15, 12 Targeted Offer - May not work for everyone
- Double AAdvantage Miles when you book an Everyone's an Original winter rate at participating Fairmont Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Apr 30, 13

La Quinta Returns
- 1,500 Bonus Returns Points on qualifying rentals of 3 days or more at participating Avis locations in the U.S. and Canada. More... Until Dec 31, 12

Miles & More
- Double Miles & More Miles for stays at participating Taj Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Mar 31, 13

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Double KrisFlyer Miles when you stay on the Best Available Rate for two consecutive nights at Raffles Hotel Singapore. More... Until Nov 30, 12

Turkish Miles&Smiles
- Double Miles&Smiles Miles for stays in a Swissôtel Living Suite at the Swissôtel Istanbul. More... Until Dec 31, 12

United Mileage Plus
- 500 Bonus Mileage Plus Miles on qualifying rentals of 3 days or more at participating Avis airport locations in Africa, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Europe, Latin America, Mexico, the Middle East and New Zealand. More... Until Dec 31, 12
- 500 Bonus Mileage Plus Miles on qualifying rentals of 3 days or more at participating Avis locations in the U.S. and Canada. More... Until Oct 31, 12
- Double Mileage Plus Miles when you book an Everyone's an Original winter rate at participating Fairmont Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Apr 30, 13

WestJet Rewards
- $250 Bonus WestJet dollars + Annual $99 Companion Flight when you sign up for and receive the WestJet RBC World Elite MasterCard. More... Residents of Canada only

Earn up to 1,000 Free Hilton HHonors points

Although it may not be a huge amount of points, any amount helps and it is always nice to get free miles or points. If you are not a major Hilton HHonors member then these promotions are a good way to keep your account alive as you need activity in your HHonors account once every 12 months.

Earn 500 HHonors Points for linking your HHonors account number with Doubletree Hotels on Facebook. This offer is limited to the first 40,000 members who input there number so jump on this sooner than later at http://doubletree.topguest.com/

The other offer for 500 points is also on Facebook and comes to us from Hilton's Hampton brand and requires a little more work but it is well worth it, not for the points, but for the inspiring story of TJ Elevator Fan, a young boy with Cerebral Palsy who has an affinity for riding elevators. Find the complete details and video on Hampton's Facebook page. This offer runs until Oct 12, 12

Tip of the hat to Ric, the  Loyalty Traveler

Oct 3 Update: 500 Free Aeroplan Miles, 100k Avios Transatlantic offer from Iberia and more

News, Tips & Tricks
Today there is no news but the tip of the day is in the bonus offers section, you can get 500 FREE Aeroplan Miles simply by joining the Coast Hotels Coast Rewards program and linking your Aeroplan account to it. I haven't checked the terms of the program but will definitely sign up my wife and myself and if the terms allow it (ie under 18) I will sign up both my kids as well. Be sure to check out a whole bunch of other Aeroplan promos added today plus the latest version of the 100k Transatlantic flight promotion, this time its from Iberia.

Rewards Canada had a bunch of media mentions in Septemeber. check them out here:
Sep/Oct 12 Moneysense "Best cash-back cards 2012"
Sep 26, 12 Ottawa Citizen "Reaping the rewards"
Sep 26, 12 Edmonton Journal "Canadians value flexibility, range of choice in rewards programs"
Sep 25, 12 The Globe and Mail "Carrick’s reader: Homebuying - get over it"
Sep 19, 12 The Globe and Mail "Carrick’s reader: Uncle Sam’s home for retired Canadians"
Sep 14, 12 Canada.com "Travel Website of the Week: Rewards Canada"
Sep 5, 12 Sympatico.ca "How to collect more points and faster"

Bonus Offers
Air Canada Aeroplan
- Earn up to Triple Aeroplan Miles on every eligible roundtrip flight (or 2 one-way segments) between Toronto (Pearson) or Vancouver and Sydney, Australia. More... Dec 14, 12 - Jan 31, 13
- Triple Aeroplan Miles for stays at any participating Coast Hotels in Canada and the U.S. More... Until Dec 31, 12
- 500 Bonus Aeroplan Miles for free when you join Coast Rewards More... Until Dec 31, 12
- Earn up to 50,000 Bonus Aeroplan Miles with the American Express AeroplanPlus Platinum More... Until Nov 6, 12 Canadian Residents Only
- Triple Aeroplan Miles on your eligible purchases when you shop at any Esso station three or more times. More... Until Nov 4, 12

Air China Phoenix Miles
- 50% Phoenix Miles Kilometers for Air China flights between Beijing and Delhi. More... Until Dec 31, 12
- 50% Phoenix Miles Kilometers for Air China flights between Tianjin and Shenzhen, Chengdu, Guangzhou, or Shanghai. More... Until Dec 31, 12
- 50% Phoenix Miles Kilometers for Air China flights between: Guangzhou and Chengdu, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Guiyang, Tianjin, Wuhan, Hohhot or Beijing; Zhanjiang or Shantou and Beijing; Zhuhai and Beijing. More... Until Oct 17 and Nov 15 - Dec 31, 12

American AAdvantage
- Earn up to 10,000 Bonus AAdvantage Miles when you buy AAdvantage miles online. More... Until Oct 31, 12

Iberia Plus
- 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 Europe on First Class, Business Class or select Economy Class fares. More... Register by Dec 31, 12 for travel until Jan 31, 13

Olympic Air Travelair Club (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- 3,000 Bonus Travelair Miles when you fly 3 round trip flights on Olympic Air aircraft throughout the Olympic Air network. More... Until Oct 31, 12

Don't forget to vote for Canada's Top Travel Rewards Credit Cards!

I have been blasting this all over the place but I just wanted to remind my own readers to vote for your favourite Cards in Rewards Canada's 2nd Annual Canada's Top Travel Rewards Credit Cards.

Companies like American Express have jumped on the bandwagon encouraging their Facebook followers to vote and now Aeroplan has it on their homepage encouraging Aeroplan members to vote as well!

So I encourage all Rewards Canada readers and fans to vote as well! Get your vote on here!

Oct 2 Update: Up to 100K+ Avios for Canada-Europe Flights, Aeroplan Transfer bonus, up to 6K Gold Points per night and more!

News, Tips & Tricks
Today was a crazy day for new bonus offers, so that is where my focus was. In fact I can't recall the last time that so many new offers were released at the start of the month. I tried to get to as many as I could today but there are still tons more where these came from! Be sure to take your time with the entire list of promos below as there are tons of good offers like the increased sign up bonus for joining Aegean (half way to Star Alliance Silver status with the promo!), the Aeroplan bonus on Points.com transfers (better than no bonus if you know what I mean and want to get rid of orphaned miles/points), ANA's Double Miles between North America and Asia, a couple more Hilton Airline offers and Emirates' October Miles Accelerator offers which includes Toronto to Dubai..

The best bonus offers to look out for however are Carlson Hotels' fall promo that will award up to 6,000 bonus points per night and the British Airways 100,000+ Bonus Avios promo for premium class fares between Canada and Europe.

WestJet and RBC have officially released the World Elite version of their MasterCard which replaces the World version. I will have more details on it tomorrow or you can check it out on the RBC website here.

Elite Status tip of day: Another Accor Hotels Le Club instant status promotion is out, the page doesn't state it specificaly but if you complete the registration process you should be awarded Platinum status with the program. These offers come around every once and while and dissappear pretty quick so jump on this sooner than later. Apply for it here. Then you can leverage that Platinum Status to get yourself status with Best Western Rewards with their Status Match No Catch offer. (Tip of the hat to View from the Wing)  Offer is dead

Bonus Offers
Aegean Miles&Bonus
- 2,000 Bonus Miles when you join the Miles and Bonus program. More...

airBerlin topbonus
- Double topbonus Miles for stays at tall Gran Meliá, Meliá, ME by Meliá, INNSIDE by Meliá, TRYP by Wyndham, Sol and Paradisus Resorts Worldwide. More...Until Oct 31, 12

Air Canada Aeroplan
- 15% Bonus Aeroplan Miles when you trade or exchange other loyalty program points for Aeroplan miles. More... Until Nov 15, 12
- Triple Aeroplan Miles on hotel bookings and car rentals through aircanada.com. More... Until Nov 12, 12
- Double Aeroplan Miles on select purchases made through the Air Canada eBoutique. More... Until Oct 31, 12

ANA Mileage Club
- Double Mileage Club Miles for flights between the U.S. and Asia (excluding flights to/from Japan). More... Nov 1 - Dec 31, 12 Valid for residents of North America only

Belavia Leader (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double Leader Points for Belavia flights between Minsk and Riga (flights B2 841/B2 842), London, Stockholm, Helsinki, Prague (flights B2 861 / B2 862), Amsterdam, Ekaterinburg or Novosibirsk. More... Until Oct 31, 12

British Airways Executive Club
- 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. More... Until Jan 31, 13
- Earn up to 50,000 Bonus Avios Points when you apply for and receive the RBC Royal Bank British Airways Visa Infinite card. More... Until Nov 30, 12

Carlson Hotels Club Carlson
- Earn up to 6,000 Bonus Gold Points PER NIGHT for eligible nights at Carlson Rezidor hotels worldwide. More... Until Dec 31, 12

China Airlines Dynasty Flyer
- Earn up to Triple Dynasty Flyer Miles on Avis rentals of 3 or more days in US, Canada, Europe, Middle East & Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Guam and Taiwan). More... Until Dec 31, 12
- Double Dynasty Flyer Miles on Avis rentals of 4 or more days in Australia or New Zealand. More... Until Dec 31, 12

Delta SkyMiles
- Earn up to 100,000+ Bonus SkyMiles when you fly on Delta marketed/operated or KLM marketed/Delta operated nonstop round-trip flights between the U.S. and London/Heathrow on First Class, Business Class or select Economy Class fares. More... Until Jan 31, 13
- Earn 250 Medallion Qualification Miles (MQM's) + Double SkyMiles when you book and complete a two-night stay at any participating hotel or resort within the Hilton Worldwide portfolio. More... Until Dec 15, 12

Emirates Skywards
- Earn up to 16,000 Bonus Skywards Miles with Emirate's 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... Until Oct 31, 12
- 5,000 Bonus Skywards Miles when you complete your second qualifying stay at any participating hotel or resort within the Hilton Worldwide portfolio. Additionally, new Hilton HHonors members that sign up whilst registering for the promotion will instantly receive 1,000 Hilton HHonors bonus points More... Until Dec 31, 12

Miles & More
- Earn up to Quadruple Miles & More Miles for stays at any participating hotel or resort within the Hilton Worldwide portfolio. More... Until Dec 31, 12

Southwest Rapid Rewards (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double Rapid Rewards Points with every qualifying stay at all participating Choice Hotels locations Worldwide. More... Until Nov 15, 12

 

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.

Oct 1 Update: Discounted Aeroplan Transfer Option, 50K Bonus for RBC BA Visa Infinite, US Airways share miles bonus & more

News, Tips & Tricks
Aeroplan is running a limited time promotion for their transfer miles options. Until October 31st you can transfer miles to friends or family for 1.5 cents per miles instead of the regular 2 cents per mile. Not a huge deal but if this is something you have been planning to do this would be the time to do so. Nowhere near as good as the US Airways share miles deal that came out today. With a cost of only 1 cent per miles plus a $30 processing fee and 7.5% tax you can essentially 'buy' US Airways miles for as little as 1.135 cents (transfer 50,000 miles get a 50,000 mile bonus). So if you want to transfer to a family member or friend they will get the bonus but then you can always have them transfer that bonus back to you to get another bonus. Each account is limited to earning 50,000 bonus miles during the promotion period.

The big news of today however was the return of the 50,000 Avios sign up bonus for the RBC British Airways Visa Infinite Card. Read all about it here. This was not the only card to see an increased bonus released today, the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express also saw an increase, not as big as the RBC offer however. Read about the SPG offer here.

And finally the best bonus of the day if you can't take advantage of the US Airways share miles deal is the Radisson 1 for 1 offer which was also covered on the Rewards Canada blog earlier today.

Bonus Offers
Carlson Hotels Club Carlson
- Receive a Free Night Award for stays at any Radisson Blu or Radisson hotel in the US, Canada or Caribbean. More... Book by Oct 31 for stays until Dec 31, 12

InterContinetal Hotels Priority Club
- 5,000 Bonus Priority Club Points when you stay two consecutive nights at any participating Staybridge Suites® hotel or Candlewood Suites® hotel Worldwide. More... Until Dec 30, 12

Jet Airways JetPrivilege
- OFFER EXTENDED 20% JetPrivilege Miles Discount when you redeem JPMiles online at jetairways.com for Jet Airways and JetKonnect flights. More... Until Mar 31, 13

Starwood Preferred Guest
- Earn 15,000 Welcome Bonus Starpoints after you charge $1,000 in purchases to your Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express in your first three months of Cardmembership. More... Until Nov 12, 12 Residents of Canada only

US Airways Dividend Miles
100% Bonus Dividend Miles when you share US Airways Dividend Miles with friends or family. More... Until Oct 31, 12

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

Radisson 1 for 1: Stay 1 Night, get a free night award

Club Carlson has been on a tear for the past year in terms of promotions for their members. Whether it was the 50,000 points for a one night stay, triple points on all stays or any number of other promotions, the Club Carlson program has been right on top in terms of great promotions.

The latest offer released today is no different, very similar to the 50,000 point offers, the Radisson 1 for 1 promotion awards Club Carlson members a free night stay after completing a one night stay at any Radisson or Radisson Blue hotel in the U.S., Canada or the Caribbean by December 31st.



To qualify, you must be one of the first 50,000 members to register for the offer and book your stay between October 1st and 31st. After you complete your stay you will receive a free night award good at any Radisson or Radisson Blu hotel in the U.S., Canada or the Caribbean. You have until December 31, 2013 to use the free night.  Full details, registration and booking can be found here

It looks like Carlson may be learning from some of the other programs with this promo. In basic terms, the offer is no different than the 50,000 bonus point offer as 50,000 points will get you a free night at any Radisson or Radisson Blu, however those points can be held onto for as long as you want and they can be transferred to their airline partners. With the dated free night award, Carlson is banking on some of these free nights going unused and for those that are used, some will be booked with additional nights so the Carlson Hotel group will be able to recoup more of the costs associated with this promo. Smart move from the loyalty program for their books but what is nice for us consumers is that you will have at least a year to use the free night when compared to most other programs which typically only give you a few months to use any free night awards earned in a promotion.