Mar 24 Update: Canada's Top Travel Credit Cards for 2015, last day to enter our Aeroplan Contest, AAdvantage & Dividend Miles to merge on March 28

The biggest news day of the year for Rewards Canada is here!

News, Tips & Tricks
The big news today is the release of our Top Travel Rewards Credit Cards for 2015! This is the seventh year we have released these rankings! I never imagined how big these would get when our first rankings came out in 2009. Today the rankings are coveted by the card issuers (they are used in their marketing efforts), the media (due to our ranking process looking at so many factors) and of course our readers who have benefited from hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings on their travels! Whether you are a frequent flyer or a once in three years traveler, these rankings have merit for you.  So if you haven't checked out the 2015 winners yet you can do so at www.rewardscanada.ca/topcc2015 

Global News' Coverage

Shout out to Rob Carrick of the Globe & Mail!

It has been confirmed that American Airlines AAdvantage and US Airways Dividend Miles will merge on March 28th. (Source View from the Wing)


Last day to enter our Aeroplan eSTORE Contest!
Simply shop via their online shopping portal eSTORE if you haven't shopped there since May of last year and not only will you earn 5x Aeroplan Miles on all purchases made via the eSTORE but you'll also get the chance to win 1 of 4 prizes of 2,500 Aeroplan Miles! To find out more about this exclusive contest visit this post: 5x Miles for shopping via Aeroplan eSTORE if you haven't shopped in the last year + RC Exclusive - Win 1 of 4 - 2,500 Miles for shopping via eSTORE

Don't forget to enter the first FFB10 contest!
FFB10 - The FrequentFlyerBonuses.com 10th Anniversary Celebration - Contest #1: Win a package of 50,000 Miles & points

Travel Deals
Accor Hotels: 3 nights for the price of 2 in over 2,500 hotels worldwide from economy to luxury, when you book by April 14th for stays until May 31st, 2015! HURRY, BOOK NOW!

Bonus Offers
Aegean Miles&Bonus
- Double Miles&Bonus Miles for Hertz rentals in Greece. More... Book by Apr 5 for rentals Apr 1 - 30, 15

IHG Rewards Club
- 60% Bonus IHG Rewards Club points when you buy 5,000 or more points. More... Until Mar 29, 15

JetBlue TrueBlue (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double TrueBlue Points when you fly JetBlue between Los Angeles (LAX) or San Francisco (SFO) and New York (JFK). More... Until May 27, 15

Meridana Club (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double Avios when you fly Meridana between Torino or Milan Linate and Naplesor between Milan Linate and Catanias. More... Until Apr 18, 15

Qatar Airways Privilege Club
- Earn up to 14,000 Bonus QMiles when fly between Doha and Amsterdam. More... Jun 16 - Aug 31, 15
- Double QMiles on Rocketmiles hotel bookings in Amsterdam. More... Until Sep 15, 15
- Quadruple QMiles for Avis rentals of 3 or more days in Europe, the Middle East or Africa. More... Until Sep 30, 15
- Quadruple QMiles on Sixt car rentals in Amsterdam. More... Until Sep 16, 15.Jun 16 - Aug 31, 15

Southwest Rapid Rewards (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- 35% Bonus Rapid Rewards Points when you buy or gift points. More... Until Apr 22, 15

Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles
- 25% Miles&Smiles Discount for Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles award tickets between San Francisco and Turkey. More... Until Sep 30, 15
- 6,000 Bonus Miles&Smiles Mile when you book the Lux & Dine Package at the the Art Hotel Domotel Les Lazaristes. More... Book by Mar 31 for stays until Dec 31, 15

Virgin America Elevate (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Triple Elevate Points on Virgin America flights to or from Dallas Love Field when you register and refer people to the Elevate program More... Until Jun 6, 15

Today's Daily Update has been brought to you by

Rewards Canada's 7th Annual Canada's Top Travel Rewards Credit Card rankings

Today on RewardsCanada.ca we posted our seventh annual picks for Canada's top travel rewards credit cards. We have combed over 80 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.

Visit rewardscanada.ca/topcc2015 for the complete details!

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 2015 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.

Mar 23 Update: Plastiq 1% offer with MasterCard, one day left in our eSTORE contest, earn 100,000+ QMiles with The Qatar Airways Globetrotter

Welcome to another week of more miles, more points and more rewards!

News, Tips & Tricks
Rewards Canada reader Andrew J advises us that Plastiq.com, the online portal for paying bills with a credit card that normally don't take credit cards apparently is running an offer that if you pay with a MasterCard card you will only pay a 1% transaction fee instead of the regular 2.5%. We couldn't find any of the details of the promotion on Plastiq's website but now is the time to take your MasterCard that earns more than 1% (Diners Club MasterCard, BMO World Elite, mbna Rewards World Elite etc.) and use it to pay items like your income taxes, property taxes and utlitly bills as the rewards you earn will be worth more than the 1% fee.

We did a quick test and found that the 1% offer appears to be only on select payees. For example we found Direct Energy to be 1.99% while the CRA was 1%. Please do your due diligence before paying bills to see if it is worth it!

Screenshot of paying your taxes to the CRA, only a 1% service charge

Of course, this service isn't of much use if the transaction fee is higher than what you earn on your credit card as you'll lose out on your return unless you can maximize a reward like an Aeroplan (or other FFP) business/first class ticket or a high end Starwood Hotels stay.

You have a litte over 24 hours to still enter our Aeroplan eSTORE Contest!
Simply shop via their online shopping portal eSTORE if you haven't shopped there since May of last year and not only will you earn 5x Aeroplan Miles on all purchases made via the eSTORE but you'll also get the chance to win 1 of 4 prizes of 2,500 Aeroplan Miles! To find out more about this exclusive contest visit this post: 5x Miles for shopping via Aeroplan eSTORE if you haven't shopped in the last year + RC Exclusive - Win 1 of 4 - 2,500 Miles for shopping via eSTORE
 
There is a great Qatar Airways promotion called The Qatar Airways Globetrotter that is reminiscent of the last couple of Air Canada Star Challenges in that the more you fly and the more places you fly the more bonus miles you'll earn. If you are regular Qatar Airways flyer you can stand to earn over 100,000 QMiles with this promotion, bad news is Montreal is not on the list of bonused cities which means only your connecting flights beyond Doha may qualify you for the bonus or if you choose to fly Qatar out of the U.S. Find out more here

 
Posts since our last update:

• WestJet Rewards: Double WestJet Dollars on select routes in Canada
  WestJet has decided to match last week's Air Canada targeted offer of Double Miles with a non-targeted offer for…
• Air Canada’s Premium Economy Cabin now available for Aeroplan Flight Rewards
  Aeroplan announced the full integration of Air Canada's Premium Economy class award flights for both ClassicFlight and MarketFare booking options.…

Bonus Offers
Air Canada / Aeroplan
- 1,500 Bonus Aeroplan Miles and up to 35% off on qualifying weekly Hertz rentals of 5 or more days in Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the U.S.  More... Until Jun 30, 15

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- 500 Bonus Asia Miles when you stay at Meritus Hotels & Resorts in Singapore and Langkawi. More... May 25 - Aug 31, 15

Czech Airlines OK Plus
- Double OK Plus Miles when you fly Czech Airlines between Prague and Athens, Bilbao, Bordeaux, Cork, Gdansk, Geneva, Liverpool, Marseille, Porto, Poznan, Stavanger and Stuttgart. More... Register and book by Jul 31 for travel May 14 - Aug 31, 15
- Double OK Plus Miles when you fly Czech Airlines between Prague and Kristiansand, Linköping, Växjö or Venice. More... Register and book by Jul 31 for travel Jul 1 - Aug 31, 15

Le Club accorhotels
- Quadruple Le Club Accorhotels Points for stays at over 500 participating Accor Hotels in the Asia Pacific region. More... Valid for Platinum Members only Until Jul 31, 15
- Double Le Club Accorhotels Points for stays at participating Accor Hotels in Egypt, Saudi Arabia or Abu Dhabi More... Until Apr 19, 15
- Triple Le Club Accorhotels Points for stays at participating Accor Hotels in Singapore. More... Register & book by Aug 31 for stays until Sep 30, 15

MEA Middle East Airlines Cedar Miles
- Triple Cedar Miles when you fly in Business Class from Paris to Beirut on flight # ME206. More... Mar 29 - Oct 24, 15

Qatar Airways Privilege Club
- Earn up to 100,000 Bonus QMiles when fly Qatar Airways to select destinations Worldwide. More... Apr 1 - Dec 31, 15

WestJet Rewards
- Double WestJet Dollars when you fly on select WestJet flights within Canada. More... Register and book by Apr 15 for travel until Jun 15, 15

Today's Daily Update has been brought to you by

WestJet Rewards: Double WestJet Dollars on select routes in Canada

WestJet has decided to match last week's Air Canada targeted offer of Double Miles with a non-targeted offer for select flights within Canada. An extremely smart move in our opinion as there are Aeroplan members who were not targeted to earn Double Aeroplan Miles and some just may be swayed to move their upcoming travels to WestJet to earn Double WestJet dollars! I see this especially true for the price sensitive and those who will not reach elite status on Air Canada this year or already have status and can move flights away from AC as they don't need the status segments or miles.

Offer Details
Double WestJet Dollars when you fly on select WestJet flights within Canada. Register Online (Registration is required) Register and book by Apr 15 for travel until Jun 15, 15

Want to earn even more WestJet Dollars? Check out our Bonus WestJet Dollars page for other  bonuses!
 

Air Canada’s Premium Economy Cabin now available for Aeroplan Flight Rewards

Aeroplan announced the full integration of Air Canada's Premium Economy class award flights for both ClassicFlight and MarketFare booking options. The redemption amounts for ClassicFlights are as follows:

As you can see for flights in North America, to Europe and Central/Latin America Premium Economy on Air Canada sits right in between Economy and Business Class amounts while redemptions to Asia, Africa, Middle East tend to fall on the higher side as they are closer in cost to Business Class rewards than they are to economy class. One way flight rewards are of course, half these amounts.

As of now these are the routes that Air Canada offers Premium Economy class on:

These routes are operated with a mix of 8 Boeing 787-8 and 7 Boeing 777-300ER. This provides an excellent option for those people who may be shy of getting enough miles to fly in Business Class but do have the right amount to get into Premium Economy. The redemptions for Europe do seem like a good deal and even Asia might be right for many of you although it would have been nice if they kept the pricing right down the middle just like Europe and the Americas.

Of course the only issue that arises is the all too often mentioned Fuel Surcharges Carrier Surcharges and since these are for flights on AC most Aeroplan members will incur them except for Altitude SE100Ks.

We did a random search on Aeroplan between Montreal and London to see how Premium Economy prices and for availability:

In May we couldn't find ClassicFlight availability but did find this Market Fare option:

In September we did find ClassicFlight availability as follows:

Mar 19 Update: 5x AIR MILES Reward Miles at Shell (remember our tip to earn more!), Win a 50,000 Mile/Point Package, Starwood Amex Sign Bonus Extended

Big news from our global website!

News, Tips & Tricks
If you don't follow our global website FrequentFlyerBonuses.com now is the time to do so! We are celebrating 10 years of providing the world with the best coverage of travel reward program promotions with FFB10, nine months of contests, exclusive promotions and more! We kicked off the celebrations with a contest that features a grand prize of 50,000 Miles and Points from 5 great airline & hotel programs. Be sure to enter today! You can find all the details at frequentflyerbonuses.com/FFB10

Don't forget about Rewards Canada's exclusive contest with Aeroplan! Simply shop via their online shopping portal eSTORE if you haven't shopped there since May of last year and not only will you earn 5x Aeroplan Miles on all purchases made via the eSTORE but you'll also get the chance to win 1 of 4 prizes of 2,500 Aeroplan Miles! To find out more about this exclusive contest visit this post: 5x Miles for shopping via Aeroplan eSTORE if you haven't shopped in the last year + RC Exclusive - Win 1 of 4 - 2,500 Miles for shopping via eSTORE


We got great news from American Express earlier this week, the 20,000 Starpoint Bonus for the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card will not be ending on March 31 as they initially told us at the end of February. As of now the bonus will remain indefinitely.

I was getting gas at Shell last week and noticed they now have a new bonus offer for AIR MILES collectors. This time it is for 5x the miles on all gas purchases of 25 litres or more. However if you recall our insider tip post from Bill W. he tells you how to earn more miles on those purchases since Shell only awards 1 base mile on purchases over 15 liters. If you fill up your tank with only one transaction you get a total of 5 AIR Miles Reward Miles with this bonus however if you use Bill's method and fill up with only 25L at a time you'll earn those 5 miles per fill up. For example, if you have a 75L fill you'll stand to earn 15 AIR MILES Reward Miles with the three separate transactions versus only 5 with one transaction.

Travel Deals
Expedia.ca: Europe Sale-Save up to 50% When you Travel by September 30, 2015 - Expires 4/13/2015..

Bonus Offers
Aegean Miles&Bonus
- Double Miles&Bonus Miles for stays at anyone of 21 specially handpicked hotels in Greece and Cyprus. More... Apr 3 - 19, 15

Air Miles (Canada)
- Shell 5x Air Miles on a minimum 25L purchase of fuel at Shell stations in Canada. More... Until May 3, 15

airberlin topbonus
- 10,000 Bonus topbonus Miles when you complete 6 flights with airberlin. More... Register and book by Mar 31 for travel Mar 23 - Jun 16, 15

COPA Airlines ConnectMiles
- 1,000 Bonus ConnectMiles when you subscribe to ConnectMiles email. More... Until Apr 30, 15

Hyatt Gold Passport
- 5,000 Bonus Gold Passport Points for stays of 2 or more nights at the Park Hyatt Zanzibar. More... Until Aug 31, 15

Marriott Rewards
- 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT for stays at over 70 participating Marriott hotels across Canada. Maximum of 5,000 bonus points per stay. More... Until Jun 1, 15
- 5,000 Bonus Rewards Points for stays at the Threadneedles, Autograph Collection® hotel London. More... Apr 1 - May 25, 15

SAS EuroBonus
- Triple EuroBonus points for stays of 2 or more nights at participating World Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Dec 31, 15

Today's Daily Update has been brought to you by

Earn 1,000 Bonus Marriott Rewards Points per night at over 70 locations in Canada

Here is an offer that is starting to make its rounds in the FFP world of blogs. We posted it this morning to Frequent Flyer Bonuses but have to tip our hat to Loyalty Traveler who brought it to our attention yesterday. It is a promotion we see regularly from Marriott, perhaps 2 or 3 times per year that awards 1,000 Bonus Marriott Rewards points per night for stays at participating hotels in Canada. This time the offer runs until June 1st and maxes out at 5,000 bonus points per stay. As is always the case with these type of offers always check what the rate is for the bonus points, sometimes there is a higher room rate associated with it then say the AAA rate.

Offer Details
1,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT for stays at over 70 participating Marriott hotels across Canada. Maximum of 5,000 bonus points per stay. Full Details and Online Booking Until Jun 1, 15

Mar 18 Update: Targeted Air Canada Double Miles offer, KLM delays Edmonton launch, the TD $100 Statement Credit debacle continues

It's an Aeroplan kind of day on Rewards Canada

News, Tips & Tricks
Don't forget about Rewards Canada's exclusive contest with Aeroplan! Simply shop via their online shopping portal eSTORE if you haven't shopped there since May of last year and not only will you earn 5x Aeroplan Miles on all purchases made via the eSTORE but you'll also get the chance to win 1 of 4 prizes of 2,500 Aeroplan Miles! To find out more about this exclusive contest visit this post:
5x Miles for shopping via Aeroplan eSTORE if you haven't shopped in the last year + RC Exclusive - Win 1 of 4 - 2,500 Miles for shopping via eSTORE

Also be sure to check your email if you were targeted for an exclusive Air Canada Double Aeroplan Miles offer for select flights within Canada. You can try registering here but if you did not receive the email there is a good chance you won't get the bonus miles.

The $100 statement credit debacle from TD seems to be continuing. The latest comment on our post  "TARGETED: Receive a $100 Statement Credit when you spend $100 or more with Air Canada on your TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite card" as one reader was told he wouldn't qualify for the offer and was offered 100 Aeroplan miles instead but now appears to be able to receive the $100 credit. We would love to hear from our readers on whether any of you have seen a credit yet and whether or not you were targeted for this offer.

Home Hardware is offering 100 free Aeroplan Miles for subscribing to their emails! Find out more here.

According to Airlineroute.net KLM has pushed back the launch of their Edmonton-Amsterdam service by two weeks.

Travel Deals
Swiss has some great fares available between Montreal and Europe. Fares start at $665 all in (that's to Malaga). Book by Mar 31 for travel until May 6. Find out more and book here.

Bonus Offers
Air Canada / Aeroplan
- 7,000 Bonus Aeroplan Miles when you rent a vehicle for a minimum of 28 days from Avis in Canada. More... Until Dec 31, 15
- 9,000 Bonus Aeroplan Miles when you rent a vehicle for a minimum of 2 months or more from Avis in Canada. More... Until Dec 31, 15
- 100 Free Aeroplan Miles when you subscribe to Home Hardware emails. More... Until Mar 30, 15
- 5x Aeroplan Miles when you make your first purchase online through homehardware.ca. More... Until Mar 30, 15

airBaltic PINS (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double PINS when you fly airBaltic to Venice or Rome. More... Book by Mar 24 for travel May 1 - Jun 30, 15
- 1,000 PINS when you rent a car with Sixt in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. More... Mar 28 - Apr 12, 15


airberlin topbonus
- Double topbonus miles for Europcar rentals Worldwide (except U.S and Canada) More... Book by Mar 31 for rentals until Jun 7, 15
- Double topbonus miles for Hertz car rentals Worldwide. More... Book by Mar 31 for rentals until Aug 31, 15

Azul TudoAzul (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- 1,000 Free TudoAzul points when you join the Azul TudoAzul program. More... Until Dec 31, 15

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- Earn up to Quadruple Asia Miles when you rent a car from any participating Hertz locations in USA, Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand or Asia. More... Until Jun 30, 15
- Earn up to 20,000 Bonus Asia Miles when you subscribe to The Economist. More... Until Apr 11, 15

Emirates Skywards
- Triple Skywards Miles for stays at the Taj Dubai. More... Until Jun 30, 15

Le Club accorhotels
- Triple Le Club Accorhotels Points for stays at over 500 participating Accor Hotels in the Asia Pacific region. More... Until Jul 31, 15
- Double Le Club Accorhotels Points for weekend stays at participating Accor Hotels in Sweden More... Until May 31, 15

Wyndham Rewards
- Earn up to 2,000 Bonus Wyndham Rewards Points when you book the Best Available Rate + Bonus Points offer at participating locations Worldwide. More... Ongoing

Today's Daily Update has been brought to you by

100 Free Aeroplan Miles for subscribing to Home Hardware emails

Here is a simple way to add 100 Aeroplan Miles to your account!  Just take a few seconds to sign up for emails from Home Hardware and they should be yours. This is one of those offers that can help keep your Aeroplan account active if you don't use it very often and for those who do it is always nice to add a few more miles to your balance! The sign up page doesn't state when this offer ends but it does seem to be tied in to the current 5x Aeroplan Miles for first time homehardware.ca purchases which ends on March 30th so I would sign up for these emails before then!

Sign up for this offer here.

(Thanks to Rewards Canada reader Hyacinthe for passing this offer along to us!)

Mar 17 Update: Coast Hotels Aeroplan transfers up to 75% off (amazing deal!), 3x WestJet Dollars between Fredericton & Toronto

Coast Hotels quietly offers up an great transfer bonus today!

News, Tips & Tricks
Don't forget about Rewards Canada's exclusive contest with Aeroplan! Simply shop via their online shopping portal eSTORE if you haven't shopped there since May of last year and not only will you earn 5x Aeroplan Miles on all purchases made via the eSTORE but you'll also get the chance to win 1 of 4 prizes of 2,500 Aeroplan Miles! To find out more about this exclusive contest visit this post:
5x Miles for shopping via Aeroplan eSTORE if you haven't shopped in the last year + RC Exclusive - Win 1 of 4 - 2,500 Miles for shopping via eSTORE

Coast Hotels is offering up to 75% off their regular conversion rates to Aeroplan Miles. This offer runs until April 30th and is a great deal if you happen to be sitting on 12,500 points as that will net you 50,000 Aeroplan Miles!!! Find all the details here.

Air New Zealand will offer daily service between Vancouver and Auckland for a little over a month this coming winter.The daily flights will operate from Dec 21 to Jan 31. This couldbe a potential window for Aeroplan redemptions although Air New Zealand is well known for not releasing very many award seats to their partners but with more flights the possibility exists that there may be a just a few more seats available! (Source Airlineroute.net)

Here is another Rexall coupon for you. 80 bonus AIR MILES Rewards Miles when you spend $40 or more by March 19. Print the coupon here.

In the bonus offers section check out WestJet Rewards' route launch bonus for their new Fredericton - Toronto route.

Travel Deals
Swiss has some great fares available between Montreal and Europe. Fares start at $665 all in (that's to Malaga). Book by Mar 31 for travel until May 6. Find out more and book here. 

Bonus Offers
AeroMexico Club Premier
- Double Club Premier Kilometers for stays at the Grand Velas Riviera Maya. More... Book by Mar 31 for stays until Dec 19, 15
- Triple Club Premier Kilometers for stays at theHotel Casa Velas. More... Until Apr 30, 15
- Double Club Premier Kilometers on weekend stays at participating NH Hotels. More... Until Apr 30, 15
- 15% Bonus Club Premier Kilometers when you convert SPG Starpoints into Club Premier Kilometers. More... Until Mar 31, 15

American AAdvantage
- Earn up to 5x AAdvantage Miles for Choice Hotels stays Worldwide. Earn 5x miles at Cambria Hotels & Suites and 3x Miles for all other brands. More... Until Jun 15, 15

Bangkok Airways FlyerBonus (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double FlyerBonus Points on all eligible fares when you fly on any Japan Airlines flight. More... Until Apr 23, 15

Emirates Skywards
- Double Skywards Miles when you stay at one of 33 Hyatt hotels across the Middle East, India, and Nepal. More... May 1 - Jul 31, 15

Germanwings Boomerang Club (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Triple Boomerang Miles when fly to or from Berlin Schonefeld. More... Book by Apr 30 for travel until Oct 1, 15 - Mar 31, 16

Marriott Rewards
- 3,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT when you arrive any nights Sunday through Thursday at the Detroit Marriott Southfield. More... Until Apr 30, 15

Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles
- Double Miles&Smiles Miles for stays of 3 or more nights at Shangri-La Hotels Worldwide. More... Until May 31, 15

United MileagePlus
- Earn up to 5x MileagePlus Miles for Choice Hotels stays Worldwide. Earn 5x miles at Cambria Hotel & Suites and 3x Miles for all other brands. More... Until Jun 15, 15

WestJet Rewards
- Triple WestJet Dollars when you fly between Fredericton and Toronto. More... Register and book by Apr 30 for travel Apr 15 - May 31, 15


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