June 19 Update: Fly Canadian North to Northern Festivals & earn double points, up to 100 bonus AIR MILES at Rexall this weekend

News, Tips & Tricks
Earn up to 100 Bonus AIR MILES Reward Miles when you shop at Rexall this weekend. The more you spend the bigger the bonus.

Posts since our last update:

• Save up to 15% on Starwood stays in Canada with their Celebrate Canada 150 SPG offer
  We're only a few weeks away from our 150th Birthday and the offers to celebrate keep coming! Now Starwood…

Canadian Bonus Offers
Canadian North Aurora Rewards
- Double Aurora Rewards Points when you book Canadian North flights to the Alianait Arts Festival, Folk on the Rocks or the Great Northern Arts Festival.  Remember you also earn Aeroplan miles on Canadian North flights along with the Aurora Rewards poitns. More... Book by June 19!

Other Bonus Offers
Aeroflot Bonus
- Double Bonus Miles for stays at the Barvikha Hotel & Spa. More... Until Jul 31, 17
- Earn up to 1,000 Bonus Miles for stays at Marriott Hotels in Europe. More... Until Sep 6, 17
- Double Bonus Miles for stays at the Garden Ring Hotel Moscow. More... Until Sep 10, 17

British Airways Executive Club
- Earn up to Quadruple Avios when you stay 2 or more nights at any participating Shangri-La hotel, resort Kerry hotel, Hotel Jen and Traders hotel. More... Until Aug 31, 17
- Earn up to 8,800 Bonus Avios when you subscribe to The Economist. More... Until Jul 31, 17

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- Earn up to 3,000 Bonus Asia Miles when you fly with Cathay Pacific or Cathay Dragon between Korea and Hong Kong. More... For residents of South Korea only Until Jul 31, 17
- Double Asia Miles for stays at any one of 26 participating Hyatt Hotels and Resorts in Asia Pacific. More... Book by Sep 30 for stays Jul 1 - Oct 31, 17

Hyatt World of Hyatt
- Fast Track to World of Hyatt Elite Status - Members and Discoverists can enjoy many of the benefits of Explorist status immediately for 90 days with our Elite Tier offer. Your trial membership offers access to rewards like 20% Bonus Points, upgraded rooms, complimentary premium Internet and more. More... Register by Sep 30, 17

Jet Airways JetPrivilege
- 3,000 JPMiles on Avis rentals of 2 days or more in Europe, The Middle East, Africa, Asia (excluding India), USA and Canada. More... Book by Jul 31 for rentals until Dec 31, 17

Miles & More
- Double Miles & More Miles for stays at at Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait and Maldives. More... Until Aug 31, 17
- Europcar Status Match - Receive status in the Europcar Privilege Programme that is equal to your status in the Miles & More program. More... Until ?

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Double KrisFlyer miles when you stay on a qualifying rate for a minimum of two nights in participating Harbour Plaza hotels. More... Until Jul 31, 17
- Earn 3X KrisFlyer miles when you stay for at least two consecutive nights on a qualifying rate at Hard Rock Hotel Bali. More... Until Jul 31, 17
- Double KrisFlyer miles when you stay on the “Linger Longer” offer at participating Langham Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Sep 30, 17


Follow Rewards Canada:

Save up to 15% on Starwood stays in Canada with their Celebrate Canada 150 SPG offer

We're only a few weeks away from our 150th Birthday and the offers to celebrate keep coming! Now Starwood has come into the mix with their special promotion for stays across our great nation. It doesn't involve any bonus points although you can register for several offers via our SPG Bonus Points page and then come back here to take advantage of this offer. The offer provides up to 15% off Starwood Hotel stays (Sheraton, Westin, Four Points, Aloft, Element etc.) across Canada until the end of the year! You can find out more about this sale and book it right here!

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June 15 Update: SkyTeam to open business class lounge in Vancouver, free Porter VIPorter points for email confirmation + 8 new bonuses

News, Tips & Tricks

The SkyTeam alliance has announced they will be opening their own lounge in Vancouver! This will be the alliance's first lounge in North America that is branded specifically for SkyTeam. This will be the 7th SkyTeam globally and should get lots of use seeing that 9 of the 20 member airlines serve Vancouver! All the more reason for WestJet to join SkyTeam! (Source SkyTeam) Excerpt from the press release:

CANCUN, June 12, 2017 - SkyTeam, the global airline alliance, is taking its customers’ airport experience to new heights by opening a new lounge at Vancouver International Airport (YVR) later this year. The alliance’s first branded facility in North America, it will offer a luxurious environment for First, Business and Elite Plus customers flying on any of the alliance’s nine member airlines currently serving the airport.

SkyTeam currently offers six branded lounges around the world in Beijing, Dubai, Hong Kong, Istanbul, London Heathrow and Sydney, serving hundreds of thousands high-value customers each year.

Speaking at the 73rd annual IATA AGM held in Cancun, Mexico, SkyTeam CEO and Managing Director, Perry Cantarutti, also outlined some of the focus areas that the alliance was working on to improve customer travel experiences while gaining its members value from the synergies.

 “With the opening of Vancouver later this year, SkyTeam will offer more branded airport lounges around the world than any other airline alliance. Increasing the number of shared facilities worldwide realizes significant synergies for our airlines while offering a greatly enhanced airport experience for our top customers,” said Perry Cantarutti, SkyTeam’s CEO and Managing Director. “Meanwhile, we continue to invest in technology so that we can capitalize on emerging customer trends, drive greater efficiencies and continue to deliver value for our airlines and their passengers.”

Recommended reading: Rewards Canada's Guide to Business Class Lounge access

Porter Airlines is wanting their members to confirm their email membership and offering 1,500 VIPorter points for doing so! Be sure you don't delete any emails from Porter so that you can take advantage of this offer! You can also get an additional 1,500 points if you take flight for the next half a year!

Posts since our last update:

• Hilton Summer Sale - Save up to 25% on weekend stays in the U.K. and Europe (for Hilton Honors members only)
  Hilton's annual summer sale for stays in Europe, Middle East and Africa will launch for everyone next week however…
• Why I like the new Starbucks Rewards program
  It has been nearly a year and half since Starbucks revamped their loyalty program. It went from My Starbucks…

Travel Deals
Marriott: Save up to 30% off rooms, restaurants and lounges across the Middle East & Africa. Full details & online booking Until Sep 9, 17

Starwood: Save up to 30% off rooms, restaurants and lounges across the Middle East & Africa. Full details & online booking Until Sep 9, 17

Canadian Bonus Offers
N/A

Other Bonus Offers
airberlin topbonus
-1,000 topbonus Miles when you join Le Club AccorHotels and complete your first stay at any Accor Hotel. More... Until Aug 31, 17

Best Western Rewards
- Earn Triple Rewards Points for stays of 3 or more nights at participating Best Western Hotels in Australia. More... Until ?
- 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT for stays at participating Best Western Hotels in Australia. More... Until ?
- Double Rewards Points for stays at participating Best Western Hotels in Australia. More... Until ?

Carlson Hotels Club Carlson
- 2,500 Bonus Gold Points and 30% off for stays at participating Quorvus Collection, Radisson Blu, Radisson RED, Park Inn by Radisson and Park Plaza hotels in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and the Americas. More... Book by Jun 25 for stays Jun 19 - Sep 3, 17

Hainan Airlines Fortune Wings
- Earn up to 500 bonus Fortune Wings Points when you join the program and complete your first flight with Hainan Airlines or Grand China Air. More... Until Dec 31, 17

Qantas Frequent Flyer
- Double Frequent Flyer Points for stays at the Toowoomba Best Western Plus Ambassador on Ruthven Motor Inn or Bendigo Best Western Crystal Inn. More... Until ?

SAS EuroBonus
- Double EuroBonus Points for stays at participating Radisson Blu, Quorvus and Radisson RED hotels in Europe, the Middle East, Africa. More... Jun 15 - Aug 14, 17


Follow Rewards Canada:

Hilton Summer Sale - Save up to 25% on weekend stays in the U.K. and Europe (for Hilton Honors members only)

Hilton's annual summer sale for stays in Europe, Middle East and Africa will launch for everyone next week however if you are a Hilton Honors member, you get early access to book stays in the U.K. and Europe as the sale launched today for members of the program! If you are not a member you can join here for free.  Stays must be booked between June 13, 2017 and June 19, 2017 and completed on weekends between June 16, 2017 and October 8, 2017. Remember that you should also be earning up to Triple Points on these stays with the current summer Hilton Honors promotion. Find that and all other Honors bonuses here.

Click here to take advantage of the Hilton Honors preview sale for stays in the UK and Europe! 

 

Why I like the new Starbucks Rewards program

It has been nearly a year and half since Starbucks revamped their loyalty program. It went from My Starbucks Rewards to just Starbucks Rewards but that was the minor change. The major change was the move to being revenue based rather than visit based. Many Starbucks fans were unhappy and those were primarily the single item per visit purchasers. But for those of us who were visiting Starbucks and buying multiple items for multiple people, the new program showed promise.

Now that we are nearly 18 months into the program I must say I really like it. The reason why is that I am one of those multiple item for multiple people purchasers and it has been way more rewarding. We worked it out that break even on the new program was making each purchase just over five dollars. Well I rarely have ever had a Starbucks purchase below that amount and that is still the case today. With the new program I am racking Starbucks Stars a lot quicker and am enjoying a free item at least once per month if not more. With the old program I think I got a free item every 3-4 months. Not only is it due to earning more Stars on my base spend rather than the Star per transaction but Starbucks has been offering so many bonus Star offers with the new program like Double Stars days, Dash Challenges and more.

How about you? Do you miss the old version of the program because you didn't spend much or you were one who split your transactions to earn multiple stars on one visit? Or are you like me and are finding the new program way more rewarding?

You can learn more about the Starbucks Rewards program here.

June 13 Update: Fixed Return Travel Card versus a Reward Chart Travel Card, Marriott & Starwood won't merge until late 2018 & more!

News, Tips & Tricks
We released our first 'case study' that looks at the value you get from a Fixed Return Travel Card versus a Reward Chart Travel Card. Most proprietary credit card programs are the former save for several like Avion and Aventura which are the latter as well as your traditional programs like Aeroplan, AIR MILES and others using reward charts. In this feature we focus on two of Canada's most popular and best cards with each one representing one of the categories. You can read the case study here.

You may have even more time then we expected with Starwood Preferred Guest and of course the extremely strong Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express (Why you should still consider getting the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express) as Marriott gave some more details on the merger of the two programs during a lodging conference and it looks like it won't happen until the end of 2018 and that even isn't being promised. So yes now more than ever you should be taking advantage of the very strong Starwood Preferred Guest program as you have at least 1.5 years to utilize it and of course worst case scenario all the points you accumulate move to the new program. It was also mentioned that competitive bidding for the new Marriott program credit card should provide potentially better offers on their credit cards at least in the U.S. and hopefully here in Canada. It's the same thing we'll see getting closer to 2020 when Air Canada and Aeroplan (and all other Canadian programs) fight it out for credit card customer. (Source View from the Wing)

Posts since our last update:

• 5,000 Bonus Marriott Rewards Points for stays at the Toronto Marriott Bloor Yorkville Hotel
  Here is one of those bonus points offers that I probably only take advantage of if your employer or client…
• Case Study: Fixed Return Travel Card versus a Reward Chart Travel Card
  In this feature we look at two very popular Canadian credit cards and the return you get from them…
• Earning Stories: WestJet Rewards - 55 WestJet dollars earned on one flight with the More Canada More Rewards offer
  As you are likely aware, back at the start of May WestJet released a promotion for the remainder of…

Canadian Bonus Offers
Marriott Rewards
- 5,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT for stays at the Toronto Marriott Bloor Yorkville Hotel. More... Until Aug 18, 17

Other Bonus Offers
Aegean Miles&Bonus
- 30% Miles&Bonus Discount on select award tickets within Greece and between Greece and Europe, the Middle East or Africa. More... Until Aug 31, 17

La Quinta Returns
- Earn up to Triple Returns Points for stays at participating La Quinta locations in the U.S.. More... Until Jul 6, 17

Marriott Rewards
- 2,000 Bonus Rewards Points per stay on Thursday-Sunday nights at over 50 Marriott hotels in the UK. More... Until Aug 15, 17
- 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT on Sunday - Thursday nights at the Fairfield Inn & Suites Palm Desert. More... Until Aug 10, 17
- 2,000 Bonus Rewards Points per weekend stay that includes a Friday or Saturday night at the Renaissance Seattle Hotel. More... Until Aug 14, 17

Stash Hotel Rewards
- Triple Stash Rewards Points for stays at the The Domain Hotel Sunnyvale. More... Until Jul 11, 17

Follow Rewards Canada:

5,000 Bonus Marriott Rewards Points for stays at the Toronto Marriott Bloor Yorkville Hotel

Here is one of those bonus points offers that I probably only take advantage of if your employer or client are paying for it (AKA screw your employer rate) Right now through to the 18th of August you can book what is called the E-Bundle package at the Toronto Marriott Bloor Yorkville Hotel which includes Internet and 5,000 bonus points. If you have Marriott elite status well the internet part is a wash but you could still look at booking this for the 5,000 extra points. Even if you pay for the stay yourself it could make sense with Marriott points valued around a penny each the bonus points account to roughly $50 while the package only costs $15-$24 more meaning you come out $26-$35 ahead.

Offer details:
5,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT for stays at the Toronto Marriott Bloor Yorkville Hotel.  Full Details and online Booking Until Aug 18, 17

Find many more Marriott Rewards bonuses here!

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Marriott Rewards Premier Visa Card
30,000 Bonus Rewards Points when you apply for and receive the Premier card. Points are awarded after your first purchase.
Annual Fee: $120 (waived in the first year)
Supplementary cards: free
30,000 Marriott Rewards Points sign up bonus after your first purchase
5 Marriott Rewards points per $ spent Marriott Rewards® and SPG® Hotels worldwide
2 Marriott Rewards points per $ spent on Airline Tickets, Car Rental agencies and restaurants
1 Marriott Rewards point on all other spending
15 Night credit towards elite status, which translates to automatic Silver status
Anniversary bonus of 1 free night at a Category 1 - 5 location

Earning Stories: WestJet Rewards - 55 WestJet dollars earned on one flight with the More Canada More Rewards offer

As you are likely aware, back at the start of May WestJet released a promotion for the remainder of the year for flying to provinces outside your home province. The more provinces you visit the more bonus dollars you receive. If you fly to 10 province/territories you'll earn 1,000 dollars in total bonuses! As we mentioned when the promotion launched we were particularly excited about it as we worked with WestJet Rewards to develop the promotion!

One question that came up about the promotion was whether bookings made prior to May 1st would count as the terms and conditions do state new bookings only. Well we already had some bookings made prior to that date and are happy to announce they counted! On a quick round trip between Calgary and Abbotsford the first two steps of the bonus posted for me even though the flights were booked way back in January:

From above you'll see that I earned my base WestJet dollars of 30 dollars for the round trip (that's at the 5% earn rate for having WestJet Gold Status) and I received the 10 bonus for visiting one province and the 15 bonus for returning home. Super easy way to earn 25 more WestJet dollars on flights I had already booked. All told with the bonus and elite earn on the flights my return was 9%. Not bad at all.

Bottom line, if you have not registered for this promotion do so now. Perhaps you haven't as you have one flight planned and that was booked before May 2nd. Well the good news is you'll earn the bonus so go register!

Have your earning story featured!
Not only are Rewards Canada Earning Stories featured in this series, we want to feature your stories as well! Have you earned a lot of points or miles by utilizing offers posted on Rewards Canada? We would love to hear about them and potentially feature them here on Rewards Canada. Tell us your earning story by emailing us the details of what you earned, screenshots if possible of those points/miles posting and what offer on Rewards Canada you took advantage of. Email it to us info@rewardscanada.ca

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WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard
$250 WestJet dollars Bonus + Annual $99/$299/$399 Companion Flight when you sign up for and receive the WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard.
- Earn 1.5% back in WestJet dollars on every purchase you make with your card
- Earn 2% back in WestJet dollars when you purchase WestJet flights or WestJet Vacations packages with your card
- Companion flight vouchers are an annual benefit.
- First bag free for the primary cardholder up to 8 people traveling on the same reservation to anywhere WestJet flies!