Wednesday, December 5, 2018
Choice Privileges: Double Points on all stays until February 15, 19
With Choice Privileges you can expect two type of systemwide bonus offers. Either the Earn A Free Night/Gift Card offer or the Double Points promotion. Seeing that fall was the Earn a Free night promotion it is only fitting that winter sees the Double Points offer! Right now until the middle of February you can earn Double Privileges Points on all eligible stays as long as you maintain a U.S. or Canadian residency.
Offer details
Double Privileges Points when you stay at participating Choice Hotels Worldwide. Members must book stays via ChoiceHotels.com, ChoiceHotels.ca, the Choice Hotels mobile app, or 800.4CHOICE at qualifying rates. A maximum of 30,000 bonus points, can be earned during the promotion. Full details, online registration and booking (Registration is required) Until Feb 15, 19
Restrictions
For Residents of the U.S. and Canada only
Choice Hotels properties in the following countries are excluded from this promotion: Japan, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Guyana, and Ecuador.
Find many more Choice Privileges Bonus Point offers here!
Monday, December 3, 2018
December 3 Update: Earn bonus miles with Aeroplan eStore's 12 Days of Gifting, WestJet moves St. John's-Dublin service to Halifax & more!
Continuing with the Holiday shopping theme Aeroplan launched their latest promotion for shopping via the eStore today. Called the 12 Day of Gifting, the promotion will see bonus miles being offered each day for different retailers. For example today it is 8x the miles for Hudson Bay purchases. Tomorrow it will be Etsy (the bonus will be revealed tomorrow) and so on. Here are the retailers that will be participating so make sure you mark it on your calendar if there is a specific one you were planning to shop at! Find out more here. As always check out our Top 6 tips for maximizing miles & points earning on your holiday shopping for more tips!
Next year WestJet will replace their St. John's to Dublin flight with a Halifax to Dublin flight. This is unfortunate for those in Newfoundland as WestJet moves to consolidate more travel out of Halifax. The flights out of YHZ will launch late in April with Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft. (Source Routesonline)
Finally if you travel to or through Charlotte you'll be excited to learn that the airport is slated to get an American Express Centurion lounge in fall of 2019. Access of course is granted to Centurion or Platinum Card holders. (Source Doctor of Credit) Now when will Amex open up their first Centurion lounge in Canada? Let me correct that, in Toronto....
It's the season of giving! Help support Rewards Canada's Flight Here campaign for Give A Mile. Help us reach 100,000 miles to provide up to 4 flights of compassion. Find out more here!
Posts since our last update:
- Edmonton to Europe in Business Class for as little as 53,000 miles round trip with the latest Flying Blue Promo Rewards
The newest set of Air France KLM's Promo Rewards are out now and for this month we see three…
- WestJet's first 787 revenue flight is slated for Toronto to Calgary on February 20
For all our Avgeek and WestJet fans here is the news you have been waiting for. WestJet has filed…
Hilton Winter Sale - Save up to 25% on weekend stays in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa
Remember to visit Rewards Canada's Travel Booking site to book travel directly with many of your favourite airlines, hotels and more!
Canadian Bonus Offers
Air Canada Aeroplan
- Earn up to 10X Aeroplan Miles when you shop online via the Aeroplan eStore during the 12 Days of Gifting promotion. More... Until Dec 15, 18
Air France KLM Flying Blue
- December Promo Rewards - Save 20% to 50% on the Award Miles usually required for an award ticket. Destinations vary by each promotional period. More... Book by Dec 31 for travel Feb 1 - Mar 31,19
Other Bonus Offers
American AAdvantage
- OFFER EXTENDED Triple AAdvantage Miles per stay at La Quinta properties in the U.S., Mexico, Central America and Canada. More... Until Mar 31, 19
IHG Rewards Club
- Earn up to 10,000 bonus IHG Rewards Club points when you book two nights or more at participating new IHG Hotels in North America. More... Until Jan 31, 19
Follow Rewards Canada:
Edmonton to Europe in Business Class for as little as 53,000 miles round trip with the latest Flying Blue Promo Rewards
The newest set of Air France KLM's Promo Rewards are out now and for this month we see three of five Canadian cities they serve on the list. With promo awards the discount ranges from 20 to 50% off the regular amount of miles required to redeem for these flights. As you can see just by the discount this can be a very good offer if you get 50% off for Business Class! This month Edmonton gets lucky with 50% off business class tickets! Meanwhile the other cities see 25% off in business class
Offer details
December Promo Rewards - Save 20% to 50% on the Award Miles usually required for an award ticket. Destinations vary by each promotional period. Full Details
Book by Dec 31 for travel Feb 1 - Mar 31, 19
Canadian cities included this month:
Edmonton - 50% off business class
Montreal - 25% off business class
Vancouver - 25% off business class
Here are the mileage requirements for flying from the three Canadian cities to Amsterdam and/or Paris (the mileage amount will vary for other destinations in Europe)
And an example of some of the availability from Edmonton to Amsterdam:
Here's what a round trip on the above route looks like:
But there are better opportunities for less miles for the business class offer from Edmonton
Some other cities we have found at various levels below the Amsterdam/Paris rates.
If you don't have any Marriott Rewards Points you can always look at getting the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express to top off your account. Currently the card comes with a 50,000 point sign up bonus when you spend $1,500 on the card and then you could also grab The Starwood Preferred Guest Business Credit Card from American Express as it also has 50,000 point sign up bonus and then you would ultimately be able to have 100,000 points not including what is earned on spending. Of course timing of getting the card(s) now, spending and getting the points will likely not happen for this month but it sets you up for future offers. Need to grab two tickets for an itinerary? You could choose to get one SPG card for yourself and one for your partner or spouse and you'll have a lot more points!
WestJet's first 787 revenue flight is slated for Toronto to Calgary on February 20
For all our Avgeek and WestJet fans here is the news you have been waiting for. WestJet has filed the information for their first revenue Boeing 787 flight. As was much expected it will be between Toronto and Calgary as the plane will be based in Toronto to start with since the new 787 hanger in Calgary won't be ready yet.
The first 787 flight is now scheduled to fly flight 655 on February 20 from Toronto to Calgary. Departing at 9am, the flight is already bookable and WestJet seems to know this will be a popular flight as the fares are running from $853 in Economy class to $1474 in Business Class!
Compare this the non 787 flights that day:
and the plane isn't even close to full yet as you can see by this screenshot of part of the economy class:
and Business Class is pretty much wide open:
If you are planning on being on this flight I would arrive early as there will more than likely be some festivities before hand to celebrate this first revenue flight and more than likely there will be something you can take home as well to commemorate the event!
The return flight from Calgary to Toronto is WestJet 670 that will depart YYC at 13:30 and it's pricing out slightly better than the outbound flight:
The plane will operate flights 655/670 until April 27 and will also operate 669/662 as of April 8 (Source Routesonline)
Are you thinking of jumping on this first flight or any of the early 787 flights between YYZ and YYC? If so let us know in the comments below!
Thursday, November 29, 2018
November 29 Update: World of Hyatt officially adds Small Luxury Hotels of the World to the program and earn Double Elite Qualifying Miles on Emirates flights
As we reported back at the start of August, Hyatt Hotels announced a partnership with Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH) for their World of Hyatt program. That partnership officially went live today! World of Hyatt members who stay at SLH hotels (booking must be made via a Hyatt booking channel) will earn 5 points per US$1 spent plus a tier qualifying night for every night stay. In addition to the earning members will enjoy the following benefits at participating SLH hotels:
- Complimentary continental breakfast
- Complimentary Wi-Fi
- Early check-in 12:00pm (based on availability at check-in)
- Late check-out 2:00pm (based on availability at check-in)
- One category room upgrade (based on availability at check-in)
Learn all about the partnership here
Added to our bonus offers section today a great bonus offer from Emirates Skywards. If you book any flights with Emirates by December 3 for travel until the end of March you'll earn double elite qualifying tier miles! Find out more here.
It's the season of giving! Help support Rewards Canada's Flight Here campaign for Give A Mile. Help us reach 100,000 miles to provide up to 4 flights of compassion. Find out more here!
Posts since our last update:
- Qatar Airways Privilege Club: Earn up to 10,000 Bonus QMiles and a fast track to elite status when you join & fly
Here's a great offer for the Qatar Airways Privilege Club program. When you join the program and complete your…
- Redemption Stories: Utilizing the BMO AIR MILES World Elite Mastercard Companion Flight Benefit
Rewards Canada reader Jim M. provided a comment on our post Travel Hacking 102 - Earn up to 4,300+…
- The Ultimate Flight Companion Pass Credit Card portfolio
Image courtesy of British Airways Today we released the 15th Ultimate Credit Card Portfolio on Rewards Canada! In this feature…
Enjoy 25% off stays at the Shangri-la Hotel Toronto Book by Dec 31 for stays until Mar 31. Find out more here!
Hilton Winter Sale - Save up to 25% on weekend stays in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa
Remember to visit Rewards Canada's Travel Booking site to book travel directly with many of your favourite airlines, hotels and more!
Canadian Bonus Offers
Air Canada Aeroplan
- Double Aeroplan Miles when you use Park & Jet at the Calgary Airport. More... Until Dec 31, 18
Other Bonus Offers
AeroMexico Club Premier
- 6,000 Premier Points for stays at Choice Hotels in Mexico. More... Until Dec 31, 18
Alitalia MilleMiglia
- Up to a 30% discount when you buy or gift MilleMiglia Miles. More... Until Dec 23, 18
Avis Preferred
- Receive a Free Day Rental Award when you rent twice with Avis for two or more days in the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico or U.S.V.I. More... Targeted offer - may not work for everyone Until Feb 28, 19
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- Double Asia Miles on all hotel bookings made via Hotels.com. More... Book by Dec 31, 18 for stays until Feb, 19
Emirates Skywards
- Double Skywards Tier Miles when you fly in any class to any destination across the Emirates and flydubai network. More... Register & book by Dec 3 for travel until Mar 31, 19
Ethiopian ShebaMiles
- Double ShebaMiles when you fly Ethiopian between Addis Ababa and Manchester. More... Dec 11 - Feb 10, 19
EVA Air Infinity MileageLands
- Earn up to 2,000 Bonus Infinity MileageLands miles when you fly on any EVA/UNI Air flight. More... Until Dec 15, 18
Finnair Plus
- Earn up to 50% Bonus Plus Points when you buy Plus points. More... Until Dec 9, 18
Qatar Airways Privilege Club
- Earn up to 10,000 Bonus QMiles and a fast track to elite status when you join Privilege Club and fly on Qatar Airways. More... Join by Mar 31 for flights until May 31, 19
Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus
- Earn up to Triple ROP Miles for stays at participating Accor Hotels in Southeast Asia and Worldwide. More... Until Dec 31, 18
- Earn up to 3x ROP Miles on Hertz rentals of 3+ days in Thailand. More... Until Dec 31,18
Follow Rewards Canada:
Qatar Airways Privilege Club: Earn up to 10,000 Bonus QMiles and a fast track to elite status when you join & fly
Here's a great offer for the Qatar Airways Privilege Club program. When you join the program and complete your first flight you'll receive up to 10,000 bonus QMiles. What's even better is there is a fast track to elite status with this offer. You could potentially receive Privilege Club Gold Elite status with just one return flight out of Montreal to places beyond Doha in business class! For example, YUL-SIN can earn up to 266 Qpoints!
Offer details:
Earn up to 10,000 Bonus QMiles and a fast track to elite status when you join Privilege Club and fly on Qatar Airways. Full details, online registration and booking. (Registration is required) Join by Mar 31 for flights until May 31, 19
Earn 10,000 bonus Qmiles in Premium Class or 5,000 bonus Qmiles in Economy Class upon your first flight.
If you earn 100 Qpoints on flights taken between 20 November 2018 till 31 May 2019, you will be upgraded to Silver Tier. Earn 200 Qpoints and receive Gold Tier status.
Find many more Privilege Club Bonus QMiles offers here!
Redemption Stories: Utilizing the BMO AIR MILES World Elite Mastercard Companion Flight Benefit
Rewards Canada reader Jim M. provided a comment on our post Travel Hacking 102 - Earn up to 4,300+ AIR MILES Rewards Miles for FREE with a potential value of over $1,300 in travel (Updated Nov 21, 18) and how he has leveraged just one of these offers for an amazing redemption story. This ties in perfectly with our latest Ultimate Credit Card Portfolio that came out earlier in the week that focuses on companion passes! We'll pass it off to Jim now!
Here is a good example of how we have been able to receive amazing value from AIR MILES. I applied for the BMO AIR MILES World Elite Mastercard last month. It offers first year free, 3,000 AIR MILES Rewards Miles on a minimum spend of $3,000 which in turn produces 3,300 Air Miles. The card also brings a 15% reduction in AIR MILES award flight mile requirements for travel within North America and a one time free companion benefit.
I received the card and am in the process of completing the minimum spend. Last week I booked return flights between Sudbury and Vancouver for the spring. The mileage cost was 7,200 Air Miles for two, reduced by the 15% the card provides so in the end the redemption was 6,120 AIR MILES Reward Miles.. The companion benefit will see 3,060 miles returned to my account so the net miles cost is only 3,060! That’s 240 less than the sign-up bonus on the card and the earnings for the minimum spend.
The taxes and fees for two return tickets YSB-YVR were $287. The lowest price I could find for two between YSB and YVR return flights on the same dates of our travel was $1,471. The immediate dollar value of the miles earned from this card is therefore $1,184!
Not bad for one card, not bad for our tertiary travel program. In the end we are receiving about 39 cents of value per AIR MILE on this booking thanks to the companion voucher. AIR MILES, used carefully, is a very valuable option for ‘free’ travel.
This kind of specific use of AIR MILES allows us to save most of our Aeroplan Miles and British Airways Avios for long haul, intercontinental Business Class travel which is where the real value of those programs lies. We also save Avios for travel within South America where LATAM doesn't have scam charges. Qantas is similar in Australia for us.
And a tip from Jim:
When we get new cards we tend to concentrate all our spending on the new card until minimum spend amounts have been reached. All our spending, even a Starbucks coffee, goes on that card. We occasionally plan to get a new card with a high minimum spend just in advance of a major payment. I pay off our cards daily online from our bank accounts and almost never carry a balance on a card. It is the easiest way to manage them and ensure we never miss a payment. We do not use any manufactured spend techniques to meet our minimum spend requirements.
Editors note/tip:
This redemption story from Jim provides insight to an often forgotten value of the AIR MILES and even the Aeroplan program. That is using miles and points for domestic flights out of smaller Canadian cities that tend to be expensive to fly out of. Sudbury is a famous one that always shows up on forums like FlyerTalk. Basically any small town or city that has only one major airline serving it tends to be more expensive which equates to better value for your miles and points, even more so than for international flights and remember it doesn't take as long to collect enough miles for most domestic flights!
Tuesday, November 27, 2018
The Ultimate Flight Companion Pass Credit Card portfolio
Image courtesy of British Airways |
Today we released the 15th Ultimate Credit Card Portfolio on Rewards Canada!
In this feature of Rewards Canada's Ultimate Credit Card Portfolios we look at the ultimate one for those who like to travel with companions and want to save on that travel. This portfolio looks at credit cards in the Canadian market that offer companion pass vouchers. That is, a benefit where you can buy one ticket (or redeem miles for a ticket) and get a second ticket for free or at a reduced price. Of course the cards included offer other benefits beyond companion passes that should also be taken into account when selecting cards. So with that said what are the best choices for a companion pass wallet? Read the complete feature here to find out!
Find all our Ultimate Card Portfolios here!
Monday, November 26, 2018
November 26 Update: Air Canada enters into definitive agreement to buy Aeroplan, new Orbitz Rewards elite benefits and more
Looks like one more step has been completed in Air Canada's steps to purchase Aeroplan from Aimia. Today it was announced that both companies have sign a definitive agreement for Air Canada to purchase the program and that Air Canada looks to close the deal as soon as possible after the approval by Aimia shareholders. It is expected that the deal will close in January of 2019. Air Canada signed deals with TD, CIBC and Visa to be the payment card providers of the new Aeroplan and to a our surprise the airline is apparently is in talks to keep American Express on board as well (that would be awesome!) (Source Aimia and CBC)
Orbitz Rewards has added new benefits for Platinum Elite members. Platinum members can choose from either TSA Pre✔® or LoungeBuddy -- at no cost to them. For Canadian members it will have to be LoungeBuddy since TSA Pre✔® membership is for U.S. residents only. Find out more here
It's the season of giving! Help support Rewards Canada's Flight Here campaign for Give A Mile. Help us reach 100,000 miles to provide up to 4 flights of compassion. Find out more here!
Posts since our last update:
- NOW LIVE: IHG Rewards Club PointBreaks - 108 Hotels (2 in Canada) for only 5,000 to 15,000 points per night until Feb 28, 19
The latest IHG Rewards Club PointBreaks hotels are now available for booking! We didn't get any previews this time…
- A Guide to Shopping Small with American Express
There’s no denying the fact that some of the best reward cards in Canada are offered by American Express and…
- IHG Rewards Club Cyber Sale offers: 10k bonus points with Ambassador, 15% off cash+points, 50% bonus on bonus point packages
In addition to the actual stay offer of at least 25% off the Best Flexible Rate at participating IHG…
Hilton Waikiki Village Cyber Sale - Save up to 25% for stays Dec 1 to Jun 30. Book by Nov 26. Find out more here
Enjoy 25% off stays at the Shangri-la Hotel Toronto Book by Dec 31 for stays until Mar 31. Find out more here!
Hilton Winter Sale - Save up to 25% on weekend stays in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa
Radisson Hotels Cyber Week Offer - 30% off weekends until Aug 31, 19 at participating Hotels of Radisson Collection, Radisson Blu, Radisson RED, Radisson, Park Inn by Radisson in Europe, Middle East and Africa. (also available weekdays between April 5 and May 6) Book by Nov 27, 18 Find out more here
Remember to visit Rewards Canada's Travel Booking site to book travel directly with many of your favourite airlines, hotels and more!
Canadian Bonus Offers
N/A
Other Bonus Offers
Alitalia MilleMiglia
- 2,500 Bonus MilleMiglia Miles for Avis rentals of 3 or more days in Italy. More... Until Dec 22, 18
Choice Privileges
- Receive Choice Privileges Gold Elite status when you complete two qualifying stays at any Cambria® Hotels property. More... Until Feb 28, 19
IHG Rewards Club
- IHG Rewards Club PointBreaks Redeem only 5,000 to 15,000 points for stays at select hotels Worldwide. Offer and participating hotels are subject to change at any time. More... Until Feb 28, 19
Marriott Rewards
- Earn up to 5,000 Bonus Rewards Points for stays at participating Marriott hotels in London. More... Until Dec 31, 18
Follow Rewards Canada: