Monday, March 2, 2020

Amex Shop Small promotion returns for March - earn $5 credits or 300 bonus Membership Rewards points

Amex's awesome Shop Small offer is back again for this month!  Last seen in November & December the offer once again does not have a dedicated landing and registration page for four cities in Canada. The offers are actually listed in the Amex Offers section on the Amex Canada app or online when you log in to your account. It is still limited to small business merchants in Calgary, Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver as well as having a cap on the number of cardmembers who can register for the offer.

As seen during the Christmas holiday season we once again have multiple offers depending on the cardholder. It looks like you can receive the $5 statement credit offer or 300 bonus Membership Rewards points.



The statement credit version is awarded for purchases of $10 or more from up to 5 different retailers for a total of $25. This one is limited to the first 13,000 members who register.



The bonus points offer awards 300 bonus Membership Rewards points on each $10 purchase at a participating Shop Small merchant up to 5 times. That means you can earn 1,500 bonus Membership Rewards points in total with this offer. This one is limited to the first 5,000 members who register.

If you aren't familiar with American Express' Shop Small program we have a feature to help you out:  A step by step guide to the American Express Shop Small Program

Also if you aren't that familiar with Amex Offers I recommend reading our Guide to American Express Canada 'Amex Offers'

Ideally, those looking to maximize the offer will only spend $10 at each location to come out with what is essentially a 50% discount (if you have the $5 offer) or a minimum savings of $3 if you have the points offer. The points can be worth more than $3 depending on what you redeem them on however.

For this incarnation, we received the $5 offers on the Platinum Card from American Express and Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card and the 300 points offer on the Gold Rewards Card  and Cobalt Card.

This offer runs until March 31 and to find out what merchants are participating you just have to go to the American Express Shop Small website and look for the Shop Small icon beside the merchant:



You can also choose to filter for only the merchants that are participating in the offer by checking off the Shop Small Offer box:


Just a reminder that there aren't dedicated landing pages for the offers this time. You have to access them via Amex Offers on the app or Amex Canada website.

Happy shopping!

March 2 Update: Best Western Rewards extending elite status for all members to 2022, 50% discount on transferring Aeroplan Miles and a lot of new bonus offers



Another hotel chain has come out with a great loyalty move in light of the Coronavirus scare. Best Western Rewards just announced that all of its members globally will maintain their current status through January 31, 2022 without needing to fulfill the necessary qualifications. In addition, BWR® members who suffered a downgrade at the end of 2019, as a result of restricted travel, will be leveled-up to their previous tier and will maintain that status through January 31, 2022 without needing the necessary qualification. We discuss this trend of extending status in our latest podcast, however at that time most chains were only extending status for residents of China or those who travelled to China or Asia frequently. Both Shangri-La Hotels and Best Western have gone beyond this offer with extensions to everyone globally. (Source Best Western)
"All BWR members worldwide are eligible for elite status protection and no action is required on the part of the member. Status will be maintained for all members regardless of their current tier, ensuring both new and veteran members are protected at this time."
Image via Best Western


Aeroplan is offering a special for transferring miles to other members. Normally it costs 2 cents per mile to transfer however until March 16 they have halved the cost to 1 cent per miles. Ideally you don't want to transfer miles however if a family member perhaps doesn't earn many miles and is sitting on a few thousand that can put you over the hump for an award ticket then it might make sense to pay for the transfer. Find out more here.
 Image via Aeroplan

Also on the Aeroplan news front. As of yesterday there was small change to mileage accumulation on Avianca. Basically you'll earn less miles in booking class S and no miles for booking class U. (Source Aeroplan)

All Destinations (Excluding domestic Colombia, Peru, Ecuador & Intra-Central America§)

  1. Earn 25% of the miles you fly in booking class S. For travel until February 29, 2020, earn 50%.
  2. Booking class U will no longer be eligible for accumulation. For travel until February 29, 2020, earn 50%
    Domestic Colombia, Peru, Ecuador & Intra-Central America §
  3. Booking class U will no longer be eligible for accumulation. For travel until February 29, 2020, earn 25%.

And one more update to our American Express Cobalt Card Confirmed Multiplier Locations listing. Pearl Hot Pot in Burnaby has been added thanks to Charly Y.

Posts since our last update:

Travel Deals

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

Scotia Rewards
-30,000 Bonus Scotia Rewards Points when you apply for, receive and spend $1,000 in the first three months with the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card. More... Until Jul 1, 20

Other Bonus Offers

Choice Hotels Privileges
- Earn up to 8,000 Bonus Privileges Points after every two separate qualifying stays at participating Choice Hotels Worldwide. More... For residents of the U.S. and Canada only Mar 7 - Apr 26, 20

Eurowings Boomerang Club
- Double Boomerang Miles when you fly to or from any Greek Island. More... Book by Mar 31 for travel until May 31, 20
- Triple Boomerang Miles for stays at GHOTELS in Germany. More... Until Mar 31, 20

Hyatt World of Hyatt
- 500 Bonus World of Hyatt points for stays at the Hyatt House Frankfurt Eschborn More... Until May 30, 20
- 500 Bonus World of Hyatt points for stays at the Hyatt House Nashville / Downtown - SoBro More... Until May 30, 20
Marriott Bonvoy
- 1,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT at the TownePlace Suites Lafayette South. More... Until Apr 24, 20
- 500 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT for stays at the AC Hotel Bridgewater. More... Until May 24, 20
- 500 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT on Friday-Sunday nights at the Courtyard Bucharest Floreasca More... Until Mar 22, 20
- 1,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points for stays at the Delta Hotels Baltimore Hunt Valley. More... Until Mar 25, 20
- Earn 1,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT when you stay 2+ nights Thursday-Sunday at the Four Points by Sheraton Los Angeles Westside. More... Until May 2, 20
- 1,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points for stays on Thursday-Sunday nights (Friday or Saturday required) at the Courtyard Madison West/Middleton More... Until Apr 30, 20
- 2,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points for stays at the Fairfield Inn & Suites Sheboygan, More... Until Mar 31, 20
- 3,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT for stays at the SpringHill Suites Denver Downtown. More... Until Mar 31, 20
- Earn up to 20,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points for stays at the TownePlace Suites Milwaukee Brookfield More... Until Apr 22, 20
- 10,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points when you stay 2+ nights in a Standard or Resort View Room at the Playa Largo Resort & Spa, Autograph Collection Key Largo. More... Mar 2 - Apr 2, 20
- 2,500 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT for stays at any one of 8 Marriott Hotels in Maryland. More... Until Apr 30, 20
- 1,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT at the Courtyard Toledo North More... Until Mar 28, 20
- 5,000 Bonus Bonvoy points for stays of 6+ nights at the Residence Inn Dallas by the Galleria. More... Until Mar 31, 20
- 1,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT at the Spartanburg Marriott More... Until Mar 31, 20
- Earn up to 200,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points for stays at the The Jaffa, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Tel Aviv More... Until Mar 27, 20
- Earn up to 4,500 Bonus Bonvoy Points for stays at the Grand Hotel River Park, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Bratislava More... Until Mar 22, 20
- 4,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT at the Residence Inn Big Sky/The Wilson Hotel More... Until Mar 31, 20

Miles & More
- 2,500 Miles & More Miles when you rent with Sixt for 3 or more days Worldwide More... Until Mar 31, 20

SriLankan FlySmiles
- Earn up to 3x FlySmiles when you rent with Hertz for 1 or more days in USA, Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. More... Until Apr 30, 20

Stash Hotel Rewards
- Double Stash Rewards Points for stays Sunday - Thursday at The Cedar House Sport Hotel Truckee. More... Until Apr 16, 20
- Double Stash Rewards Points for stays at the Knob Hill Inn Ketchum. More... Until May 31, 20
- Double Stash Rewards Points for stays at The Firebrand Hotel Whitefish. More... Until Apr 4, 20


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New Hyatt Hotel Openings in Canada for 2020 - 6 hotels confirmed + the reopening of the Park Hyatt Toronto


Continuing on with our new hotel openings in Canada series we now take a look at what Hyatt has planned for 2020.

Out of the major hotel chains, Hyatt Hotels are one of the smallest with less then 1,000 hotels globally and their presence in Canada reflects that with less than a dozen hotels operating here.  This number is changing relatively fast, it was only a couple of years ago when they only had four hotels across our country and they are really looking to expand that number.

The Hyatt family of hotels include the following brands of which you'll currently find Park Hyatt, Hyatt Regency, Andaz and Hyatt Place in Canada. World of Hyatt members also have access to Trout Point Lodge in Nova Scotia via Hyatt's partnership with Small Luxury Hotels of the World.

 
For 2020 we have six more confirmed Hyatt openings including the first Hyatt House in Canada:
The slated opening dates are subject to change
Rendering of the new Hyatt House Winnipeg South Outlet Colletcion

Also being mentioned quite a bit and what is the most anticipated Hyatt news for Canada for 2020 will be the reopening of the Park Hyatt Toronto.  The iconic hotel that is over 80 years old is slated to re-open in October of this year.

Rendering of the renovated Park Hyatt Toronto - Image via the Globe & Mail

Earlier in the year Hyatt came out with the news that they are planning to open nearly 200 more hotels in North America by 2022 and Canada factors in to that number with some decent numbers. By that time we should have close to two dozen Hyatt hotels in Canada including a Hyatt Regency in Niagara Falls.
 
It is nice to see Hyatt continuing to expand their presence here in Canada by adding these hotels. It will give all us Canadian World Of Hyatt members more places to earn points that aren't off in far flung destinations!

Remember to take advantage of all the possible World Of Hyatt bonus points offers if you plan on staying at any of these new Hyatt hotels or any other Hyatt hotels for that matter! Right now at the time of posting World of Hyatt is running Bonus Journeys where you can earn Double World of Hyatt Points with each stay starting with your second qualifying stay. You can find all the promotions listed on our World Of Hyatt Bonus Points page. 

Are you excited about any of the new Hyatt hotels opening up this year? Are there any locations or brands you'd like to see in your neck of the woods? Let us know in the comments below.



Other posts in our 2020 series of new hotel openings in Canada:


All images courtesy of Hyatt unless otherwise noted

Choice Hotels: Earn up to 8,000 bonus Privileges points when you complete 2 stays Worldwide from Mar 7 – Apr 26


Choice Hotels spring promotion is here and…… it is the same offer we always see from them! They word the promotions differently in terms of get a free night or get a $50 gift card. In the end the promos are the same, they will award you enough bonus points after you complete 2 separate stays to have 8,000 points after those stays. This time it is being promoted as the free night offer as those 8,000 points can be redeemed for a free night at select Choice Hotels around the world.

Offer details:
Earn up to 8,000 Bonus Privileges Points after every two separate qualifying stays at participating Choice Hotels Worldwide. Full details, online registration & booking (Registration is required) Mar 7 – Apr 26, 20
For residents of the U.S. and Canada only


Registered members will be awarded a minimum of 5,000 to a maximum of 8,000 bonus points after the second qualifying stay. The number of bonus points awarded depends on the number of base points earned from the two separate qualifying stays, with points varying by hotel. The total of base points plus bonus points awarded, however, will be at least 8,000 points, which is the number of points required for a future free night at over 1,000 Choice® hotels worldwide

New increased welcome bonus of 30,000 points for the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card


The Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card sees the return of its limited increased sign up bonus today. Right now when you apply for the card you'll earn 30,000 points when you spend $1,000 in the first three months of having the card.  This is 5,000 more points than the standard offer of 25,000 points that the card normally comes with.

The current offer is being promoted as up to 40,000 points in the first year but that includes the standard extra bonus of 10,000 points if you spend $40,000 or more on the card annually. So technically the sign up bonus is only 30,000 points but that alone is worth $300 towards any travel. No matter what, it is nice to see this small increase on the card that we ranked as the number 2 travel points credit card with annual fee in our 20 credit card rankings. This is a well rounded card whose main benefit that everyone likes on the card is the no foreign transaction fees! Here are the main highlights of this card:

  • No FX mark-up on foreign transactions made on purchases abroad. Only the exchange rate applies. Most cards charge 2.5% and currently, no other major financial institution in Canada offers a credit card with no FX Mark-Up.
  • 2x the points on grocery, dining, entertainment and daily transit (including buses, subways, taxis, Ubers and more) - we see this as taking quite a few cards in the first three categories but most notably American Express' Cobalt Card as it was the first card to have a multiplier on Transit
  • Priority Pass Annual Membership with 6 lounge visits
  • The card will earn 1 Scotia Rewards point per dollar spent outside of the categories listed above.
  • The card also provides an annual bonus of 10,000 points if you spend $40,000 or more on the card per year. 
  •  It comes with Comprehensive Travel Insurances: Travel Emergency Medical, Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption. 
  • Annual fee of $139 and no fees on the first additional card 

Friday, February 28, 2020

February 28 Update: 35K offer for the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card extended, earn 2x Mileage Plan Miles for Coast Hotels stays & more!


The awesome 35,000 point welcome bonus for the RBC Avion Visa Infinite card was supposed to end today but the great news is that is has been extended to March 31. You access the offer here or check out our post on the offer here. Also this means our other post on How to score 700 WestJet dollars for $240 is valid for another month!


There's another Coast Hotels bonus to let you know about! Yesterday it was the More Rewards offer (and the Hawaiian Airlines offer on FFB) and today we added one for Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan. Looks like Coast is on big push right now! I'm guessing we should be seeing an Aeroplan bonus anytime soon as well. The Alaska Airlines offers is double Mileage Plan miles on all stays from March 27 - April 30. Learn more about the offer here.

Posts since our last update:

Travel Deals

Fairmont Chateau Whistler 96 Hour Sale - Save up to 30% on stays until the end of April

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
- 50% Bonus Aeroplan Miles when you park at participating Park’N Fly locations. More... Until Apr 30, 20
- Earn up to 35,000 Bonus Aeroplan miles when you apply for and receive the CIBC Aerogold® Visa Infinite* Card. Plus, get a first-year annual fee rebate! More... Until Jul 5, 20

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
- Double Mileage Plan Miles when you book direct and stay at any Coast Hotel in Canada or the U.S. More... Book now for stays Mar 27 - Apr 30, 20

Marriott Bonvoy
- 2,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points per stay at the Four Points by Sheraton Edmonton Gateway. More... Until May 7, 20

Other Bonus Offers



American AAdvantage
- 4,000 Bonus AAdvantage Miles when you make your first hotel booking via Rocketmiles. More... Until Dec 31, 20

IHG Rewards Club
- Triple IHG Rewards Club Points or Airline Miles for stay at the Staybridge Suites Merrillville More... Until Mar 31, 20

Marriott Bonvoy
- OFFER EXTENDED Earn 10,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points for stays of 2+ nights at any one of 5 Marriott Hotels in Paris. More... Until Mar 20, 20
- 2,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT at the Moxy Louisville Downtown. More... Until Apr 30, 20
- 2,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT at The Westin Buffalo. More... Until Mar 31, 20
- 2,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points for stays at the Delta Hotel Burlington More... Until Apr 30, 20

Qatar Airways Privilege Club
- 50% QMiles discount when you book Qatar Airways award tickets between Doha and Cebu More... Book by Mar 19 for travel Apr 8 - May 31, 20

United MileagePlus
- $300 off and earn up to 10,000 Bonus MileagePlus Miles per adult member when you book a 3+ night air+hotel package to Hawaii. . More... Book by Mar 5for travel until Oct 31, 20

WorldHotels Rewards
- OFFER EXTENDED Quadruple Rewards Points for stays at all participating WorldHotels locations Worldwide. More... Until Apr 30, 20


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OFFER EXTENDED RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card - 35,000 points upon approval, no minimum spend requirement



UPDATE: THIS OFFER HAS BEEN EXTENDED TO MARCH 31, 2020

The credit card market here in Canada continues to heat up with great acquisition offers. The latest that launched yesterday  is RBC's new offer for their flagship card the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card. The new offer is a flat 35,000 RBC Rewards Points that get this - are awarded on approval - no minimum spend, no spend this much each month over this many months. You simply have to be approved for the card and the bonus is yours. Yes you do have to pay the annual fee of $120 but it is more than worth with the value of the bonus and the fact you get the points in your first billing period. No waiting 3 months, 6 months or longer. You can travel a lot sooner with this bonus.

Here is what the 35,000 points will get you:

  • One economy class flight anywhere in Canada or the U.S. (Hawaii and Alaska excluded) or two economy class flights to a neighbouring province or state when redeeming via the RBC Avion Air Travel Redemption schedule. Taxes and fees are not included but you can redeem points towards them at 100 points to $1 rate or just pay for them with your credit card
  • $350 credit towards any other travel booked via RBC Rewards (100 points = $1)
  • Convert the 35,000 points to WestJet Rewards at a 100 to 1 ratio. This means the offer provides 350 WestJet dollars. Several times per year RBC also offers a bonus when you transfer to WestJet. That bonus tends to be 10% so these 35,000 points could be converted to 385 WestJet dollars or more if the bonus is higher
  • Convert the 35,000 points to British Airways Executive Club at a 1:1 ratio. 35,000 Avios will get you an economy class flight between Toronto and Dublin (as little as 26,000 Avios required) or a whole slew of other flight options. RBC also offers transfer bonuses several times per year (which should see the next one around May or so) and those range from 30% to 50% meaning you could potentially have 52,500 Avios. 
Recommended reading: Utilizing British Airways' Executive Club for flights in North America
This is a pretty amazing offer considering there is no spending required at all other than paying your $120 annual fee. I expect a lot of uptake on this offer and if you are considering it you have until March 31 to apply for the card and get this bonus offer. Note the excerpt from the terms that I have listed below - there are restrictions for those who hold existing RBC products.

Find out more and apply for the card here.


T&C's Excerpt:
Additional cardholder(s), as well as existing RBC Avion Visa Infinite or RBC Avion Visa Platinum, Cathay Pacific‡ Visa Platinum, British Airways‡ Visa Infinite, RBC Rewards Visa Preferred, RBC Rewards+ Visa, RBC Avion Visa Infinite Privilege and RBC Avion Visa Infinite Privilege for Private Banking cardholders, applying for or transferring to an RBC Avion Visa Infinite card or RBC Avion Visa Platinum as of the offer eligibility period, are not eligible for this offer.


Air Canada Leap Year Sale - Save 25% on Economy Class Fares within Canada, to the U.S. and sun destinations


To celebrate the Leap Year Air Canada is offering 25% off within Canada, to the U.S. and sun destinations when you book flights in Economy class (Basic and Standard). The offer must be booked by March 1 for travel March 15 - December 15 and there are no black out dates! The promo code to use is LEAP2020.

Learn more about and book this sale here!

Here are some sample fares provided by Air Canada:



When you booking Air Canada make sure you use a credit card that will earn the most possible miles for the purchase like the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card or the CIBC Aerogold Visa Infinite Card (1.5 Aeroplan Miles per dollar), the Platinum Card from American Express or American Express Gold Rewards Card (2 Aeroplan Miles per dollar)

Be sure to also check out our Air Canada Aeroplan Bonus Miles offer page for lots of opportunities to earn more Aeroplan miles!

Thursday, February 27, 2020

February 27 Update: Shangri-La Hotels extending Golden Circle Elite status due to Coronavirus, Lufthansa to fly Calgary-Frankfurt with their Eurowings subsidiary & 5x More Rewards Points for Coast Hotels stays


If you listened to the latest Rewards Canada Podcast episode you'll have heard us discussing hotel loyalty programs extending elite status for members in China or those who travel to China frequently. Shangri-La Hotels is the latest to do so and they are going beyond just residents of or frequent travellers to China and giving all their elite members an extension of status. We received our status via the Platinum Card from American Express so it would automatically renew anyways but this still a great move by the hotel chain in just extending it for everyone!


Looks like the with the sale of Condor Airlines to Poland's LOT, Lufthansa will be bringing in their charter carrier Eurowings to the Calgary-Frankfurt route for the 2020 Summer season. It will operate 4x weekly for most of the season and can be booked directly with Lufthansa (great for Miles & More, Aeroplan and other Star Alliance members). Details aren't out yet if you can book direct with Eurowings and choose to credit to Eurowings' own loyalty program - the cool named Boomerang Club. We cover Boomerang Club on our global site (see that page here) and will add it shortly to the Rewards Canada site if it does become available. If I'm not mistaken this will be first city served in Canada by Eurowings. The flight will operate with an A330-200. (Source RoutesOnline)

Posts since our last update:

Travel Deals

Fairmont Chateau Whistler 96 Hour Sale - Save up to 30% on stays until the end of April

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

Marriott Bonvoy
- 1,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points per night and 15% off for stays on Thursday-Sunday nights (Friday or Saturday required) at the Residence Inn Montreal Airport. More... Until Apr 18, 20

 
More Rewards
- 5x More Rewards when you book direct and stay at any Coast Hotel in Canada or the U.S. More... Book now for stays Mar 1 - Apr 30, 20


Other Bonus Offers


China Airlines Dynasty Flyer
- Double Dynasty Flyer Miles when you fly between Taipei and Cebu More... Until Sep 30, 20
- Double Dynasty Flyer Miles when you fly between Taipei and Chiang Mai. More... Until Dec 15, 20
- Earn up to 2,000 Bonus Dynasty Flyer Miles when you fly between Taipei and Penang. More... Until Jun 14, 20
- Receive a Dynasty Flyer Miles Discount when you book award tickets for flights between Taipei and Penang. More... Until Jun 14, 20

Kaligo
- Double Miles/Points in the program of your choice on all hotel bookings made via Kaligo. More... Book by Mar 3 for stays until Aug 31, 20

Stash Hotel Rewards
- 500 Bonus Stash Rewards Points for stays at the El Cordova Hotel Coronado More... Until May 31, 20


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WestJet Seat Sale - $350 off Business fares to Europe, today only ($700 savings on round trip)


WestJet released a promo code that is only available for use today and that code offers $350 off business class fares to Europe. The code is good for travel until May 19 which means you can use on the following routes and dates:

Calgary or Toronto to London: Now - May 19, 2020
Vancouver to London: April 26 - May 19, 2020
Calgary to Paris: March 12 - May 19, 2020
Calgary to Dublin: May 3-19, 2020

It looks like the code works in both directions so the savings is actually $700. Here is Calgary to Paris from March 22 to 31:



Use P62ST42 when you book online at WestJet or simply visit this page on WestJet and the code will be automatically filled in for you.