Tuesday, June 16, 2020

Podcast Episode 68 - Clash of the Credit Cards - The Ten Percenters

Episode 68 - June 16, 2020
Clash of the Credit Cards - The Ten Percenters

In this episode we present to you our first Clash of the Credit Cards! This is the rehashing of our Credit Card Showdown and the first time that we make it into a podcast. We take the four major cash back credit cards in the Canadian market that are offering a 10% cash back welcome bonus on all spending and compare them to see what they all offer and in the end crown a champion of the clash!
 

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Monday, June 15, 2020

The 100% bonus for buying Hilton Honors points is back until July 15


Wow, it’s only been 12 days since Hilton’s 100% bonus on buying points ended and they have already brought it back to market. Not that it’s a bad thing! Once again it is a flat rate bonus of 100% when you buy 10,000 or more points. This means you are paying US$ 0.5 cents per point which can be easily redeemed at values of 0.8 cents or more!



Reward nights start out at only 5,000 points so you could potentially get a lot of nights out of this offer.

Also with travel curtailed we don’t say you should buy points speculatively right now but some of you are still needing to travel and could very well make use of this bonus. Or if you do want to speculate…..

Offer details:
100% Bonus when you buy 10,000 or more Hilton Honors points online. Buy points here Until Jul 15, 20

Remember as well that Hilton has extended their Points Unlimited promotion of earning 2,000 bonus points per stay until Sep 7.

Find our complete list of Hilton Honors offers right here
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June 15 Update: New Amex offer for goodfood, Fairmont Stay Close extended for Canadian mountain resorts and Flair & Swoop's summer flight schedules


Yet another excellent Amex offer came out today - this one is for the prepared meal service goodfood and provides a $20 statement credit when you spend $80 or more. Rewards Canada contributor Jeff W. let us know he got it on his Marriott Bonvoy card while in the Rewards Canada household we got it on the The Platinum Card and Cobalt Card. You can find the offer details and more on our Guide to American Express Canada 'Amex Offers'

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By now you should be very familiar with Fairmont's Stay Close offer as we've had probably close to half a dozen posts about the offer but wanted to pass along news that the booking window for the first four hotels to have the offer has been extended to June 22. Originally if you wanted to book the at the Fairmont Banff Springs, Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, Fairmont Chateau Lake Louiseand Fairmont Chateau Whistler. you had only until today (June 15) to get in on the offer. Now you have an additional week to make that decision! Learn more about the Stay Close offer here.

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Hotel occupancy rates in Canada climbed slightly for the week of June 2 to the 8 to 22.2%, the previous week was 21.4% however this is still down from 70.4% from the same period last year. Source HNN


 Airline Schedule Updates
This will now be a standard feature for the foreseeable future in our daily update posts as we summarize Canadian operations based on data from RoutesOnline and other sources. Remember that many of these route plans are subject to change and right now they are changing frequently!

Swoop has provided details on the routes they plan to fly when they relaunch flights on July 1. It will only operate four routes from that date until September 13. (Source: RoutesOnline)
Edmonton – Abbotsford 4 weekly
Hamilton – Abbotsford 4 weekly
Hamilton – Edmonton 6 weekly
Hamilton – Halifax 3 weekly

Flair Airlines has also loaded their summer schedule which sees more routes being added to current four routes being flown. (Source RoutesOnline)
Calgary – Kelowna eff 16JUL20 2 weekly
Calgary – Toronto 2 weekly
Calgary – Vancouver 2 weekly
Calgary – Winnipeg eff 17JUL20 2 weekly
Edmonton – Kelowna eff 17JUL20 2 weekly
Edmonton – Toronto 2 weekly
Edmonton – Vancouver 2 weekly
Toronto – Winnipeg eff 17JUL20 2 weekly


Remember to visit and bookmark our COVID-19 resource page where we are keeping you up to date with all the latest airline, hotel, lounges and loyalty program news, policies, closures and more.

Posts since our last update:

Deals:

Fairmont Hotels Explore Canada offer - Get every 2nd night free for stays at 18 Fairmont Hotels until June 30, 2021

Save 20% on all Air Canada flights within Canada when you book by June 16 - good for travel until May 15, 2021!

Instacart: Get $10 when you place your first order with Instacart! Register here.

SkipTheDishes - Sign up with this link to get $5 off your first order over $15. Find out more here

WealthSimple Trade:  Receive $5 when you deposit and trade at least $100 worth of stock with WealthSimple Trade. Find out more here (We will also receive $5 when you receive $5)

Rewards Canada receives a small commission when you use any of the above offers. You don't have to chose to use our links but we thank you in advance if you do.


Canadian Bonus Offers

N/A

Other Bonus Offers

ALL Accor Live Limitless
- 500 Bonus ALL Rewards Points for stays at participating hotels in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. More.. Until Sep 1, 20

Hilton Honors
- 100% Bonus when you buy 10,000 or more Hilton Honors points online. More... Until Jul 15, 20


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Receive a $25 Best Western Gift Card when you complete 1 stay and submit a receipt for filling you car with gas or electric charging


Last week we let you know about Best Western's upcoming summer promotions and the first of the two promotions is now here! Tanks-A-Lot as it is called will provide BW Rewards members with a $25 Best Western Travel Card after they complete 1 stay at a Best Western Hotel and submit a receipt showing a purchase of $10 (C$/US$) or more of gasoline or electric vehicle charging charges.

This was the offer as outlined as follows by Best Western to us last week:
  • Travel by car and Best Western will cover your gas. Valid from June 15 to August 31, 2020, any member staying at a Best Western-branded hotel and visiting by car during the promotional period will receive a $25 Best Western Travel Card® (gift card). Registration will be required.
The only difference we see now from the actual offer being live to that from last week is that you don't have to register for the promotion. You simply need to submit all the details to Best Western after your stay to receive the travel card. Here are the exact instructions from Best Western:
Best Western Rewards members*** (“Member(s)”) who: (a) have a valid email address listed in the Member’s account profile; (b) complete an eligible stay* at any Best Western® branded hotel in the United States, Canada, or the Caribbean Islands between June 15, 2020 and August 31, 2020, (“Promotion Period”); (c) purchase at least $10 USD/CAD worth of gasoline/electric vehicle charges within ten (10) days of the eligible stay; and (d) email their Best Western Rewards number as well as the confirmation number and hotel location (city/state) for the eligible stay and an image of their gasoline/electric vehicle charging station receipt showing only the amount purchased and date on the receipt to tanks-a-lot@bestwestern.com by September 5, 2020, will earn one promotional USD/CAD $25** Best Western Travel Card® (“Travel Card”). There is a limit of one (1) USD/CAD $25 Travel Card per Member during the Promotion. Travel Card expires on December 31, 2020.
As you can see the Travel Card must be used for future travel in 2020 as it has an expiry date of December 31, 2020.This is the same as the 20% bonus travel cards that you can receive right now when you buy $100 Best Western Gift Cards. Read more about that offer here.

Learn more about this promotion and book your BW stays here.

And taking notes from our post last week here are the details of the other Best Western offer that will launch next Monday:
  • Stay with Best Western this summer and earn a $25 gift card. BWR members who stay one eligible night between June 22 and September 7, 2020 at any Best Western-branded hotel in the U.S. or Canada will earn a $25 Best Western gift card. Registration will be required.

Image via Best Western

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Marriott Bonvoy offering Off Peak pricing at the majority of their hotels + gifting qualifying nights to current elite members


In September of 2019 the Marriott Bonvoy program officially started using Off-Peak and Peak pricing on top of standard award night rates. Off Peak and Peak award night pricing is where they charge less or more points per award night based roughly on how much the hotel is charging or how full it is for that night. To refresh your memory, here is the Marriott Bonvoy reward night redemption chart indicating the points required for each category for Off Peak, Standard and Peak pricing:
And now that travel is slowly and I mean really slowly starting up again Marriott has launched a promotion to encourage booking at their hotels by offering Off Peak pricing at roughly 5,500 of their 7,000+ hotels globally. We're not sure if 5,500 is chosen as that is how many of their properties are actually open for business or if there is another metric for them choosing that amount of hotels. This offer is good for bookings made by June 30 for stays completed by July 31, 2020. Simply log in to your account on Marriott.com and start searching for availability at the hotel of your choice to see it is one offering Off Peak pricing. I checked some favourites like Kananaskis Mountain Lodge, The Douglas Autograph Collection Vancouver, W Montreal and more were pricing at Off Peak rates for random dates in July. You will however want to compare cash pricing versus points pricing to see if it is worth redeeming as many hotels are offering some great cash prices right now. For example the Kananaskis Mountain Lodge was pricing as low as $185 or 40,000 points for the same night - that's getting under 1/2 cent per point value which is very low value when you can easily get 1 cent or more. Granted with travel curtailed and the likelihood of jetting off to some far flung destination where hotels are $1,000 per night and getting more value for your points is not likely happening until 2021 you may be inclined to just use up some points now for a stay closer to home and while the value may be less you would be keeping that cash in your pocket.


The other portion of the new released from Marriott today is that all elite members will be receiving free qualifying nights posted to their accounts. The amount of nights will be 50% of the requirement of the elite status level earned in 2019:

 2019 Elite Level
 # of nights being credited
 Silver     5 Nights
 Gold 13 Nights
 Platinum     25 Nights
 Titanium     38 Nights
 Ambassador     50 Nights

These additional nights will be added to all elite members accounts by the end of July. As all elite members have already had their status extended to February 2022 these extra nights are a boost to potentially get you to that next elite level. On top of that these nights do count towards lifetime status within the Marriott Bonvoy program.

Visit Marriott.com for more details (there isn't a dedicated landing page for these offers btw)
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Friday, June 12, 2020

Staycation deal: Sheraton Cavalier Calgary $50 Cross Iron Mills shop cards or Calgary Zoo tickets


Looking for a little shopping Staycation in Alberta? The Sheraton Cavalier Hotel in Calgary may just have the offer for you. They have a special where you can receive a $50 gift card to Cross Iron Mills mall just north of Calgary in the hamlet of Balzac. Or for the same price you can choose a Zoo package with 2 adult and 2 child tickets. The Calgary Zoo recently re-opened with modified entry and viewing  These packages are ones where you do spend more on the room over the regular rates but they do afford you the package gift at a discount. Here is a comparison of the rates on a Sunday night in late June:

versus the regular rates:


As you can see you'll are basically paying $33 to get a $50 shop card for Cross Iron Mills. You do receive a $50 shop card for each night you book. So if you stay two nights you'll get two $50 cards. Two adult and two child tickets at the zoo are $59.80 not taking into account any discounts that can be found so that provides a bit more savings over the Cross Iron offer but either way both provide some savings. As these offers are based in the room rate you'll earn Marriott Bonvoy points on the whole $139 or whatever rate you end up paying. I do wonder how the hotel will set up Zoo tickets as they have to be purchased before hand now - perhaps they may have the agents purchase the tickets online for the guests when they check in.

If you have never stayed at the Sheraton Cavalier Hotel before it has a pretty amazing water park with multiple water slides that kids love. Both of my kids attended numerous birthday parties at it years ago and always had a blast. Bad news is, according to their website the water park is closed right now for obvious reasons. However with Alberta now entering stage 2 of its re-opening process as of today (June 12) leisure swimming pools are able to re-open which I believe is also the case for hotel pools. I would call the hotel first to double check so you don't arrive and have disappointed kids (or adults 😁)

This offer is available for stays until October 16, 2020 and you can see thanks to COVID the rates they have are actually lower than the rate advertised of $175 per night or higher.

Learn more about and book this offer here.
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StayVancouver's Visa gift card offer returns for hotel stays in YVR - receive up to $125 in gift cards for the first two nights + $50 for three nights after that


This week we also see the return of the awesome StayVancouver (nee BeVancouver) gift card offer for booking select hotels in the YVR region! In the latest version of this offer we see prepaid Visa Card as the reward again - the promotion does flip back and forth between Visa or American Express however it has been Visa the last few times (January 2020, October 2019).

The offer this time is better than usual - typically you would see a $75 to $125 gift card being offered for your first night stay and then $50 for each night after that. However with this version you can get that $75 to $125 gift card for the first two nights and then the $50 card for up to three nights after that. Which means if you plan a 5 night stay you could walk away with $300 to $400 in Visa Reward cards.  Bookings must be made through the StayVancouverHotels.com website with promo code Visa for stays until September 15. Booking can be cancelled with no charge up to 48 hours before check in.


Here's some options for a three night booking in July:

The Fairmont for three nights would end up being $866.52 and you would get $300 in Visa cards making your net outlay $566.52. That same room when booking via Fairmont.com is $1476 for the best flexible rate! Even using the Explore Canada Stay 1 get 1 free offer the total for three nights is $984.66. As you can see the StayVancouver site not only gets you the reward cards but it even provides some great nightly rates!

Here are the main terms of this promotion:

• Book through StayVancouverHotels.com using promo code “Visa”.
• Booking subsequent nights as separate reservations will be treated the same as a single reservation for multiple nights.
• The first night and second nights qualify for the full reward amount plus a $50 Visa Reward card per up to 3 subsequent nights.
• Three bookings maximum per person.
• Stay must be between now and September 15, 2020.
• Bookings are cancellable up to 48 hours before check-in date.
• Visa Reward card(s) will be delivered at check-in.
• Bookings can be made using VISA, MasterCard, or American Express.
• This offer is limited and may end at any time.
• Please note that hotel amenities & services may be limited. Please check with the hotel directly.
• StayVancouverHotels.com Terms & Conditions Apply.


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New welcome offer for the National Bank of Canada World Elite Mastercard - $300 cash back with minimum spend


National Bank of Canada has released a new welcome bonus for the premier card in their portfolio - the NBC World Elite Mastercard. The provides new cardholders with the opportunity to earn up to $300 in cash back when you spend at least $6,500 on the card within the first four months of having it This bonus is over and above the regular points earn and other benefits that come with the card. To take advantage of this particular offer you must apply for the card by August 31, 2020.

The NBC World Elite Mastercard is a this bank's top card and it is a pretty good card overall. It doesn't make it into the Top 5 of any of our categories in Canada's Top Travel Rewards Credit Cards but it's not that far out. I would definitely place it in the Top 10 of the Travel Points category in Canada.  The reason for this is that the card normally doesn't have a welcome bonus, so this limited time offer is a welcome bonus! Pun intended. It also a bit weak in the rewards department when you line this card up against comparable offerings from other banks. With a variable earn rate of 1.5 points to 2 points per dollar spent and a travel redemption value ranging from 0.83 to 1.0 cent per point makes this card provide a return of 1.25 to 2% (and the 2% is only awarded on your spend between $40,000 and $80,000 annually). So you can see where this card lacks compared to its competition however where it doesn't lack is in the insurance department. It has some of the best insurance benefits you can find in Canada, in particular for out of province travel medical insurance.  The Travel Medical Insurance provides up to $5,000,000 in coverage per person and covers travel of up to 60 days for those up to 54 years old, 31 days for 55-64 years old and 15 days to 74 years old.

The card also provides up to $250 in annual rebates for associated costs with travel broken down as follows: up to $100 on airport parking, $50 on seat selection and $100 on baggage fees. This is another nice benefit to have if you can utilize it!

In the end if you do get this card you will only end up $150 ahead if you take into account the $150 annual fee and subtract that from the $300 cash back bonus. In terms of current welcome offers I am a bit surprised they want you spending $6,500 to receive the bonus - that's high given the current economic situation. Most competitors are not requiring that high of spend, even Amex's Platinum Card only requires $2,000 right now and most others don't go over $3,000 and include a first year annual fee waiver. Sure this welcome bonus is better than the usual no welcome bonus that this card provides but there are definitely better travel rewards card options out there right now like the BMO Rewards World Elite Mastercard and the CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite card just to name a few.

Learn more about this limited time offer here. 
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Thursday, June 11, 2020

Great offer from Rocketmiles – 5,000 bonus miles or points on your first hotel booking (includes Aeroplan)


You may have seen this over on our global site a couple of days ago and am finally getting around to posting here on RC!

Rocketmiles, the third party hotel booking site that award miles and points from dozens of airline and other loyalty programs has their eyes set on the return to travel! For the remainder of the year you can earn 5,000 bonus miles or points in most of their partner programs including Aeroplan for your first hotel booking made with them. That means you need to be a new customer or at least never booked with them if you are already registered and set up with Rocketmiles.

Offer details:
5,000 Bonus Miles / Points with most Rocketmiles partners when you make your first booing at select properties Worldwide. Full details & online booking. Until Dec 31, 20

Here is one example of a hotel booking in Toronto in July where the bonus applies for Aeroplan:

7,000 miles for one night isn't too shabby! Granted you don't earn points from the hotel program on these stays but it is a good bonus to consider for a one night stay.



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June 11 Update: Up to 5x Aeroplan miles with select eStore retailers for Father's Day, big AIR MILES bonuses for Safeway/Sobeys liquor, earn Double Stamps for Sandman Hotel stays




You can earn up to 5x Aeroplan Miles with select online retailers via the Aeroplan eStore with their Father's Day event. This offer runs until June 21 and some of the 5x miles retailers include Banana Republic, Indigo and New Balance. Find out more here.

Some big AIR MILES bonuses can be had for shopping at Sobeys or Safeway liquor stores this week! This offer is valid until June 17


Rexall will offering 50x Be Well points when you spend $50 or more on beauty products today. 50x points equates to a 20% return on those purchases.


I updated the American Express Cobalt Multiplier list as I ordered a few pints of locally made craft ice cream from Calgary's Village Ice Cream (curbside pick-up of course) I was able to pay with my Cobalt Card via their online order form and it has already posted as 5x points. See this merchant and others on our American Express Cobalt Card Confirmed Multiplier Locations page


Airline Schedule Updates
This will now be a standard feature for the foreseeable future in our daily update posts as we summarize Canadian operations based on data from RoutesOnline and other sources. Remember that many of these route plans are subject to change and right now they are changing frequently!

There is a big update to Air Canada's International services between June and September. RoutesOnline does a great job of outlining them all here but some key changes are Calgary to Frankfurt and London; Toronto to Dubai and Delhi; Vancouver to Frankfurt relaunches being pushed back to August 1. You can also find June and July frequencies on Air Canada's site.

Air France is planning to bump up their Montreal to Paris flights to 10 per week as of July 6 and have Toronto to Paris at 3 flights per week (Source: RoutesOnline)

It appears Austrian Airlines isn't planning on restarting their Montreal to Vienna flights until October. (Source RoutesOnline)

JAL (Japan Airlines) will be operating 2 flights per week for the month of July between Vancouver and Tokyo Narita. (Source: RoutesOnline)


Remember to visit and bookmark our COVID-19 resource page where we are keeping you up to date with all the latest airline, hotel, lounges and loyalty program news, policies, closures and more.

Posts since our last update:

Deals:


Instacart: Get $10 when you place your first order with Instacart! Register here.


SkipTheDishes - Sign up with this link to get $5 off your first order over $15. Find out more here

WealthSimple Trade:  Receive $5 when you deposit and trade at least $100 worth of stock with WealthSimple Trade. Find out more here (We will also receive $5 when you receive $5)

Rewards Canada receives a small commission when you use any of the above offers. You don't have to chose to use our links but we thank you in advance if you do.


Canadian Bonus Offers


Sandman Hotels Lucky13 Rewards
- Double Lucky13 rewards stamps for stays at all participating Sandman Hotels in Canada and the U.S. More... Until Dec 31, 20

Other Bonus Offers


ALL Accor Live Limitless
- 500 Bonus ALL Rewards Points for stays at participating Accor hotels in Spain. More... Until Jul 5, 20

Choice 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 Jun 10 – Sep 7, 20

Marriott Bonvoy
- Earn up to 3,000 bonus Bonvoy Points for stays at over 9 Hotels in Hong Kong. More... Jun 11 - Jul 7, 20
- Earn up to 3,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points for stay at 17 participating Marriott Hotels in Taiwan. More... . Jun 11 - Jul 7, 20

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Double KrisFlyer Miles for stays at all participating World Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Mar 31, 21
- Triple KrisFlyer Miles for stays at all participating World Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Mar 31, 21

Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus
- Double ROP Miles for stays at all participating World Hotels Worldwide.More... Until Mar 31, 21
- Triple ROP Miles for stays at all participating World Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Mar 31, 21

United MileagePlus
- Double MileagePlus Miles for stays at all participating World Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Mar 31, 21
- Triple MileagePlus Miles for stays at all participating World Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Mar 31, 21

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- Double Flying Club Miles for stays at all participating World Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Mar 31, 21
- Triple Flying Club Miles for stays at all participating World Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Mar 31, 21


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