July 13 Update: WestJet flights to Europe return this August and more hints of the airline retiring their Boeing 767 aircraft

WestJet has released details of their updated flight schedule for August which sees the airline return to Europe and Jamaica. They will continue to fly to 5 U.S. cities, Cancun, Mexico and increase flights domestically. For Europe WestJet will return to London (Gatwick) with three flights per week and Paris with two flights per week as of August 20. (Source WestJet)

There are more hints of WestJet getting set to retire their four Boeing 767 aircraft. You may recall we mentioned a few months back how WestJet had donated a 100+ Boeing 767 food carts to Alberta Health Services without wanting them back so this gave us an inkling that retirement of the aircraft may been imminent. RoutesOnline reported this weekend that the airline's route to Barcelona for 2021 has been updated to a Boeing 787 Dreamliner instead of the 767 and they also report that they can't find the aircraft in WestJet's schedules as of September 15.

Recommended reading: WestJet RBC Mastercards will earn 2x rewards on grocery and restaurant purchases until August 31

Airline Schedule Updates
A summary 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!

Copa Airlines is looking to restart service to Canada this September. Right now they are planning for two flights per week between Montreal and Panama City as of September 18 and two flights per week between Toronto and Panama City as of September 4.. (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:

• Top 5 Small Business Credit Card Sign Up offers for July - These cards provide the best value out of their welcome bonuses
  Welcome to a new monthly feature here on the Rewards Canada blog - The Top 5 Small Business Credit…
• July 10 Update: Aeroplan extends buy miles bonus to July 14, an update to our Top 5 cards for July, 20x PC Optimum points this weekend
  As we predicted earlier this week, Aeroplan has extended the window for buying miles with up to a 75%…

Deals:

Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre Hotel - $159 night per night with parking via Travelzoo. Find out more here.

Fairmont Hotels Stay Close - Buy Night 1 Get 1 Night free at select hotels in Canada, U.S. and Mexico. Find out more here

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

Air France KLM Flying Blue
- Double Flying Blue Miles and Double XP on all Air France and KLM marketed flights out of Canada and Worldwide. More... Until Dec 31, 20

Qatar Airways Privilege Club
- Earn up to 7,500 Bonus QMiles and 50 bonus QPoints when you join Privilege Club using promo code JOIN2020 and complete your first Qatar Airways flight out of Montreal and Toronto. More... Join by Sep 30 and travel by Dec 10, 2020

Other Bonus Offers

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- Double Asia Miles for stays at participating Shangri-La Hotels in Hong Kong More... Until Dec 31, 20

Enterprise Plus
- Elite Status Match - Receive Enterprise Plus elite status equivalent to Avis or Hertz elite status. More... Unknown end date



Follow Rewards Canada:

Top 5 Small Business Credit Card Sign Up offers for July - These cards provide the best value out of their welcome bonuses

Welcome to a new monthly feature here on the Rewards Canada blog - The Top 5 Small Business Credit Card Sign Up offers. This feature is pretty much the same as the Rewards Canada Top 5 Credit Card Sign Up offers that we been posting for travel rewards cards for the better part of four or more years! This is not a 'best' credit card list like our Top Travel Rewards Credit Card rankings but instead a look at cards for small businesses that have very good acquisition (welcome/sign up) offers. As always when choosing a card you should always take other factors into account other than the just sign up bonus, but when some of these cards are first year free, they can and do pay off even when you grab them strictly for the sign up rewards. This month we see three first year free cards on the list!


Here are our top 5 small business credit card sign up offers for July:

BMO Rewards Business Mastercard (Apply here)

Minimum value: $357

This card had its welcome bonus boosted last week to 50,000 points when you spend $5,000 on the card in the first three months. On top of that they are waiving the $120 annual fee in the first year which means you get the full value out of those 50,000 points which when redeemed via bmorewards.com for travel will net you just over $357. This is the highest welcome bonus value out of all small business cards in Canada.

Marriott Bonvoy™ Business American Express® Card  (Apply here)

Minimum value: $350

This card awards 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points which are awarded after spending $1,500 on the card in three months. Those points are worth at least $500 in our minds which means after subtracting the annual fee you are coming out ahead by $350. In reality you can pull even more value out of the card (into four figures) as we outlined in our post A look at how The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card provides huge value!  Don't forget you get an annual free night with the card as well on the card anniversary date! 

CIBC Aventura® Visa* Card for Business Plus (Apply here)

 Minimum value: $350
This card offers welcome bonus of 20,000 Aventura Points when the first purchase is made at any time. An additional bonus of 15,000 Aventura Points is awarded when you make $3,000 in net purchases during the first 4 monthly statement periods. Those 35,000 points are worth no less than $350 as the first year annual fee on this card is also waived. That is a minimum however as when you redeem the CIBC Aventura flight award chart you can get more value out of those points (up to $700) dependent on the price of the airline ticket you are redeeming for.

BMO^® AIR MILES^®† Business^® Mastercard^®* (Apply here)

Minimum value: $330
Like the other BMO Business card on this list, this card comes with a first year annual fee waiver which means the 3,000 AIR MILES welcome bonus comes at no extra cost. You'll receive 1,000 bonus miles on your first purchase and 2,000 more miles if you spend $5,000 on the card in the first three months of having the card. We value AIR MILES Reward Miles at no less than 11 cents each when you redeem for travel so that puts this welcome bonus value at a minimum of $330.

American Express Business Edge™ Card  (Apply here)

Minimum value: $201

The American Express Business Edge Card is the best overall Small Business card in Canada thanks to numerous factors. Its 30,000 Welcome Bonus points when you charge $5,000 in purchases to your Card in your first three months of Cardmembership is worth $201 ($300-$99 annual fee) may be less than other cards on this list but it has a stronger everyday earn rate on many purchases (Check out our American Express Business Edge Confirmed Multiplier Locations) and then you can also earn a 1,000 point bonus every month for the life of the card for each month you spend $3,000 or more on the card. This means in the first year alone you could earn up 42,000 points.

If you went for all these cards you ultimately could end up with over 1,500 in travel credits but even if you only take on one or two you are helping your travel budget significantly at no cost other than regular credit card spend. We don't really recommend getting all five in one month unless you know you can meet the minimum spend for them all at once, rather you'd want to pick one or two right now, perhaps another next month and so on.

American Express is not responsible for maintaining or monitoring the accuracy of information on this website. For full details and current product information click the Apply now link.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

July 10 Update: Aeroplan extends buy miles bonus to July 14, an update to our Top 5 cards for July, 20x PC Optimum points this weekend

As we predicted earlier this week, Aeroplan has extended the window for buying miles with up to a 75% bonus + 100% AQDs. The offer now runs until July 14. Find out more here.

Even though it was just posted earlier this week we have updated our Top 5 Credit Card Sign Up offers for July post as the new offer on the BMO Rewards World Elite Mastercard actually drops it off the list. It has been replaced with the WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard. Read more here. 

If you missed the bonus from earlier this week, PC Optimum has another one for this weekend for shopping for beauty product online with Shoppers Drug Mart. From today through to Sunday you will earn 20x the points when you spend $75 or more. Find out more here.

The oneworld Alliance has put together a dedicated website that outlines what the alliance and all its member airlines are doing to make sure your health and safety are top priority if and when you travel with them. The site details airport operations and also lists what each airline's policy is in regards to cleaning, on-board safety and more. Check it out here.

Airline Schedule Updates
A summary 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!

Lufthansa is flying 3 weekly flights on their Toronto to Frankfurt and Vancouver to Frankfurt routes for this month. Those are planned to be bumped up to 5x weekly in August and then to daily service in September. (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:

• The BMO Rewards World Elite Mastercard has a new increased welcome bonus offer of 40,000 points with a first year annual fee waiver
  ** This post has been updated to reflect how the welcome bonus is broken down into two parts**  …
• New increased welcome bonus of 50,000 points on the BMO Rewards® Business Mastercard®
  The personal BMO Rewards World Elite card isn't the only card from the bank that is changing today (more…
• July 9 Update: 500 bonus points for stays at the Hyatt Place Kelowna, Last day for the BMO Rewards Mastercard 20,000 point bonus & Wyndham Rewards lowers elite qualification requirements
  Yesterday we wrote about the new Hyatt Place Kelowna that will open next week. What I forgot to mention…

Deals:

Air Canada has launched a Europe seat sale - yes a seat for flights to Europe this summmer. Some countries in Europe are now open to Canadians and Air Canada is flying to those like Greece, The Netherlands and others. Book by July 16 for travel until September 10. Find out more here.

Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre Hotel - $159 night per night with parking via Travelzoo. Find out more here.

Fairmont Hotels Stay Close - Buy Night 1 Get 1 Night free at select hotels in Canada, U.S. and Mexico. Find out more here

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

Air Canada Aeroplan
- Up to 75% Bonus Aeroplan Miles + 100% AQD when you buy or gift Aeroplan miles. More... Until Jul 14, 20

Other Bonus Offers

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- 500 Bonus Asia Miles when you join the Asia Miles program and complete your 1st Miles earning activity at The Langham, Hong Kong or Cordis, Hong Kong. More... Until Aug 31, 20

Miles & More
- Double Miles & More Miles when you rent with Sixt for 3 or more days in Germany (only until Sep 15), Austria, Switzerland, Benelux, France, Monaco, Spain, the UK, Italy and the US. More... Book by Jul 31 for rentals until Sep 30, 20

Red Roof Inn RediRewards
- 50% bonus RediPoints for stays at any Red Roof location, including The Red Collection and Hometowne Studios by Red Roof in the U.S., Japan, Brazil and Canada (if the Canadian location opens in August as is slated right now)  More... Until Sep 7, 20

World of Hyatt
- 25% World of Hyatt points rebate for Hyatt credit card holders when you redeem for award nights or points+cash stays or when using points for hotels incidentals like room upgrades or spa services. More... Register by Sep 1 for stays until Oct 8, 20
- 15% World of Hyatt points rebate when you redeem for award nights or points+cash stays or when using points for hotels incidentals like room upgrades or spa services. More... Register by Sep 1 for stays until Oct 8, 20



Follow Rewards Canada:

---

The BMO Rewards World Elite Mastercard has a new increased welcome bonus offer of 40,000 points with a first year annual fee waiver

** This post has been updated to reflect how the welcome bonus is broken down into two parts**
 
BMO revealed the highest ever welcome bonus points offer for their premier card the BMO Rewards World Elite Mastercard . As of today the card comes with a limited time offer of 40,000 BMO Rewards Points that is broken down as 30,000 when you spend $3,000 within 3 months of being approved for the card and another 10,000 on the card's first anniversary.  On top of that the annual fee of $150 is waived for the first year of having the card. So basically the offer is actually 5,000 points less than the last offer on initial spend but you get that 'anniversary' bonus when you pay your annual fee for the second year.

Once you meet the minimum spend requirement you'll receive those 30,000 bonus points which are worth ~$214 towards any travel booked via bmorewards.com. Add in the 10,000 after your first year and you have $285 in points but you are now paying that $150 annual fee. You can also choose to use the points as a cash back credit towards purchases you make on the card but note the rate is quite low - those 40,000 points are equal to $133.33 in statement credits. So as you can see it is much better option to go down the travel redemption route!

The welcome bonus isn't the only factor to consider for this card - here are some of the key features of the BMO World Elite Mastercard that also make it one of the stronger cards in Canada:

·         Get 3 BMO Rewards points for every $1 spent on eligible travel, dining and entertainment purchases
·         Get 2 points for every $1 spent everywhere else
·         Complimentary membership in Mastercard Airport Experiences provided by LoungeKey, with exclusive VIP access, plus four annual complimentary passes

On top of that it has one of the best in class insurance packages mainly due to the fact that this is one of the few cards where the insurance will cover you when you fly on award tickets from other loyalty programs. As they state in their insurance policy you will be covered is you pay for the full or partial cost of a trip with this card. This means you can redeem Aeroplan miles, AIR MILES, etc. for a flight and as long as you pay for the taxes and fees with the BMO Rewards World Elite Mastercrd you have met the partial payment requirement to avail of trip cancellation, trip interruption, flight delay, baggage insurance etc.

Back to the points side and redeeming them - it takes 140 points for a $1 travel redemption and with accelerated earn rate of 3 points per dollar for travel, dining and entertainment purchases your return becomes 2.14% however the remainder of your spending at 2 points per dollar only provides a ~1.43% return. Points have to be redeemed via BMO Rewards unlike some of its fiercest competition that allow their cardholders to make their own bookings with any travel provider and redeem points against those charges. There does not seem to be a minimum amount of points that you need to redeem with BMO Rewards at one time so this card can be quite advantageous in redeeming for seat sale fares. As an example, flights between Toronto and Ottawa or Montreal often dip below $50 each way and come in under $200 with taxes which means, you could redeem as little as 28,000 points for the flights (or $9333.33 in spending) When redeeming with this card you want to try to do it online as BMO Rewards will charge you for bookings made over the phone.

Here's a quick review of the pros and cons of this card

Pros

• Great welcome bonus of 40,000 points + first year annual fee waiver
• Excellent insurance package that covers award tickets
• Four complimentary lounge passes

Cons

• The everyday spending return of 1.43% is on the lower side when compared to this card's direct competitors
• Having to book via bmorewards.com can be less flexible than some competitors who let you book any way you want and then redeem points against the charge.

Learn more about and apply for the BMO Rewards World Elite Mastercard here.

New increased welcome bonus of 50,000 points on the BMO Rewards® Business Mastercard®

The personal BMO Rewards World Elite card isn't the only card from the bank that is changing today (more on that coming later today!) The premium small business version of the card, the BMO Rewards® Business Mastercard® sees a nice welcome bonus increase as well. As of today the limited time offer for the BMO Rewards® Business Mastercard® is now 50,000 bonus points when you spend $5,000 or more on the card in the first three months of having it. On top of that the annual fee of $120 is waived for the first year of having the card. That means you basically get those 50,000 points at no cost outside of the spending that you actually put on the card.

Once you meet the minimum spend requirement you'll receive those 50,000 bonus points which are worth $357 towards any travel booked via bmorewards.com. You do have other redemption options with this card but travel does provide the best value.

Here are some of the key features of the BMO Rewards® Business Mastercard® to also take into account on top of the welcome bonus

·         Get 3 BMO Rewards points  for every $1 you spend on gas, office supplies and cell phone/internet bill payments
·         Earn 1.5 BMO Rewards points for every $1 you spend
·         Strong travel insurance pacakge

Much like the personal version of the card this business card's insurance will also cover you when you fly on award tickets from other loyalty programs. As they state in their insurance policy you will be covered is you pay for the full or partial cost of a trip with this card. This means you can redeem Aeroplan miles, AIR MILES, etc. for a flight and as long as you pay for the taxes and fees with the BMO Rewards World Elite Mastercrd you have met the partial payment requirement to avail of trip cancellation, trip interruption, flight delay, baggage insurance etc.

Back to the points side and redeeming them - it takes 140 points for a $1 travel redemption and with accelerated earn rate of 3 points per dollar for  gas, office supplies and cell phone/internet bill payments your return is 2.14% however the remainder of your spending at 1.5 points per dollar only provides a ~1.07% return. The Points have to be redeemed via BMO Rewards unlike some of its fiercest competition that allow their cardholders to make their own bookings with any travel provider and redeem points against those charges. When redeeming with this card you want to try to do it online as BMO Rewards will charge you for bookings made over the phone.

Here's a quick review of the pros and cons of this card

Pros

• Great welcome bonus of 40,000 points + first year annual fee waiver
• Excellent insurance package that covers award tickets

Cons

• The everyday spending return of 1.07% is on the lower side of earn rates
• Having to book via bmorewards.com can be less flexible than some competitors who let you book any way you want and then redeem points against the charge.

Learn more about and apply for the BMO Rewards® Business Mastercard® here.

July 9 Update: 500 bonus points for stays at the Hyatt Place Kelowna, Last day for the BMO Rewards Mastercard 20,000 point bonus & Wyndham Rewards lowers elite qualification requirements

Yesterday we wrote about the new Hyatt Place Kelowna that will open next week. What I forgot to mention in that post is that the hotel falls under Hyatt's new hotel bonus offer where you can earn 500 bonus World of Hyatt points per night. The bonus runs until October 30 and there is no need for registration. Simply book and stay on a eligible rate for points earning and the bonus points are yours. On the website it states the offer is available from July 6 but we know the hotel isn't opening until July 14 so that will be the start date for this offer. Find out more here.

Today is the last day to grab the 20,000 point welcome offer on the no fee BMO Rewards Mastercard. Tomorrow morning the welcome offer will be lower. Apply for the card here.

Wyndham Rewards has lowered the qualification requirements for attaining elite status in the program. Now you can receive Gold when you stay three qualifying nights, Platinum when you stay nine qualifying nights and Diamond with 24 qualifying nights in 2020. Find out more here.

Airline Schedule Updates
A summary 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!

Turkish Airlines will be starting up 3 weekly flights between Montreal and Istanbul as of July 15. This is on top of their 4x weekly flights they are now operating between Toronto and Istanbul (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:

• Top 5 Cash Back Credit Card Sign Up offers for July - These cards provide the best value out of their welcome bonuses
  Welcome to a new monthly feature here on the Rewards Canada blog - The Top 5 Cash Back Credit Card…
• Hyatt Place Kelowna opens next week - 11 days earlier than planned!
  Back on March 2 we brought you our annual New Hyatt Hotel Openings in Canada post that detailed six…
• July 8 Update: Earn up to 300 bonus AIR MILES for shopping online, AIR MILES & Shell expanding earn next week, 40,000 bonus PC Optimum points for Shoppers Drug Mart online purchases
    AIR MILES is offering up to 300 bonus miles for shopping online via Airmilesshops.ca during their Christmas in July…

Deals:

Air Canada has launched a Europe seat sale - yes a seat for flights to Europe this summmer. Some countries in Europe are now open to Canadians and Air Canada is flying to those like Greece, The Netherlands and others. Book by July 16 for travel until September 10. Find out more here.

Sandman Hotels 7 day summer sale - save up to 45% when you book by July 12 for stays until September 30. Find out more here

Travelzoo: Big savings at the Fox Hotel & Suites in Banff

Fairmont Hotels Stay Close - Buy Night 1 Get 1 Night free at select hotels in Canada, U.S. and Mexico. Find out more here
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

Finnair Plus
- Double Plus Points + Double Elite Tier Points on all eligible Finnair flights Worldwide. More... Book by Aug 7 for travel until Sep 30, 20



Follow Rewards Canada:

---

Top 5 Cash Back Credit Card Sign Up offers for July - These cards provide the best value out of their welcome bonuses

Welcome to a new monthly feature here on the Rewards Canada blog - The Top 5 Cash Back Credit Card Sign Up offers. This feature is pretty much the same as the Rewards Canada Top 5 Credit Card Sign Up offers that we been posting for travel rewards cards for the better part of four or more years! This is not a 'best' credit card list like our Top Cash Back Credit Card rankings but instead a look at cards that have very good acquisition (welcome/sign up) offers. As always when choosing a card you should always take other factors into account other than the just sign up bonus, but when some of these cards are first year free, they can and do pay off even when you grab them strictly for the sign up rewards. This month we see all five of the cards offering the first year free.

Here are our top 5 cash back credit card sign up offers for July (in alphabetical order)

BMO CashBack World Elite Mastercard  - 10% cash back on all purchases up to $2,000 (Apply here)
Welcome offer cash back value: $200

This card is offering 10% cash back on all spending during the first three months of having the card. The 10% is capped at $2,000 of spending for a maximum return of $200 cash back as your welcome bonus. The card does come with a first year annual fee waiver on the primary card and allows to redeem as little as $1 cash back at anytime for a statement credit.
Minimum Income: $80,000 (individual) or $150,000 (household)

 

CIBC Dividend® Visa Infinite* Card - 10% cash back on all purchases up to $2,000 (Apply here)
Welcome offer cash back value: $200

This card is offering 10% cash back on all spending during the first four billing cycles of having the card. The 10% is capped at $2,000 of spending for a maximum return of $200 cash back as your welcome bonus. The card does come with a first year annual fee waiver on the primary card and up to three additional cards. Cash back on this card is awarded once per year as a statement credit. Minimum Income: $60,000 (individual) or $100,000 (household)

 

ManulifeMONEY+ Visa  Infinite  - 10% cash back on grocery purchases up to $2,500 (Apply here)
Welcome offer cash back value: $250

This card is offering 10% cash back on grocery spending during the first three months of having the card. The 10% is capped at $2,500 of spending for a maximum return of $250 cash back as your welcome bonus. The card does come with a first year annual fee waiver on the primary card. Cash back on this card is awarded quarterly as a statement credit.
Minimum Income: $60,000 (individual) or $100,000 (household)

SimplyCash™ Preferred Card from American Express - 5% cash back on all purchases up to $6,000 (Apply here)
Welcome offer cash back value: $201 ($300 - $99 annual fee)

This card is offering 5% cash back on all spending during the first six months of having the card. The 5% is capped at $6,000 of spending for a maximum return of $300 cash back as your welcome bonus. This is the only card on the list that does not have its first year annual fee waived. That fee is $99 hence the welcome bonus sign up value of $201. Cash back on this card is awarded once per year as a statement credit.
Minimum Income: N/A

 

TD Cash Back Visa Infinite* Card - 10% cash back on all purchases up to $2,000
Welcome offer cash back value: $200

This card is offering 10% cash back on all spending during the first three months of having the card. The 10% is capped at $2,000 of spending for a maximum return of $200 cash back as your welcome bonus. The card does come with a first year annual fee waiver on the primary card and the first additional card. Cash back on this card can be redeemed at anytime for a statement credit as long as your cash back rewards balance is $25. This limited time offer ends September 8, 2020.
Minimum Income: $60,000 (individual) or $100,000 (household)

 

Between these five cards there is over $1,000 in cash back welcome bonus rewards! However even if you only take on one or two you are helping your finances at no cost other than regular credit card spend. We don't really recommend getting all five in one month unless you know you can meet the minimum spend for them all at once, rather you'd want to pick one or two right now, perhaps another next month and so on.

Disclaimers:

Sponsored advertising. The Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) is not responsible for the contents of this site including any editorials or reviews that may appear on this site. For complete and current information on any TD product, please visit the TD site. 

Hyatt Place Kelowna opens next week - 11 days earlier than planned!

Back on March 2 we brought you our annual New Hyatt Hotel Openings in Canada post that detailed six new hotels the chain was planning on opening this year. Two weeks after that Canada pretty much shut down due to the Coronavirus and that led to many planned hotel openings being postponed. In fact one of those hotels, the Hyatt Place Toronto/Mississauga Centre was postponed from April to June and now to late July. However one hotel is doing the opposite, the Hyatt Place Kelowna was slated to open on July 25 but that has been moved up to July 14! It is opening a full 11 days early which is something of rarity for hotels in the best of times let alone during a pandemic!

The Hyatt Place Kelowna is located on Enterprise way in a commercial area not too far out from downtown Kelowna and kind of on the way to the airport which is just over 10 kilometers away.

For the opening night on July 14 you can book a stay here for C$176 ($203 with taxes) or 8,000 World of Hyatt points. You can also choose to use Points+Cash at a rate of 4,000 points + C$110.

We value World of Hyatt points at 2.3 cents each in C$ - so redeeming 8,000 points for a $203 stay is slightly above that at 2.5 cents however we revealed earlier today that Hyatt is giving back 15% of your points as a bonus after a points stay all the way through to October 8. This means you would get 1,200 World of Hyatt points back per night meaning your 6,800 points you ended up spending would give you a point value of almost 3 cents. Not only that, when you redeem points for a stay you will receive free parking, which at this new hotel runs a staggering $4.99 per day ;-) but still that's money in your pocket.

Remember as well that you can buy World of Hyatt points right now with a 30% bonus. At a cost of 1.85 cents US each you are looking at over 2.5 cents C$ each and when you take into account the 15% back you'll get it could be worth it to buy points.

Are you excited for the opening of this new Hyatt Hotel in Kelowna? Do you plan on staying here soon? Let us know in the comments section below!