April 14 Update: Aeroplan's generous refund policy extended, What you actually have to spend to get a credit card bonus & Maximizing elite status benefits from The Platinum Card

Here's your Rewards Canada Daily update! Your daily dose (or near daily dose) of loyalty program, credit card and travel news, bonuses, deals and more.

 
Air Canada's generous refund policy for Aeroplan flight rewards tickets has been extended by one month to May 31 from April 30. This means all flights booked by that date can be changed or cancelled free of charge. Learn more here.

Here are the latest RBC Offers including statement credits from Boston Pizza & Indigo

 

It's been a couple of months since we last updated the RBC offers on our site as there were issues with RBC's system that wouldn't show them to me when I logged in That seems to be fixed now so here is the update with all the latest offers. Most of these are available on all RBC cards. You can view RBC's card offerings here. 

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

 

Here are the Rewards Canada Top 5 Small Business Credit Card Sign Up offers for this month! 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 four first year free cards on the list! And remember this list is based on minimum value towards travel which we calculate as the minimum value of the welcome bonus less the annual fee. It is entirely possible to receive more value out of the welcome bonuses on some the cards below namely those like Aeroplan and Marriott. 

Air Canada will provide refunds for all flights affected by COVID-19

 

Yesterday Air Canada concluded an agreement with the federal government to receive a financial support package of up to $5.89 billion. To receive the financing from the government Air Canada had to agree to refund tickets to consumers who had flights cancelled by Air Canada or had themselves proactively cancel flights due to the pandemic. 

Coast Hotels Coast Rewards - Double points on all stays until May 6

 

Coast Hotels has brought out another double points promotion for stays at all their locations. Right now members can earn double Coast Rewards points until May 6. Those points can be used for free night award with Coast Hotels or be converted to programs like Air Canada Aeroplan or Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan. Coast Rewards does not have their own co-brand credit card so you are best using a card that has a travel category multiplier like the American Express Gold Rewards Card or the HSBC World Elite Mastercard to maximize your earning on these stays. There is also a separate promotion offering Double Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles until April 30 if that is more appealing to you!

Offer details:
Double Coast Rewards Points on all stays at Coast Hotels in Canada & the U.S.. Full details & online booking. Until May 6, 21

April 12 Update: The upcoming Hampton Inn & Suites Bradford destroyed by fire, 50% bonus when you convert points to Etihad Guest & Alaska Airlines increasing lounge access pricing

Here's your Rewards Canada Daily update! Your daily dose (or near daily dose) of loyalty program, credit card and travel news, bonuses, deals and more.

 
Over the weekend the number of new Hilton Hotels opening in Canada changed from nine to eight. This is due to the unfortunate news that the under construction Hampton Inn & Suites in Bradford was destroyed by fire on Saturday morning. This hotel was set to open in August of this year. It is too early to stay right now what the future will hold for this hotel and whether ir will be rebuilt. (Source Orillia Matters)

Receive up to a 60% bonus when you buy Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles

Some of the best frequent flyer miles out there are Alaska Airlines’ Mileage Plan miles so when they are offered with a bonus when buying them people take notice. For the longest time the biggest bonus on buying Mileage Plan miles was 50% but in the latter half of 2020 we saw that boosted to 60% and even 70% for select members. Well we’re happy to tell you that that  the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan buy miles bonus is back and once again we see it up at the 60% level!

The American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card sees its base earn rate boosted to 1.25 points per dollar spent

 
Great news for those of you who have the American Express® Aeroplan®* Reserve Card or having been eyeing on getting it! There is a positive change to card that took on April 7 that sees it become more valuable. We were first alerted to it on Twitter by our follower Joshua:

The highly anticipated Humaniti Hotel Montreal, Autograph Collection opens on June 10 with a 2,000 bonus point grand opening offer

 

UPDATE: It appears the hotel will now open on June 1st! With the pool and rooftop bar opening on June 8th!

Back in February we started off our 2021 series of looking at new hotels opening in Canada with what Marriott has planned and one of those that we were most excited about has revealed its opening date and grand opening offers! We placed the opening of the Humaniti Hotel Montreal, Autograph Collection as one of the most anticipated Marriott openings in Canada this year. 

American Express will issue replacement Annual Travel Credits for Platinum Cardmembers who didn't use them during the pandemic

 
The Platinum Card from American Express may be one of the most expensive cards to carry in your wallet at $699 per year but there's good reason for that. You have an amazing lounge access program, you get automatic hotel elite status with numerous hotel chains, you get the Fine Hotels & Resorts program and much more. All of which are amazing travel benefits but there isn't much travel going on.  The $699 fee is softened by an annual $200 travel credit that you can utilize for bookings made via American Express Travel, which pre-pandemic was utilized by many. But now that we are in the thick of things many Platinum Cardmembers have not been travelling and have not been able to use the travel credit (unless you know the hotel refund trick ;-) ). American Express knows that cardmembers have stayed and like everything else great they have done during the pandemic they are appeasing the customer and extending or issuing new travel credits for those that expired after October 1, 2020 or will expire by September 30, 2021