June 26 Update: Auto Europe Car Rental Sale, 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points for BW online bookings, 500 Bonus Miles on PointsHound bookings

Here is the Canadian travel rewards round up for Wednesday June 26th

News, Tips & Tricks
Over at Boardingarea.com, Jeff from Canadian Kilometers has been playing around with potential redemptions from the 25% Melia Mas Rewards buy points bonus that I brought to you on FFB a few weeks ago. He has come up with a great redemption option for flying Domestic Business/First class besides the airberlin one that I revealed. Read all about it here.

Travel Deals
AutoEurope has extended their up to 20% off sale for car rentals in Europe. Book online today and receive up to 20% off of your rental car in Europe if you pay by July 1, 2013. 

Bonus Offers
Air Miles
40 Bonus Air Miles Reward Miles for each qualified stay at Best Western branded hotels in Canada, the United States, or the Caribbean Islands. More... Until Sep 3, 13

airBaltic BalticMiles (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- 250 BalticMiles Points when you purchase an airBaltic reloadable Prepaid Visa debit Card. More... Until ?

Best Western Rewards
- 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points and up to 20% off of the Best Available Rate when booking an "Internet Only" rate for stays at participating Best Western hotels Worldwide. More... Until Sep 3, 13

Etihad Guest
- 25% Guest Miles Discount on select Etihad Guest Flight Reward tickets Worldwide. More... Until Jul 31, 13
- Triple Guest Miles for stays at participating Accor Hotels in Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, USA, or Yemen. More... Until Aug 31, 13

Ethiopian Airlines Sheba Miles
- Ethiopian Discounted Sheba Miles award tickets for travel between Seychelles and Europe. More... Until Nov 30, 13

Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- 150 HawaiianMiles per night for stays at the Hotel Modera Portland. More... Until ?

PointsHound.com
500 Bonus Miles or Points per completed stay in any of PointsHound.com's 10 partner programs. More... Book by Jun 30, 13

Saudia Alfursan
- Double Alfursan Miles for stays at participating Golden Tulip locations Worldwide. More... Jul 1 - Aug 31, 13

Ukraine International Panorama Club (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Upgrade to Business Class on UIA flights between Kiev and Warsaw/Istanbul for just 3,000 miles. More... Jul 1 - Aug 31, 13
- Double Panorama Club Miles for stays at the Park Inn by Radisson, Donetsk. More... Jul 1 - Aug 31, 13

Virgin Australia Velocity Rewards (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Triple Velocity Points for stays at participating Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. More... Until Dec 20, 13
- Double Velocity Points for stays on eligible rates at participating Langham Hotels Worldwide. More... Jul 1 - Sep 30, 13

Air Miles: 40 Bonus Rewards Miles for Best Western stays this summer

Though not as lucrative as the Aeroplan offer this is still worthwhile if Air Miles is your primary program and you have Best Western stays planned this summer. Here is the offer as pulled from RC's Air Miles page

Earn 40 Bonus Air Miles Reward Miles for each qualified stay at Best Western branded hotels in Canada, the United States, or the Caribbean Islands. Full details, Online Registration and Booking (Registration is required) Until Sep 3, 13

June 25 Update: Langham Hotels now partnered with Aeroplan, Delta & Virgin Atlantic partnership, Bonus Points for booking with BW Mobile App

Finally back at it today! The past few days here in YYC have been pretty crazy to say none the least. I want to thank everyone who took the time to make bookings via RC yesterday. Once all reports are in a few days I will let you know how much we raised for the Canadian Red Cross' Alberta Flood Relief efforts.

News, Tips & Tricks
 

Aeroplan has added the Langham Hospitality Group as its newest hotel partner. The Langham Hospitality Group is a family of distinctive luxury hotels under The Langham, Langham Place, Eaton and 88 Xintiandi brands that are located on four continents. This agreement will enable Aeroplan Members to earn Aeroplan Miles for each of their stays at 19 participating hotels and resorts around the globe. As a special launch promotion, Aeroplan Members who book and stay at a participating The Langham, Langham Place, Eaton and 88 Xintiandi properties, can earn 2X the miles, until October 31, 2013, and until December 31, 2013 at Eaton Chelsea, Toronto.

Delta Airlines and Virgin Atlantic have announced the details of their joint venture partnership. All reciprocal frequent flyer benefits will begin on July 3. Full details can be found on Delta and Virgin Atlantic.

Bonus Offers
Best Western Rewards
- 1,000 Bonus Rewards Points for each stay you book through the BEST WESTERN TO GO® app for Android or iPhone. More... Until Sep 30, 13

Hyatt Gold Passport
- 1,500 Bonus Gold Passport Points for stays at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. More... Until Aug 31, 13
- 1,500 Bonus Gold Passport Points for stays at the Hyatt Chicago Magnificent Mile. More... Until Aug 31, 13
- 1,500 Bonus Gold Passport Points for stays at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place. More... Until Aug 31, 13
- 3,000 Bonus Gold Passport Points for stays in a deluxe room at the Hyatt Regency Paris Etoile. More... Until Aug 31, 13

Jet Airways JetPrivilege
- Triple JetPrivilege Miles for stays at the Fairmont Jaipur. More... Until Sep 30, 13
- Double JetPrivilege Miles for stays at Harbour Plaza hotels in Hong Kong and Chongqing. More... Until Aug 31, 13
- Double JetPrivilege Miles when booking a Club room or above category at any select Langham Hotel Worldwide. More... Until Aug 31, 13
- Double JetPrivilege Miles for stays of 2 or more nights at The Sukhothai Bangkok. More... Until Oct 31, 13
- Earn up to Triple JetPrivilege Miles for stays at participating Mandarin Oriental Hotels Worldwide. More... Until Jul 31, 13
- Triple JetPrivilege Miles for stays at the Swissotel Kolkata or the Swissotel Goa. More... Until Sep 30, 13
- Double JetPrivilege Miles when you book a stay of two nights or more at prepaid rates at least 20 days in advance at participating World Hotels locations Worldwide. More... Until Sep 30, 13
- Earn up to Quadruple JetPrivilege Miles for Hertz rentals at participating locations in USA, Canada, Europe, Australia or New Zealand. More... Until Jul 31, 13

Miles & More
- Double Miles & More Miles for stays at any participating Movenpick Hotels in Europe that are booked online. More... Until Sep 2, 13

Starwood Preferred Guest
- 500 Bonus Starpoints for stays at participating Starwood Hotels in Florida. More... Until Jul 31, 13

United Mileage Plus
- Triple Mileage Plus Miles on Hertz rentals in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Australia and New Zealand. More... Until Aug 31, 13

Virgin America Elevate (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Earn up to 5,000 Bonus Elevate Points on your first hotel booking with Rocketmiles.com. More... Until Jul 15, 13

June 24th: Rewards Canada will donate our commissions to the Canadian Red Cross for the Alberta Floods

As many of you know,  Rewards Canada is based in Calgary and the city along with most of Southern Alberta has been devastated by major flooding. My family and I were not directly affected as we live high up off of the Bow River though not actually too far from it. We are absolutely heart broken for all YYCers who have lost their homes, businesses, possessions and for those who have been displaced by the evacuations.

Calgarians and Canadian's alike are showing their true spirit by wanting to help out however they can with donations of clothing, supplies and money.  Today my family and I went out and bought some necessities to donate to families that have been displaced (diapers, formula, tooth paste etc.) but we want to do more and I think that we can do it with the help of Rewards Canada readers. The easiest way to get help to residents of Alberta is to donate to the Red Cross, which you can do so directly here but I would also like to extend this donation option to you:

I will donate all of Rewards Canada's airline, hotel and car rental commissions made on June 24th to the Canadian Red Cross. All you have to do is click on the link below and complete your booking with that provider (as you would if you went directly to the site, you will receive all your frequent flyer/guest benefits on eligible bookings as you are making the booking with them not Rewards Canada)

Airlines:
Air France
Austrian Airlines
British Airways
Emirates Airlines
Etihad Airways
KLM
Lufthansa
Qantas
Qatar Airways
Virgin Atlantic

Hotels:
Accor Hotels
Best Western Hotels
Choice Hotels
Fairmont Hotels
Hilton Hotels (US and Canada)
Hilton Hotels (Rest of the world)
InterContinental Hotels Group
La Quinta Inns & Suites
Marriott Hotels
Starwood Hotels
Wyndham Hotel Group

Car Rental:
Alamo
Avis
Budget
Dollar
Hertz
Thrifty

Travel Agencies:
Canadian Affair
Expedia
Hotwire
Flight Network
Travelocity

LAST WEEK: Hilton HHonors Daily Grand Promotion - up to 2,000 bonus points per night

There is only one week left in Hilton HHonor's Daily Grand promotion. If you have any stays this week be sure to register for it if you have not done so already. Here is the offer as pulled from RC's HHonors page:

Earn up to 2,000 Bonus HHonors Points PER NIGHT for every eligible stay at participating hotels and resorts in the Hilton Worldwide portfolio. For eligible stays, Hilton HHonors members will earn 1,000 Bonus Points for each week night of their stay during the Promotion Period and 2,000 Bonus Points for each weekend night of their stay during the Promotion Period. For the purpose of this offer, “weekend night” is defined as Friday, Saturday, or Sunday for all regions except for hotels within the Middle East and Africa where “weekend night” is defined as Thursday, Friday, or Saturday. Full Details, Online Registration and Booking (Registration is required)

Wyndham Rewards: Double Points starting with your second stay

It has been some time since we last saw a systemwide Wyndham Rewards promotion but there is one now as of today! The offer is similar to IHG Rewards Club current offer.  Here is the offer as it will appear on RC's Wyndham  page later today (or Monday):

Double Wyndham Rewards Points starting with your second stay at participating Wyndham Hotels Worldwide. Valid for up to four (4) separate qualified stays (for the second, third, fourth, and fifth qualified stays)  Register Online (Registration is required) Register and book by Sep 13 for stays until Sep 20, 13

June 20 Update: Fast Track to SPG Gold Elite Status, Delta Hotels sale, Thai Airways discounted award tickets

I hope that everyone else in the YYC area are staying as dry as possible after our torrential downpour overnight and this morning. The sun is actually peaking through the clouds as I write this! Thoughts go out to those in Canmore, Black Diamond, Turner Valley and High River whose homes are being devastated by the flash flooding that is occurring.

News, Tips & Tricks
Yesterday LoyaltyLobby passed along an offer for a fast track to Gold Elite Status with the Starwood Preferred Guest program. Now the offer is meant for World Elite and World MasterCard holders in the Asia Pacific region who register and complete one stay at a Starwood Hotel in the Asia Pacific region. However, similar to an offer from Hilton over a year ago you only need to input the first 6 digits of the credit card and these can be found on Google so there is a potential for anyone to take advantage of this new SPG offer. I did take advantage of the Hilton offer and am now Gold until early next year with the HHonors program, it worked for me but for some others it didn't. So if you have an upcoming stay in the Asia Pacific region you can try the same thing with this SPG promotion. There are no guarantees that it will work but it doesn't hurt to try. Find out more here.

Travel Deals
Delta Hotels is once again offering up to 35% off for stays at their locations across Canada. Rooms must be booked by June 23 for stays until September 2. Full details

Bonus Offers
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
- 1,000 Bonus Mileage Plan Miles for FTD purchases. More... Until Jul 31, 13

American AAdvantage
- Double AAdvantage Miles for stays at participating Golden Tulip locations Worldwide. More... Jul 1 - Aug 31, 13

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- Double Asia Miles when you stay at participating Harbour Plaza Hotels & Resort Worldwide for two consecutive nights or more in selected room types. More... Until Sep 18, 13

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
- The Sherwood Taipei Double Mileage Bank Miles for stays on the the "JAL Double Mileage Plan" at The Sherwood Taipei. More... Until Aug 31, 13
- OFFER EXTENDED 1,000 Bonus Mileage Bank Miles on rentals of 3 or more days at a participating Hertz airport or off airport location in the U.S. or Canada. More... Until Oct 31 , 13

Le Club accorhotels
- Triple Le Club Accorhotels Points for weekend stays at participating Mercure Hotels in the U.K. More... Until Sep 15, 13

SAS Scandinavian EuroBonus
- Earn up to Quadruple EuroBonus points on Hertz rentals of 7 or more days Worldwide. More... Until Aug 31, 13
- Double EuroBonus points for stays at the Gothia Towers Hotel Gothenburg. More... Until Sep 14, 13

Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus
- 50% Royal Orchid Miles Discount on Thai Airways Award Tickets between Bangkok and select Thai destinations Worldwide. More.. Until Jul 31, 13
- Earn up to Triple Royal Orchid Miles Discount on Avis rentals in Thailand. Earn Triple Miles (1,500 miles) for rentals of 5+ days or Double Miles (1,000 miles) for rentals of 3-4 days. More.. Until Sep 30, 13

June 19 Update: Next set of Flying Blue Promo Awards are out, United increases award ticket change fees, 1,000 Bonus Air Miles for BMO accounts

What does the middle of the week bring to us in the world of travel rewards? Read on to find out!

News, Tips & Tricks
The next set of Air France KLM Flying Blue Promo awards are out. The promo awards are a discount of 25-50% off the regular mileage requirement for select AF KLM flights in select cabins. Once again Montreal to Europe 1/2/3 is on the list but if you recall my post from a few months ago many of the Flying Blue Award ticket mileage requirements have gone up which means these promo awards have also gone up. Previously you could get a round-trip Montreal-Europe Business Class promo award ticket for 50,000 miles but now it will cost you 62,500 miles. Overall this is still a great deal but of course not as great as it used to be. To take advantage of this YUL-Europe deal you must book your promo award ticket between June 29 and August 29 for July 1 - August 31. More details can be found here.

As you can see Montreal to Europe is 62,500 miles round trip

United Mileage Plus has decided to raise award ticket change fees and mileage redeposit fees without any advance notice. These fees only affect non-premier (Elite) members. Here are the changes:

Fees to change award travel or re-credit miles:
Making a change 21 or more days prior to the date of travel (no change to origin/destination) goes from $0 to $75
Making any change less than 21 days prior to the date of travel; or changing origin/destination at any time goes from $75 to $100
Canceling your trip and re-crediting the miles, regardless of the date goes from $150 to $200

Here is the chart from United:

Bonus Offers
AIR MILES
- 1,000 Bonus Air Miles when you open a new BMO AIR MILES bank plan use your BMO debit card to make purchases of $30 or more for 3 consecutive months. More... Ongoing

Air Baltic Baltic Miles (on FrequentFlyerBonuses.com only)
- Double BalticMiles Points for stays at the Mercure Hotel Hamburg Arena, Grand City Hotel Hamburg Mitte or Grand City Hotel Berlin Hamburg Zentrum.More... Until Jul 31, 13

Air France KLM Flying Blue
- Save up to 50% with Promo Awards Save 25% to 50% on the Award Miles usually required for award ticket. Destinations vary by each promotional period. More... Until Sep 15, 13

airberlin topbonus
- Triple topbonus Miles for every stay at participating Choice Hotels locations Worldwide. More... Until Aug 31, 13

Avianca TACA LifeMiles
- Earn up to 1,000 LifeMiles on a qualifying Budget rental of minimum consecutive three days or more at participating Budget airport locations in the United States, Latin America, Caribbean and Mexico. More... Until Sep 30, 13

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
- Double Asia Miles for stays on the “Linger Longer for Less” rate at participating Langham Hotels Worldwide. More... Book by Aug 31 for stays until Sep 13, 13

Shangri-La Golden Circle
- Triple GC Award Points for stays at the Jing An Shangri-La, West Shanghai. More... Jun 29 - Dec 31, 13

June 18 Update: United's new revenue elite requirement doesn't affect us Canucks and American AAdvantage welcomes back Marriott

News, Tips & Tricks
United Airlines is following in Delta Airlines' footsteps by adding a revenue component to their elite program in 2014. The good thing is that is does not affect us here in Canada, the new requirements are only for U.S residents (just like Delta). Here are the requirements just for information purposes:

Three years ago American AAdvantage and Marriott parted ways but good news came yesterday when the two programs joined together once again. AAdvantage members can now earn AAdvantage miles on all their eligible Marriott stays and also convert Marriott Rewards points into the AAdvantage program. To celebrate there is a bonus offer for stays this summer, see the bonus offer section below for details.

Travel Deals
WestJet is running a 3 day sale for flights within Canada, to the U.S. and to Mexico/Caribbean. Flights must be booked by Jun 20 for travel between Sep 4 and Oct 26.  More...
 

Lufthansa has a great sale for travel between Toronto and Tel Aviv.  Fares start at $996 all in for departures between Oct 20 and Dec 15. Tickets must be booked by July 2 at Lufthansa.com
 

Bonus Offers
American AAdvantage
- 500 Bonus AAdvantage Miles when you stay at any of over 3,700 participating Marriott properties Worldwide. More... Jul 15 - Aug 15, 13

Etihad Guest
- Double Guest Miles on Etihad flights between Abu Dhabi and Belgrade. More... Until Jul 15, 13
- Double Guest Miles on Etihad flights between Abu Dhabi and Sana'a. More... Sep 1 - 30, 13

Jet Airways JetPrivilege
- Triple JetPrivilege Miles when you fly one domestic or international flight on Jet Airways or JetKonnect More... Until Sep 17, 13 Targeted Offer - May not work for everyone

Jumeirah Sirius
- Triple Sirius Points for stays of three or more nights at the Jumeirah Messilah Beach Hotel & Spa plus dine at any of the six restaurants and earn Double Sirius Bonus Points. More... Until Aug 31, 13

Le Club accorhotels
- Earn up to 500 Bonus Le Club Accorhotels Points for stays at participating hotels in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece and Turkey. More... Until Sep 15, 13

June 17 Update: Best Western Free Night after 3 stays, AAdvantage bonus for flying on CX, China expands 72 hour visa-free rule

Today's schedule prevented me from adding to much to FFB or RC:

News, Tips & Tricks
Another Chinese entry city in introducing a 72 hour visa-free visit rule. Earlier in the year it was announced that Beijing and Shanghai would offer the feature and now Chengdu and Guangzhou are following suit. See here for more details

Best Western Rewards' last systemwide offer ended a week ago Sunday and already they have their next one starting today. This time it is the Free Night Voucher offer that we have seen from BW before. See the bonus offers section for more details

Also in the bonus offer section is a new American AAdvantage offer for flying in a premium cabin on Cathay Pacific from Vancouver (and U.S. gateways) to Hong Kong. A nice offer for those of you who funnel your CX flights into the AAdvantage program.



Bonus Offers
American AAdvantage
- Earn up to 10,000 Bonus AAdvantage Miles when you fly roundtrip on Cathay Pacific between Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, or Vancouver and Hong Kong. More... Until Aug 15, 13 Valid for AAdvantage members residing the U.S. and Canada only
- 1,000 Bonus AAdvantage Miles and a $10 Food & Beverage credit at 150+ participating Four Points by Sheraton, Aloft and Element Hotels & Resorts in North America. More... Until Dec 31, 13

Best Western Rewards
- Earn a Free Night when you complete three (3) separate qualified stays at Best Western branded hotels worldwide. More... Register by Jul 28 for stays Jun 17 - Aug 18, 13
- 2,000 Bonus Rewards Points PER NIGHT when you book the VR Rate and complete at least two (2) qualified nights in a Best Western branded hotel in South America. More... Until Jul 31, 13

IHG Rewards Club
- 50% Bonus Priority Club points when you buy or gift Priority Club points. More... Until Jun 23, 13

Japan Airlines Mileage Bank
- Double Mileage Bank Miles for Japan Airlines flights between San Diego and Tokyo. More... Jul 1 - 31, 13 Valid for JMB Members in the Americas only