April 23 Update: Guide to RBC Royal Bank 'RBC Offers', 20 bonus miles via AIR MILES Shops, new airline schedule update section

By now you are most likely familiar with our Guide to Amex Offers page where we summarize all the limited time offers and provide a guide on how to access them. We have now set up the feature for RBC in our new Guide to RBC Royal Bank 'RBC Offers'. It follows the exact same format as our Amex guide by listing the current offers followed by a guide on how to use them.  Check out the feature here. This feature will most definitely need the help of the Rewards Canada community as we only hold the WestJet card in our household - so if you have the Avion, BA or Cathay Pacific cards please let us know if you have any other offers available to you!

American Express has now confirmed the duration of the increased Use Points for Purchases redemption offer. You have until September 30 to redeem points for any purchase made on your cards at the 1,000 points for $10 rate. This is instead of the standard 1,000 points for $7 and is for cards like the American Express Cobalt Card and Gold Rewards Card. Of course if you have a Platinum Card this has been doubled so you get $20 for every 1,000 points until July 20. Related: Limited Time Offer: Increased value in American Express Use Points for Purchases

Image via American Express 

AIR MILES shops has another bonus running until April 27 for shopping online at any of their partner retailers. You can receive 20 bonus AIR MILES Reward Miles when you spend $50 or more in one transaction. Learn more about the offer here.

Image via AIR MILES

In the past we've let you know about an extra lounge benefit for the Platinum Card from American Express where you could access Lufthansa business class lounges in Frankfurt and Munich. This benefit has now been extended to July 31, 2020 - not that it is of much use to travellers right now but it is good to know should you be able to travel in the next couple of months. What this tells me in reality is that it has now been extended several times over the past few years that in all likelihood it will be extended again after July 31. Learn more here.

Image via American Express

Airline Schedule Updates
This will now be a standard feature for the forseeable future in our daily update posts as we summarize Canadian operations based on data from RoutesOnline

Air China's latest update has them flying once weekly between Vancouver and Shenyang and Beijing in May (Source RoutesOnline)

China Eastern's latest schedule update has them flying one flight per week between Toronto and Shanghai for the month of May. (Source RoutesOnline)

Etihad is showing 5x weekly service resuming between Toronto and Abu Dhabi on May 16 (Source RoutesOnline)

Hainan Airlines's latest update has them flying once weekly between Toronto and Xi'an and Beijing (Source RoutesOnline)

Korean Air's latest schedule update shows 3 flights per week in June between Vancouver and Seoul and boosted to 5x weekly in July. (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.
Other resources on Rewards Canada to help you make the most of your points and miles right now:

• Shifting your loyalty program strategy to help during these trying and tough financial times
  
• In light of what's going on in the world should you shift to a cash back credit card instead of a travel card? Why not a card that has both?
  
• Use Instacart to circumvent Loblaw stores non-acceptance of Amex and to earn 5x points with the Cobalt Card

Posts since our last update:

• IHG Rewards Club finally provides elite status extension through to January 2022
  IHG or InterContinental Hotels Group has taken more of a follow than lead position with the COVID-19 Pandemic in…
• Hygiene Hand Antimicrobial Brass Door Opener and Stylus - perfect for inflight entertainment, airport check in touch screens and more
  A few days ago my wife told me about this new Kickstarter project for an Antimicrobial Brass Door Opener…
• Wow this is an amazing deal! Platinum Card from American Express will earn Double Points on top of the doubling of Use Points for Purchases
  An email just came through from American Express for my Platinum Card that provides even further detail to our…
• April 21 Update: Air Canada temporarily suspends transborder U.S. flights, 2x cash back at Rakuten, Emirates pushes back re-launch of flights to July 1
  Air Canada has announced the suspension of all U.S. transborder flights as of April 26. This is in response…

Deals:

Casper: Take 10% off a mattress with code GOODSNOOZ. Valid through 5/11.

Hello Fresh: save $65 in total, including free shipping on the first box! Find out more here.

Missfresh: Simplify your life with 45% off your first 2 consecutive orders with code SIMPLIFY45. Find out more here.

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

British Airways Executive Club
- 800 Bonus Avios when you join e-Rewards and complete your first online survey. More... Until May 15, 20

Marriott Bonvoy
- 2,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT for stays at the Tysons Corner Marriott. More... Until May 31, 20
- 1,500 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT on Thursday-Sunday nights at The Westin South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa. More... Until Jun 1, 20

Radisson Rewards
- 2,500 Bonus Radisson Rewards Points and up to 25% off for stays at participating Radisson Collection, Radisson Blu, Radisson RED, Radisson, Park Inn by Radisson, Park Plaza, and Country Inn & Suites by Radisson hotels in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific. More... Book by May 10 for stays June 10 – August 31, 20

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Double KrisFlyer Miles when you book hotel stays via Trip.com PointsPLUS. More... Book by May 31 for stays until June 30, 20






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IHG Rewards Club finally provides elite status extension through to January 2022

IHG or InterContinental Hotels Group has taken more of a follow than lead position with the COVID-19 Pandemic in terms of what they are doing with their loyalty program, IHG Rewards Club. Initially they came out with lower re-qualification requirements and took some time to then provide a pause on the expiring of points - the latter I'm thankful for as my balance of 80,000+ points was due to expire in May. Up until now they stayed mum on the extension of elite status even though most of their competitors did so at various times over the past month. Good news is they have now gone that route and will provide all current elite members with an extension of their status:

Here is the statement from IHG:

All members’ program status will be automatically extended through January 2022, allowing members to enjoy all the benefits of the status they earned during 2019.

This is great news for those members who do have status and it puts IHG in line with its competitors. If you don't have status the lowered qualification criteria remain in place - not that many of us are travelling but perhaps in a few months that may change.

As a reminder here are the adjusted elite status qualification criteria:

Also as part of this latest update IHG if you are a Spire Elite member you will receive another choice benefit of  25,000 bonus points or the ability to gift Platinum Elite status. This is an addition to the same benefit you should have already received. 

Learn more about IHG Rewards Club's policies here 

All images via IHG

Hygiene Hand Antimicrobial Brass Door Opener and Stylus - perfect for inflight entertainment, airport check in touch screens and more

A few days ago my wife told me about this new Kickstarter project for an Antimicrobial Brass Door Opener and Stylus. We looked at it, decided to back it and ordered some of them. According to the latest email we have received from Hygiene Hand they should be shipping out next week some time.

So what is this Hygiene Hand? It is a small brass tool that you can use to pull doors open, touch screens like ATMs and much more. Essentially it provides a way to touch surfaces that can be contaminated without actually touching them by hand or finger. Normally I don't write about products like these, especially if they aren't travel related but I do see this product being extremely useful when you do travel. Think about your seat on the airplane and the inflight entertainment system. On so many airlines the IFE is primarily a touch screen so you can use this tool to navigate it without actually touching it!

You won't have to actually touch the touch screen anymore
Image courtesy of Air Canada

Use the tool to touch the screen instead of your finger

According to Hygiene Hands brass is inherently antimicrobial so it should help prevent the spread of germs. Even if it isn't I like the concept of having it as tool to perform the actual touching of high contact areas rather than using my own hands or fingers. Ultimately I see as a way to being able to limit potential exposure. I can see utilizing the tool to open doors at airports, hotels and so many other places. I can see us using it for self check in touch screens at the airport or hotel. It really seems like there can be so many potential uses for it.

Use it for your airport self service check in
Image via Calgary Airport Authority

We backed and ordered the project at the $85 level where we will get 5 of the tools - one for each member of the family and one extra. I'll follow up another post once we receive them and have a chance to use them in our everyday lives. Granted it most likely won't be travel related just yet but we should be able to extrapolate day to day use to future travel use.

Learn more about and order the Hygiene Hand Antimicrobial Brass Door Opener and Stylus here


All images via Hygiene Hands unless otherwise noted

Wow this is an amazing deal! Platinum Card from American Express will earn Double Points on top of the doubling of Use Points for Purchases

An email just came through from American Express for my Platinum Card that provides even further detail to our post from earlier today: Limited Time Offer: Increased value in American Express Use Points for Purchases (1,000 points = up to $20!) which effectively doubles that! From today until July 20 you will earn double points on all purchases made on the Platinum Card from American Express and double the value on redemptions. This has made the Platinum Card the best cash back card in the market for the next three months.

Here is an excerpt from the email:

Earn Double the Points
Through Double Rewards, over the next three months, you will earn double rewards points on all your spend: any retailer, anywhere and anytime*. Food delivery. Check. Online retailers. Check. Streaming services. Check.

Enjoy Double the Value
Additionally, if you choose to pay (or partially pay) for any purchase charged to your Platinum Card with points – through the Use Points for Purchases program – you’ll enjoy twice the value.

The Platinum Card normally earns 3 points per dollar on dining, 2 points on travel and 1 point per dollar on everything else. This means that from today until July 20 it will 6 points per dollar on dining, 4 points per dollar on travel (you can pretty much excuse this one) and 2 points for everything else. The doubling of points is great but it doesn't end there.

 As we already posted this morning you can now also redeem 1,000 points for a $20 credit with the Platinum card for any purchase you make. Normally it is 1,000 points for $7, but four days ago that was boosted to 1,000 points for $10 and then of course with the launch of today's promo it is now $20.

This now makes the card with the highest potential cash back return rate. At 6 points per dollar for dining and $20 for 1,000 points your cash back return rate is a whopping 12%!! Travel is 8% and all other spending is 4%! No other cards provide 4% back on non-bonus spending. And since this offer runs until July 20 you still have time to get this card to get in on the offer Yes the card has $699 annual fee thanks to its amazing suite of travel benefits and insurance that aren't of much use right now but hopefully by 2021 you'll be able to use them. However when you do get the card it is offering up to 60,000 points as a welcome bonus which is broken down as 50,000 points when you spend $3,000 in the first three months. If you can do that you now have $1,000 in cash back as your redemption rate is doubled until July 20! So yes the $699 annual fee is totally worth it. And then after 6 months you'll get an additional 10,000 points!

 This new promotion has totally set the Platinum Card front and center in our market. 

Learn more and apply for the Platinum Card here.

Key terms of this offer:

*You will earn three additional points for each dollar charged at restaurants, quick service restaurants, coffee shops and drinking establishments in Canada (for a total of six points). You will earn two additional points for each dollar spent on travel services or travel bookings including air, water, rail and road transport, lodging and tour operator sales, but not including local and commuter transportation (for a total of four points). You will earn one additional point for each dollar spent when the merchant code is not in an eligible category, using a payment account or service of a third party, a card reader attached to a mobile phone or online retailer that sells goods of other merchants or the merchant category is otherwise not identified (for a total of two points). Eligible purchases can be made by the Basic Card Member and any Additional Card Members on a single Card account. Eligible purchases are purchases for goods and services minus returns and other credits. Eligible purchases do not include annual fees, interest charges, other fees, and cash equivalent transactions. Points will typically be credited to your Membership Rewards account within 5 days after an eligible purchase you made is posted to your account. Additional terms and restrictions apply.
**The value of your Membership Rewards points when redeemed for the Use Points for Purchases option will automatically double per point for the period of the offer. From April 21^st until July 20^th, 2020, when you redeem points under the Use Points for Purchases program, each 1,000 points = $20 statement credit for both travel and all other eligible purchases charged to the Card. 

April 21 Update: Air Canada temporarily suspends transborder U.S. flights, 2x cash back at Rakuten, Emirates pushes back re-launch of flights to July 1

Air Canada has announced the suspension of all U.S. transborder flights as of April 26. This is in response to the extension of the closure of the Canada-U.S. border to non-essential travel for another 30 days. Air Canada has been flying limited flights between Canada and the U.S. since the middle of March primarily for the repatriation of Canadians who were in the U.S. The suspension of flights to the U.S. is currently set to run until May 22. (Source Air Canada)

Image via Air Canada

 And how quickly things change - yesterday we let you know about getting 3x cash back at Rakuten but that has dropped back down to 2x now at select retailers for Earth Week. Looking at the offers however shows some retailers are still at 3x or even more. Find out more here.

Image via Rakuten

Emirates has once again pushed back the launch of passenger flights. They are now slated to start up on July 1st, yes not until July! If everything holds true they will start to fly to Toronto once again with a 5x weekly schedule. Chances are that this schedule will change again before then. (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.
Other resources on Rewards Canada to help you make the most of your points and miles right now:

• Shifting your loyalty program strategy to help during these trying and tough financial times
  
• In light of what's going on in the world should you shift to a cash back credit card instead of a travel card? Why not a card that has both?
  
• Use Instacart to circumvent Loblaw stores non-acceptance of Amex and to earn 5x points with the Cobalt Card

Posts since our last update:

• Limited Time Offer: Increased value in American Express Use Points for Purchases (1,000 points = up to $20!)
  On April 17 American Express Canada started new promotions for redeeming Membership Rewards points on non-travel purchases. In light…
• April 20 Update: Amex Platinum cardmembers to receive annual travel credit replacement, WestJet removes more domestic flights for May, up to 3x cash back with Rakuten
  An email was sent out to The Platinum Card from American Express cardmembers late Friday afternoon with their first…
  
  

Deals:

Casper: Take 10% off a mattress with code GOODSNOOZ. Valid through 5/11.


Hello Fresh: save $65 in total, including free shipping on the first box! Find out more here.

Missfresh: Simplify your life with 45% off your first 2 consecutive orders with code SIMPLIFY45. Find out more here.

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

Aegean Miles+Bonus
- OFFER UPDATED Earn up to 3,000 Bonus Miles+Bonus Miles when you change your ticket that was issued for travel until July 31 for future travel until Mar 27, 21. More... Change by Apr 27, 20

ALL Accor Live Limitless
- Earn 4x ALL Rewards Points on all eligible stays of 2 or more nights at Accor Hotel stays in China mainland, Hong Kong (China), Macau (China), Taiwan (China) and Mongolia. More... Until Aug 31, 20

Marriott Bonvoy
- 10,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points when you stay 3 nights or longer at the Santa Marina, a Luxury Collection Resort, Mykonos. More... May 1 - Jun 28, 20

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Earn up to 3,500 Bonus KrisFlyer Miles for Sixt rentals in Singapore. More... Until May 31, 20

Sonesta Hotels Travel Pass
- Double Travel Pass Points per stay at the The Clift Royal Sonesta Hotel San Francisco. More... Until Jun 30, 20





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Limited Time Offer: Increased value in American Express Use Points for Purchases (1,000 points = up to $20!)

On April 17 American Express Canada started new promotions for redeeming Membership Rewards points on non-travel purchases. In light of the current global situation with COVID-19 American Express wanted to continue to provide value to their cardmembers and with virtually no one redeeming or being able to redeem for travel they came out with this offer. The offer, which is a limited time one (we don't know the end date yet) sees the redemption of points for the Use Points for Purchases boosted by nearly 43% to 1,000 points for a $10 statement credit for Membership Rewards Select cards like the American Express Cobalt Card or as high as 1,000 points for a $20 statement credit for Membership Rewards cards like the Platinum Card.

If you are unfamiliar with Amex's Use Points for Purchases, it is their redemption option where you can redeem points for any eligible purchase made on a card that earns Membership Rewards points or Membership Rewards Select points. Typically the rate is 1,000 points for a $7 credit while the rate for travel was 1,000 points for a $10 credit. The topic of being able to use points for any purchases, which is basically a cash back redemption option, has been discussed frequently here on Rewards Canada since early March due to the huge shift away from travel in loyalty programs for the vast majority of Canadians. With families out of work or working reduced hours many have seen their cash flows severely hampered and need avenues to supplement what little income they may have. That's where the shift from travel to cash or cash equivalents rewards comes in. I'm not going to into deep discussion on it in this post since we have covered the topic previously, instead here are the links to the articles should you want to research it further:

• Shifting your loyalty program strategy to help during these trying and tough financial times 
• Guide to Credit Card Cash Back Liquidity
• In light of what's going on in the world should you shift to a cash back credit card instead of a travel card? Why not a card that has both?

Now back to this offer - as already mentioned Amex has increased the redemption value of their points for any purchase you make on your card.  What this means is that on a card like the American Express Cobalt Card you are receiving up to 5% cash back return as the card earns 5 points per dollar on eats and drinks. This move just shot the card further up in the rankings of cards in Canada - not that it can get much higher seeing that it is the best overall card in Canada to begin with. While cards like the Platinum Card now peak at up to 6% cash back return! 

Remember as well that you only need to have that 1,000 points to redeem or in the case of the Cobalt Card as little as $200 in spending. Not many cards have this low of minimum points requirement to redeem. You could literally receive the Cobalt card on a Monday, spend $200 by Wednesday and be able to redeem those 1,000 points for $10 by the following Monday.

Here are the Amex cards that you can utilize this promotion with and the equivalent cash back rate of return:

• American Express Cobalt Card  1% to 5%
• American Express Gold Rewards Card 2% to 4% (to be confirmed)
• The Platinum Card 2% to 6%

To redeem the points for any purchase you simply have to log in to your Amex account online and click on Use Points for Purchase or via the Amex app and click on the transaction you would like to redeem points for.

Here is a screenshot of being able to redeem 1,000 points for $20 from my Platinum Card:

And a screenshot from my Cobalt Card taken off the mobile app:

I also have the Gold Rewards Card and I can redeem points at 1,000 for $20 for those purchases however the points earned on this card get pooled with the points earned on The Platinum Card so I'm not 100% sure if the 1,000 for $20 rate holds true if you only have the Gold Rewards Card. My guess is that it does but perhaps one of our readers can let us know if this is the case or not. I am also awaiting a response back from American Express as to when we can expect this offer to end.

What do you think of this latest initiative from American Express? Does it give you enough incentive to redeem for non-travel purchases or will you hold out until you can redeem for travel again? Let us know below in the comments!

April 20 Update: Amex Platinum cardmembers to receive annual travel credit replacement, WestJet removes more domestic flights for May, up to 3x cash back with Rakuten

An email was sent out to The Platinum Card from American Express cardmembers late Friday afternoon with their first news about extending benefits that aren't really usable right now. This first bit of news lets cardmembers know that if they haven't used their $200 annual travel credit and it was set to expire between January and September of this year you'll receive a replacement credit. Cardmembers don't have to do anything as American Express will reach out with details on how the replacement will be added to your account.

Image via American Express

WestJet provided another domestic schedule update today with even more routes being cancelled in May:

The following city pairs have been temporarily removed from May 5-June 4, 2020:  

Market	Previous frequency
Vancouver – Nanaimo	2x daily
Vancouver – Comox	1x daily
Vancouver – Regina	4x weekly
Vancouver – Saskatoon	5x weekly
Vancouver – Winnipeg	3x daily
Vancouver - Fort St. John	1x daily
Vancouver – Cranbrook	1x daily
Vancouver - Ottawa	1x daily
Vancouver - Montreal	6x weekly
Kelowna – Victoria	12x weekly
Calgary - Prince George	1x daily
Calgary - Ottawa	2x daily
Calgary - Montreal	13x weekly
Calgary – London, ON	1x daily
Calgary - Halifax	17x weekly
Edmonton – Comox	6x weekly
Edmonton – Victoria	20x weekly
Edmonton - Kelowna	7x daily
Edmonton - Grande Prairie	13x weekly
Edmonton – Yellowknife	1x daily
Edmonton - Saskatoon	3x daily
Edmonton - Regina	3x daily
Edmonton - Winnipeg	20x weekly
Edmonton - Ottawa	2x weekly
Edmonton – Halifax	5x weekly
Winnipeg – Ottawa	1x daily
Winnipeg – Regina	1x daily
Winnipeg - Halifax	1x daily
Toronto - Victoria	4x weekly
Toronto - Edmonton	5 to 7x daily
Toronto – Regina	10x weekly
Toronto – Saskatoon	12x weekly

In some of our posts about online shopping we mentioned that you can 2x cash back with select retailers at Rakuten. This has now been boosted and you can earn up to 3x cash back with select retailers. Find out more here. 

Image via Rakuten

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.
Other resources on Rewards Canada to help you make the most of your points and miles right now:

• Shifting your loyalty program strategy to help during these trying and tough financial times
  
• In light of what's going on in the world should you shift to a cash back credit card instead of a travel card? Why not a card that has both?
  
• Use Instacart to circumvent Loblaw stores non-acceptance of Amex and to earn 5x points with the Cobalt Card

Posts since our last update:

• Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Buy Miles Mystery Bonus – 40% to 60% bonus reported
  Alaska Airlines has revealed their next buy miles promotion for the Mileage Plan program that runs until May 31.…
• Receive Air Canada Altitude Prestige 25K status when you earn 50,000 Aeroplan Miles via everyday activities
  Air Canada Aeroplan revealed another great stay at home promotion for their members today. Following in the footsteps of…
• Government of Canada makes it a requirement to wear masks when flying as of April 20
  Canada's Minister of Transport, Marc Garneau announced today that everyone traveling by air will be required to wear a mask.…
• April 17 Update: Air Canada updates international flight schedule, 20x PC Optimum points at Shoppers, 40% bonus when buying Wyndham Rewards points
  Air Canada provided a major schedule update to their international operations yesterday. Based on the data it appears that…

Deals:

Casper: Take 10% off a mattress with code GOODSNOOZ. Valid through 5/11.

The Fairmont Hotels Store has launched a white sale where you can save 20% on all beds, linens, pillows, duvets, robes and towels. You can bring the comforts of Fairmont Hotels home with this sale. Find out more here. This sale runs until April 20.

Hello Fresh: save $65 in total, including free shipping on the first box! Find out more here.

Missfresh: Simplify your life with 45% off your first 2 consecutive orders with code SIMPLIFY45. Find out more here.

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

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
- Earn up to a 60% bonus when you buy Mileage Plan miles. Bonus varies by member and will be revealed after you log in. More... Until May 31, 20

Hilton Honors
- OFFER UPDATED - Elite Status Match and Fast Track to Elite Status Offer - Receive Hilton Honors elite status for 90 days when you hold status with another hotel program and then stay 10 nights in 90 days to keep Gold Status or 18 nights to keep Diamond status. More... Until ?

Marriott Bonvoy
- 2,000 Bonus Bonvoy Points PER NIGHT for stays at the Four Points by Sheraton Memphis East. More... Until May 31, 20

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Triple KrisFlyer Miles when you book a minimum of two consecutive nights stay at the Mandarin Orchard Singapore. More... Until May 31, 20

Wyndham Rewards
- 40% Bonus when you buy Wyndham Rewards Points. More... Until May 11, 20
- Double Wyndham Rewards Points on rentals of 1 or more days at participating Avis locations worldwide. More... Until Dec 31, 20





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Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Buy Miles Mystery Bonus – 40% to 60% bonus reported

Alaska Airlines has revealed their next buy miles promotion for the Mileage Plan program that runs until May 31. The bonus varies by member and will be revealed to you after you log in to buy miles. I received a maximum bonus of 40% while OMAAT reports an offer of up to 60%. If you received the latter consider yourself lucky as that is the highest bonus ever seen for buying Mileage Plan miles!! The 40% bonus is pretty typical from Alaska although we do see 50% quite often as well. The 60% however is new and if you get that offer you’ll be buying Mileage Plan miles for as little as 1.72 US cents each. If you received a different bonus from the 40 or 60% please let us know the details in the comments below and we’ll add it to the post.

Reminder: This is definitely a speculative buy as we don’t know when full fledged travel will resume but if I were to buy any type of miles or points it would be Mileage Plan miles as they are some of the most valuable in the world. Short term – they would be used for domestic flights to/from/within the U.S. but long term speculators will be grabbing them for flights on Cathay Pacific, JAL and more. If you get the 60% offer this is most definitely a speculative buy I would jump on.

Offer details:
Earn up to a 60% bonus when you buy Mileage Plan miles. Bonus varies by member and will be revealed after you log in. Buy Alaska Miles Here  Until May 31, 20
40% offer:

• Buy 3,000 – 14,000 miles, get a 20% bonus
• Buy 15,000 – 100,000 miles, get a 40% bonus

60% offer:

• Buy 10,000-19,000 miles, get a 20% bonus
• Buy 20,000-39,000 miles, get a 40% bonus
• Buy 40,000-100,000 miles, get a 60% bonus

Receive Air Canada Altitude Prestige 25K status when you earn 50,000 Aeroplan Miles via everyday activities

Air Canada Aeroplan revealed another great stay at home promotion for their members today. Following in the footsteps of their previous promotion where you can receive Altitude Qualifying Status Miles for donating Aeroplan miles you can now earn your way to an actual Altitude status level with this newest promotion. Simply earn 50,000 Aeroplan Miles by May 31 and you will receive Altitude Prestige 25K status that valid through 2021. And it appears that virtually an method of earning miles will count towards that 50,000 level. Sign up for a new Aeroplan card, convert hotel points, convert American Express Membership Reward points, shop online via the eStore and of course earn Aeroplan miles directly via your Aeroplan affiliated credit card!

Here are the details as provided to us by Air Canada Aeroplan:

Between today (Apr 20) and May 31st, when a member earns 50,000 Aeroplan Miles through everyday Travel at home activities (including miles earned via an Aeroplan-affiliated credit card), the member will receive Altitude Prestige 25K status valid through 2021. Members will need to register for this promotion.

* Altitude members can earn towards their next status level - Between April 20 and May 31st, members earn more when they earn Aeroplan Miles, including Bonus Altitude Qualifying Miles (AQM) and the potential for a one-time Altitude status tier upgrade up to a maximum award of Elite 75K.

How can members achieve this?

* As announced earlier, members can earn miles for every five Aeroplan Miles they donate to a charity fighting the COVID-19 crisis, they'll receive one Altitude Qualifying Mile (AQM).
* Convert points from hotels and credit cards - an easy way to earn towards an Altitude status would be to convert points like your Marriott Bonvoy or AMEX Membership Rewards.
* Use an Aeroplan affiliated credit card or apply for one and the initial welcome bonus will count!
* Shop online via the 170+ brands on the Aeroplan eStore. There will be weekly bonuses released, specifically for everyday purchases from favourite brands like Gap, Sephora, Well.ca, Indigo and more.

Air Canada's promotion development team have really kicked things into high gear to have their members engaged and earning miles in the program and I can foresee a lot of our readers pushing their way to earn that 50,000 miles by the end of May. I know for a lot of you this won't be hard - you are sitting on decent amounts of Membership Rewards points and Marriott Bonvoy points where you can hit that 50K mark in one fell swoop. I know I'll consider it for both my wife and I with conversions from American Express and/or Marriott.

What does Altitude 25K get you? It gets you Priority Check In and Priority Boarding, 2 Maple Leaf Lounge passes, 20 eUpgrade credits, Star Alliance Silver and more.

If you are looking for ways to earn more Aeroplan miles to reach this bonus you can look at their Point #3 - The initial welcome bonus from an Aeroplan affiliated credit card will count so without much further ado here are your best options if you want to grab a new card to help reach that 50K:

TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card
- Earn up to 30,000 Aeroplan Miles (equivalent to 2 economy short-haul roundtrip flight rewards)¹ and first year no Annual Fee for the Primary and 1st Additional Cardholder¹. Conditions Apply. Must apply by May 31, 2020.
The key with this card is that you'll get 15,000 miles on first purchase while the other 15K have to be spread out over 3 months. So for this promotion you may be able to squeak out 20K via this card. The good news is the annual fee is rebated in the first year so these miles come to you at no extra cost outside of your everyday spend. Learn more about and apply for the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card here

CIBC Aerogold Visa Infinite Card
- Earn up to 35,000 Aeroplan Miles Plus, get a first-year annual fee rebate. Must apply by July 5, 2020
The key with this card is that you'll get 20,000 miles on first purchase while the other 15K come a year later on your anniversary if you hit $10,000 in spending. That means for this promotion you may can easily just go for the 20K first purchase bonus. And like the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite card this card also has no annual fee in the first year. Between the two you could have 35,000 Aeroplan in a short minute. Learn more about and apply for the CIBC Aerogold Visa Infinite Card here

The Platinum Card
- New Platinum Cardmembers, earn 50,000 welcome bonus Membership Rewards® points when you charge $3,000 in purchases to your Card in your first three months of Cardmembership. Plus, you can receive an additional 10,000 Membership Rewards® points after six months of Cardmembership.
So with this card you do have to spend quite a bit and you'll have to do it quick but the good news with Amex Membership Rewards points is they post really quick - you don't have to wait until the end of your billing cycle and then when you convert them to Aeroplan miles it is virtually an instant transfer. And with 50,000 points converting 1:1 to Aeroplan you have the number of miles required to get that Altitude 25K. Learn more about and apply for The Platinum Card here

American Express Gold Rewards Card
- New American Express® Gold Rewards Cardmembers can earn a Welcome Bonus of 25,000 Membership Rewards® points when you charge $1,500 in purchases to your Card in your first 3 months of Cardmembership .
This card will get you half way to that 50K as the 25,000 welcome bonus points convert 1:1 to Aeroplan. Like the Platinum Card you don't have to wait until the end of your billing cycle to receive your points.  Learn more about and apply for the American Express Gold Rewards Card here

I would consider the above cards your best bets but you also have other card options as like the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card, CIBC Aerogold Visa Infinite Privilege Card and the Marriott Bonvoy American Express card to consider for this promotion.

Like mentioned above if you already have enough points with American Express Membership Rewards simply convert away and you'll have that status PDQ. Same goes for Marriott Bonvoy - if you have 120,000 Marriott Bonvoy points you'll hit that 50K no problem. Bonvoy points convert at a 3:1 ratio so 120,000 points gets you 40,000 Aeroplan Miles and you may be saying  that's not enough! However Marriott provides an additional 5,000 miles for every 60,000 points converted which means when you convert 120,000 points they give you an additional 10,000 miles and that's how you get 50K Aeroplan Miles. Learn more about converting Marriott points here. You can also convert points from other hotel programs - albeit at not as good of a conversion ratio however if you have stranded hotel points that you'll never use have at it and convert them over to Aeroplan to help you get to the 50,000 mile level.

As pointed out by Aeroplan you have other ways as well to reach the 50K. If you already have an Aeroplan affiliated credit card spend away to get those miles and then funnel all your online shopping via the Aeroplan eStore as those miles will count as well.

Recommend reading: Rewards Canada's ultimate guide to earning miles, points, and cash back for online shopping and food delivery services

Finally if you already have Altitude status you are not forgotten with this promotion. You can earn additional AQMs, eCredits and more for your earning:

It's great to see Aeroplan come out with this promotion as so many of us aren't travelling and earning miles via that route and this will definitely encourage many to focus on Aeroplan over other programs for the next 6 weeks or so!

Learn more about and register for the Aeroplan Travel at Home to accelerate your status promotion here. 
(You do have to register for the offer to be eligible)

All images via Air Canada

Government of Canada makes it a requirement to wear masks when flying as of April 20

Canada's Minister of Transport, Marc Garneau announced today that everyone traveling by air will be required to wear a mask. Meanwhile if you are travelling by boat, bus or rail you may be required or asked to do so as well:

Today, the Minister of Transport, the Honourable Marc Garneau, announced new measures requiring all air passengers to have a non-medical mask or face covering to cover their mouth and nose during travel. These measures come into effect at noon EDT on April 20, 2020.

When travelling by air, travellers will be asked to cover their mouth and nose:

• at Canadian airport screening checkpoints, where the screeners cannot always keep two metres of separation between themselves and the traveller;
• when they cannot physically distance from others, or as directed by the airline employees; and
• when directed to do so by a public health order or public health official.

Aviation passengers on all flights departing or arriving at Canadian airports will also be required to demonstrate they have the necessary non-medical mask or face covering during the boarding process otherwise they will not be allowed to continue on their journey.  Passengers should follow the current Public Health Agency of Canada’s guidance on face coverings.

When travelling by marine modes of transportation, travellers are encouraged to wear non-medical masks or face coverings whenever possible. In addition, operators of ferries and essential passenger vessels will, when feasible:

• provide public messaging to travellers about the need to have a non-medical mask or face covering to cover their mouth and nose during their journey when they cannot maintain physical distance from others, and that passengers could be subject to denial of boarding should they fail to comply.

Passengers travelling by rail or motor carrier/bus modes of transportation are also strongly encouraged to wear non-medical masks or face coverings as much as possible. Passengers may be asked by the transportation operator to cover their noses and mouths when physical distancing is not possible.

Learn mor about the new measures here.

HT View from theWing