Canadian Travel Hacking

Month: August 2014

Why I am never going to Jamaica again.

Never again are we going to Jamaica!

These were the words my wife and I said to ourselves after taking a Montego Bay tour. My wife and I enjoy to travel and see new things but if you looked are our house you would rarely see any trinkets that we bought from our travels (we feel we would rather spend our money on experiences than stuff).

Many of the residents of Jamaica make their money from selling merchandise (usually handmade) and offering services to tourists, such as massage or hair braiding.

While it may seem like a great way to take a little piece of your trip back with you, unfortunately many of these street vendors can get aggressive in their sales pitches.

I have never felt more harassed to buy something from a vendor. The vendors in Montego bay (even the retailers) are so pushy! They make a used car salesman look like Gil from the Simpsons.

I recommend never leaving the cruise ship terminal in Falmouth – the vendors sell the same things as the vendors in town do and are less pushy!

We started at the Shoppes at Rose Hall where you will have an opportunity to purchase that special souvenir to remind you of your visit to Jamaica. The tour continues to Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville by the sea, in the heart of Montego Bay’s Hip Strip where we didn’t find it too hip!

We stopped near this beach that looked great but it was too hot for us so we decided to check out the “fabulous Montego Bay” and were disappointed to see how dirty it was. It has tourism cops that are supposed to be helpful but a simple request to a coffee shop to cool off turns into a fight with people just to drink a coffee – I didn’t want any Bob Marley shirts or any tobacco or stuff to buy!

We decided to stay on the shuttle bus to return to the ship for a better time than being pulled into a shop to buy junk. Another couple from Montreal were soaked for $40 buying junk according to them and also stayed on the bus.

So in summary, High murder rate, tourist traps, everyone with their hand out – reasons why we will never return there. So many other beautiful places in the world to visit.

August 10, 2014
Equifax Canada 30 Day FREE Trial – Get your Credit Score for FREE!

Get your full credit report and credit score for free from Equifax, then cancel within 30 days (need to call in to cancel).

Equifax Free 30-day trial.

Special introductory price good for a limited time. At the end of the 30 day introductory period, your enrollment will automatically continue at the regular rate of $14.95 per month unless you cancel your subscription.

**The credit score provided under the offer described herein makes use of the Equifax Credit Score™, which is a proprietary credit model developed by Equifax. It may be calculated using the information in your Equifax credit file. This score is intended for your own educational use. There are numerous credit scores and models available in the marketplace and lenders are likely to use a different score when evaluating your creditworthiness.

This deal is available here.

August 9, 2014
Aeroplan Members will no longer be able to convert Club Sobeys points in Western provinces.

Sobeys is winding down its Club Sobeys Program — As of September 12, 2014, at Sobeys locations and as of September 10 at Thrifty Foods locations in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Aeroplan members will no longer be able to convert their Club Sobeys/Club Thrifty Foods points to Aeroplan Miles.

I am disappointed, the ratio was nice to earn Aeroplan Miles and I am a big Thrifty’s fans (they are transferring the plan to AIR MILES).

Any Club Sobeys or Club Thrifty Foods points that have been converted to Aeroplan Miles prior to these dates or Aeroplan Miles already deposited in the members account will not be affected.

Members in Ontario who are currently signed up to automatically convert their Club Sobeys points to Aeroplan Miles are not affected by this change and can continue to accumulate miles as usual.

Members can still earn a minimum of 1 Aeroplan Mile per $1 spent when shopping at Sobeys and Thrifty Foods or any grocer of their choice by simply using your Aeroplan—affiliated financial card.

August 5, 2014
Earn Over 4,000 Alaska Airline Miles With Newest Partner, Rocketmiles

Earn Over 4,000 Miles on Your First Stay with Rocketmiles and earn Alaska Miles!

Alaska promo.

Better yet, you’ll earn 3,000 Bonus Miles – plus 1,000 to 5,000 miles per night – after you book your first hotel stay with Rocketmiles.

To be eligible, the hotel reservation MUST BE BOOKED USING THIS PROMOTIONAL LINK (www.rocketmiles.com/alaskaair-3k-bonus) by 11:59PM CT on 30 September 2014 and check-out must occur by 28 February 2015.

Strictly limited to first time customers of Rocketmiles and subject to investigation post-purchase. Limit one per customer. Limit one per stay. Promotional offer can not be applied to existing bookings or retroactively applied to bookings not made using the link above. Promotional offer cannot be combined with any other bonuses or offers.

Rocketmiles reserves the right to retract a bonus at any time if it detects fraud, stacking of bonuses, technical errors, cancel/rebooking activity (defined by identical search criteria), or ANY other deceptive behavior attempted to circumvent the limits expressed above.

August 4, 2014
Victoria Clipper Trip Report – Victoria to Seattle Ferry

There are numerous ways to get from Vancouver island to Seattle however my desirable crossings is using the Victoria Clipper. When you compare time and cost of the journey the clipper offers good value for both. The Clipper is one of the fastest catamarans. It takes approximately 2.5 hours to complete the journey.

View of the Victoria Clipper

The journey not only offers a a quick and convenient way to travel it also gives passengers a panoramic view of the island, mountains and sea with the opportunity to spot seals, whales, and sea lions.

Another view of the Clipper

The check in is quick and easy with priority boarding for young families and anyone requiring assistance. The clipper has an easy access for wheelchairs and is stroller friendly. Bags are checked in prior to boarding. There is also secure containers foe bikes too.

On board the Victoria clipper there is gift and duty free shopping.

Organized and well-laid out.

The staff is extremely friendly and drop by your both to offer assistance with food and beverage service. I enjoyed the complementary tea and coffee.

Victoria Clipper Gift Shop

What more can you ask for in a early crossing!

There is child friendly change tables. It is warm with a comfortable temperature onboard. The crossing is smooth for the most part however choppy for approximately 1hr. The staff offer passengers motion sickness pills for a more pleasurable ride. Smoking is available outside in designate area.

Enjoying the crossing.

I had to leave my stroller which was inconvenient since all my bags and car seat was attached to the stroller.

We arrived as scheduled but what I didn’t enjoy was the long wait outside to pick up the luggage. It was very cold and seem like a long wait to grab our bags. Luckily for us it was a wed night and there were very few people on the boat. We made it through customs within 30 minutes and right downtown our hotel was only a block away.

Entry into Seattle (from Victoria, BC).

August 4, 2014
Earn a $50 Statement Credit from American Express Canada (Shop.ca)
We certainly do not have any American Express Syncs like they do in the United States but at least this helps a bit! This is a great promo to stack with their existing coupon codes and promotions.

AMEX promo

I think some of the prices on this website are quite high but if you can find a great deal (that you can anywhere else online) and remember that you are earning Aeroplan miles you can do well. They now offer many retail cards so if you are an Aeroplan Distinction member like me on a purchase of a $200 Gap Options card (to be used at Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic), you can earn 2 Aeroplan miles at Shop.ca per every dollar spent (in addition to every mile you earn on your credit card).
1. Use a coupon code to save $15 off any purchase more than $30.
2. Use Great Canadian Rebates to get cash-back when making your purchase (just 4% cash back right now), or Ebates (7% cash back).
It’s easy to earn your Statement Credit:

Register your eligible American Express Card between July 23, 2014 and September 30, 2014 at amexnetwork.ca/shopca. Purchases made during the offer period prior to registration of your eligible Card in this program are not qualifying purchases.

Once you’ve registered, use your registered American Express Card to make a cumulative purchase of $200 or more at SHOP.CA between July 23, 2014 and September 30, 2014.

After the offer period ends a $50 Statement Credit* will be applied to the eligible Basic Cardmember’s American Express account.

Here are the special terms:

To be eligible for one (1) $50 (CAD) statement credit; make a cumulative spend of $200 or more at SHOP.CA. To be eligible, the card must be registered prior to making any purchases. The purchase(s) must be charged to your registered Card during the offer period. The qualifying purchase must be completed by 11:59:59 pm EST on September 30, 2014 and subsequently posted to the account to be a qualifying purchase for this offer. Statement credit may take up to 2 billing cycles to appear on your statement and up to 8 weeks to be credited to the account, after the Cardmember has completed the qualifying purchase(s). If the statement credit is being applied to a credit card account, please note that this does not satisfy the requirements to pay the minimum due. A statement credit does not constitute a payment. The Cardmember must continue to make separate payments of at least the minimum due in accordance with the Cardmember agreement and account statement. We reserve the right to substitute an American Express Gift Card or cheque in lieu of the statement credit. American Express is responsible for fulfillment of this offer.
August 2, 2014