Author: szussino

American Express Canada has come out and produced some of richest offers in their history for their Aeroplan branded cards.

Get up to 150,000 Aeroplan points with the American Express®* Aeroplan® Reserve Card.

• Earn up to 70,000 Aeroplan points after spending $6,000 in purchases within the first six months of Cardmembership.
• Plus, you can also earn 5,000 Aeroplan points for each monthly billing period in which you spend $1,000 in purchases on your Card for the first six months of Cardmembership. That could add up to 30,000 Aeroplan points.
• Plus, earn a total of 10X the points on all eligible eats and drinks purchases in Canada for the first six months of Cardmembership, up to a maximum of 50,000 points.

In all cases above “Eats & Drinks” follows American Express’ standard definition for this category, including restaurants, food delivery and grocery in Canada. 

Just transferring your grocery spending to this card should let you achieve the top bonus of 150,000 total Aeroplan points.

This is very achievable as their definition is quite wide for eats and drinks.

Here is a good summary or factsheet of all their Aeroplan offers:

Here are some additional Features or benefits of the cards:

At the airport– Eligible American Express Aeroplan Cardmembers get multiple benefits when they travel with Air Canada, including their first checked bags for free, Maple Leaf Lounge access, priority boarding and other benefits at the airport. Plus, their companions traveling on the same reservation and their eligible Additional Cardmembers can also take advantage of these benefits.

Status– Eligible American Express Aeroplan Cardmembers can help members reach and maintain status more easily. Members can earn Status Qualifying Miles and Status Qualifying Segments just by spending on their eligible American Express Aeroplan Cards. Plus, Elite Status Members can tap into new benefits like rollover eUpgrade credits, and clear upgrades with priority at the airport.

Faster earn – Earn Aeroplan points everywhere you pay with your American Express Aeroplan Card, including extra points in popular categories such as: dining and food delivery. And earn even more with the American Express®* Aeroplan® Reserve Card which has the highest rate of earn with Air Canada at 3 Aeroplan points per $1 spent on the Card, plus a minimum of 1.25 Aeroplan points per $1 spent.

The Reserve card is my favourite of the bunch due to the heavy benefits like the Free Checked Bag and Lounge Access and Potential upgrades.

The card comes with an annual fee of $599 but keep in mind that American Express has offers constantly (like the Shop Small event that will give you $50 in credits and they have these throughout the year to help reduce the sting of the annual fee.

The way I look at it is that the fee is great for 1 year but you can then do the analysis to see if the annual benefits are worth the cost of the annual fee. For the first year getting the bonus and the benefits outweighs the cost for me (since I plan to travel at least twice the next year and should save with the free luggage for me and my family as opposed to paying $25 each leg).

If you against the high annual fee, their regular or code American Express Aeroplan card also has an offer to get up to 75,000 Aeroplan points with the American Express Aeroplan card.

• Earn 44,000 Aeroplan points after spending $3,000 in purchases within the first six months of Cardmembership.

• Plus, you can also earn 1,000 Aeroplan points for each monthly billing period in which you spend $500 in purchases on your Card for the first six months of Cardmembership. That could add up to 6,000 Aeroplan points.
• Plus, earn a total of 5X the points on all eligible eats and drinks purchases in Canada for the first six months of Cardmembership, up to a maximum of 25,000 points.

It also has an annual fee but it is only $120 – which is a good deal for all those points but if you do the math the value you get from the Reserve card is incredible.

If you have any questions, please leave a comment in the post!

This is one of my favourite times of the year, the Shop Small Event in Canada is on!

Simply register your card for the promotion in your American Express Online account.

MAKE A QUALIFYING PURCHASE of at least $10 (after taxes) in a single transaction using your registered Card between June 28 and August 23, 2021 and you could be eligible to earn a $5 statement credit at each of up to 10 different participating small business locations in Canada.

EARN up to $50 in total credits! I try to hit small businesses that could all use our support after the last year.

Find eligible businesses at amex.ca/maps and a selection of eligible online businesses at amex.ca/onlinebusinesses. Just look for the Shop Small logo.

With Rocky Mountaineer, Aeroplan members will be able to earn and redeem points and enjoy premium benefits when booking a scenic rail journey.  Also, as a special introductory offer, members can earn up to 20,000 bonus points for each eligible traveller booked with Rocky Mountaineer.

Full details of the press release are attached but wanted to highlight a few key features of the partnership:

• Members can earn 20,000 bonus Aeroplan points per customer for booking in Rocky Mountaineer’s GoldLeaf® Service and 10,000 bonus Aeroplan points per customer for SilverLeaf® Service bookings for travel in 2021;
• For travel in 2022 and beyond, Aeroplan members will earn 2 points for every $1 CDN spent on a GoldLeaf Service booking and 1 point for every $1 CDN spent on a SilverLeaf booking;
• Aeroplan Elite Status members 50K and above and Aeroplan Premium Co-Brand Cardholders receive an upgrade from Rocky Mountaineer’s SilverLeaf to GoldLeaf Service, and two nights of upgraded hotel accommodations while travelling;
• Aeroplan Elite Status members 25K and above receive two nights of upgraded hotel accommodations while travelling;
• Members can redeem Aeroplan points on the Aeroplan eStore for either dollar eVouchers starting at $50, or entire Rocky Mountaineer vacation package eVouchers.

To earn points and access these special upgrade benefits, Aeroplan members simply have to complete their booking by calling Rocky Mountaineer at 1-800-875-9149.  Members can provide their Aeroplan number at time of booking or they can call to add their Aeroplan number to any existing booking made after May 27, 2021 to be eligible for Aeroplan points accumulation and upgrades.

Starting at the end of June, Aeroplan members will be able to apply their Aeroplan number during Rocky Mountaineer’s online booking process to be eligible for earn and upgrades.

For more information, please visit: www.aircanada.com/rockymountaineer. 

Aeroplan is proud to announce that its millions of Members can now earn and redeem points by enjoying their favourite Starbucks beverages and snacks. Starting today, members can link their Aeroplan account to a Starbucks Rewards account and double-dip by earning both Aeroplan points and Starbucks Stars at participating Starbucks locations throughout Canada. Linking takes less than a minute and can be done at aircanada.com/starbucks. 

These time-limited offers will give members special earning opportunities on the ground and at home, setting them up for future travel, whenever they’re ready to get back in the skies. 

How it works: 

1. Go to aircanada.com/starbucks to link your Aeroplan account with a Starbucks Rewards account. 

2. Start earning Aeroplan points for the following Starbucks Rewards activities: 

• Earn 75 Aeroplan points each time you load or reload $50 up to $74.99 to your Starbucks Card. 

• Earn 150 Aeroplan points each time you load or reload $75 or more to your Starbucks Card. 

• Not yet a Starbucks Rewards member? Earn a one-time bonus of 400 Aeroplan points when you create a new Starbucks Rewards account, link it to your Aeroplan account and make your first purchase using the Starbucks app within one month of creating the Starbucks Rewards account. Visit aircanada.com/starbucks for full details. 

To celebrate the launch, earn more Aeroplan points for the following limited time bonus Starbucks Rewards activities: 

• Until June 6, 2021, earn 25 Aeroplan points when you make four or more qualifying transactions in a week. Visit aircanada.com/starbucks for full details. 
• Earn 50 Aeroplan points every time you redeem at least 150 Stars two times or more in one calendar month until May 31, 2021. Visit aircanada.com/starbucks for full details. 

In addition, linked members can purchase Starbucks Cards for a discounted number of points. Redeem as little as 1,000 Aeroplan points for a $10 Starbucks Card at the Aeroplan eStore. 

For more information on the partnership, full details on the offers or to link an account, please visit: www.aircanada.com/starbucks. 

With spring comes warmer weather, fresh flower blossoms, and, you guessed it, another AIR MILES Bonus Boom! Beginning March 25th, AIR MILES is proud to launch another two-week-long Bonus Boom and provide Collectors with countless opportunities to give their Miles balance a boost by taking advantage of Bonus Offers across the AIR MILES coalition of Partners. As an added bonus, Collectors who take advantage of three different Bonus Boom offers will get an additional 95 Bonus Miles, getting them closer to their rewards goals! New this year, Collectors will have the option of using all 3 offers at a single partner if they choose to do so, which increases attainability in the current context.

Here is the link to the Bonus Boom site: airmiles.ca/BonusBoom  

AIR MILES’ national promotions are a huge hit with Canadians, giving its active Collector base the ability to quickly grow their Miles balance while completing their everyday shopping. This means, everyday purchases can turn into free gas, groceries, and more. Collectors can earn Miles from their favourite retail Partners such as Sobeys, BMO, Shell, Metro, Staples, and more.

No other loyalty program in Canada offers the choice and flexibility for its members to get rewarded their way than the AIR MILES Reward Program. Across the network of over 300 leading Canadian, global and online brands, AIR MILES offers vast opportunities for Collectors to get and use Miles on their everyday purchases. With nearly 11 million active Collectors Accounts representing approximately two-thirds of all Canadian households, the AIR MILES Reward Program is Canada’s most recognized loyalty program.

Until Feb. 14, 2021, give 80% more points when you gift to a loved one, or earn 40% more points when you buy for yourself.

Here is a link to the promotion.

It ends February 14, 2021.

The card we use the most in our house for our everyday spend is the American Express Cobalt Card for its easy redemptions and incredible offers and points earning potential.

In your first year as a new Cobalt Cardmember, you can earn 2,500 Membership Rewards points for each monthly billing period in which you spend $500 in purchases on your Card. This could add up to 30,000 points in a year.

Plus, when you apply by May 5, 2021, you can earn a Welcome Bonus of 15,000 Membership Rewards points when you spend a total of $3,000 in purchases on your Card in your first 3 months of Card membership.

What we do in our household is make sure we optimize our spending so that we always use our Cobalt card when grocery shopping (which earns 5 points for every dollar spent), and we even purchase our gas gift cards so that these also earn us 5 points per 1 dollar.

You will receive 5x Membership Rewards for spend at restaurant, quick service restaurant, coffee shop and drinking establishments in Canada.  Stand-alone grocery stores in Canada and services that specialize in the delivery of food and groceries also qualify.

You will receive 2x Membership Rewards for spend at stand-alone automobile gasoline stations in Canada, travel services or travel bookings including air, water, rail and road transport, lodging and tour operator sales, as well as local commuter transportation in Canada including subway, streetcar, taxi, limousine and ride sharing services.

For all other purchases you will receive 1x Membership Rewards. I try not to use it for most other purchases (mainly eating out and groceries for the amazing earn rate).

It even comes with some nice insurance policies that we have not had to use yet:

• Out of Province/Country Emergency Medical Insurance (For under age 65)
• Flight Delay Insurance
• Baggage Delay Insurance
• Hotel Burglary Insurance
• Lost or Stolen Baggage Insurance
• Car Rental Theft and Damage Insurance
• $250,000 Travel Accident Insurance
• Purchase Protection® Plan
• Buyer’s Assurance® Protection Plan

This card does not have an annual fee but it has a monthly fee of $10 which I think is fair.

Another unsung benefit of this card are the offers they constantly promote.

Just in the past 2 months I have received offers from American Express for a free credit on my account for spending at Amazon.ca or Lululemon. These are a nice bonus in my mind.

What I usually do is transfer my points to Marriott so I can redeem for a hotel stay (hopefully this year)!

It is an interesting conversion, 5 points are worth 6 Marriott Bonvoy points.

You can also redeem against a travel expense (like the expensive ferry trips).

Here is a link to the offer. Remember that it expires on May 5, 2021.