Hi, I Matthew McNamee. I am a engineer, entrepreneur, public speaker, and author. I speaks on issues of cultural bias, the stigma of cancer, and...Read more
There are so many travel loyalty programs. It makes sense for every airline, hotel, and financial institution to have one since getting your loyalty means more profits for them. From a consumer standpoint, joining a loyalty program can lead to discounts and perks. The question is, which travel loyalty programs are the best?
To be fair, the answer is totally subjective. Someone who doesn’t fly a lot may not care for any of the airline programs. Even those that do travel a lot may favour one airline over another. The critical thing is to understand how the various programs work and how they benefit you directly. Here are the three best travel loyalty programs in Canada.
Aeroplan
Air Canada is the top airline in Canada, so it’s natural that Aeroplan makes this list. Aeroplan recently made massive changes, which many frequent flyers weren’t happy with, but I think it was better for the general public. Overall, it’s now easier to redeem your points, and you’ll pay significantly less in fees. The tradeoff is that it requires more points for many destinations.
You can earn Aeroplan points by flying on Air Canada, using one of the co-branded credit cards, or shopping at a partner merchant. Once you’ve accumulated enough points, you can redeem them for something simple such as free WiFi or a sandwich on the plane. Alternatively, you can save up your points for something epic such as a business class flight around the world.
If you want to redeem your points for flights, Aeroplan uses a chart based on zones and distancing zone need to distance sign. They also use dynamic pricing when it comes to redemptions. That means that the number of points it’ll require you to get a free flight depends on where you’re flying to, how many miles away it is, and how busy the flight is. In other words, if you’re flying during the low-season on an unpopular route, it’ll likely cost you fewer points compared to the top destinations. When making a redemption, every seat is available on Air Canada, and there are no carrier surcharges. You can also use your Aeroplan points on partner airlines, but they have a fixed pricing chart, limited seat availability, and there’s a $39 booking fee.
Another appealing aspect of Aeroplan is the Family Sharing Plan option. At no cost to anyone, up to 8 people can join a single Aeroplan Family Sharing Plan where all points will be pooled. This is significant since it’ll allow you to make redemptions quicker. Let’s say a family of 4 has earned 4,000 points each. Individually, the 4,000 points wouldn’t go very far, but the family would have 16,000 points when you combine them. That would be enough for a short-haul, round-trip flight within North America.
Aeroplan has many pros and cons, but there’s no denying that it’s effortless to earn and burn your points. When using your Aeroplan points, look for the sweet spots to maximize your redemption value.
Marriott Bonvoy
Since Marriott International has the most properties in the world, joining Marriott Bonvoy is worth your while. You’ll earn points on every stay and as you accumulate nights, your status will increase. Note that if you get a co-branded credit card, you’ll instantly get Silver Elite Status, and you’ll earn points on every purchase.
Redeeming your points is a simple process, but it can be complicated at the same time. Every Marriott hotel is assigned a category number. How many points it takes to make a redemption depends on the category. Also, Marriott Bonvoy has peak/off-peak pricing, so things can vary quite a bit. A free night at a category 1 hotel (which is the lowest tier) will cost you between 5,000-10,000 points. A free night at a category 8 hotel will run you from 70,000-100,000 points on the top end of the scale. Although free nights are appealing, sometimes paying the cash rate is a better deal.
The more nights you stay, the better your status. At 10, 25, 50, and 75 nights earned in a year, you’ll get Silver, Gold, Platinum and Titanium Elite Status respectively. That status is good for the year earned and the following year. You’d have to earn your status again the next year if you want to keep it going. The lower tier status gives you basic benefits such as free WiFi and late checkout. Gold status starts to give you room upgrades, but you get free breakfast, lounge access, and more at Platinum and above. Joining Marriott Bonvoy is free, so there’s no reason to not do it.
American Express Membership Rewards
When it comes to all the bank travel loyalty programs in Canada, there’s no doubt that American Express Membership Rewards is the best one. Not only is it incredibly easy to earn points with one of their credit cards such as the Amex Platinum Card, but your points are highly flexible.
You can apply your points to any travel purchase that’s charged to your credit card. Alternatively, you can also book your travel through the American Express travel portal and use your points right away. This means you can shop around for the lowest price and know that you’ll be able to use your points to offset the costs. With this route, it’ll cost you 100 points for $1 in travel, which is a value of 1 cent per point
Another aspect of Membership Rewards that can be very appealing is the American Express Fixed Points Travel Program. You can redeem a flight up to a maximum base ticket price for a fixed number of points. For example, a short-haul Canada/U.S. flight would require 15,000 points to get a ticket with a maximum base ticket price of $300. If you go this route, your points could be worth 2 cents each. Basically, if you use the Fixed Points Travel Program, you can double your points’ value compared to the book any travel option.
The other attractive option of Membership Rewards is the transfer partners. You can transfer your points to multiple airlines and hotel partners, including Aeroplan and Marriott Bonvoy. The Aeroplan transfer ratio is 1:1. With Marriott Bonvoy, it’s 1:1.2. Depending on what you plan on redeeming for, you can transfer your points to the appropriate program to maximize your value.
Final thoughts
Remember, the three travel loyalty programs listed here are the best for the average Canadian, but it may not be the perfect fit for everyone. Other programs worth checking out include WestJet Rewards and RBC Rewards. Choose the programs that benefit you the most and try to accumulate as many points as possible.
Hi, I Matthew McNamee. I am a engineer, entrepreneur, public speaker, and author. I speaks on issues of cultural bias, the stigma of cancer, and more.