I have been writing an update on this post, almost every 2 years (2016, 2018). Travel change over time, so it is worth an update. Also, I was reading back on my last post in 2018 and felt like I should elaborate on some of my points.
But first, let’s contrast economy with luxury travel.
Business / First Class Travel Versus Economy
I’m sure you have read about this story already. We were waiting for more details before posting about it, especially the cause of the crash, which remains unknown. But we did not want to wait any longer to shed some light to this incident.
The story has been quite extensively covered by the news:
It has been almost 2 years since I last wrote about Delta Air Lines (Delta). The main reason is because there are no major updates that would affect the Canadian members of its frequent flyer program, SkyMiles. There are some minor changes (especially to its hotel partners) though, so I thought I’d give this post a proper update.
Expiry Policy
SkyMiles does not have an expiry policy, so once you earn miles, they stay in a member’s account for as long as they want without worrying about activity.
Today we feature D’Arcy McDonald, a Senior Vice President at Scotiabank who will talk to us about the new Ultimate Package. More specifically, how we can earn more SCENE points and Scotia Rewards. Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions D’Arcy!
Please tell us about yourself. What is your role with Scotiabank?
I’m D’Arcy McDonald, Senior Vice President of Day to Day Banking, Retail Investments and Advisory Deposits. I oversee products that our customers use day to day including chequing, savings, GICs and registered investment plans.
The frequent flyer program, Asia Miles, made a significant change to its expiry policy this year. This change has increased the value of its program and I think it’s worth a deeper look. Furthermore, it’s been a while since I last updated this post, so it was due for one.
Expiry Policy
In the past, Asia Miles has a frustrating expiry policy whereby your miles expire within 36 months after they are deposited, regardless of activity. Effective January 1, 2020, there is a new expiry policy, but there is a transition period.
It’s already 2020! You will notice that most offers are rolling over from 2019, but at many are expiring sometime this month. The rest are expiring in March for the most part. So if you are thinking about certain cards, you will want to jump on them sooner rather than later before it expires. I expect new offers to come up by next month’s list, but if you are considering current offers, now is the time.
Top Higher than Normal Sign Up Bonuses for January 2020
Remember the popular Carrot Rewards?
Carrot Rewards was an App that began in British Columbia and slowly expanded to other provinces. The App allowed members to earn rewards by achieving daily “steps” goals, including bonus points by teaming up with another member. There was also an amazing referral system, as well as earning rewards by completing surveys. But what I felt was the best benefit of Carrot Rewards was the ability to choose different loyalty program to bank your rewards to, such as: Aeroplan, More Rewards, Petro-Points, SCENE, etc.
It has been almost a year since we last updated the WestJet Rewards rundown post. One of my family member has been using WestJet more extensively, which means I did a little more deeper research about their rewards program. Furthermore, several changes were made (mostly positive) to its elite status program, so this is a good a time as any to provide an updated post.
Also note the RBC WestJet World Elite MasterCard is offering a higher ($350 instead of $250) sign up bonus that expires on January 6, 2020, which I will provide more details below.
Back in 2016, I began a new tradition of trying to predict the travel / rewards market in Canada. The first year was rough, but it got better over the years. How did it go this year though?
Below are my previous scores:
Happy New Year!!
A new year means a new wish list! Below is my 2020 wish list for the rewards world. Note that I generally provide a mid-term report on Canada Day (July 1) and a final report on New Year’s Eve.
To be fair, all wishes need to be a win/win/win scenario for everyone involved in the transaction, which includes the loyalty company, the retailer and the customer.
I also ranked what my most pressing wish is in order.