Author: Matt

Matt has been an avid points collector since 1992 (an elementary school student), when his dad signed up for the new (at the time) Air Miles program. Since then, Matt took a keen interest in learning how the miles and points world works. He quickly found out that there is a lot of value in leveraging miles and points to fund his passion for travelling.
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Top Cash Back Credit Card Offers for January 2020

ByMatt

A new year means we should expect some new offers. But for now, most offers are rolling over or extended (namely National Bank) from 2019. Most offers are expiring at the end of March.

Note that this post focuses on temporary offers. Our Top Cash Back Credit Cards page continues to list current offers that are not exclusive to limited time offers like this post.

Highlights

The biggest change to the list is the Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite Card coming back with its 10% cash back welcome offer, along with the first year fee waived. The TD Cash Back Visa Infinite Card extended its matching introductory offer, but has a weaker normal earning ratio than the Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite Card.

WestJet Status Match Challenge

ByMatt

WestJet Rewards is currently allowing Air Canada (Altitude) and Porter Airlines (VIPorter) members to status match with its rewards program. 

Looks like WestJet is aggressively trying to challenge Air Canada ahead of their full integration with Aeroplan in June 2020. 

WestJet members can now achieve either Silver or Gold with WestJet Rewards that runs will March 31, 2020. You can extend the benefit period by completing additional challenges. Below are the details of the challenges.

$25,000 in Flights with AIR MILES Flight-A-Day Giveaway

ByMatt

AIR MILES is doing a Flight-A-Day Giveaway. Below are the details of the contest.

Prize Details

There are two primary prizes that you can win:

1 of 30 $5,000 daily flight voucher prizes
Grand Prize of $25,000 flight voucher

There is a limit of 1 daily flight prize per member, but the good news is that winning one of the 30 winners of flight prizes will still allow you to win the Grand Prize.

Rundown of Delta Air Lines’ SkyMiles for Canadians (updated January 8, 2020)

ByMatt

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.

[INTERVIEW] D’Arcy McDonald (Scotiabank SVP of Day to Day Banking)

ByMatt

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.

Rundown of Asia Miles for Canadians (updated January 6, 2020)

ByMatt

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.

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Top Credit Card Higher than Normal Sign Up Bonuses for January 2020

ByMatt

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

Carrot Rewards 2.0?

ByMatt

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.