Buying points strategically can be a good value for first class travel. The Air Canada Aeroplan program has just launched a promotion. Thanks to the huge variety of airline partners, the ability to have stopovers on one-way awards for 5,000 points, and the generally great booking experience, this is one of my all-around favorite frequent flyer programs.
The Air Canada Aeroplan program is offering a bonus on points. Aeroplan is offering a tiered bonus of up to 100%.
You can buy Air Canada Aeroplan points before any discounts or bonuses. US credit cards and US billing addresses are not subject to sales tax.
If you maxed out the 100% bonus and purchased 350,000 Aeroplan points in one transaction, you will receive a total of 770,000 Aeroplan points, which is a rate of 1.36 cents (USD) per point.
The 100% bonus looks really good compared to the historical deals we have seen from the program, but Aeroplan recently raised the base price. The pre-bonus points cost $0.03 and now they cost $0.035. A 100% bonus is worse than an 80% bonus.
There is a per-transaction limit of 350,000 Aeroplan points before the bonus. If you want to get to your purchase limit, you need to buy points in multiple transactions.
Air Canada Aeroplan points purchases are not counted as airfare purchases for credit card spending. I recommend using a credit card that maximizes your return on everyday spending if you're trying to reach minimum spending.
The Capital One Venture X rewards credit card has no foreign transaction fees and offers 2x miles. The Chase Freedom unlimited is a good option for maximizing everyday spending, but the cards have foreign transaction fees, so it wouldn't be a good option.
Aeroplan is one of my favorite frequent flyer programs. The new Aeroplan program is completely different than before.
This is a program that I redeem through frequently, and it's a program that I use a lot.
Air Canada Aeroplan has more airline partners than any other frequent flyer program, and you can redeem points on over 40 airlines. Air Canada is a member of the Star Alliance, as is Air Serbia and Virgin Australia.
Aeroplan's list of airline partners will only continue to grow, and to me that is really exciting.
Many consumers are frustrated by the practice of airlines adding surcharges to award tickets. Aeroplan doesn't have fuel surcharges on award tickets, so you shouldn't pay big fees when you redeem points.
I value Aeroplan points at 1.5 cents each. I value points conservatively, and there are many ways to get more value from Aeroplan points than that.
Air Canada Aeroplan points only last 18 months. Any account activity that leads to earning or redeeming points would reset the expiration.
Aeroplan points can be a great deal, but keep in mind that there are many other ways to earn Aeroplan points. Aeroplan is a transfer partner with American Express Membership Reward, Capital One, and Chase Ultimate Reward.
There is a new Aeroplan Credit Card in the United States, which is pretty lucrative.
Air Canada's Aeroplan program has launched a new promotion. You can buy points with a bonus of up to 100% and get them for around 1.36 cents each. This has the potential to be a good deal, but I would rather transfer points from one of Aeroplan's partners, like Amex, Capital One, or Chase.
Are you going to buy Aeroplan points with this promotion?