Aeroplan to Disney

[ElCray]

Thought it could be helpful to start an Aeroplan thread. It's a place to post our shared wisdom and highlight good earning opportunities!

 

[ElCray]

Signing up:
You can sign up for Aeroplan on the website. Parental consent is required for kids. It is helpful for kids to have their own Aeroplan number because they will earn miles too. Their points can be combined with parents' points through the new Family Pooling program.

Earning Points:
Aeroplan points expire after account inactivity of 18 months. There are a few ways to earn points:

- Travel (flights, hotels, car rentals)
- Credit Cards (sign up bonuses and regular earnings)
- Using the Aeroplan E-store shopping portal
- Special promotions

Tips by bloggers:
Prince of Travel's Essential Guide to Aeroplan
Upgraded Points - 18 best ways to earn Aeroplan points
Overview by the Points Guy

 

[ElCray]

Credit Cards:
One of the fastest ways to earn Aeroplan points is by signing up for co-branded credit cards and earning the welcome bonus. These credit cards are offered by a number of banks including TD and CIBC.

Recent offers include a Buddy Pass after spending a certain amount of money on the card. Reports are that the Buddy Pass can be exchanged for 30,000 Aeroplan Points.

Once you have these cards, you may want to consider Product Switching in intervals to take advantage of new sign up bonuses and avoid hard hits to your credit score.

Other credit cards with flexible travel perks may allow exchanges to Aeroplan points. These include a number of cards by American Express that earn Member Rewards (MR) points. MR points transfer directly to Aeroplan at a 1:1 ratio. Sign-up bonuses for these cards can be very valuable, along with ongoing spending, and will boost your balance.

Note that welcome offers, terms and conditions, and structures of programs are subject to change at any time. It's important to do research and confirm all elements of your strategy before making any decisions.

Also note that some credit cards may have income requirements and annual fees (some that are waived during the first year). Also signing up for credit cards can have an impact (usually small) on your credit score temporarily, all else being equal. Learn about the elements of your credit score and sign up for services like Borrowell and Credit Karma to monitor your score.

 

[ElCray]

Aeroplan e-store
Aeroplan has an E-store much like Airmilesshops.ca. Shopping through the portal can earn you Aeroplan points on your purchases.

Watch for multipliers and time purchases accordingly.

And there are usually big multipliers for Black Friday and Boxing Day.

Beware of exclusions on certain stores. Read the terms carefully to make sure your purchases count!

Blogs:
How does Aeroplan e-store work?
Upgraded Miles: How to use the Aeroplan e-store to earn more points

 

[ElCray]

Booking Flights:
Flights can be booked using Aeroplan points on the Air Canada app. The flights become available at midnight, 355 days in advance.

Aeroplan's predictor tool suggests flights between Canada and Orlando will cost between 10,000 to 15,000 Aeroplan points per ticket, each way.

All seats are open for booking on Air Canada's flights using Aeroplan points. However, the program now uses dynamic pricing so once flight prices start going up on the website, the amount of points to book goes up as well.

I recently booked a return flight from Ottawa to Orlando for 21,500 points + $92.50 in taxes per person. The points required for the segment to Orlando were 9,800 per person. After I booked my family of four, the amount of points necessary went up to 12,000 per person.

 

[ElCray]

Starbucks promotion:
For Starbucks lovers, Aeroplan and Starbucks recently announced a partnership to allow customers to earn Aeroplan points through their purchases.

There is also a tie-in to the TD-branded Aeroplan card.

We like Starbucks for trips because of locations in airports, Disney, and Universal.

 

[ilovetotravel1977]

Kids miles do not expire though, so that is good.

 

[ElCray]

Kids miles do not expire though, so that is good.

Did not know that! I wanted to say I'm not an expert so really appreciate what everyone will share!

 

[momof2gr8kids]

I believe Aeroplan also allows you to book stopovers, doesn't it? So you could stop somewhere along the way for a few days, then continue onto final destination using the same number of points? They did before, because when we booked Hawaii I considering spending a few days in San Francisco or LA along the way, but decided against it.

 

[ElCray]

I believe Aeroplan also allows you to book stopovers, doesn't it? So you could stop somewhere along the way for a few days, then continue onto final destination using the same number of points? They did before, because when we booked Hawaii I considering spending a few days in San Francisco or LA along the way, but decided against it.

Yes great point! With a limit of 30 days. Here is info by Prince of Travel on stopovers under the new program and one on stopovers by the Points Guy. Edit: Unfortunately can't use in North America.

 

[momof2gr8kids]

Yes great point! With a limit of 30 days. Here is info by Prince of Travel on stopovers under the new program and one on stopovers by the Points Guy.

Reading Prince of Travel article, it looks like they took away the ability to do a stopover in Canada or USA which is a bummer. Great if you want to go overseas somewhere and explore though.

 

[AngelDisney]

I booked with Air Canada using Aeroplan for a short trip to Ottawa/Montreal in July 2020. I was able to cancel the flights and got my Aeroplan and taxes refunded right away when AC was issuing vouchers for cancelled flights at that time. I was impressed. However, it’s harder to earn Aeroplan points. They have less bonus offers like AM. I have been earning points by booking flights with AC which is my preferred airline.

Thanks for starting this thread! I would like to earn more Aeroplan points as AM partners gets less and less. I have been ordering through Aeroplan eStores when there’s no bonus offer at airmilesshop to keep my points alive during this pandemic lockdown period.

 

[amw]

I just peaked at flights for theoretical travel and I was surprised that Aeroplan now has three options for points redemption - similar to the three levels of booking with cash. I already have a TD Aeroplan card so I get checked bags for free. Has anyone looked to see which redemption is the best use for points … I do like seat selection, but is it better to pay that separate. Newly confused … like booking park days. Too many options.

 

[ilovetotravel1977]

@amw how do the free checked bags work when charging to your card?

 

[ElCray]

@amw how do the free checked bags work when charging to your card?

You don't have to charge your ticket to the credit card to get the free bags, which I find surprising but makes me happy.

But you do have to bring them to the counter to get them checked in at the airport and waive the fee.

Here is a reddit thread on the topic.

 

[amw]

You don't have to charge your ticket to the credit card to get the free bags, which I find surprising but makes me happy.

But you do have to bring them to the counter to get them checked in at the airport and waive the fee.

Here is a reddit thread on the topic.

Good to know! Because the card is relatively new to me and I wasn’t sure. My DH used to be a high level aeroplan traveller pre-Covid & we always got free checked bags for the family with him. Not sure if that’s still a perk with these new redemption levels.

 

[amw]

To add to the thread,

bookings made before June 30, 2021 for travel before the end of October qualify for free travel COVID-19 health insurance coverage from Manulife. Each person in the family must have their own individual aeroplan number.

https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/home/book/travel-news-and-updates/2020/covid-19-insurance.html

Edited: the coverage is for Covid-19 positivity while on trip. Additional travel health insurance is still highly recommended.

 

[Jiminyfan2020]

For my last two trips in 2018 and 2020 ( was reimbursed all points and taxes for 2020), I noticed that if I booked one way instead of round trip, I was able to get better flight options for less points and less taxes. I booked the flight to MCO first, and then about 2 weeks later booked my return.

 

[Princess KP]

You don't have to charge your ticket to the credit card to get the free bags, which I find surprising but makes me happy.

But you do have to bring them to the counter to get them checked in at the airport and waive the fee.

Here is a reddit thread on the topic.

I recently got the CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite. I went in to my Aeroplan account and it was updated with "Credit Card Holder" so hopefully the system knows that I'm eligible for free checked bags when I check in online without having to go to the counter. As soon as I can start travelling, I will report back! **fingers crossed**

 

[mort1331]

just signed up for the TD infinite card for both myself and wife. 2 separate cards so both to get the bonus points and buddy pass. Hoping this will reduce flight cost to Hawaii next march if we go. Now need to research and know more about this. Hope to get points loaded and buddy passes in next 2 to 3 months, then book.