Langdon Algur Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 My wife and I meet with our advisor at our RBC who was trying to convince us to sign up for teh RBC avion travel rewards credit card. For the $100+ annual fee I'm not totally sure its worth it, but I have heard of people traveling for free all the time on reward miles. Do any of you use credit card rewards for travel? IF so which ones and how do you like it? Anyone use RBC Avion or Westjet cards? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 You'll come out ahead on that card if you and your wife spend $10k or more. Reward cards are definitely worth it, however, I might try to find a better deal. It's pretty easy to find a card with a 15000k sign up bonus. Also many cards will have promotions where they waive the first year of fees. I have a pretty good thing going on, where I sign up for free, get the bonus added to my aeroplan account and then cancel the car before the year. Sign up for a new one. Rinse repeat. Be aware that everytime you apply for a credit card it puts a slight knock on your credit card rating. You can balance that out by paying lots of bills though (mortgage, car, insurance, hydro, cable, etc..). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AbbyNucksFan Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 I use MBNA cashback Mastercard.. I get 3% cash back for all gas and grocery purchases, and 1% cashback for everything else.. I get a $50 cheque every month, and some months it's $100.. Got tired of saving travel points forever.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goalie13 Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 My folks do that. They basically charge everything they can to their credit card and then they have enough points to take a decent trip every year. As long as you pay it off every month, it's win-win. Often, those cards have a higher interest rate. So, if you tend to carry a balance, you may spend more on the higher interest rates than you would have saved towards your travel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aGENT Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 Personally, I'm against paying an annual fee for CC's. Banks already make enough @#$%'ing money Unless that card's going to get me a free 1/2 sweet mocha when I want one any annual fee is a ripoff IMO. I'd shop around and find the best rewards card you can get with no annual fee. Personally I like the cash-back one I have. No messing around with shopping for crap you don't need just because you feel like you should "spend" the points you earned. Nope, once a year I just get a few hundred bucks taken off my balance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bolt Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 I use MBNA cashback Mastercard.. I get 3% cash back for all gas and grocery purchases, and 1% cashback for everything else.. I get a $50 cheque every month, and some months it's $100.. Got tired of saving travel points forever.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mau5trap Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 Visa Infinite anyone ? 50 bucks a year, abuse it as much as you can while being reasonable. Saves you a lot of money on vacations Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SterlingArcher Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 if youre looking specifically for a travel card.. Ive personally been disappointed with bmo airmiles and cibc aeroplan as im never able to find a proper flight. Apparently the scotiabank amex is the best travel card in terms of accumulating rewards points, medical insurance, hotel and rental card discounts etc. http://banknerd.ca/2012/09/24/introducing-the-scotiabank-american-express-line-up/ As for medical/travel insurance always look into the amount of coverage you will receive and how many days of coverage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverpig Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 There are websites dedicated to exactly this thing. Try redflagdeals or fatwallet (they're US, but may have a Canadian section). With most rewards cards, they are worth it if you spend enough on them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenbean30 Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 I love my Visa Infinite Avion card. I've flown to Vegas twice, Calgary a bunch of times and Mexico once, with another trip to Mexico planned in March. I use my card for pretty much all purposes and just pay it off so I gain points. It depends on if you are going to use the travel points, or just let them accumulate. If you use them, then it is worth it in my opinion. Also with the Avion card it covers you for travel insurance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qball Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 I don't know what you're paying for your account service fees with RBC, but if you get the VIP package ($30 per month for 3 unlimited transaction accounts, 1 US$ account, free safety deposit box, plus other stuff I can't remember...) the yearly Avion fee is waived. We ended up paying less overall, by moving up to the VIP package when we got our Avion visa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bolt Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 Capitol one aspire travel rewards 2% reward payback vs 1-1.5% for Avon/scotiabank Amex 350 dollar bonus travel dollars for signup 100 dollar yearly bonus Travel medical insurance up to 22 days including baggage/travel delays compared to 14 days of any other card Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SterlingArcher Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 Did some research on Scotiabank Gold Amex and Capital One Aspire Travel as both are very good in comparison. However take note Amex may not be accepted as widely as Mastercard in Canada. Scotia Amex Gold: Annual Fee: $99 Interest: 19.99% on purchases and 21.99% on cash advances Travel Medical Insurance: $1,000,000 coverage for 25 days if under 65 years of age and 10 day coverage if over 65 years of age. Trip Interruption Cancellation: Up to $2500 per insured person (Max: $10,000) when you charge at least 75% of trip expenses on card. Flight Delay: $500 per trip limit for all insured travelers (Full cost of tickets on card) Baggage Delay/Loss: $1000 maximum for all insured per trip Travel Accident Insurance: $500,000 when 75% of trip charged to card Rental Car Insurance:Upto 48 days when declining coverage offered by rental agency Hotel/Motel Burglary: Maximum $1000 within Canada or the U.S. Everyday Benefits: Purchase Security/Extended Warranty: 90 day coverage and manufacturer warranty doubles for up to one year Price Protection: $100 per item, $500 per year within 60days Additonal Features & Privleges: Low Airfare Alerts Complimentary Concierge Services (Travel planning, to dininer and entertainment reservations) VIP Airport Lounge Access with Priority Pass at 35% discount Hotel Privleges - Receive up to 20% off lowest published offer at over 18,000 hotels worldwide Luxury Hotel Privleges - Receive up to 20% off best available rates and complimentary room upgrade (if available) Car Privleges - Recieve up tp 25% off qualifying rentals with 131 companies worldwide Rewards: Earn 4 points for every $1.00 you spend at gas stations, grovery stores, on dining and entertainment. Earn 1 point on all other eligible purchases Flexible Point Redemption (Use points to pay for taxes also/combine points and pmt) Capital One Aspire Travel: Annual Fee: $120 Interest: 19.98% on purchases and cash advances Travel Medical Insurance: Up to $2,000,000. Coverage for 22 days if under 65 years of age and 8 days over coverage if over 65 years of age. Trip Cancellation: Upto $1000 per insured person (Max: $5000) when 100% of your trip expenses are charged to card. Trip Interuption: Upto $5000 per insured person (Max: $25,000) when 100% of trip expenses charged to card. Flight Delay: $250 per day, limit of $1000 per trip for all insured travellers (Full cost of tickets on card) Baggage Delay: $100 per day (Max: $300) Baggage Loss: $1000 maximum for all insured per trip Travel Accident Insurance: $500,000 when 100% of trip charged to card Rental Car Insurance:Upto 48 days when declining coverage offered by rental agency Everyday Benefits: Purchase Security/Extended Warranty: 120 day coverage and manufacturer warranty doubles for up to two years Price Protection: $100 per item, $500 per year within 60days Additional Benefits: $0 fraud liability 24/7 emergency card replacement/cash advance 24 hour emergency road service Rewards: 2 points for every $1.00 you spend on all purchases Lets you for taxes with reward points Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langdon Algur Posted October 30, 2012 Author Share Posted October 30, 2012 I don't know what you're paying for your account service fees with RBC, but if you get the VIP package ($30 per month for 3 unlimited transaction accounts, 1 US$ account, free safety deposit box, plus other stuff I can't remember...) the yearly Avion fee is waived. We ended up paying less overall, by moving up to the VIP package when we got our Avion visa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inane Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 Alaska Airlines Mastercard. $75 annual fee. You collect points like any other card for travel on the alaska airlines network of airlines but the real kicker is the companion pass. Every year, regardless of how much you use your card, you get a $99 companion pass. You can only use it on Alaska airlines (not the network of airlines) but they go to Hawaii, Mexico, all over the states. So you want to fly to Hawaii with someone? First ticket is full fare or whatever deal you can get, second is $99. So half the total and you've got a sweet deal. I've been to Puerto Vallarta, New York and Maui with it. And you don't have to fly on it either, I sent my wife and her friend to PV for spring break last year all in $450 each round trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langdon Algur Posted October 30, 2012 Author Share Posted October 30, 2012 Alaska Airlines Mastercard. $75 annual fee. You collect points like any other card for travel on the alaska airlines network of airlines but the real kicker is the companion pass. Every year, regardless of how much you use your card, you get a $99 companion pass. You can only use it on Alaska airlines (not the network of airlines) but they go to Hawaii, Mexico, all over the states. So you want to fly to Hawaii with someone? First ticket is full fare or whatever deal you can get, second is $99. So half the total and you've got a sweet deal. I've been to Puerto Vallarta, New York and Maui with it. And you don't have to fly on it either, I sent my wife and her friend to PV for spring break last year all in $450 each round trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dittohead Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 I have a RBC Avion card. I think it's great. any flight any time is real nice. I use my card a lot though for my business I probably put around $50-75 thousand a year on it though and pay it off every month so no interest charges. just got my statement yesterday I have 163,000 points. that's like 10 flights from Van-Cal 15,000 points ($500) easily around the world which I think is 90,000 points. Use it to pay for all your bills but make sure you pay it off each month and it's worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiCHC3 Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 Capital One Aspire is the best for travel. The promo just for signing up is basically worth $600-700 in travel, but there is an annual fee as some have mentioned. MBNA Smartcash is the best for groceries / gas and their payout is much earlier than most other cards. Right now there's a $60 promo for signing up for the SmartCash card. Just disable adblock, sign up at https://www.greatcanadianrebates.ca/Register/111647/ (this is a referral link) then click on the big banner that says $60 MBNA cards. You need paypal to take advantage of this offer~ If you're interested in finances and all that, redflagdeals is the best place to be for those kind of discussions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronthecivil Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 Personally, I'm against paying an annual fee for CC's. Banks already make enough @#$%'ing money Unless that card's going to get me a free 1/2 sweet mocha when I want one any annual fee is a ripoff IMO. I'd shop around and find the best rewards card you can get with no annual fee. Personally I like the cash-back one I have. No messing around with shopping for crap you don't need just because you feel like you should "spend" the points you earned. Nope, once a year I just get a few hundred bucks taken off my balance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aGENT Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 If you have so much as a plain jane RBC card you can use the RBC rewards points to buy vouchers for a TFSA. AKA cash for smart people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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