Aeroplan is by far the best program for Canadian travelers who want to maximize the value of their rewards. It’s not even debatable. We’ve talked about it a lot, but I wanted to share this post to make a strong impact so you would realize just how awesome it can be — and so you join our free webinar Monday (tomorrow) night!
That’s right… $7000 in savings on flights for just $120.
That’s what points whose value is literally unlimited are all about!
Here’s the example (with a 2nd more popular one as a bonus).
The example of $7000 for $120
This example is really to show you how much value Aeroplan points can have, it’s probably not a redemption you’ll actually make.
Because it’s not everyone’s dream destination, and that’s not the point of this either.
This is to explain the concept and help you understand how Aeroplan points work.
(We’re hosting a free webinar all about Aeroplan by popular demand: join us Monday night to learn more about the best rewards program!)
It’s that extreme examples usually work best to explain one of the most important basic things in this world to people who are not familiar with the most valuable type of rewards.
Points like that are nothing like the ones everyone knows. Often, beginners have no idea that they’re missing out on so much potential value (it’s normal not to know, and that’s why we want to help you better understand).
Ready?
So, let’s say you want to go from Montréal (YUL) to Kuujjuaq (YVP), in Nunavik (Northern Québec).
From May 12 to 18, 2023, flights cost a crazy amount of $3147 roundtrip on Canadian North. Pretty much all dates are at that price, by the way.
The very same flights with Aeroplan points?
Only 20,000 points and $96 roundtrip. Exactly the same flights: the same airline (Canadian North), the same seat.
You save $3051 ($3147 minus $96).
You get a value of $3051 for 20,000 Aeroplan points. Still following?
With the American Express Aeroplan Card, you get 53,000 Aeroplan points for $120, and everyone is eligible. With the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card, you get 57,500 points for $139 and even more points if you take advantage of the renewal bonus.
This means that for $120, you could get $7000 in value! You get 2.5 roundtrips to Kuujjuaq (so 50,000 points) and you save $3051 on each one for a total of $7628!
I’ll mention another example of flights you’ll love even more in a minute too!
But anyway, here’s what to take away: our Flytrippers Valuation is always conservative. For the American Express Aeroplan Card, it’s ≈ $675 in net value (≈ $795 in Aeroplan points minus a $120 fee). Even “just” that is pretty amazing.
But it can be so much more too: variable-value rewards are so much better than bank points and the terrible cashback people always use, unfortunately (those are fixed-value rewards).
The value of variable-value rewards is literally UNLIMITED!!! As you can see. Instead of our Flytrippers Valuation of ≈ $675, it gives you $7000 in this extreme example. About 10 times more!!! That’s what the “≈” symbol stands for! It depends on how well you use your points! For Aeroplan, it’s unlimited!
So the key is to understand that for reward flights on the 40+ Aeroplan partner airlines, the price in points for a flight is guaranteed and NEVER changes, regardless of the cash price. Hence the unlimited value!!!
(Aeroplan is the world’s airline rewards program with the most partners by the way!)
For reward flights on Air Canada, it’s different, but it’s still pretty valuable.
So that’s why if you’re like me (who’s addicted to good deals and to always maximizing everything), it’s WAY past time you looked into variable-value points — Aeroplan points specifically.
There’s a reason why it’s been my favorite among the many programs I used in the past 15 years.
There’s a reason why why it’s the one that gave me the majority of my reward flights (many many dozens of them) on my way to the $25,000 in free travel milestone I’ve now reached with travel rewards!
There’s a reason why it’s one of the most popular programs among our Flytrippers readers who have now earned over $1 million just with welcome bonuses!
Bonus: The more enticing example of $4000 for $120
Of course, you can also read about the 18 good uses of Aeroplan points to get plenty of other examples.
Those 53,000 points can give you 9 one-way flights if you prefer maximizing the number of flights instead of maximizing the number of dollars saved.
In addition to the free webinar on Monday, subscribers to our free travel rewards newsletter specifically on travel rewards will be the first to get our ultimate guide to this program.
But I want to at least talk about a popular use of Aeroplan points among those who want more quality instead of more quantity.
I’m talking about business class flights.
I’m using Vienna as an example since I know how many people love direct flights, but it’s the same price in Aeroplan points for anywhere in Europe too, by the way, if you’d rather go somewhere else!
So, it’s $6406 for a direct one-way flight from Vienna (VIE) to Montreal (YUL) in business class if you pay in cash (the worst thing to do, it’s SO much savvier to use points for that)!
With Aeroplan points?
Only 70,000 points and $92.
Again, the exact same flight.
You get $6314 in savings for just $120 ($6406 minus $92).
Pretty crazy, huh?
But like I said, you have plenty of options!
From Toronto and Montreal for example, if you want to go to Greece, Switzerland, Italy, Czechia, Norway (and even Morocco, Egypt, or Turkey): it’s always 70,000 Aeroplan points one-way for business class in that region, on partner airlines! From Vancouver, it’s 75,000 points for a large portion of Asia for example. It’s distance-based.
And these business class flights are all worth thousands of dollars in cash.
Again, you get 53,000 points with the welcome bonus on the Amex Aeroplan Card and even more with the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card and it’s easy to earn the missing points. Or you can get them all with the premium version, the American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card or the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card.
Anyway, I’ve had just 1 long-distance flight in a lie-flat business class seat out of the 400+ flights I took in my lifetime, because I’d rather use 70,000 points for up to 11 flights instead of just 1.
I like to maximize quantity and travel more. You, on the other hand, may have different priorities.
The fact is you have plenty of options for unlimited value potential and you’ll have plenty of time to decide what to do with them since there’s no time limit to use these points.
Want to get more content to learn how to earn free travel?
Summary
With a rather extreme (but no less true) example, we show you the unlimited value you can get with variable-value rewards. Many of the great offers available now allow you to earn these valuable points to travel more (or travel in luxury).
What would you like to know about Aeroplan? Tell us in the comments below.
See the deals we spot: Cheap flights
Explore awesome destinations: Travel inspiration
Learn pro tricks: Travel tips
Discover free travel: Travel rewards
Featured image: Kuururjuaq National Park (crédit photo: DavidKalant/Wikimedia Commons)
