Savvy travelers who like to save know that you have to regularly take advantage of the huge welcome bonuses offered by banks, to get free travel so easily. So simple! There are currently many amazing deals and you really cannot miss out on them (including one that’s just for some travelers). It’s THE best time to get rewards!!!
It’s the single most important thing to know. The key to traveling for less is really simple: take advantage of huge welcome bonuses regularly. You should know this if you’re among our Flytrippers fans who have now earned over 3 million dollars in free travel with our rewards deals. If you don’t, please read our infographic with all the basics of travel rewards.
And right now, these 4 credit card deals are the best for 99% of travelers, all with ≈ $641 or more in free travel! Whichever you choose, at least get one! Stop wasting your spending by getting a terrible 1% or 2% rate because you’re not currently unlocking a welcome bonus. That’s the absolute worst thing you could do, especially when you know that having more cards improves your credit score, contrary to the very common (and very wrong) myth.
Here are the details of the best deals for January 2025.
Overview of the 4 best deals
The 4 deals are:
- TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card
- Scotiabank Gold American Express Card
- American Express Platinum Card
- TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card
The first 2 are cards for rewards of the more simple type, while the last 2 are cards for rewards of the more lucrative type. This post is a great opportunity for you to understand the huge differences between how the only 2 types of rewards that exist work, but also between how the offers themselves can be structured, the card benefits, etc.
As always, you can check out our credit card ranking and card resource pages for a lot more information.
But let’s take a look at each of the 4 cards to help you choose the one that’s best for you right now.
TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card
It’s the best one right now for…
Those who want simple points but don’t mind that they need to be redeemed on the Expedia for TD website to get the full value, or don’t mind losing a bit of value (20%) to be able to redeem them for any travel expense on any website. And those who don’t mind that a part of the bonus is in the form of 2 travel credits of $100 each. One of those credits needs to be used in the first days of 2026 if you don’t want to renew the card, or else the welcome bonus is valued at $925 instead of $1025 (still excellent, obviously).
The TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card has one of the highest offers ever seen in Canada! Bonuses worth over $1000 are extremely rare!
Keep in mind that if your application is initially declined online, you can possibly get it approved by calling in to simply give additional information. It’s not common, but it’s more common than with other banks; it’s the unique peculiarity of the TD process.
Flytrippers Valuation of welcome bonus
You’ll get 165,000 TD Rewards points by unlocking the welcome bonus on the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card and 2 travel credits of $100 to use in your first year.
The points are worth a fixed amount of $825 for any travel expense on the Expedia for TD website or $660 for any travel expense on any website. The 2 travel credits for $100 are in addition to that, for $1025 in net value.
Maximum value of welcome bonus
It’s $1025. It could never be worth more.
As with everything in life, you either get more convenience or more value. These points are the most flexible and the easiest to use, so they can never give you outsized value.
Rewards details
This is the breakdown of the rewards:
- 20,000 points: Welcome bonus after making your 1st purchase (no minimum)
- 115,000 points: Welcome bonus after spending $5,000 (in maximum 6 months)
- 30,000 points: Earn on the minimum spend (at the multiplier rate of 6 pts/$)
Redemption options
Here is how you can redeem your rewards:
- $825: Any trips on the Expedia for TD website
- $660: Any trips on any website
- $545: Merchandise at Amazon
- ≈ $545: Gift cards
- ≈ $545: Merchandise online
- $412: Cash back as a statement credit
For more details, as always, you can check the tabs on our card resource page for the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card.
Math for the Flytrippers Valuation
You get $1025 in rewards, and the first-year annual fee is waived.
So $1025 minus $0 is $1025.
Minimum spending requirement
To unlock the biggest part of the welcome bonus on the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card, you need to spend $5,000 in a maximum of 6 months (very easy). The other part is as soon as you make your 1st purchase.
You do not need to renew the card to get the welcome bonus; you get the points as soon as you make your 1st purchase and as soon as you reach a total of $5,000 (the 6 months are just your maximum timespan allowed). Well, in this case, they say it can take up to 8 weeks to actually receive the points, but it’s usually not as long as that.
Effective percentage back
You get 20.5% back on $5,000 in spending ($1025 on $5,000). A bit better than 1% or 2%, right?
Minimum income requirement
Your income must be over $60,000 (personal) or $100,000 (household) to be eligible for the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card.
Most banks don’t ask for proof of income, but it could happen. You can read the basics of credit card minimum income requirements.
Welcome bonus eligibility restrictions
TD is in the middle of the pack in terms of welcome bonus eligibility rules.
You must not have had this specific card in the past 12 months to be eligible for this welcome bonus on the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card.
Main benefits
The TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card gives you a $100 travel credit every calendar year (so 1 credit in 2024 and 1 credit in 2025). It’s included in our Flytrippers Valuation of the offer because it’s so easy to use for every single traveler.
Another benefit is that on your birthday, you get a bonus of 10% of all the points earned in the year before (points from the welcome bonus are excluded, and there’s a cap of 10,000 bonus points).
Travel insurance
The TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card has all the main types of travel insurance. The medical travel insurance is very good, with 21 days of coverage (for those aged 64 and under).
Earn rates highlights
Earn rates are way less important than just about everyone thinks they are, at least if you do travel rewards the right way with huge welcome bonuses.
But the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card does have a good multiplier earn rate of 8 pts/$ (4%) on travel booked on Expedia for TD.
Expiration
You have no time limit to use your points even if you close the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card, just like with almost every travel rewards currency (contrary to the very common myth).
Find out more
I wrote a detailed article about this deal since it’s so good.
All the information is in the tabs on our card resource page for the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card, like with all cards.
Scotiabank Gold American Express Card
It’s the best one right now for…
Those who want simple points that can be redeemed for any travel expense on any website and want a better earn rate (even if it shouldn’t be a criterion, if you want to earn more rewards).
The Scotiabank Gold American Express Card has one of the highest offers in Canada for simple points.
Flytrippers Valuation of welcome bonus
You’ll get 77,500 Scene+ points by unlocking the welcome bonus on the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card.
That’s worth a fixed amount of $775 for any travel expense on any website, or even $775 for groceries at Sobeys-affiliated stores (Safeway, FreshCo, IGA, Thrifty Foods, etc.) and other Scene+ partners like Home Hardware.
Maximum value of welcome bonus
It’s $775. It could never be worth more.
As with everything in life, you either get more convenience or more value. These points are the most flexible and the easiest to use, so they can never give you outsized value.
Rewards details
This is the breakdown of the rewards:
- 20,000 points: Welcome bonus after spending $2,000 (in maximum 3 months)
- 20,000 points: Welcome bonus after spending $7,500 total (in maximum 12 months)
- 37,500 points: Earn on the minimum spend (at the multiplier rate of 5 pts/$)
That’s what’s a bit unique with the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card; the points from what you earn on the minimum spending requirement are almost as important! That’s what happens when a card earns 5 or even 6 points per dollar (I’ll get back to that).
Redemption options
Here is how you can redeem your rewards:
- $775: Any trips on any website
- $775: Any trips on the Scene+ website
- $775: Merchandise at participating stores
- ≈ $543 to $775: Gift cards
- ≈ $543: Merchandise online
- $543: Cash back as a statement credit
For more details, as always, you can check the tabs on our card resource page for the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card.
Math for the Flytrippers Valuation
You get $775 in rewards, and the fee is $120.
So $775 minus $120 is $655.
Minimum spending requirement
To unlock the welcome bonus on the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card, you need to spend $2,000 in a maximum of 3 months (very easy) and an extra $5,500 in a maximum of 12 months (also very easy). These are 2 separate bonuses.
You do not need to renew the card to get the welcome bonus; you get the points as soon as you reach a total of $2,000 and $7,500 (the 3 months and 12 months are just your maximum timespan allowed). This particular deal is better if you spend in grocery stores, but you won’t get that much less if you spend elsewhere.
Effective percentage back
You get 8.7% back on $7,500 in spending ($655 on $7,500). A bit better than 1% or 2%, right?
Minimum income requirement
You must have a personal income of $12,000 or more to be eligible for the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card.
All cards issued by Amex Bank have no minimum income requirement, but this card is issued by Scotiabank even if it is indeed a card that runs on the Amex network (the same network as all Amex Bank cards). It’s a bit unique since Amex is both a bank that issues cards (like Scotiabank or TD) and a card network (like Visa or Mastercard).
Welcome bonus eligibility restrictions
Scotia is the most strict bank in terms of welcome bonus eligibility rules. You must not have had any Scotia credit card in the past 2 years (and Scotia is the only bank that includes “joint” cards on someone else’s account).
These are the official rules… but they aren’t always enforced, and you might be lucky even if you’re technically not eligible. You can read more about welcome bonus eligibility rules.
Main benefits
The Scotiabank Gold American Express Card is one of only 5 credit cards in Canada that doesn’t charge the 2.5% foreign transaction fee on all your purchases made in a currency other than the Canadian dollar.
It’s a junk fee that so many people sadly don’t even know they’ve been paying. They’re avoidable with the EQ Bank Card (Prepaid Mastercard) that is free and that everyone should have, but it’s even better to avoid them with a real credit card that earns more rewards.
Travel insurance
The Scotiabank Gold American Express Card has all the main types of travel insurance. The medical travel insurance is very good, with 25 days of coverage (for those aged 64 and under).
Earn rates highlights
Earn rates are way less important than just about everyone thinks they are, at least if you do travel rewards the right way with huge welcome bonuses.
But the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card does have a phenomenal earn rate of 5 pts/$ (5%) at all grocery stores or 6 pts/$ (6%) at Sobeys-affiliated grocery stores. That includes gift cards you can buy there for many other retailers and even prepaid credit cards to use at Costco and everywhere else. Just take the time to read a few warnings about the gift card and prepaid card trick.
Expiration
You have no time limit to use your points even if you close the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card, just like with almost every travel rewards currency (contrary to the very common myth).
Find out more
I did a summary for this deal since it’s so good.
All the information is in the tabs on our card resource page for the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card, like with all cards.
American Express Platinum Card
It’s the best one right now for…
Those who want points of the more lucrative type and the best premium card in Canada (by far). You get amazing luxury travel benefits like free unlimited access to the world’s largest network of VIP airport lounges (1,400+ lounges) for you and a guest, automatic Gold elite status at Marriott and Hilton (15,000+ hotels), and soooooo much more.
The American Express Platinum Card has its highest offer seen in years! It’s definitely the time to get it, if you can manage the higher minimum spending requirement.
Flytrippers Valuation of welcome bonus
You’ll get 150,000 American Express Membership Rewards points by unlocking the welcome bonus on the American Express Platinum Card (they are transferable to Aeroplan or Avios at a 1-to-1 rate).
These points are worth a variable amount of ≈ $2250 conservatively, but they’re the most flexible of rewards of the more lucrative type and can be worth so much more. For example, it’s enough for a roundtrip intercontinental business class flight worth $7,000.
You also get a $200 travel credit that you can cash out on day 1 with our pro tip, by applying it to a refundable hotel and then getting the hotel refunded (so it unequivocally is worth $200). You also get a $200 dining credit (we value this one conservatively at $100, because not everyone would have spent $200 on a meal — but $100 for sure with these days’ government-spending-induced inflation).
Maximum value of welcome bonus
It’s literally unlimited. If you use the points well, they can be worth $3000 easily, even in economy class. In business class or first class, they can be worth $5000 easily.
That’s the beauty of travel rewards of the more lucrative type. You can get outsized value if you want to. The price of flights in points is NOT tied to the price of flights in cash.
Rewards details
This is the breakdown of the rewards:
- 100,000 points: Welcome bonus after spending $10,000 (in maximum 3 months)
- 40,000 points: Renewal bonus after 1 purchase in months 14-17 (no minimum)
- 10,000 points: Earn on the minimum spend (at base earn rate of 1 pt/$)
That’s what’s a bit unique with the American Express Platinum Card; there’s a renewal bonus that makes it profitable to pay the 2nd year’s fee (obviously, that’s already deducted from our Flytrippers Valuation of the offer)! You get to keep the amazing card benefits another year, too!
Redemption options
Here is how you can redeem your rewards:
- ≈ $3150 to UNLIMITED: Specific flights in premium cabins with airline price charts
- ≈ $2250 to ≈ $3150: Specific flights in economy class with airline price charts
- ≈ $2250 to $3000: Any flights with the Amex price chart
- ≈ $1650: Any flights on Air Canada
- ≈ $1620 to UNLIMITED: Specific hotels with hotel price charts
- $1500: Any trips on any website
- $1500: Any trips on the Amex website
- $1500: Cash back as a statement credit
For more details, as always, you can check the tabs on our card resource page for the American Express Platinum Card.
Math for the Flytrippers Valuation
You get ≈ $2250 in rewards and ≈ $200 (conservative valuation of $100 for each of Year 1 and Year 2) in dining credits (≈ $2450). The net fee is $599 ($799 minus the $200 travel credit you can cash out) for each of Year 1 and Year 2 ($1198).
So ≈ $2450 minus $1198 is ≈ $1252.
Minimum spending requirement
To unlock the welcome bonus on the American Express Platinum Card, you need to spend $10,000 in 3 months. It’s the highest minimum spending requirement in Canada. You can read our 5 tips.
You also need to renew the card after Year 1 and make 1 purchase between months 14-17 to get the renewal bonus.
Effective percentage back
You get ≈ 12.5% back on $10,000 in spending (≈ $1252 on $10,000). A bit better than 1% or 2%, right? Especially on a big amount like this.
Minimum income requirement
You are eligible for the American Express Platinum Card regardless of your personal income, as with all cards issued by Amex Bank.
Welcome bonus eligibility restrictions
Amex is also very strict when it comes to eligibility rules for the welcome bonus. You are not eligible for the American Express Platinum Card’s welcome bonus if you’ve already had this specific card before.
These are the official rules… but they aren’t always enforced after a few years, and you might be lucky even if you’re technically not eligible. You can read more about welcome bonus eligibility rules.
Main benefits
The American Express Platinum Card offers free unlimited access to the world’s largest network of VIP airport lounges. It’s for you and 1 guest, but you can add 2 more passes for $250 more per year if you want.
You get automatic Gold elite status at Marriott and Hilton, for a VIP experience in 15,000+ hotels all over the world. You get elite status with Hertz to avoid queues for rental cards. There are plenty of luxury benefits like that.
Tu obtiens le statut élite Gold automatique dans les hôtels Marriott et Hilton, pour un traitement VIP dans 15 000+ hôtels dans le monde. Tu obtiens le statut élite chez Hertz pour éviter les files d’attente de location d’autos. Il y a plein d’avantages luxueux comme ça.
You also get a $100 credit to pay for almost all of the NEXUS fee for 5 years of priority queues at security checkpoints and customs in Canadian and American airports. It makes absolutely no sense not to have that; stop waiting in line with regular travelers.
Travel insurance
The American Express Platinum Card has all the main types of travel insurance, but no mobile device insurance.
Earn rates highlights
Earn rates are way less important than just about everyone thinks they are, at least if you do travel rewards the right way with huge welcome bonuses.
But the American Express Platinum Card does have one of the best multiplier earn rates for travel expenses, with 2 pts/$ (≈ 3%).
Expiration
You have no time limit to use your points even if you close the American Express Platinum Card, just like with almost every travel rewards currency (contrary to the very common myth).
Find out more
All the information is in the tabs on our card resource page for the American Express Platinum Card, like with all cards.
TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card
It’s the best one right now for…
Those who want points of the more lucrative type that can be worth so much more if you use them well, but are obviously more restrictive. And those who want free checked bags on Air Canada (for you and up to 8 travel companions on the same booking).
The TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card‘s offer is the highest for main-level Aeroplan cards and is worth it because Aeroplan points are extremely lucrative.
Keep in mind that if your application is initially declined online, you can possibly get it approved by calling in to simply give additional information. It’s not common, but it’s more common than with other banks; it’s the unique peculiarity of the TD process.
Flytrippers Valuation of welcome bonus
You’ll get 52,000 Aeroplan points by unlocking the welcome bonus on the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card.
These points are worth a variable amount of ≈ $780 conservatively, but they’re less flexible than Amex points (next card).
Maximum value of welcome bonus
It’s literally unlimited. If you use the points well, they can be worth $1500 easily, even in economy class. In business class or first class, they can be worth $2000 easily.
That’s the beauty of travel rewards of the more lucrative type. You can get outsized value if you want to. The price of flights in points is NOT tied to the price of flights in cash.
Rewards details
This is the breakdown of the rewards:
- 10,000 points: Welcome bonus after 1st purchase (no minimum)
- 15,000 points: Welcome bonus after spending $7,500 (in maximum 6 months)
- 15,000 points: Renewal bonus after spending $12,000 total (in maximum 12 months)
- 12,000 points: Earn on the minimum spend (at base earn rate of 1 pt/$)
That’s what’s a bit unique with the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card; there’s a renewal bonus that makes it very profitable to pay the 2nd year’s fee (obviously that’s already deducted from our Flytrippers Valuation of the offer)! You get to keep the amazing card benefits another year, too!
Redemption options
Here is how you can redeem your rewards:
- ≈ $1092 to UNLIMITED: Specific flights in premium cabins (partners and Air Canada)
- ≈ $780 to ≈ $1092: Specific flights in economy class (partners and Air Canada)
- ≈ $572: Any flights on Air Canada
- ≈ $520: Taxes on flights or seat upgrades
- ≈ $520: Hotels or vacation packages
- ≈ $338: Car rentals or activities
- ≈ $338: Merchandise or gift cards
For more details, as always, you can check the tabs on our card resource page for the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card.
Math for the Flytrippers Valuation
You get ≈ $780 in rewards, and the fee is $0 for Year 1 and $139 for Year 2.
So ≈ $78 minus $139 is ≈ $641.
Minimum spending requirement
To unlock the full welcome bonus on the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card, you need to spend $7,500 in a maximum of 6 months and an extra $4,500 in a maximum of 12 months (for a total of $12,000). These are separate bonuses.
You also need to renew the card after Year 1 to get the renewal bonus.
Effective percentage back
You get ≈ 5.3% back on $12,000 in spending (≈ $641 on $12,000). A bit better than 1% or 2%, right? Especially on a big amount like this.
Minimum income requirement
Your income must be over $60,000 (personal) or $100,000 (household) to be eligible for the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card.
Most banks don’t ask for proof of income, but it could happen. You can read the basics of credit card minimum income requirements.
Welcome bonus eligibility restrictions
Aeroplan cards are unique in Canada. In terms of TD rules, you must not have had this specific card in the last 12 months to be eligible for this welcome bonus on the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card.
However, in theory, you also must not have had any main-level Aeroplan card (fee in the $100s) in the past either, no matter the bank. In practice, recently Aeroplan has tolerated it or has only clawed back the first and smallest portion of the welcome bonus — the 10,000 points that don’t require any spending. Even without those points, the welcome bonus is still excellent.
Main benefits
The TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card offers the first checked bag for free on Air Canada flights, for you and up to 8 other travel companions on the same booking. You don’t need to have paid for the flight with the card or anything, it’s a benefit offered to you as a cardholder (even if the flight was booked before you even had the card).
You get small discounts on Air Canada flights paid in points (not on partner flights which are at a fixed price and are almost always the better deal).
You also get a $100 credit to pay for almost all of the NEXUS fee for 5 years of priority queues at security checkpoints and customs in Canadian and American airports. It makes absolutely no sense not to have that; stop waiting in line with regular travelers.
Travel insurance
The TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card has all the main types of travel insurance.
Earn rates highlights
Earn rates are way less important than just about everyone thinks they are, at least if you do travel rewards the right way with huge welcome bonuses.
But the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card does have a good base earn rate for non-bonused expenses, with 1 pt/$ (≈ 1.5%). It also earns 1.5 pts/$ (≈ 2.25%) on Air Canada purchases.
Expiration
You have no time limit to use your points even if you close the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card, just like with almost every travel rewards currency (contrary to the very common myth).
Find out more
All the information is in the tabs on our card resource page for the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card, like with all cards.
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Summary
These 4 deals are currently the best for 99% of travelers! As always, welcome bonuses are the key to traveling for less: you get ≈ $641 or more in free travel whether you get the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card, the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card, the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card, or the American Express Platinum Card. We’ve broken down each of them to help you choose the card that’s best for you according to the reward types that you prefer, the key benefits, etc.
What would you like to know about the best offers for January 2025? Tell us in the comments below.
See the flight deals we spot: Cheap flights
Discover free travel with rewards: Travel rewards
Explore awesome destinations: Travel inspiration
Learn pro tricks: Travel tips
Featured image: Saboga, Panama (photo credit: Rowan Heuvel)
