One of the rare upsides of the pandemic is that if you are not traveling, you can be accumulating a huge stash of travel rewards points so your next trip (or trips) can be heavily discounted. If you haven’t started yet, you’ve already lost a full year… so it’s time to take action now. And even if you have been earning already, these 2 great Scotiabank travel credit cards could be the right options for you.
Both cards have seen their welcome bonus increased in March (and of course, welcome bonuses are the key to getting over $1,000 in travel rewards each year as we do).
That doesn’t mean they are the best credit cards in Canada right now, it’s just that we wanted to tell you about these brand-new offers.
For example, in terms of travel rewards value, there are at least 7 cards with higher welcome bonuses right now:
Best for: Very lucrative hotel points for specific hotels
LUCRATIVE
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Terms and conditions apply. Flytrippers editorial opinion only. Financial institutions are not responsible for maintaining the content on this site. Please click "See More" to see most up-to-date information.
Its new welcome bonus offer is worth $230 in travel rewards based on our Flytrippers Valuation
The welcome bonus requires a low minimum spend of $1,000 in 3 months (that’s just ≈ $77/week)
It earns a whopping 5 points per dollar (5%) on groceries (and 3% on gas, transit, and streaming services)
Scotia points are literally the easiest type of travel rewards, as they can be applied to any travel expense
It is one of the very few cards in Canada with no foreign transaction fees (2.5% in savings)
It has some of the best travel insurance coverage for those with a lower income
It has a very low minimum income requirement of $12,000 only
If you can spend a bit more each month, I would strongly consider the American Express Cobalt™ Card which also earns 5 points per dollar on groceries (even 6 points per dollar actually by transferring to Marriott for even more value) and also has an increased welcome bonus worth ≈ $706 (with a higher spending required but no minimum income).
The American Express Cobalt™ Card is simply one of the very best cards in Canada, and it now has its best-ever welcome bonus offer. It’s the card I used the most myself when I’m not unlocking the many new welcome bonuses I get each year.
But in case you don’t want to spend as much, the Scotiabank Gold American Express® Card is by far the best alternative. You can also consider the other best credit cards in Canada for groceries in case you don’t want to do as I did (which is to change for one of the grocery stores that accept American Express in Canada).
Its new welcome bonus offer is worth $171 in travel rewards based on our Flytrippers Valuation
The welcome bonus requires a low minimum spend of $1,000 in 3 months (that’s just ≈ $77/week)
It gives you 6 annual free airport lounge passes around the world
It is one of the very few cards in Canada with no foreign transaction fees (2.5% in savings)
Scotia points are literally the easiest type of travel rewards, as they can be applied to any travel expense
It has some of the best travel insurance coverage in Canada
However, it has a minimum income requirement of $60,000
While not many of you are in need of airport lounge passes right now, given how it will almost certainly be easy to travel this fall at the latest (and next winter), you’d likely be able to use the 6 passes within the year pretty easily.
That said, if you earn over $60,000 per year, there are many other higher offers in terms of rewards value among the best credit cards in Canada. For example, if you want even more value, the aforementioned American Express Cobalt™ Card is by far the best offer in Canada right now (≈ $706).
Of course, there’s always the Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card (≈ $357) if you don’t have it yet: it’s the card that every Canadian traveler should have (the welcome bonus gives you 8 free hotel nights in many cool destinations, like Bali). If you prefer sticking to a Visa card, the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite Card* ($327) will give you points (and credits) that are almost just as easy to use as Scotia points (or easier).
It is one of the best offers for cashback (even though cashback is definitely not the way to go if you want to maximize your rewards):
Its welcome bonus offer is worth $200 in cashback (min. spend $2,000 in 3 months)
The welcome bonus requires a low minimum spend of $2,000 in 3 months (that’s just ≈ $77/week)
It earns a good 4% on groceries (and 1-2% elsewhere)
It comes with free supplementary cards the first year to earn faster
It has some of the best travel insurance coverage in Canada
However, it also has a minimum income requirement of $60,000
Other cashback alternatives include the BMO CashBack® World Elite®* MasterCard®* ($200 welcome bonus) that will soon earn 5% back on groceries (but with very low monthly caps) and the American Express® AIR MILES®* Platinum Card ($227 welcome bonus as AIR MILES Cash Rewards) that is still higher as cashback, even if you are way better off using AIR MILES for travel to get more value (like with all rewards programs).
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Summary
The 2 best Scotiabank credit cards for travelers have just seen their welcome bonuses increased significantly, so it could be a good time to get them if you were considering these as part of your travel rewards strategy.
What do you think of mandatory masks on flights? Tell us in the comments below.
Featured image: Kauai (photo credit: Karsten Winegeart)
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Andrew is the co-founder of Flytrippers. He is passionate about traveling the world but also, as a former management consultant, about the travel industry itself. He shares his experiences to help you save money on travel. As a very cost-conscious traveler, he loves finding deals and getting free travel thanks to travel rewards points... to help him visit every country in the world (current count: 71/193 Countries, 47/50 US States & 9/10 Canadian Provinces).
Valuation (BONUS)
SIMPLE
80k/150k
SIMPLE
60k/100k
