We just did our 1st monthly live video of 2024 about the best travel rewards deals, but we also want to cover the new deals. So here’s a roundup of the new travel rewards offers that came out in January (and even in the last few months for some of them).
If you want to learn more about any offer, it’s perfect because in every monthly video, I present the best deals of the month and then answer any questions, and you can check out our ranking of the best deals for all the info.
But in this post, we’re looking at the new offers specifically. With our new team that has doubled in size, we’re going to have a lot more regular content on the changing offers, but also all things related to travel rewards.
Here are the 9 new offers worth highlighting. Quick reminder that it’s essential, of course, to have read the infographic that summarizes the basics of travel rewards.
TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card
It’s simple: DEFINITELY APPLY for the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card if you’re eligible (and if you have a TD branch in your city or in a city you’ll be going to soon, because of TD’s peculiarity).
That’s right, since January 4th, one of Canada’s highest-ever welcome bonuses for points of the more simple type is back!
You literally can’t get any better for simple points! It’s $925 with no annual fee the 1st year, AKA $825 with the welcome bonus and $100 as a separate travel credit.
This bonus’ points can be used for almost any travel expense — i.e. anything booked through their Expedia for TD platform. On that site, you can find almost anything that exists in terms of flights, hotels, car rentals, and activities.
You can also apply the points to any travel expense booked on any site, but TD Rewards points are then worth less. By choosing this slightly more flexible approach, you’d still have $760 ($660 + $100). However, I recommend going through their platform directly because it’s very easy — and so much more valuable — to use your points this way and get 25% more value.
If you missed this deal on the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card last year, don’t miss out again! The offer ends March 4th. It’s THE best and the most urgent one to obtain as well.
Our Flytrippers readers have earned nearly 3 million dollars in free travel thanks to deals, and this one is truly perfect to boost your own stash.
Almost every detail imaginable can be found in the 11 tabs on our TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card resource page (and we even have a video specifically on this one; with more content to come).
RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card
If you want points of the more valuable type, the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card is a must-have right now. In fact, it’s a card every pro should always have.
Since January 22nd, its record-high offer is back! It’s the highest ever seen for this card.
By the way, it’s the same offer on the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Privilege Card — a superior-level card with a much higher fee and minimum income requirement). And most importantly on the RBC Avion Visa Platinum Card — an inferior-level card designed for those with a more modest income.
(If you don’t qualify for cards that require an income of $60,000 and don’t want to lie to the banks, check out the Amex Cobalt Card below, as it is excellent!)
RBC Avion points have incredibly high value, but are much less flexible (less flexible than the more simple type of points obviously, but even less flexible than other more valuable types of points, such as Aeroplan points or American Express points).
There aren’t as many specific flights that are usually a good use of points, and there are also fewer airline partners, so fewer seats are available.
But it was these RBC Avion points that I used for my flight in the best business class in the world this summer ($161 instead of $3856). If you want to fly business class, this is the offer for you (or the next card, if you’re eligible).
Know that the RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card offer is valid until April 30, so you still have time to get the previous or next one AND then get this one in 2-3 months if there are 2 that suit you.
Spoiler alert: there really should be at least 2 that suit you if you want to increase your rewards and improve your credit score!
Almost every detail imaginable can be found in the 11 tabs on our RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card resource page (and we’ve got a video about this one too; with more content to come).
TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card
If you want points of the more valuable type that are easier to use well, the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card is still one of the best.
Even if its offer has just decreased slightly compared to December! Just goes to show you how good it was before! You may have noticed that we talked a lot about it in December, that was so you could take advantage of the higher offer!
That said, it’s still great if you just sadly want just 1 bonus, if you want Aeroplan points that are a lot more flexible than RBC Avion points, or if you want free checked bags on Air Canada (or even a credit to get NEXUS for free).
Note that Aeroplan’s rules about getting multiple welcome bonuses are the most strict. In theory, to be eligible for this bonus, you shouldn’t have received a welcome bonus on the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card, CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card, or American Express Aeroplan Card in the last year or so. And there’s the same TD peculiarity.
Almost every detail imaginable can be found in the 11 tabs of our TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card resource page (with more content to come).
Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card
If you absolutely want to get free passes for airport lounges and 0% in foreign currency transaction fees, the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite is the best at first glance, but…
Firstly, the new January offer has almost tripled compared to the previous offer.
Why did I say “but..”?
It’s because if you take this $320 welcome bonus instead of the $925 welcome bonus of the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card, you’re essentially paying $605 for 6 lounge passes. That’s a hefty price to pay per pass, even if you take full advantage of the free food and beverages!
If you get both, now that makes sense. But just the Scotia Passport Visa Infinite Card… not so savvy, honestly.
Not when you can get the highest bonus ever seen in Canada for simple points.
Plus, this offer is valid until July 1st, so you’ve got plenty of time to grab it in an upcoming round of card applications.
Almost every detail imaginable can be found in the 11 tabs of our Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite resource page (with more content to come).
American Express Cobalt Card
If you unfortunately want just 1 card, or if you have a lower income that doesn’t make you eligible for most of the current good offers, the Amex Cobalt Card is always a safe bet!
The offer changed in November, as you may have noticed if you check our ranking of the best credit cards regularly.
In short, you now have to spend $750 per month for 12 months to get the welcome bonus, which has also decreased. That’s certainly a shame.
However, the Amex Cobalt Card remains the best card in Canada, without a doubt.
Indeed, Amex points have an extremely high value, making it even more awesome to get the 5 pts/$ (≈ 7.5%) earn rate at the grocery store — and everywhere else thanks to gift cards purchased at the grocery store.
Plus, like all Amex cards, there’s no minimum income requirement.
Almost every detail imaginable can be found in the 11 tabs of our Amex Cobalt Card resource page (with more content to come).
WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard
If you want simple points to travel on WestJet (and Sunwing towards the end of 2024, since this airline will be integrated into WestJet), the WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard is a great option.
It’s the highest offer ever on this card, and it ends on March 14th (it’s been out for a while, but we hadn’t mentioned it yet).
It’s just that, in a way, these rewards are the worst of both worlds unfortunately:
- They’re of the more simple type
- So they can’t give you outsized or unlimited value
- But they don’t even give you the usual flexibility of rewards of the more simple type
- You can’t use them on any airline or any travel expense
On the other hand, the WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard also has a few interesting benefits:
- 2-for-1 companion ticket OR 4 airport lounge accesses when traveling with WestJet
- Free checked bags on WestJet
Almost every imaginable detail can be found in the 11 tabs of our WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard resource page (with more content to come).
TD Cash Back Visa Infinite Card
If, unfortunately, you want cash back, the TD Cash Back Visa Infinite Card could be just what you’re looking for.
The new offer is actually one of the highest ever seen in Canada for a cash back card.
That’s right, $350 is the record for cash back, while the equivalent travel card gives you $925!
I’ll say it again: cash back is by far the worst rewards option. If you like to travel, you should absolutely avoid this. Cash back is for people who don’t like to travel; yes, there are such people, apparently.
Yes, it’s easy with cash back, but opting for travel rewards of the more simple type is just as easy and offers almost 3 times as much as a welcome bonus.
Cash back cards always have lower welcome bonuses, and welcome bonuses are obviously the key in the world of travel rewards (you should know if you read the basics). Also, cash back cards have very few travel benefits and even their earn rates are usually lower.
Let’s say you really want cash back, even the Amex Cobalt Card is better than the TD Cash Back Visa Infinite Card, because it earns up to 5% cash back (the points can be used as cash back, if you don’t want to maximize their value).
Almost every detail imaginable can be found in the 11 tabs of our TD Cash Back Visa Infinite Card resource page (but we won’t have any more content coming for that in the short-term, we really don’t recommend cash back).
BMO eclipse rise Visa card
If, unfortunately, you want to limit yourself to a no-annual-fee card, the best offer is the brand-new BMO eclipse rise Visa card.
This could be interesting for those who don’t yet have a good credit score, because no-annual-fee cards are definitely more accessible.
The best indicator of whether someone can be a savvy travel rewards pro remains the ability to understand that you should always look at the total net value of an offer, not just the fee or just the bonus: both components. Always. That’s the basics.
To be clear, even limiting yourself to cards that have the 1st year free doesn’t make sense if you know how to do the math. The total net value is what’s important, and it’s always what we count in our Flytrippers Valuation.
The BMO eclipse rise Visa card has, as its introductory offer, the best welcome bonus for a no-annnual-fee: $192. However, this is almost 5 times less than the TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite Card.
Almost every detail imaginable can be found in the 11 tabs of our BMO eclipse rise Visa Card resource page (with more content to come).
TD Aeroplan Privilege Visa Infinite Card
If you frequently travel on Air Canada and enjoy luxury, you should consider the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card (or the Amex version with no minimum income whose offer has not changed, the American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card).
The TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card’s offer changed in January, like the other TD offers. It did indeed decrease a bit, like the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card. However, it remains interesting because these premium cards have more luxurious benefits on Air Canada — such as unlimited access to Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounges.
Its minimum income requirement is very high however, which is why the Amex Aeroplan Reserve Card is more attractive to the vast majority of Canadians (plus the Amex version even has a slightly higher offer at the moment).
In terms of skills at doing math, we’re going from one extreme (a no-annual-fee card) to the other (premium cards). Premium cards are worth it, sometimes, just to enjoy luxurious benefits. But most importantly when their welcome bonus offer is higher than Aeroplan’s premium cards at the moment. This is the case with the Amex Platinum Card, for example.
Due to the tightening of Aeroplan’s rules for multiple welcome bonuses explained above, this is a good time to get the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card if you’ve already had the American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card.
The only difference between the 2 cards (apart from the minimum income) is that the TD version also has 6 passes for a worldwide network of airport lounges, in addition to access to Air Canada lounges.
Almost every detail imaginable can be found in the 11 tabs on our resource page for the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card (with more content to come).
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Featured image: Thailand (photo credit: Racim Amr)
