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Air Miles Rewards Program in Canada: A Complete Guide

Canadians have a lot of choice when it comes to loyalty rewards programs. One of the largest (and arguably most complicated) is Air Miles. The program offers many ways to earn and redeem both miles and cash, but getting the most out of your Air Miles may require a little research, forethought and careful planning.

What is the Air Miles program?

Launched in 1992, Air Miles is one of Canada’s most popular loyalty rewards programs with nearly 10 million members. In 2023, the Bank of Montreal (BMO) acquired the Air Miles Reward Program from LoyaltyOne. 

As an Air Miles member, you can earn miles by showing your membership card or entering your membership number when you shop at eligible retailers, or by using a BMO Air Miles credit card to make purchases. 

After amassing a sufficient number of miles, you can redeem them for a variety of items like flights, merchandise or instant cash rebates at select retailers.

How do Air Miles work?

You can earn Air Miles in the form of Dream Miles, Cash Miles or a combination of both. After you open an Air Miles account, you’ll be asked how you want to allocate the rewards you earn. For example, you may choose to allot 20% to Dream Miles and 80% to Cash Miles, or 100% Dream Miles and 0% Cash Miles — the choice is yours. You can adjust your selection at any time.

What are Air Miles Dream Miles

Dream Miles are miles that you can redeem for non-cash rewards, such as flights, car rentals, merchandise and experiences.

What are Air Miles Cash Miles?

Cash Miles can be converted into cash or cash-like eVouchers, which are handy for online purchases.

You can only redeem Cash Miles in-store or online at participating Cash Miles partners.

Dream Miles vs. Cash Miles

Best air miles credit cards in canada.

Compare all different air miles credit cards side-by-side and find out the best card that will meet your need with special perks and benefits

How much are Air Miles worth?

Cash Miles have a specific value: You can redeem 95 Cash Miles for $10 cash towards a purchase (or eVoucher), which gives each Air Miles Cash Mile a value of 10.5 cents. You can redeem Cash Miles in $10 increments up to a total of $750 per day.

Dream Miles do not have a consistent value because they vary based on how they’re redeemed.

For example, if you redeem your Air Miles Dream Miles for merchandise, you may get a value of about 7 cents per Air Mile. However, when you redeem your Dream Miles for a hotel room, you may get a per-mile value of approximately 12 cents. These different mile valuations underscore why, to maximize the purchasing power of your Air Miles, it’s important to figure out the value before you redeem them.

In general, you get the best deal when redeeming Air Miles Dream Miles for travel. 

How many Air Miles for a flight?

NerdWallet analyzed over 75 data points to compare the Air Miles redemption values of flights in 2022 and determined a “cent-per-mile” value for each flight.

Based on our analysis, the average value of 1 Air Miles Dream Mile is worth 11.35 cents.

More specifically, you can expect to get around:

• 10.10 cents per Air Miles Dream Mile for economy class redemptions.
• 12.60 cents per Air Miles Dream Mile for business class redemptions.

These values can fluctuate based on several factors, such as where and at what time of year you’re travelling (i.e., during holidays or other peak times), and how far ahead of time you book your flight.

For example, when redeeming miles for an economy ticket from Toronto to Mumbai 20 weeks in advance, the value of a single Air Mile can be as high as 22 cents, at the time of this writing. However, if you book the same ticket only one week out, each Air Mile has an approximate value of 16 cents.

Unfortunately, unlike some travel rewards loyalty programs (like Aeroplan ), Air Miles does not offer a flight chart with info about how many miles are needed to reach a particular destination. 

To find the actual amount of Air Miles needed for a specific trip, you’ll need to search for flights on the Air Miles travel portal. You can adjust your dates slightly to see whether it affects the number of Air Miles required for a flight.

How to earn Air Miles

To get the most out of your rewards, select how you want to earn your miles by using the slider tool in your account profile. Choose a percentage of Cash Miles and Dream Miles that makes sense for you. For example, if you want to only redeem your miles as cash, you could set the slider to 100% Cash Miles and 0% Dream Miles.  

Present your Air Miles membership card

When shopping in person or online at an Air Miles retail partner, you just need to present your card or input your membership number to earn Air Miles.

The amount of Air Miles you earn varies among retailers. For example, at the time of writing, you get 1 Air Mile per $15 dollars spent at Budget Car Rental, whereas, with Global Pet Foods, you earn 1 Air Mile for every $20 you spend.

Shop with an Air Miles credit card

A fast and easy way to accelerate your earnings is with a co-branded Air Miles credit card .

Air Miles is owned by BMO, which offers five credit cards that earn Air Miles on purchases.

Here are five BMO credit cards that earn Air Miles rewards.

• BMO AIR MILES Mastercard
• BMO AIR MILES World Elite Mastercard
• Student BMO AIR MILES Mastercard
• BMO AIR MILES World Elite Business Mastercard
• BMO AIR MILES No-Fee Business Mastercard

Use a BMO AIR MILES debit card

You can earn 1 Air Mile for every $30 you spend using a BMO Debit Card that’s attached to an Air Miles chequing account. If you also hold a BMO AIR MILES World Mastercard or BMO AIR MILES World Elite Mastercard, you can earn an extra 25 miles per month.

Shop online via the Air Miles portal and eStore

On top of earning Air Miles directly when shopping at merchants in person or online, you can earn rewards using the Air Miles shopping portal at airmilesshops.ca. Rather than going directly to a partner retailer’s website, you go through the Air Miles eStore and earn 1 Air Mile for every $20 spent.

Book travel through the Air Miles travel portal

You can earn points by booking travel-related items like flights, hotel stays and rental cars via the Air Miles travel hub.

Take advantage of Air Miles bonus offers and promotions

Air Miles partner merchants sometimes offer special promotions or bonuses that allow members to earn additional miles. You can find current promotions by checking out the Air Miles website.

Answer surveys to earn free Air Miles

You can earn miles by answering surveys online with companies like Shopper’s Voice. You can find a list of current surveys that offer rewards on the Air Miles website. 

How to sign up to the Air Miles Reward Program

Air Miles membership is free and can be completed online. You must be at least 16 years old to apply. 

When filling out the online application, you must provide your name, date of birth, address and email, then set up a password. Once the application is approved, you’ll receive a physical membership card in the mail within two to three weeks. 

You’ll also be sent your membership number and digital card via email, so you don’t have to wait until your physical card arrives to start earning miles. 

Membership is automatic for eligible BMO credit card holders. 

Air Miles Onyx status

Air Miles Onyx status is the highest status tier available for the Air Miles loyalty program. You must earn 5,000 or more miles within a year to attain Onyx status or hold a BMO AIR MILES World Elite Mastercard, BMO AIR MILES World Elite Business Mastercard or BMO AIR MILES Business Mastercard. Onyx status gives you access to exclusive perks, like discounts of up to 40% on Air Miles flights, 10% off for merchandise redemptions and priority customer service.

Air Miles Gold status

Air Miles Gold status is the tier below Onyx. It’s for Air Miles members who collect between 500 to 4,999 miles in a calendar year or hold a BMO AIR MILES Mastercard or BMO AIR MILES No-Fee Business Mastercard.

Benefits for Gold status include up to 30% off the number of miles needed for certain flights and 5% off the miles required for eligible merchandise redemptions. 

Is it worth joining the Air Miles program?

Air Miles is free to join, so there’s no downside to signing up. It takes very little effort to earn miles — simply show your membership card or enter the number at checkout, for example.

That said, it can take a fairly long time to earn rewards. To accumulate a significant amount of miles in a reasonable amount of time, you’d likely need to use an Air Miles credit card or constantly be looking for generous offers.

Air Miles pros

• Join for free.
• Maximize your rewards with special offers and promotions.
• Earn miles through a wide array of retail partners.
• Earn miles through one of BMO’s five Air Miles credit cards.
• Access Onyx and Gold status tiers for extra benefits.

Air Miles cons

• Redemption value is hard to determine.
• Miles cannot be transferred to other loyalty programs.
• Dream Miles cannot be converted to Cash Miles and vice versa.
• Air Miles expire if an account is inactive for 24 months.

Air Miles alternatives

One alternative to Air Miles is Air Canada’s Aeroplan points, another of Canada’s well-known travel reward programs. Aeroplan also has co-branded credit cards and an online shopping portal. 

The value of an individual Aeroplan point may be lower than that of a single Air Mile when redeemed for flights, but you could be in the air faster with an Aeroplan credit card. 

For example, with the BMO AIR MILES World Elite Mastercard, you can earn 3 miles for every $12 you spend at retail partners. To compare, you can earn between 1.25 and 3 Aeroplan points for every $1 you spend on purchases made with the American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card. Using the above example, you’d need to spend at least $396 to collect roughly 100 Air Miles, but just $33 to $80 to earn 100 Aeroplan points.

Finally, Aeroplan has an attractive “Family Sharing” feature that allows up to eight family members or friends to pool their points, making it easy to redeem Aeroplan points for maximum value .

Make sure you compare the Aeroplan and Air Miles features before you decide what’s best for your needs. You can also get insight from what other travellers think in our Reddit section below.

What Reddit has to say

To give an overview of the Air Miles program, NerdWallet’s credit card experts rigorously review everything from the valuation of points to redemption options. But our Nerds know it can also be helpful to hear what everyday cardholders think. We took to Reddit to find out what users are saying across multiple threads.

Redditors  mostly disagree with NerdWallet’s opinion on Air Miles.

Whereas NerdWallet’s feelings on Air Miles are probably best described as lukewarm, Redditors feel strongly that the loyalty program is not worth it. Users almost unanimously agree that Aeroplan is a better value for frequent travellers.

Frequently asked questions about Air Miles

In June 2023, the Bank of Montreal announced the completion of its acquisition of LoyaltyOne’s Air Miles Reward Program . 

5,000 Cash Miles are worth $525, as 95 Cash Miles have a monetary value of $10 (giving each mile a value of 10.5 cents).

The cash value of 5,000 Dream Miles is hard to pin down since it depends entirely on how you redeem them. You can experiment with the Air Miles search tool to explore different trips and see how far your 5,000 Dream Miles can take you.

About the Authors

Georgia Rose is a lead writer on the international team at NerdWallet. Her work has been featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Independent and The Associated…

Sandra MacGregor is a freelance writer who has been covering personal finance, investing and credit cards for over a decade. Her work has appeared in a variety of publications like…

DIVE EVEN DEEPER

Compare Canada’s Best Credit Cards for September 2024

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Travel rewards typically expire after 18-24 months of inactivity, but there are several ways to prevent this, even if you don’t have travel plans at the moment.

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The best credit cards with airport lounge access do much more than grant entry to a coveted airport oasis — they’re often chock-full of additional perks for travellers and everyday spenders alike.

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Earning & Stacking Air Miles on Hotel Bookings

Hotels are a large part of the cost of any vacation, and getting value back on that spend by earning air miles and points is smart.  This is one of my favorite ways to earn air miles, as it’s about comparing, calculating and being wise about the way you choose to book. 

There are many options for booking hotels that will earn you air miles.  The best way for you, will depend on your goals.  Regardless of the method you choose, you can stack the miles you earn, by earning in two different programs (or even twice in the same program) for the same spend. 

We’ve outlined the different ways to earn air miles for hotel bookings below, along with the pros and cons of each.

HOTEL LOYALTY PROGRAMS

When you book directly with a hotel, you are entitled to earn rewards in their loyalty program. 

Most hotel chains have their own reward program, and most also partner with airlines, so you can choose to either directly earn air miles with your preferred airline, or manually transfer your points from the hotels loyalty program to your preferred airline. 

Examples of hotel chains where you can earn air miles are Best Western, Choice, Hilton, Hyatt, IHG, Langham, Marriot, Radisson, Ritz Carlton and Wyndham.

• As you're booking with the hotel site directly, you’ll be earning points and elite qualifying stays with that hotel, and receiving your perks from your elite status with that hotel if you already have it e.g. free breakfast, complimentary upgrades etc. 
• There could be better deals available through general booking sites like Hotels, Bookings, Expedia, Hotwire or Priceline

SHOPPING PORTALS

Shopping portals should be checked and used whenever you are purchasing anything online.  The great news is that there are quite a few options for booking hotel rooms through a shopping portal. 

This is because sites such as Hotels, Bookings, Expedia, Orbitz, Hotwire and Priceline participate with shopping portals, as do a number of the hotel chains.

Examples of shopping portals are American Aadvantage Shopping, Alaska Mileage Plan Shopping, Barclaycard Rewards Boost, Chase Ultimate Rewards Shopping Portal, Delta Skymiles Shopping, JetBlue Shop True, Southwest Rapid Rewards Shopping and United Mileage Plus Shopping.

So always check your preferred shopping portal/s to see if the site you are about to book the hotel room on participates, before making that booking!  You do have to click through from the shopping portal to the site you are booking the hotel on, in order to earn the shopping portals points.

• A super easy way to earn air miles! 
• You can stack rewards this way, as you are earning miles through the shopping portal, and as you are also booking directly with the site you can earn their rewards as well

SPECIALIZED BOOKING SITES

Over the past few years a number of sites have launched that directly award you air miles and points in your preferred airline program, when you book a hotel room through their site. 

Rocketmiles and Kaligo are examples of these sites. 

• The earning rates can be quite high (in the thousands of air miles), so you can earn a large chunk of air miles
• Limited selection of hotel rooms
• Sometimes the rooms are more expensive than you will find on other sites
• Not booking directly with a hotel means that you miss out on earning points and elite qualifying stays with that hotel, or receiving your perks from your elite status with that hotel if you already have it e.g. free breakfast, complimentary upgrades etc.

Airbnb has been slowly partnering with airlines, allowing you to earn air miles and points for your stay, just like you would if you were booking a hotel.

There are several different ways to earn air miles for Airbnb stays.

You can earn United miles by buying Airbnb eGift cards through the United MileagePlus X App and using these to pay for your booking on the Airbnb site. 

You can earn Delta miles by visiting www.deltaairbnb.com , entering your Delta number and clicking through to book your Airbnb. 

Qantas also partners with Airbnb and it works the same way as with Delta, whereby you need to book via the airlines site www.qantas.com

• You can stack miles, by booking through Delta or Qantas and then paying with the Airbnb eGift cards you’ve purchased through the United MileagePlus X App
• You are limited to only earning United, Delta or Qantas points at this stage

AIRLINE WEBSITES

Some airlines provide you with air miles if you book the hotel on their website.  The air miles you will earn are shown next to the hotel details, when you do a search.

The main airlines that do this are: American, Delta, Lufthansa (Miles&More), Qantas and Southwest

• You can book your flight and hotel on one website at the same time, and earn air miles for both
• Not booking directly with a hotel means that you miss out on earning points and elite qualifying stays with that hotel, and receiving your perks from your elite status with that hotel if you already have it e.g. free breakfast, complimentary upgrades etc.

AIRLINE WEBSITES VACATION PACKAGES

Some airlines offer vacation packages, which are a bundle of flights, hotel and transportation.  You book these packages on the airlines website. 

The main airlines that offer air miles for these packages are Alaska, American, Delta, Jet Blue, Southwest and United.

• You earn a higher rate of award miles on the vacation package than you would if you were just booking the flight, or booking the flight and hotel separately
• You book everything at once, so it saves time and is easier to manage
• Limited choices of destinations and hotels
• May or may not be cheaper than booking flights, hotels and transportation separately - you'll need to work this out

There are a lot of different strategies to earn air miles and points for your hotel bookings.  Choose the one that accomplishes your goal the best, whether that is earning large amounts of air miles, getting the cheapest rate while still earning miles or achieving and retaining the perks of elite status with a hotel.

My preferred way to earn is by booking a hotel via a shopping portal, so that I earn points from both the shopping portal and the site I booked the hotel on.  And of course, I use an air mile earning credit card to pay, so I’m earning air miles in three different ways for the same spend!

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How do I book an all-inclusive or cruise with my AIR MILES Dream Miles?

Steps to book a vacation or cruise with AIR MILES and redtag.ca

There are different steps to know in order to book a vacation package with AIR MILES and redtag.ca to redeem and/or earn AIR MILES miles.

Login to the AIR MILES booking site

To make a booking, you must first go to the AIR MILES website and select:

On the next page, you must select:

• Discover the vacation and cruise packages

Once connected, you will land on this page, where you will find:

• Your AIR MILES Dream Miles balance
• Your AIR MILES status
• And the value of your Dream Miles for travel rewards

Booking a vacation package on AIR MILES

Once you have entered your search fields, a list of packages will be displayed.

You can sort this list as you wish, with interesting categories like:

• Près de la plage

• Air Canada Vacations
• WestJet Holidays

Here is the information provided in the list about a facility offering different packages:

Once on the facility’s page, you will be able to choose from a whole list of vacation packages, and sort it between:

• Deals Package

• Or Calendar

I find the website to be excellent and user-friendly.

Here is all the information given about a facility:

• Amenities at the property
• Maps & attractions (shopping, activities and parks…)
• Customer reviews ( Tripadvisor / Redtag)

For some packages, you can pay a deposit to confirm the booking and pay the balance later.

Using AIR MILES miles for vacation packages

When you are ready to book, you will have the option to pay for the entire booking with your credit card:

Or choose an amount of Dream Miles to use for this reservation (909 Dream Miles = $100 off)

Note that when you use miles, you get the same amount of miles as when you don’t use miles (here, 189 miles).

A $30 service charge is added when you use AIR MILES miles (regardless of the amount of miles used). 👿

What about booking cruises?

As of December 12, 2019 , it is also possible to book cruises in the same way.

Bottom Line

The AIR MILES vacation package booking site, powered by Redtag.ca, is fun and user-friendly. Unlike Transat, you’ll find more vacation packages, including those from Sunwing, Air Canada Vacations or WestJet Vacations. This ultimately gives you more diversity.

The exchange rate of 909 Dream Miles for $100 means a value of $0.11 / Dream Mile , which is a little higher than the value of Cash Miles (95 miles = $10 or $0.105 / Cash Mile ).

If you are used to booking flights, it may be more attractive to use your Dream Miles in this way, especially for short-haul flights . It is not uncommon to be able to get a value of more than $0.20/mile… even $0.40/Dream Mile!

How to earn AIR MILES miles

There are 10 AIR MILES affiliated credit cards issued by American Express and BMO. You can find a complete list on this page .

The most interesting ones are:

• BMO ® AIR MILES ® World Elite ® * Mastercard ® *
• ® AIR MILES ® * Platinum Credit Card" href="https://milesopedia.com/en/go/amex-air-miles-platinum-credit-card/">American Express AIR MILES Platinum Business Card

AIR MILES Frequently Asked Questions about redtag.ca

Will I be able to use my AIR MILES ® Dream Miles towards the taxes for a vacation package?

Your Dream Miles can only be used towards the base price of the trip, whereas taxes and fees can be paid by credit card only.

Can I use any amount of Dream Miles for my booking?

You can only use increments of 909 Dream Miles, which converts to a cash value of $100.

Can I use Cash Miles towards a booking?

No. At this time you can’t use Cash Miles towards your booking, but you can use Dream Miles.

Does it cost anything to use my Dream Miles?

Yes, there is a $30 non-refundable processing fee, including HST, per booking when you use your Dream Miles.

What happens when redtag.ca has a promotion? Will I be eligible to also get and/or use Miles?

No, AIR MILES cannot be combined with any redtag.ca promotions and/or discounts

Do I still earn AIR MILES by paying a deposit on my booking?

AIR MILES are earned when the booking is paid in full. We can accept the deposit; however, the miles will be earned when full payment is applied

What happens if more than one person on my booking has an AIR MILES card?

Only one AIR MILES member can earn per booking.

If I booked my vacation package before this program started, can I add my AIR MILES number to the file?

The AIR MILES Program excludes previous purchases, including bookings made with a deposit.

How long will it take to see the AIR MILES earned in my account?

It may take up to 30 days from the date of final payment for the miles to be credited to your member account.

Who do I contact if I want to change, modify or cancel my booking?

Contact a redtag.ca specialist at 1-866-973-3824 who will assist you with changes on your booking if changes are permitted by the supplier. Please note that change fees may apply

What happens if I have to cancel my booking?

Cancelled reservations will result in a recalculation of earned miles and may result in the deduction of those miles. No miles will be refunded as a result of a change in benefits from a trip made; or if the booking is cancelled, AIR MILES used in the initial purchase of the trip are non-refundable and non-transferable (You can protect your AIR MILES by getting a Manulife travel insurance policy, see more information below)

How will I know how many Miles I have and/or have used?

Both Miles you get and Miles you use (if applicable) will appear in your Collector Account(s) under “Transaction History”.

I didn’t receive my booking confirmation email. Who can I contact?

Please contact redtag.ca at 1-866-973-3824

Will I be able to use my Transat Travel Certificate or Cash eVoucher through redtag.ca?

redtag.ca will not accept any Transat Travel Certificate or Cash eVouchers

Manulife Travel Insurance

In the event that you need to cancel your trip due to a risk covered in the insurance policy, your AIR MILES will be reinstated in accordance with the Terms and Conditions of the policy.

To protect your AIR MILES Reward Miles, Manulife Insurance has provided three (3) policy options:

• All inclusive
• Non-Medical Inclusive
• Trip Cancellation and Interruption

Please note: If you purchased your vacation package and used Dream Miles on airmiles.redtag.ca and decide to purchase Manulife Travel Insurance at a later date, you must return to airmiles.redtag.ca to complete this transaction.

Can I use Dream Miles to pay for my deposit?

No, you can’t use Miles to pay for your deposit or for your administration fee. You can, however, pay for your deposit using your credit card and apply Dream Miles in increments of 909 Miles at the time of booking as part of your deposit. Please note that you can’t use Miles to pay for any outstanding balance at time of final payment later on.

Couldn’t find what you were looking for?

You can contact us directly at 1-866-973-3824 .

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Booking Hotels With Air Miles – Changes To The Travel Hub

In the past, there were two separate booking sites if you wanted to redeem Air Miles for a hotel reservation or if you wanted to book a hotel with cash and earn miles. Now they’ve been merged into one search . It states in the FAQ that it’s no longer called the Travel Hub but instead, AIR MILES Hotels. The website still says “Travel Hub” in it though.

Redeeming Miles

The biggest change is the much wider array of lodging options available for redemption. In addition to chain hotels, you can book independent hotels, resorts, B&Bs, apartments and cottages. This is a welcome improvement and gives you much more flexibility in trip planning.

Miles & Cash

If you hold Gold or Onyx status you have the option to do a combination of 50% miles and 50% cash. This would be handy if you’re short on miles or if you want to split the cost of the stay with a travelling companion who is not a points and miles collector.

The Math…

The big question is whether these redemptions represent good value for your miles. An acceptable benchmark to use when making this determination is the value of “Cash” category miles which is $10 for 95 miles when redeemed at a participating Air Miles partner. So, 10.5 cents per mile is the base level value of your miles. It’s arguable that if you aren’t getting at least that much value when you redeem Dream miles, you’d be better off collecting and redeeming in the Cash category.

Because there are taxes added to both regular paid bookings and Air Miles redemptions I will disregard the taxes on both forms of payment. Having checked a number of hotels, they tend to be in the same ballpark so it seems reasonable to treat them as roughly equivalent.

I will also ignore the annoying little $10 transaction fee. Over a multi-night stay this amounts to a small charge on a per night basis. On a one-night stay it’s a factor but because my brain can only handle so much math I will leave it out for now.

For a closer look, I chose a few hotels to compare the redemption value of miles versus paying directly for a room. Note that I am only considering cancellable/flexible rates because, absent a really super duper discount, I generally avoid non-refundable rates.

Holiday Inn & Suites Orlando near Universal Studios

My first example is a hotel I might be booking as the final night of a short trip to Universal Studios in December. The cheapest flexible member rate on the IHG Rewards website pre-tax is $143.42 CAD (the senior or CAA rates are better at $135.87).

The cheapest free cancellation rate redeeming Air Miles is 1290 miles. The cash rate if you were to book through the Travel Hub to earn some miles is $128.50 + tax which is oddly cheaper than booking direct. Using that rate, you’d be getting around 10 cents per mile in value which is just slightly below the Cash mile benchmark value, if my math is correct.

You also need to factor in what you’re giving up if you don’t book direct. In this case, you won’t earn any IHG points and the stay will not count toward any promotions such as the current targeted Accelerate offer.

If you want to book a suite , it’s not possible by redeeming IHG points. But you can indeed book a suite using Air Miles. The search results get weird at this point. When you click to see more room types the options number 46. There are not 46 room types at this Holiday Inn. These are rate types.

If you limit it to the rates that mention free cancellation there should be 6 different options which matches up with the number of room types available on the IHG website. However, I found the rooms difficult to distinguish and the redemption rates seem to increase disproportionately in relation to the IHG rate. The same thing happens with the paid rates on the Travel Hub.

Oddly, this hotel doesn’t always show up on a search. Presumably that happens with other properties as well.

DoubleTree by Hilton at the Entrance to Universal Orlando

This is the closest offsite hotel but not much closer than the Holiday Inn. When I first started checking rates with Air Miles, no cancellable option appeared – there were only non-refundable rooms available for redemption. However, the “free cancellation may be available” notation in green letters now shows up on the search results page.

When I did my search, the only room type with free cancellation was the “double standard” at a rate of 1330 Air Miles. The cash rate is $141.88 . On the Hilton site, the cheapest flexible rate pre-tax is $146 (or $141 CAA or senior). So, you’ll get a very tiny bit better than the Cash mile redemption value.

You’d be forgoing Hilton points and any promotion such as the current Power Up offer if you redeem miles or book with cash to earn miles.

Cabana Bay Beach Resort

Let’s say, however, that you want to book an onsite hotel with Air Miles. The cheapest room at the Cabana Bay Beach Resort at the “Seasonal Rate” is $149 USD pre-tax. The paid rate on the Air Miles site is $197.38 CAD. The Air Miles redemption rate is 1840 miles. And once again, it’s about 10-11 cents per mile in value.

Cabana Bay is a Loews hotel where there are no loyalty points to earn, so you won’t miss getting any from your stay if you redeem miles or pay the cash rate to earn miles.

Since I’m mentioning Universal Studios I’ll quickly remind anyone interested to consider upgrading your tickets to seasonal annual passes which in turn gives you access to the discounted annual pass holder rates at onsite Universal hotels.

Earning Miles

The key when it comes to paying cash on the Air Miles site is to make sure the rate and terms are the best available for your chosen lodging. Watch for any bonus mile promotions. If it’s a chain hotel, look for loyalty program promos. Or if you’re a member of the Hotels.com rewards program you might go that route instead to earn a free night or perhaps book during a Rocketmiles promo to earn some frequent flyer miles.

Is It Better Now?

Often when a loyalty program makes a change, it’s a negative one. This is certainly is a big improvement when it comes to variety in accommodation choices. If you have a pile of Dream miles and want to use them somewhere like the Scottish highlands where chain hotels are in short supply then it’s a great opportunity to save money on your trip.

I only redeemed Air Miles for a hotel stay one time in the past. It was 715 miles for a room that was over $100 USD. As mentioned above, previously only certain hotel chains were redeemable with miles and I like to book direct to take advantage of promotions to earn points. Although sweet spots may be elusive, I’m probably more likely to redeem Air Miles for a hotel under the new system due to the larger selection.

However, in my opinion, Air Miles tend to be the most valuable when used for short-haul flights, especially if you’re booking last minute when fares are high. In my experience, Air Miles flight availability has usually been easier to find than short-haul Aeroplan availability and there are lots of great options flying out of Maritime airports.

Tread Carefully

The Air Miles website has a history of glitches, although sometimes that can work in your favour. Check back if the hotel you’re looking for does not appear on your first search. And if the redemption rate or tax amount seems unusually low, book it while you can.

If you’re redeeming Air Miles, I would strongly suggest booking a refundable rate. I mentioned above a notation on the search results in green letters that references free cancellation. Other rates say “non-refundable”. Still others make no mention of the cancellation policy until the payment page where free cancellation may be displayed near the bottom. That makes for some confusion. The FAQ explains that refunded Dream miles will appear in the collector’s account within 24 hours. Be sure to read all the terms and conditions very carefully and call or do a live-chat with Air Miles to get an answer if you’re unsure of anything.

Take special care when redeeming for upgraded room or rate types. Be sure it’s very clear what kind of room you are booking and what’s included in the rate.

A hotel brand such as a Holiday Inn Express, Hampton Inn or Fairfield Inn where breakfast is free for everyone should not have any rates charging more miles (or money) because breakfast is included. All rates include breakfast at these brands. This is something I’ve come across on various hotel booking sites and it really bugs me.

It might be beneficial in some instances to split your reservation. Using the current Best Western promotion as an example, if you need 3 hotel nights and have chosen a Best Western, it might be preferable to book 2 nights on the Best Western website and make a separate booking for the 3rd night by redeeming Dream miles.

Final Thoughts

From my brief analysis, it seems you’re getting roughly the same value using Dream miles for hotel bookings as you would redeeming Cash miles for groceries. Where the difference lies, in my opinion, is the opportunity for a frugal person to justify booking a nicer hotel than he or she would otherwise. That is one of the benefits of points and miles. When using your own money, you might not splurge for an onsite hotel at a theme park or a hotel attached to an airport when less expensive options are readily available. But when you’ve got the miles, you might treat yourself more easily. Short-haul flights are still the winner in terms of potential value but a hotel redemption is a nice option in the right circumstances.

September 30, 2019 at 11:34 am

This is a good post. I’m very excited at the prospect of adding hotels to your Airmiles possibilities. The main reason I feel strongly about it : Marriott doesn’t have a presence everywhere. Furthermore, if you dig a little, you can find some gems. Take the Parker New York, for instance. From July 16 to July 20 next summer (4 night stay) you can book for a total of 7570 airmiles plus taxes. Yes, you might not be getting much more than standard “value”. But look further. Is there really a much better deal than that in the heart of Manhattan ? Seems like a fine four star hotel.

January 19, 2022 at 1:44 pm

Waning to book a 2 day stay at Edmonton Fantasyland theme rooms for family – with a possibility of family Galaxyland adventures also. Can’t find those options. JR

July 13, 2023 at 1:15 am

It looks like they charge double airmiles for a couple. Is that right?

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AIR MILES Blog

AIR MILES ® 101: How To Redeem AIR MILES ® Dream Miles

• Last updated: July 11, 2023

Have you heard the term AIR MILES Dream Miles and wondered what those Miles can do for you? If so, you’ve come to the right place. We’re going to give you the lowdown on how to redeem AIR MILES Dream Miles and turn your dreams into reality.

What are AIR MILES ® Dream Miles?

Is there a trip you’ve been planning, some new hot tech catching your eye, or maybe even a concert you’ve been hoping to see? Dream Miles can help you make it all happen.

In the AIR MILES Reward Program, you can allocate the Reward Miles™ that you earn into two accounts: AIR MILES Cash Account (giving you Cash Miles™) and/or Dream account (giving you Dream Miles™). Dream Miles can be saved up to be redeemed for things like a big-ticket item from our merchandise catalogue or for your next vacation. And while travel is usually what people think of when they think of Dream Miles–in fact, flights to Vancouver, Las Vegas, and London are some of our top Dream Miles redemption items­–there are way more redemption options to choose from than just flights and hotels. Dream Rewards start at 250 Dream Miles.

Hot tip : you can adjust your preference at any time, so if you’re planning a trip you can set your preference to 100% Dream Miles to collect the Miles that will make that trip happen sooner.

Dream Miles vs. Cash Miles

While AIR MILES Cash Miles can be used instantly in-store and online to get things like free gas or groceries, Dream Miles can be used in a big way. They’re typically redeemed for travel, tech, home appliances, fashion, and events. You can even choose to redeem them for donations. Once you’ve set your balance preference, the Miles you earn on everyday purchases will start showing up in their allocated accounts (AIR MILES Cash account and Dream account).

The Top Three Ways to Redeem

From the latest tech to an all-inclusive trip, Dream Miles are all about rewarding yourself .

Merchandise

This is where you can really treat yourself. Once you’ve racked up enough Dream Miles to start redeeming, AIR MILES Merchandise is one of the places to go. Here, you’ll see featured picks from brands we love—like Bosch, Conair, Dyson, Samsung, Sony, and so much more—new and noteworthy items, best-sellers, travel essentials, get-them-before-they’re-gone goodies, and more. Plus, you can even earn Bonus Miles with time-limited offers when you redeem for eligible rewards. Fun fact: in 2021, air fryers were the most popular product collectors were redeeming Dream Miles for.

Entertainment

Let the good times roll. Use your Dream Miles for entertainment items and plan a fun weekend outing, date night, or birthday gift. Keep it local and go see a movie or a show or redeem your Dream Miles for an event somewhere that gives you an excuse to travel. These experiences are updated often, so be sure to check back as you earn.

AIR MILES Travel is probably what we’re best known for, and for good reason. Use your Dream Miles to book flights, hotels, cars, vacation packages, cruises, and get into select US parks. With many airline, car rental, and hotel partners, there are lots of opportunities for you to take the trip of your dreams.

It’s not only about redeeming Dream Miles either. We’re always featuring incredible redemption offers that earn you even more Miles, so you can start thinking about your next big reward as you’re securing your current one.

And don’t forget, you can redeem Dream Miles for some awesome travel essentials to make your trip unforgettable.

Pay It Forward with Donations

There’s nothing better than the feeling of giving back, and with Dream Miles it’s easy to do just that. Using our donations portal, you can select from a list of three top Canadian charities: Kids Help Phone, Motionball, and Food Banks Canada, to redeem your Dream Miles for a cash donation.

When Should I Redeem My AIR MILES Dream Miles?

The best thing about Dream Miles is that they’re used for your dreams, so redeem them on your own timeline. You can save your Dream Miles up for something for yourself or use them to book a last-minute round-trip flight within North America. Whenever you choose to redeem, your AIR MILES Dream Miles are there for life’s little and big luxuries.

Now that you know more about AIR MILES Dream Miles redemption and how to really treat yourself, it’s time to join AIR MILES and start earning those Miles to get you closer to your dreams.

* Based on the largest volume of flight redemptions made since 1992 for bookings within Canada, transborder and internationally, respectively.

All rewards offered are subject to the terms and conditions of the AIR MILES Reward Program, are subject to change and may be withdrawn without notice. To use Miles for travel, merchandise, certificate and/or event rewards, you must have accumulated sufficient Dream Miles in your collector account. Some restrictions may apply. Quantities may be limited. Collectors must pay applicable surcharges, fees, and taxes on air travel, hotel, and car rental rewards. No cancellations, exchanges or refunds for merchandise, certificates or tickets once booked or ordered. Changes, cancellations and refunds to travel bookings are subject to the rules of the booking provider and/or supplier and may be subject to additional fees. For complete details, see current Program terms and conditions available at airmiles.ca.

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Points Programs

Hotel programs, best credit cards.

The Essential Guide to

Updated on: December 1, 2023

Best ways to earn:

BMO AIR MILES® World Elite MasterCard . Offers available through the app/website. Trip bundles through AIR MILES® Travel.

Best ways to redeem:

In-store rebates for groceries and gas. Gift cards from a wide variety of merchants. Hotels and flights.

AIR MILES ® is one of Canada’s most ubiquitous loyalty programs. While the name suggests that it's a frequent flyer program of some sort, the reality is that AIR MILES®

is more of a multifaceted rewards program with a vast network of in-store and online partners throughout Canada.

While AIR MILES® won't necessarily fuel your aspirational travel dreams, its flexibility will help you with other expenses, even ones outside of travel. Hence, the program should definitely be on your radar.

Earning AIR MILES®

Linked loyalty.

• Travel and medical insurance with 15 days out-of-province/country emergency medical protection
• Mastercard Travel Pass by DragonPass membership
• Access to Boingo hotspots, including on flights
• Extended warranty and purchase protection insurance
• Free additional cardholders
• Extended warranty and purchase protection
• Shell (retail gas stations): 1 Mile per 10/20 litres of gas, depending on grade
• Metro (Ontario grocery stores): 1 Mile per $20 spent
• IHG Hotels and Resorts: 1 Mile per $5 spent
• National and Alamo Car Rental: 1 Mile per $10 spent
• Budget Car Rental: 1 Mile per $15 spent
• Samsung (in-store and online): 1 Mile per $20 spent
• Blue: 1 Reward Mile per $15 spent
• Gold: 1 Reward Mile per $10 spent
• Onyx: 1 Reward Mile per $5 spent
• Blue: 3x Reward Miles on bundles
• Gold: 4x Reward Miles on bundles
• Onyx: 5x Reward Miles on bundles

Redeeming AIR MILES®

In-store partners.

• Blue: minimum 50% Dream Miles to use Cash + Miles
• Gold: minimum 25% Dream Miles to use Cash + Miles
• Onyx: no minimum to use Cash + Miles

Merchandise

Events and attractions, air miles® status and benefits.

• Blue: 1 Reward Mile per $15 spent or 3x Reward Miles on bundles
• Gold: 1 Reward Mile per $10 spent or 4x Reward Miles on bundles
• Onyx: 1 Reward Mile per $5 spent or 5x Reward Miles on bundles

† Terms and conditions apply. Please refer to the BMO Website for the most up to date information.

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Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya

Kalanchevskaya Street 21/40, Krasnoselsky, 107078 Moscow, Russia – Great location - show map – Subway/metro & Train Access

Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya Reserve now

Lock in a great price for Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya – rated 8.4 by recent guests!

Enter dates to get started.

Cleanliness

Value for money

Great location!

• Pet friendly
• Swimming pool
• Air conditioning
• 24-hour front desk
• Key card access
• Daily housekeeping
• Non-smoking rooms

This hotel in Moscow is a 5-minute walk from Krasnye Vorota and Komsomolskaya metro stations which are a few stops away from the Kremlin. Located in the legendary building, it features an indoor pool. Each room has a 32-inch LCD TV. Free WiFi is available throughout the hotel. The modern rooms at the Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya offer satellite TV, a tea/coffee maker, a work desk and a private bathroom with amenities. Some rooms have views of Moscow city center. The elegant Janus Restaurant serves Russian and international dishes along with a variety of wines. Cocktails and hot and cold snacks are also offered at the hotel’s lounge bar. The Moscow Leningradskaya also features an indoor swimming pool with a hot tub and a 24-hour gym.

Couples in particular like the location – they rated it 8.8 for a two-person trip.

Distance in property description is calculated using © OpenStreetMap

• Indoor swimming pool
• Fitness center
• Room service
• Tea/Coffee Maker in All Rooms
• Very Good Breakfast

Property highlights

Located in the best-rated area in Moscow, this hotel has an excellent location score of 8.9

Want a great night's sleep? This hotel was highly-rated for its very comfy beds.

Loyal Customers

끖 There are more repeat guests here than most other properties.

Availability

Select dates to see this property's availability and prices

Sustainability certification

Categories:, guests who stayed here loved.

Hotel area info

Restaurants 1 restaurant on site.

• Cuisine Russian • International
• Open for Breakfast
• Ambience Traditional
• Dietary options Vegetarian

Amenities of Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya Great facilities! Review score, 8.4

• Free toiletries
• Aerobics Additional charge
• Flat-screen TV
• Kids' meals Additional charge
• Special diet meals (on request)
• Breakfast in the room
• Tea/Coffee maker
• Invoice provided
• ATM on site
• Baggage storage
• Express check-in/out
• Ironing service Additional charge
• Dry cleaning Additional charge
• Laundry Additional charge
• Fax/Photocopying
• Business center
• Meeting/Banquet facilities Additional charge
• Fire extinguishers
• CCTV outside property
• CCTV in common areas
• Smoke alarms
• Security alarm
• 24-hour security
• Designated smoking area
• Smoke-free property
• Laptop safe
• Packed lunches
• Soundproof rooms
• Hair/Beauty salon
• Ironing facilities
• Opening times
• Open all year
• Adults only
• Heated pool
• Pool/Beach towels
• Locker rooms
• Full-body massage
• Hand massage
• Head massage
• Couples' massage
• Foot massage
• Neck massage
• Back massage
• Body treatments
• Hairstyling
• Hair coloring
• Hair treatments
• Makeup services
• Facial treatments
• Beauty services
• Hot tub/Jacuzzi
• Massage Additional charge

House rules Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya takes special requests – add in the next step!

Child policies.

Children of all ages are welcome.

Children 6 and above will be charged as adults at this property.

To see correct prices and occupancy info, add the number and ages of children in your group to your search.

Crib and extra bed policies

Prices for cribs and extra beds aren't included in the total price. They'll have to be paid for separately during your stay.

The number of extra beds and cribs allowed depends on the option you choose. Check your selected option for more info.

All cribs and extra beds are subject to availability.

The fine print Must-know information for guests at this property

Please note that the property provides bathrobes, slippers, additional blankets and towels, dental sets and shaving kits upon request. No charges are applicable.

Please note that according to the hotel's policy the guest who made the booking must be the holder of the credit card provided during the booking and at check-in. An alternative credit card has to be provided otherwise, and cash payment is also available. In case of providing another credit card, the amount of prepayment will be refunded to the credit card used for the booking.

Russian guests are kindly asked to present a national passport at check-in. Foreign guests need to provide a passport with a visa and migration card.

Pets are allowed. Please note that a nonrefundable fee is 3 000,00 RUB per stay. The refundable cleaning fee is 5 000,00 per stay.

FAQs about Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya

Does hilton moscow leningradskaya have a hot tub for its guests.

Yes, there's a hot tub. You can find out more about this and the other facilities at Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya on this page.

What is there to do at Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya?

• Couples' massage

Does Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya have a pool?

Yes, this hotel has a pool. See details about the pool and other facilities on this page.

How far is Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya from the center of Moscow?

Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya is 2.1 miles from the center of Moscow. All distances are measured in straight lines. Actual travel distances may vary.

What type of room can I book at Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya?

Does hilton moscow leningradskaya have a restaurant on site, how much does it cost to stay at hilton moscow leningradskaya.

The prices at Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya may vary depending on your stay (e.g. dates, hotel's policy etc.). To see prices, enter your dates.

What are the check-in and check-out times at Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya?

Check-in at Hilton Moscow Leningradskaya is from 2:00 PM, and check-out is until 12:00 PM.

The Best of Moscow

• Sheremetyevo International Airport (SVO) 16.1 miles
• Vnukovo International Airport (VKO) 18.3 miles
• Zhukovsky International Airport (ZIA) 23.3 miles

Subway/Metro Stations

• Komsomolskaya Metro Station

Train Stations

• Leningradsky Train Station

Personalized recommendations

We provide personalized recommendations based on your activity on our platform. If you prefer, you can opt out of this option. Opting-out only affects your current device. Adjust this setting to your preference on other devices as well.

Verified reviews from real guests.

We have more than 70 million property reviews, all from real, verified guests .

How does it work?

It starts with a booking.

The only way to leave a review is to first make a booking. That's how we know our reviews come from real guests who have stayed at the property.

Followed by a trip

When guests stay at the property, they check out how quiet the room is, how friendly the staff is, and more.

And finally, a review

After their trip, guests tell us about their stay. We check for naughty words and verify the authenticity of all guest reviews before adding them to our site.

If you booked through us and want to leave a review, please sign in first.

Check-in date

Check-out date

How to earn Air Miles

With over 200 partners and more than 25 years of presence in Canada, there are now many ways to earn Air Miles. If you’re an Air Miles collector, then make sure you’re aware of all the following ways to earn Air Miles.

• In-store : Show your Air Miles card in-store to get miles based on your purchases. There are over 100 retailers offering Air Miles including Shell, IGA, Sobey’s, Metro Ontario, Lowe’s, ACE, Staples, Jean Coutu, etc. You can earn double the points at these merchants if you pay with an Air Miles credit card.
• Booking hotels and car rentals : When booking with select hotel and car rental chains, you can opt to earn AirMiles instead of hotels or car rental points. This includes Alamo, Avis, Budget, National, Best Western, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, etc.
• Shop online using airmileshops.ca : When making online purchases, you can earn Air Miles if you first login into Air Miles shopping portal at airmileshops.ca. Similar to rakuten.ca or greatcanadianrebates , airmileshops will reward you for your online shopping by giving you Air Miles on your purchases. The list of available online merchants is 150+ long and includes Amazon, Apple, booking.com, eBay, expedia.ca, GAP, H&M, hotels.com, Hudson Bay, Indigo, Lowe’s, Macy’s, Nike, Priceline, Reitmans, Sephora, Staples, Ticketmaster, etc.
• Book travel using travelhub.airmiles.ca : You will earn Air Miles if you book hotels, flights, car rentals or travel packages through the Air Miles travel portal.
• Promotions with partner retailers – search for them in your local flyers
• Bonus earnings on airmileshops.ca
• Targeted offers by mail or on Air Miles app
• Big nationwide promotions like Mega Miles or Shop the Block

Earn AirMiles on all your expenses with credit cards

There are more than 10 credit cards that will earn you Air Miles in Canada, but I think the following two are the best bang for your buck.

BMO AIR MILES®† World Elite®* Mastercard®*

• $120 Annual fee – First year free*
• 2,000 AIR MILES sign up bonus
• Get 3x the Miles for every $12 spent at participating AIR MILES Reward Partners*
• Get 2x the Miles for every $12 spent at eligible grocery stores*
• Earn 1 reward mile for every $12 in credit card purchases, everywhere you spend*
• 25% Discount on all AIR MILES flights in North America with no blackout periods
• Complimentary membership in Mastercard Travel Pass provided by DragonPass – No free passes

The BMO Air Miles World Elite Mastercard is widely considered the best Air Miles credit card since it earns you 1 Air Mile for every $10 spent and you get a 15% discount on air miles flights within North America. Right now, the current promotion gives you 3,000 Air Miles as a welcome bonus and the annual fee of $120 is waived for the first year. For more details, you can read my BMO Air Miles World Elite Mastercard review now .

Dream miles vs. Cash miles

Most people don’t realize is that there are two types of Air Miles: Dream miles and Cash Mile

Dream miles can be exclusively redeemed for flights, travel booking on Air Miles travel portal, merchandise or attraction tickets. Hence the term “dream.”

Cash miles can be redeemed directly in stores to reduce the cost of your purchase or can be redeemed for gift cards. Think of this as a cash back type of redemption.

One really annoying rule of Air Miles is that you need to decide if you want to earn Dream miles or Cash miles. You can allocate any percentage for Dream and Cash (e.g. 60% Dream and 40% Cash), but once those miles are in an account (Dream or Cash), they are locked in that account and can’t be transferred into the other one. The good news is that you can change your allocation percentage at any time.

How to redeem Cash Air Miles

Cash Air Miles are very easy to use. They can be redeemed at retail outlets just by swiping your Air Miles card or can be redeemed for gift cards online at a ratio of 95 Air Miles for $10.

The list of stores where you can redeem cash Air Miles is quite extensive and includes Shell, Rona, Sobey’s, IGA, Safeway, Metro (Ontario), Hudson’s Bay, Jean Coutu, Cineplex, Starbucks, ACE, VIA RAIL, Toys’R’Us, The Keg…

Air Miles merchants different based on your region so make sure you check out the complete list of stores for here

How to redeem Dream Air Miles

Dream Air Miles can be redeemed online for merchandise, attraction tickets (ex: DisneyWorld), hotels, car rentals, flights or travel packages.

Redeeming for flights is what makes Dream miles popular since they’re arguably the best way to get the most value out of Air Miles. The Air Miles redemption chart is based on distance flown, but note that they also have seasonal pricing which can increase or decrease the number of points required to get a free flight. Here are a few examples of redemption costs in miles (low season / high season) within North America: 

• Toronto – Washington : 1,300 / 1,600
• Montreal – Halifax : 1,300 / 1,600
• Calgary – Portland : 1,400 / 1,700
• Vancouver – San Diego : 1,900 / 2,600
• Toronto – Miami : 2,800 / 3,500

For other continents, the number of miles required varies based on distance but flights can easily cost more than 10,000 miles. To see how many miles you need for a particular destination, you can look it up on their interactive chart here .

Since the Air Miles redemption chart is based on distance and not cost, it means that short but costly flights can yield a very good value. As an example, flights within the same province like Sandspit – Vancouver, Sept-Iles – Montreal or Labrador City – Saint-John can easily cost more than $500 but can be redeemed from 1,200 to 1,400 miles only. This is a fantastic value for Air Miles.

It’s important to note that only a limited amount of seats per flight are allocated to award redemptions so you need to book in advance or be flexible on your dates in order to book popular routes or popular dates. When redeeming for flights, the miles only cover the base fares of the flight so you would need to pay for the taxes, fees, fuel surcharges and aircraft surcharges.

When do Air Miles expire?

Technically, Air Miles don’t expire. However, your Air Miles account will become dormant if you don’t have any activity in your account in 24 months. If your account goes in dormant status, your points will be removed. If you want them back, you will need to pay $0.15 per mile to reinstate them. In other words, make sure you don’t let your account go dormant!

How my friend got $2,000 in free grocery from Air Miles in a year

A friend recently told me that he and wife redeemed $2,000 of free grocery out of Air Miles.

Remember, it takes 95 Air Miles for $10 in free groceries so they would have needed 19,000 Air Miles to claim $2,000. You would think that it would have taken them years to earn that many points, but you’d be surprised.

Earning 19,000 AirMiles seems impossible if you only consider the regular earnings from spending at participating retailers since you would need to spend $380,000. However, by focusing on signup bonuses and yearly major promotions on 2 accounts, they were able to pull it off. 

Here’s the breakdown of how they earned 19,000 Air Miles in only a year:

• Signup bonus from BMO World Elite MasterCard: 2 x 3,000 = 6,000
• Spending on BMO World Elite MasterCard: 2 x 1,000 = 2,000
• Shop The Block promotion: 2 x 2,000 = 4,000
• Mega Miles promotion: 2 x 1,500 = 3,000
• Bonuses from other promotions: 1,500
• Airmilesshops.ca earnings (regular and promos) : 2,000
• Earning miles on regular spending at participating retailers: 500
• TOTAL: 19,000 Air Miles 

Obviously, they relied a lot on promos, but as you can see, Air Miles can be lucrative.

Are Air Miles worth it?

My Air Miles review is positive. Although Air Miles does have ridiculous rules, the credit card signup offers and in-store promotions can give great value for little effort. It costs nothing to join, so you might as well sign up.

About Barry Choi

Barry Choi is a Toronto-based personal finance and travel expert who frequently makes media appearances. His blog Money We Have is one of Canada’s most trusted sources when it comes to money and travel. You can find him on Twitter: @barrychoi

23 Comments

We’ve chosen Cash miles for years, and currently get about $1,300 in free groceries per year. We don’t fly often as a family, and it’s usually in high season now that the kids are too old to pull out of school for a week.

That’s incredible! Air Miles Cash Miles can have good value if you shop at merchants where you can earn Air Miles.

S shadow of its former self. Now u need double or triple the amt of miles since they tried to cancel or expire earned miles. Goods also cost way more miles for the same thing. The new rules amont to a cancelation of earned miles. We switched everything to royal Bank rewards.

My complaint is that at one point Airmiles offered that you could buy extra Airmiles at 0.20$ per air mile, but when we went to redeem the Airmiles, they valued the Airmiles at 0.13$ per Airmiles, that was a loss of 0.07$ per airmile , not cool, kind of a rip off….

Generally speaking, buying any type of miles or points isn’t worth it unless there’s a really good promo going on or you have a specific reason for doing so.

I’m a collector since 1994 and it used to be really fair if You spend decent money the rewards were really good, in the last 5-6 years they are such a nickel and dime type of business always trying to cheat You by doubling or even tripling the amount of miles to get rewards really sad I was an avid fun/collector.

I think it’s rediculous how much you have to spend to receive 1 air mile…I’ve received maybe 5 times a $10 off my groceries at Sobeys…I’ve had air miles for years.. When u don’t have much money to spend it’s almost impossible To be honest…I prefer optimum points where u get 10 points for each dollar spent…with my prescriptions…and such…I get approx $40 off per month…plus going to superstore …when I can get there…which is cheaper than Sobeys….I get even more

If the only way you’re getting Air Miles is through spending you’re doing it wrong. You’re supposed to go for the promotions. That’s where you can find incredible value. Air Miles you really need to read the fine print more so than with the other programs out there so it’s a bit of a game. I got into it two years ago because of my father who’s been collecting for years he’s got at least a 40k balance last I checked his account. I myself I am already at 12k so it’s not a bad program and not hard to get points.

For reference, I am also am a fan of and collect Optimum points, Aeroplan Points, Avios Miles, Delta Miles, Marriott Points, Hilton Points & Best Western Points. Each program has a niche and strong points you just have to find them. I realize not everyone has time to learn all the programs but I try. There may be some other programs out there but so far these are the ones I have found the most value with.

All fair and excellent points. My review is based on the general public. For example, my dad has collected Aeroplan Miles for close to 40 years and all he’s claimed are free car washes. He barely uses the internet and would have no idea how to take advantage of the promos.

Exactly, it all depends on how you use the program. I meant to put my reply under one of the other reader’s responses. Good article. Thanks for giving the program a review. Already planning today with my father now how we’ll get our 7 partners for the current Shop the Block promotion going on.

Ha, I was doing the same for Aeroplan. After reading the terms and conditions, I was like this is too complicated.

Not worth the effort to me. PC Optimum is the best I’ve seen. For example, each Tuesday, they typically offer 33% back, which is available for redemption immediately. So, I’ll spend $75, get 25,000 pts added to my account which allows $25 to be discounted on my next purchase. And that’s without signing up for cards I don’t need, or rushing out to buy things I don’t need on some promotion. It’s cash, every week, on the things I need and regularly buy.

I agree, PC Optimum is a much easier and better program.

I appreciate your writing this article! I got one of those “don’t let your Air Miles expire” emails and was wondering whether to bother keeping it active. It’s clear, thanks to you, that there is value in the program for some people – those who enjoy this program are encouraged to continue to do so, but I’m out.

PC Optimum points is the best loyalty program. Airmiles are useless for travel. Most of the time the taxes, fees and surcharges are the lion’s share of the airfare, and the miles don’t provide much value. Once LCBO and Pharmaplus stopped issuing Airmiles I got nervous about the longevity of the program. I just redeemed 8900 miles for a beautiful new Samsung TV. I have 700 miles left and they are useless to me. PC points for me!

BMO Air Miles World Elite Mastercard is no longer 1 air mile per $10 spent. They quietly increased it to $12 per air mile quite a while ago without informing members about the increase. This means you must spend 20 percent more in order to keep your Onyx level privileges.

Thanks for the reminder. I’ve been meaning to update this page but I’ve been so lazy.

I have bought many items from Amazon.ca and it appears that lately I have not gotten any AM because they separate your order so that you have several charges, therefore NO AM!

I used to benefit from many good bonus offers when I purchased Shell gasoline. It required buying 30 litres twice within a period of time. I recently bought a smaller and more fuel efficient car. The problem is that the tank will not hold 30 litres. Therefore, I am not eligible for this bonus. Seems like this offer is anti-environmental. They could change the bonus offer and base it on the amount spent, rather than quantity.

What kind of car do you have? Even a SmartCar can hold 33 litres of fuel.

I have a 2012 Scion IQ. The owners manual states that the tank holds around 32 litres. The problem is that I do not want to run the car close to empty in order to have it accept the 32 litres. Nothing worse than running out of gas on the highway. I wonder if some of the hybrid vehicles hold less than 30 litres.

I must admit I had no idea that Airmiles was such a scumy organization! My dad have been collection Airmiles for as long as I can remember but for the last 4 years has been suffering from Alzheimers disease and recently I cleared out his wallet and found his trusty Airmiles card only to find that Airmiles had deleted all his Airmiles to 0. After a call to complain the best they would offer was a sorry for your luck & was there anything eles they could help me with. What a heartless scam of an organization! Please delete your Airmiles account as soon as you can before they do it for you for some reason they decide to make up in the future.

Using Air Miles to book a flight is impossible. I spent 6 hours getting one excuse after another – my postal code is not acceptable (when it is accurate) – my Passport expiry is Not in accordance with the format (it was 0) – then I tried phoning Air Miles..on Nov, 16 the answering machine totd me that they would not accept any more calls since they already had too many requests. On Nov 17 I got through via Shell Oil and BMO and waited for one hour on hold. I can oly conclude Air Miles is op0erating a scam to avoid booking flights on Dream Miles.

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Money blog: Cheapest holiday dates until Christmas revealed - and the times to avoid

The Money blog is your place for consumer and personal finance news and tips. Today's posts include Expedia data showing the cheapest, and least busy, times to go on holiday this autumn. Listen to a Daily podcast on the Oasis ticket troubles as you scroll.

Tuesday 3 September 2024 07:03, UK

• Cheapest holidays dates before Christmas
• Millions to get cost of living payments this winter as scheme extended
• Oasis resale U-turn as Twickets lowers fee after criticism
• Listen to the Daily above and tap here to follow wherever you get your podcasts

Essential reads

• 'This job has saved lives': What's it like selling the Big Issue?
• Best of the Money blog

Tips and advice

• How else to eat Greggs on cheap as O2 Priority scraps freebies
• Money Problem : 'My dog died but my insurance is still demanding whole year's policy payment'
• Holiday money golden rules

Summer may be edging towards the rear-view mirror, but that doesn't mean Britons are turning their back on sunshine. 

With many looking to sort an autumn holiday, Expedia has taken a look at the best times to fly and book hotels - with savings of up to £120 if you are savvy. 

Its data is based on average daily rates for lodging and flight prices between 22 September and 21 December this year.

When to book flights for

• Cheapest : 22, 23 or 24 September
• Least busy : 10 or 17 December
• Most expensive : 19, 20 or 21 December
• Busiest : 20 and 21 October

"For the best deals, travellers should look to book their flights 14 to 20 days before travel, saving them on average £120 compared to booking 91 days or more out, or saving £60 compared to booking 60-90 days out," Expedia says. 

"Target the 22-29 September for travel, when average ticket prices (ATPs) for flights are shaping up to be nearly £100 cheaper than the autumn average, and £50 cheaper than summer ATPs."

When to  book a hotel

• Cheapest : 20 November or 11 December
• Most expensive : 14 or 21 October
• Busiest : 23 October or 25 September

"For hotel stays, target the 3-9 November, when average daily rates are £15 cheaper per night than the seasonal average and summer stays," Expedia says. 

The holiday booking site says the most popular autumn destinations have remained largely the same as last year based on the largest number of hotel searches...

• New York, USA
• Paris, France
• Edinburgh, Scotland
• Amsterdam, Netherlands
• Manchester, UK
• Tenerife, Spain
• Birmingham, UK
• Rome, Italy

Despite this, Expedia says savvy Britons are searching out "under the radar" getaway spots.

"Flight searches have surged for Brits looking to discover new, under-the-radar European cities this autumn, such as Tirana (+95%) in Albania and Bucharest (+70%) in Romania, as Brits look to stretch their budgets further by looking outside the popular city break hotspots."

The top 10 destinations with the biggest search increases are:

• Saint Malo, France
• Didim, Turkey
• Syracuse, Italy
• Beijing, China 
• Palermo, Italy
• Tromso, Norway 
• Brescia, Italy 
• Poznan, Poland
• Tangier, Morocco
• Ischia, Italy

The Money blog will return shortly - meantime, why not scroll through some of our best and most popular features below...

Despite traditionally being an affordable staple of British cuisine, the average price for a portion of fish and chips has risen by more than 50% in the past five years to nearly £10, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Sonny and Shane "the codfather" Lee told Sky News of the challenges that owning J-Henry's Fish and Chip Shop brings and why prices have skyrocketed. 

"Potatoes, fish, utilities, cooking oil - so many things [are going up]," he said. 

Shane also said that he is used to one thing at a time increasing in price, but the outlook today sees multiple costs going up all at once.  

"Potatoes [were] priced right up to about £25 a bag - the previous year it was about £10 a bag," Sonny said, noting a bad harvest last year. 

He said the business had tried hake as a cheaper fish option, but that consumers continued to prefer the more traditional, but expensive, cod and haddock. 

"It's hard and we can we can absorb the cost to a certain extent, but some of it has to be passed on," Shane added. 

After a long Saturday for millions of Oasis fans in online queues, the culture secretary says surge pricing - which pushed the price of some tickets up by three times their original advertised value to nearly £400 - will be part of the government's review of the ticket market. 

On today's episode of the Daily podcast, host Niall Paterson speaks to secondary ticketing site Viagogo. While it wasn’t part of dynamic pricing, it has offered resale tickets for thousands of pounds since Saturday. 

Matt Drew from the company accepts the industry needs a full review, while Adam Webb, from the campaign group FanFair Alliance, explains the changes it would like to see.

We've covered the fallout of the Oasis sale extensively in the Money blog today - see the culture secretary's comments on the "utterly depressing" inflated pricing in our post at 6.37am, and Twickets, the official Oasis resale site, slammed by angry fans for its "ridiculous" added fees at 10.10am.

The growing backlash culminated in action from Twickets - the company said it would lower its charges after some fans had to pay more than £100 in extra fees for resale tickets (see post at 15.47).

Tap here to follow the Daily podcast - 20 minutes on the biggest stories every day

Last week we reported that employers will have to offer flexible working hours - including a four-day week - to all workers under new government plans.

To receive their full pay, employees would still have to work their full hours but compressed into a shorter working week - something some workplaces already do.

Currently, employees can request flexible hours as soon as they start at a company but employers are not legally obliged to agree.

The Labour government now wants to make it so employers have to offer flexible hours from day one, except where it is "not reasonably feasible".

You can read more of the details in this report by our politics team:

But what does the public think about this? We asked our followers on LinkedIn to give their thoughts in an unofficial poll.

It revealed that the overwhelming majority of people support the idea to compress the normal week's hours into fewer days - some 83% of followers said they'd choose this option over a standard five-day week.

But despite the poll showing a clear preference for a compressed week, our followers appeared divided in the comments.

"There's going to be a huge brain-drain as people move away from companies who refuse to adapt with the times and implement a 4 working week. This will be a HUGE carrot for many orgs," said Paul Burrows, principal software solutions manager at Reality Capture.

Louise McCudden, head of external affairs at MSI Reproductive Choices, said she wasn't surprised at the amount of people choosing longer hours over fewer days as "a lot of people" are working extra hours on a regular basis anyway.

But illustrator and administrative professional Leslie McGregor noted the plan wouldn't be possible in "quite a few industries and quite a few roles, especially jobs that are customer centric and require 'round the clock service' and are heavily reliant upon people in trades, maintenance, supply and transport". 

"Very wishful thinking," she said.

Paul Williamson had a similar view. He said: "I'd love to know how any customer first service business is going to manage this."

Twickets has announced it is lowering its charges after some Oasis fans had to pay more than £100 in extra fees to buy official resale tickets.

The site is where the band themselves is directing people to buy second-hand tickets for face value - having warned people against unofficial third party sellers like StubHub and Viagogo.

One person branded the extra fees "ridiculous" (see more in 10.10 post), after many people had already been left disappointed at the weekend when Ticketmaster's dynamic pricing pushed tickets up by three times the original advertised fee.

Twickets said earlier that it typically charged a fee of 10-15% of the face value of the tickets.

But it has since said it will lower the charge due to "exceptional demand" from Oasis fans - taking ownership of an issue in a way fans will hope others follow. 

Richard Davies, Twickets founder, told the Money blog: "Due to the exceptional demand for the Oasis tour in 2025, Twickets have taken the decision to lower our booking fee to 10% and a 1% transactional fee (to cover bank charges) for all buyers of their tickets on our platform. In addition we have introduced a fee cap of £25 per ticket for these shows. Sellers of tickets already sell free of any Twickets charge.

"This ensures that Twickets remains hugely competitive against the secondary market, including sites such as Viagogo, Gigsberg and StubHub.

"Not only do these platforms inflate ticket prices way beyond their original face value but they also charge excessive booking fees, usually in the region of 30-40%. Twickets by comparison charges an average fee of around 12.5%"

The fee cap, which the Money blog understands is being implemented today, will apply to anyone who has already bought resale tickets through the site.

Mr Davies said Twickets was a "fan first" resale site and a "safe and affordable place" for people to trade unwanted tickets.

"The face value of a ticket is the total amount it was first purchased for, including any booking fee. Twickets does not set the face value price, that is determined by the event and the original ticketing company. The price listed on our platform is set by the seller, however no one is permitted to sell above the face-value on Twickets, and every ticket is checked before listing that it complies with this policy," he said.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people have complained to the regulator about how Oasis tickets were advertised ahead of going on sale. 

The Advertising Standards Authority said it had received 450 complaints about Ticketmaster adverts for the gigs.

Some  expressed their anger on social media , as tickets worth £148 were being sold for £355 on the site within hours of release, due to the "dynamic pricing" systems.

A spokesperson from ASA said the complainants argue that the adverts made "misleading claims about availability and pricing".

They added: "We're carefully assessing these complaints and, as such, can't comment any further at this time.

"To emphasise, we are not currently investigating these ads."

Ticketmaster said it does not set prices and its website says this is down to the "event organiser" who "has priced these tickets according to their market value".

We reported earlier that anyone with O2 Priority will have their free weekly Greggs treats replaced by £1 monthly Greggs treats - see 6.21am post.

But did you know there are loads of other ways to get food from the nation's most popular takeaway for free or at a discount?

Downloading the Greggs app is a good place to start - as the bakery lists freebies, discounts and special offers there regularly. 

New users also get rewards just for signing up, so it's worth checking out. 

And there's a digital loyalty card which you can add virtual "stamps" to with each purchase to unlock discounts or other freebies.  

Vodafone rewards

Seriously begrudged Virgin Media O2 customers may want to consider switching providers. 

The Vodafone Rewards app, VeryMe, sometimes gives away free Greggs coffees, sausage rolls, sweet treats and more to customers.

Monzo bank account holders can grab a sausage roll (regular or vegan), regular sized hot drink, doughnut or muffin every week. 

Birthday cake

Again, you'll need the Greggs award app for this one - which will allow you to claim one free cupcake, cream cake or doughnut for your birthday each year.

Octopus customers

Octopus Energy customers with smart meters can claim one free drink each week, in-store from Greggs (or Caffè Nero).

The Greggs freebie must be a regular size hot drink.

Make new friends

If you're outgoing (and hungry), it may be worth befriending a Greggs staff member.

The staff discount at Greggs is 50% on own-produced goods and 25% off branded products. 

If you aren't already aware, Iceland offers four Greggs sausage rolls in a multi-pack for £3. 

That means, if you're happy to bake it yourself, you'll only be paying 74p per sausage roll. 

Millions of Britons could receive extra cash to help with the cost of living this winter after the government extended the Household Support Fund.

A £421m pot will be given to local councils in England to distribute, while £79m will go to the devolved administrations.

The fund will now be available until April 2025 having been due to run out this autumn.

Councils decide how to dish out their share of the fund but it's often via cash grants or vouchers.

Many councils also use the cash to work with local charities and community groups to provide residents with key appliances, school uniforms, cookery classes and items to improve energy efficiency in the home.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said: "The £22bn blackhole inherited from the previous governments means we have to take tough decisions to fix the foundations of our economy.

"But extending the Household Support Fund is the right thing to do - provide targeted support for those who need it most as we head into the winter months."

The government has been criticised for withdrawing universal winter fuel payments for pensioners of up to £300 this winter - with people now needing to be in receipt of certain means-tested benefits to qualify.

People should contact their local council for details on how to apply for the Household Support Fund - they can find their council  here .

Lloyds Bank app appears to have gone down for many, with users unable to see their transactions. 

Down Detector, which monitors site outages, has seen more than 600 reports this morning.

It appears to be affecting online banking as well as the app.

There have been some suggestions the apparent issue could be due to an update.

Another disgruntled user said: "Absolutely disgusting!! I have an important payment to make and my banking is down. There was no warning given prior to this? Is it a regular maintenance? Impossible to get hold of someone to find out."

A Lloyds Bank spokesperson told Sky News: "We know some of our customers are having issues viewing their recent transactions and our app may be running slower than usual.

"We're sorry about this and we're working to have everything back to normal soon."

We had anger of unofficial resale prices, then Ticketmaster's dynamic pricing - and now fees on the official resale website are causing consternation among Oasis fans.

The band has encouraged anyone wanting resale tickets to buy them at face value from Ticketmaster or Twickets - after some appeared for £6,000 or more on other sites.

"Tickets appearing on other secondary ticketing sites are either counterfeit or will be cancelled by the promoters," Oasis said.

With that in mind, fans flocked to buy resale tickets from the sites mentioned above - only to find further fees are being added on. 

Mainly Oasis, a fan page, shared one image showing a Twickets fee for two tickets as high as £138.74. 

"Selling the in demand tickets completely goes against the whole point of their company too… never mind adding a ridiculous fee on top of that," the page shared. 

Fan Brad Mains shared a photo showing two tickets priced at £337.50 each (face value of around £150, but increased due to dynamic pricing on Saturday) - supplemented by a £101.24 Twickets fee. 

That left him with a grand total of £776.24 to pay for two tickets.

"Actually ridiculous this," he  said on X .

"Ticketmaster inflated price then sold for 'face value' on Twickets with a £100 fee. 2 x £150 face value tickets for £776, [this] should be illegal," he added. 

Twickets typically charges between 10-15% of the ticket value as its own fee. 

We have approached the company for comment.

Separately, the government is now looking at the practice of dynamic pricing - and we've had a response to that from the Competition and Markets Authority this morning.

It said: "We want fans to get a fair deal when they go to buy tickets on the secondary market and have already taken action against major resale websites to ensure consumer law is being followed properly. 

"But we think more protections are needed for consumers here, so it is positive that the government wants to address this. We now look forward to working with them to get the best outcomes for fans and fair-playing businesses."

Consumer protection law does not ban dynamic pricing and it is a widely used practice. However, the law also states that businesses should not mislead consumers about the price they must pay for a product, either by providing false or deceptive information or by leaving out important information or providing it too late.

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