VIA Préférence

***Update: The new program will start on November 18, 2023.

With VIA RAIL’s new VIA Préférence program starting November 18, 2023, you can earn between 1 and 3 points for every dollar spent travelling with VIA RAIL (before taxes).

The number of points obtained depends:

• your status level
• the fare

VIA Préférence members only earn VIA Préférence points for their own travel. No points are awarded for another person’s travel, even if the member paid for the ticket.

You can earn up to 50% more points depending on the rate you choose:

You can also earn points on the following fees:

• Additional luggage
• Travel cards
• Travelling with a pet
• Unaccompanied minor
• Packaging products available at the station
• Single-use pass for business lounges

You can earn points with VIA Préférence on:

• Travel on all trains owned and operated by VIA Rail.
• The Canadian portion of a trip on the Maple Leaf train between Toronto and New York, only when booked through VIA Rail.
• Business class upgrades.
• Purchase of tickets with a CN or CP pass.
• Purchase of a Multi Card, Suburban Card, Leisure Card, Youth Card, Student Card or Canada Card (points are calculated based on the value of the product at the time of purchase, not on the individual tickets it entitles you to).
• The use of VIA Rail gift cards.

As of November 18, 2023, the exchange of points is different. It is based on a dynamic rate that varies according to the place of departure and arrival, the day of the week, the chosen rate, etc.

So if the cost of the Via Rail ticket is high, the demand for points will be higher. And vice versa. It will be only at the moment of payment that the number of points requested will be visible.

Read our article on How to use your VIA Préférence points for a free VIA Rail ticket.

With the points, it will now be possible :

• To buy travel cards
• Paying certain fees
• Buy optional products and services

Here again, you must have the required number of points, and partial payment in points will not be accepted.

In addition, payment of taxes will be required on a product purchased with points, which was not the case before.

In order to make a smooth transition, VIA Préférence will give members a break. Therefore, from November 18, 2023 until an unknown date, 30% fewer points will be required to make a reservation with points.

However, from July 4, 2024, this temporary 30% reduction applied to all points redemptions will come to an end.

It is also possible to use VIA Préférence points to travel in Sleeper Plus or Prestige class.

Depending on the route and train equipment, single occupancy in Sleeper Plus class may be available (upper and lower berths or single cabin).

Prestige Class points redemptions must be made by phone to the VIA Customer Centre (1-888-VIA-PREF). Reward trips are available for travel within 6 months of booking and from November¹ to April 30 only, subject to availability.

There are 3 levels of membership in VIA RAIL’s VIA Préférence program:

• Preference
• Premium
• Premier

In order to reach a higher status level, it is necessary to spend a certain amount of money with VIA Rail during the reference period from May 1 to April 30:

From November 18, 2023, you no longer have to wait until the end of the qualification period to benefit from a higher level. The day after a level is reached, the status will be available for the rest of the current period and the next period.

VIA RAIL’s VIA Préférence program members receive benefits based on their status level:

VIA RAIL is considered a travel and/or transportation expense by credit cards in Canada. You should therefore use a credit card that offers more points for this type of spending.

For example, with the Cobaltᵐᶜ American Express^MD Card:

• you earn 2 points per dollar for your VIA Rail purchases
• you can use your points on your VIA RAIL purchases at the rate of 1,000 points = $10

This is one of the best cards to use for VIA RAIL. Here are some other suggestions: