We have written a detailed article on the best point hunting techniques for finding cheap flights. As part of this strategy, we are only interested in programs that offer travel points that can be applied directly to your flights.
Here, your goal is to be able to:
So you want more freedom than the one you could have with Aeroplan or AIR MILES. You should always hold a credit card with travel points: it will offer you some flexibility!
Sometimes, we use credit cards with hotel points to get free hotel nights, while on other occasions, we redeem travel points to pay for flights!
To save on flights, you will need to use travel points.
Every credit card issuers have travel points programs:
Some will offer you the possibility:
Of course, we will prefer programs that offer more flexibility, but we should not disregard the others!
Here are the top 4 travel reward programs to save money on flights:
With the Membership Rewards program, you can apply points to any flight purchase charged to one of the six Membership Rewards Cards.
You can apply 1,000 points for a $10 credit or 10,000 points = $100. As in this example for a ticket purchased on Air Transat:
So 25,000 Membership Rewards can save $250 on a flight!
For some flights, American Express has assigned a fixed chart: you will be able to use a predetermined number of points based on the cost of your flight.
So in this case, 15,000 Membership Rewards points = $300! An option to keep in mind and which we have detailed here.
The Scotiabank SCENE+ program works the same way: you can apply your points directly to the purchase of your flight charged to one of the cards from the program.
This means that 5,000 points can be used for a $50 credit, or 10,000 points = $100.
For example, 25,000 SCENE+ points can save you $250 on your flight!
To redeem your TD Rewards points, go to the Expedia for TD portal.
You can use your TD Rewards points when you book your flight.
Here’s an example of how TD Rewards points can be used for travel:
For example, 20,000 TD Rewards points can save you $100 on your flight!
The BMO Rewards program works differently: points earned with any of the cards in the program can be used on the BMO travel booking portal. Alternatively, you can book your flight on your chosen site at the same redemption rate (a new feature of the BMO Rewards program).
The redemption rate will always be the same when using points for travel, in this case to save on flights: 10,000 points = $71
For example, 35,000 BMO Rewards points can save you $250 on your flight!
With the goal and programs set, we can now look at credit cards that earn points to save money on airfares.
Here are the 7 Cards of the American Express Membership Rewards Program, whose points can save you money on your flights.
Earn up to 60,000 Membership Rewards points with this welcome offer for the American Express® Gold Rewards Card. That’s a $600 value for travel or any purchase on the Card.
You can also transfer your points to airline partners such as Aeroplan, Avios (British Airways / Qatar Airways), Flying Blue, and hotel partners (Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors).
For example, with this welcome offer, if you decide to transfer your Membership Rewards points to a partner loyalty program, you would have the choice of earning up to:
With this Card, you get many benefits like:
You earn 2 points per dollar for travel purchases, and at:
And 1 point per dollar everywhere else.
Like all American Express Canada Cards, there is no minimum income requirement.
Here are the five best credit cards in the Scotia SCENE+ program.
With this welcome offer for the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card, you earn up to 35,000 Scene+ points as a welcome bonus (a $350 value) :
Then, each year, if you make at least $40,000 in purchases on the card, you’ll earn an annual bonus of 10,000 points, a $100 value.
With the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card, you earn 3 points per dollar spent at Sobeys, IGA, Safeway, Foodland, FreshCo, Voilà by Sobeys, Voilà by IGA, Voilà by Safeway, Chalo! FreshCo, Thrifty Foods, IGA West, Les Marchés Tradition, Rachelle Béry and Co-Op.
You’ll also earn 2 points for every dollar you spend, including on foreign transactions, in the following categories:
The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card is an excellent Visa credit card for this type of purchase.
You can redeem your points for any travel purchase at the rate of 1,000 points = $10 (flights, hotels, all-inclusive properties and even Airbnb). You can also use your points as cash back with Scene+, such as at your grocery store checkout at the same rate of 1,000 points = $10.
The Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite* Card also offers:
We voted this credit card the Best No-FX Fee Credit Card of 2024.
Here are the 3 best credit cards in the TD Rewards program.
With the TD First Class Travel® Visa Infinite* Card, you can get up to 135,000 TD Rewards points† and a rebate on the annual fee for the first year:
Get an Annual Fee Rebate for the first year†
With the TD First Class Travel® Visa Infinite* Card, you get:
This TD credit card is one of the best TD travel rewards cards.
There are several cards in the BMO Rewards program:
The BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard is one of the best World Elite Mastercard credit cards with travel points in Canada. With our exclusive offer, you can get up to 100,000 bonus points:
Plus, the annual fee is waived in the first year for both the primary cardholder and authorized users.
With the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard, a premium credit card from BMO, you get:
And 1 point for every $1 spent everywhere else, including at Costco. You can use BMO Rewards points for all travel purchases made through the agency or website of your choice (flights, hotels, car rentals, all-inclusive resorts, Airbnb, etc.) or for rewards and gift cards on the BMO Rewards platform.
The BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard also offers:
To apply this strategy to save on airline tickets with Reward Points, you could only focus on one program. Or you can get into multiple programs, which is ideal for a couple: each of you applying for a different card.
According to us, the four best credit cards are:
Also, as you can see, sometimes these cards require high incomes ($60,000 – $80,000 / year), while others require lower incomes ($12,000 with the Scotiabank Gold American Express® Card) or even no minimum income at all(American Express® Gold Rewards Card.
So everyone can benefit from travel points to save on flights!
Savings are here:
