Testimonial: A luxurious trip to Kenya and Oman with points

Through a series of testimonials from our readers, Milesopedia presents what you can achieve with credit cards and loyalty programs.

This is Mano and his partner’s luxury travel plan for Kenya and Oman.

Mano’s testimonial – Who are you?

I’m 65 and my partner is 72. I’ve been a Milesopedia reader for about four years now.

In Europe, we always travel on our own, never in organized groups. We prefer freedom of movement. Usually, we rent Airbnb or stay in hotels. We sometimes rent a car, but we prefer the train.

In Africa, we prefer all-inclusive, customized packages. For this trip to Kenya, we’re opting for luxury and ease: we’ll be staying in the same accommodation for seven nights. In Oman, we’ll be moving around a bit. It’s important for us to get a feel for the local culture and people.

Mano’s testimonial – Your travel project with points : Kenya and Oman

Our trip will be less than 21 days. My husband and I are leaving as a couple to celebrate our retirement. We wanted to create a unique experience to mark this special occasion.

We had two main destinations in mind. First, we wanted to discover Marriott Bonvoy ‘s JW Masai Mara Lodge in Kenya. We’d heard about its tranquil safaris, luxurious accommodation and safe surroundings. What’s more, we were reassured by the fact that we would be taken care of as soon as we arrived in Kenya.

Testimonial: A luxurious trip to Kenya and Oman with points - jw-masai-mara-lodge

Next, we planned to travel to Muscat, Oman, for around 10 days. We wanted to explore the city, but also experience the unique desert. Our full itinerary is still in preparation.

Finally, we had a very specific goal in mind: to travel in Qatar Airways’ Qsuites.

Transportation

We booked our flights for two with Qatar Airways and Avios. Our itinerary is as follows:

Flight	Carrier and cabin	Number of points used	Money saved
Montreal-Doha-Nairobi	Qatar Airways in Qsuite	410,000 Avios	$33,360
Nairobi-Doha
Doha-Muscat-Doha	Qatar Airways in First Class
Doha-Montreal	Qatar Airways in Qsuite

Accommodation

For accommodation, we will only use Marriott Bonvoy points. Here is a summary of our planned bookings:

Accomodation name	Number of nights	Number and type of points used	Money saved
Four Points by Sheraton Nairobi Airport	1	Annual one-night free certificate	$337
JW Marriott Masai Mara Lodge	7	812,000 Marriott Bonvoy	$46,990
Al Bustan Palace – A Ritz-Carlton Hotel	6	212,000 Marriott Bonvoy + an annual certificate from an US card	$3,255

Compare

Marriott Bonvoy^® American Express^®* Card

American Express Marriott Bonvoy

Annual fee: $120
Our valuationMilesopedia first-year estimate First-year valueWelcome bonus$600Total$600$100 deferred bonus, excluded from the first-year estimate and not counted in this total.Rewards on your spending are not included. The calculator that adds them from your own profile is on the card's page.: $600
Welcome offerAfter $3,000 in 3 months: Up to 70,000 points

The Marriott Bonvoy^® American Express^®* Card is the best credit card in Canada for free hotel nights.

New Cardmembers can earn up to 70,000 Marriott Bonvoy^® points with the current offer:

Earn up to 60,000 points after you spend $3,000 on your Card in your first 3 months of Cardmembership.
Plus, earn 10,000 points after you spend $500 on your Card in your 13th month of Cardmembership.

The annual fee is $120, and there is no annual fee on Additional Cards, so you can add a partner or a family member at no extra cost.

Every year after your first Card anniversary, you receive an Annual Free Night Award good for a redemption of up to 35,000 points at eligible hotels and resorts worldwide. At a valuation of 0.9 cents per Marriott Bonvoy point, that certificate is worth roughly $315, which on its own more than covers the $120 annual fee. That is the main reason to keep this Card year after year instead of cancelling it.

To get the most out of the certificate, aim it at a night that would otherwise price close to the 35,000 point ceiling.

The Card also gives you 15 Elite Night Credits each calendar year and automatic Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite status. Those credits count toward the next Elite tier, so you begin every year 15 nights ahead of where you would otherwise start.

You move up to Gold Elite status automatically when you reach $30,000 in purchases on the Card in a year, or when you combine 10 qualifying paid nights within one calendar year with the 15 Elite Night Credits from your Card.

Marriott Bonvoy points are generally valued at 0.9 cents each. On that basis, the 70,000 point welcome offer is worth about $630, and an Annual Free Night Award used at its full 35,000 point ceiling is worth about $315.

Marriott Bonvoy points pull their weight on free nights rather than on gift cards or merchandise, which is why this Card should be judged on the hotel stays it produces.

You earn 5 points per dollar on eligible purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels and 2 points per dollar on all other purchases. Points can be redeemed for free nights with no blackout dates at more than 7,000 hotels around the world.

The Card carries a solid package of coverages: $500,000 travel accident insurance, flight delay, baggage delay, lost or stolen baggage and hotel or motel burglary at $500 each, car rental theft and damage up to $85,000 for rentals of up to 48 days, Purchase Protection for 90 days and a one year Extended Warranty.

Two things to plan around: the 2.5% foreign transaction fee on purchases made in a foreign currency, and the 21.99% purchase interest rate, which makes this a Card to pay in full every month. Like all American Express Canada Cards, no minimum income is published for this Card, and you can see whether you would be approved before you apply, with no impact on your credit score.

Legal

American Express is not responsible for maintaining or monitoring the accuracy of information on this website. For full details and current product information, click the Apply Now link. If you apply and get approved for an American Express Card, we may receive compensation from American Express, which can be in the form of monetary payment.

Annual fee

Primary card$120

Additional card$0

Annual income required

Individual$0

Household$0

Conversion fees

2.5%

Earning rate

5xMarriott Bonvoy hotels
2xAll spending

Value

1st Year Value$1,110

2nd Year Value$312

Travel insurance

Delayed BaggageUp to $500

Lost BaggageUp to $500

Flight DelayUp to $500

Hotel BurglaryUp to $500

Travel AccidentUp to $500,000

Purchase protection

Purchase ProtectionIncluded

Extended Warranty+1 years

Auto Rental Collision (primary)Up to $85,000 / 48 days

Savings on accommodation

So far, we’ve saved a whopping $50,582 on lodging using our Marriott Bonvoy points. We have chosen hotels that are both luxurious and accessible with points. In Oman, we plan to stay three nights in the desert, but we haven’t made our reservations yet.

Mano’s testimonial – Credit cards used

We needed a lot of points for this luxury trip. My partner and I form a team to collect points. Here are the credit cards that helped us finance this trip:

Credit card	Accumulation period	Number of points used	Points redemption method
HSBC World Elite^® Mastercard^®	2 years	310,000 HSBC Rewards	Transfer to Avios
RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card	1 year	100,000 RBC Avion Rewards	Transfer to Avios
American Express Cobalt^® Card	8 months	80,000 Membership Rewards points	Transfer to Marriott Bonvoy
Marriott Bonvoy^MD American Express^MD* Card and Marriott Bonvoy^MD Business American Express^MD* Card (6 cards in all, 3 Canadian and 3 American).	3 years	700,000 Marriott Bonvoy	Hotel reservations

Our credit card selection
Credit card	Annual fee	Welcome offer
Scotiabank Passport^® Visa Infinite +* Card Apply NowCompare	Annual fee$150	Welcome offerAfter $2,000 in 3 months Up to 35,000 pointsEnds Nov 1, 2026 After $2,000 in 3 months	Apply NowCompare
American Express Cobalt^® Card Apply NowCompare	Annual fee$191.88	Welcome offerGet 1,250 points after $750 in purchases per month for 12 months Up to 15,000 points Get 1,250 points after $750 in purchases per month for 12 months	Apply NowCompare
Marriott Bonvoy^® American Express^®* Card Apply NowCompare	Annual fee$120	Welcome offerAfter $3,000 in 3 months Up to 70,000 points After $3,000 in 3 months	Apply NowCompare
Marriott Bonvoy^® Business American Express^®* Card Apply NowCompare	Annual fee$150	Welcome offerAfter $5,000 in 3 months Up to 80,000 points After $5,000 in 3 months	Apply NowCompare
FeaturedRBC Avion Visa Infinite Card Apply NowCompare	Annual fee$120	Welcome offer35,000 points after approval; 20,000 after $5,000 in eligible transactions within 6 months; 15,000 credited 12–16 weeks after the first account anniversary. Eligible account must remain open and in good standing; offer terms and posting times apply. Up to 70,000 pointsEnds Nov 25, 2026 35,000 points after approval; 20,000 after $5,000 in eligible transactions within 6 months; 15,000 credited 12–16 weeks after the first account anniversary. Eligible account must remain open and in good standing; offer terms and posting times apply.	Apply NowCompare

The benefits

With our Marriott Bonvoy credit cards, we earn an annual certificate for a free night’s stay anywhere in the world, worth up to 35,000 points.

Tips for collecting more points

We focus on what’s expensive: long-haul business-class airfare and hotel nights. We earn Marriott Bonvoy points, not those of other hotel chains, to enjoy the benefits of Platinum status and free nights.

We plan our trips in advance, which gives us time to select the right cards and points based on the airlines that will get us to our destination. This also gives us time to wait for transfer bonuses. We love bonuses!

Shopping portals such as Aeroplan’s eStore, Rakuten and those of the airlines are interesting. We particularly like Marriott Bonvoy’s Eat Around Town in the United States. This platform allows us to earn bonus Marriott Bonvoy points on our restaurant meals.

For this trip, we will have to pay park entrance fees and transport from Nairobi airport to our accommodation and back. These and any other expenses we incur during the trip will be charged to our room.

We’ll earn 21 Marriott Bonvoy points for every US dollar spent with our Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card and Platinum status.

We estimate we’ll easily spend $5,000, which will add about 105,000 Marriott Bonvoy points to our account for our next trip to Australia and Bali in the summer of 2025.

Summary

Combining all our bookings, we achieved absolutely incredible savings of $83,942! Here are the details of the amounts per category for our luxury safari in Kenya and our visit to Oman for two people:

Type of expense	Savings
Transportation	$33,360
Accommodation	$50,582
Grand total	$83,942

The final word

If I could only keep one card, it would definitely be the American Express Cobalt^MD Card for its excellent accumulation rate. What’s more, I appreciate its flexibility thanks to numerous transfer partners and the speed with which points can be transferred.

It really is our joker card: if we run out of points for a booking, we can quickly dip into our Amex account to make up the shortfall. What’s more, it offers double points for travel and transportation, including cruises, all-inclusive packages and more.

Thanks Milesopedia!

Read on for more testimonials from members of the Milesopedia community:

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American Express Cobalt^® Card

American Express Amex Membership Rewards

Annual fee: $191.88
Our valuationMilesopedia first-year estimate First-year valueWelcome bonus$255Total$255Rewards on your spending are not included. The calculator that adds them from your own profile is on the card's page.: $255
Welcome offerGet 1,250 points after $750 in purchases per month for 12 months: Up to 15,000 points

The American Express Cobalt^® Card is a versatile American Express card, whether you want points for travel or cash back.

American Express Cobalt^® Card welcome offer

The welcome bonus is paid out monthly over your first 12 months. You earn 1,250 Membership Rewards points for each monthly billing period in which you charge $750 in net purchases to your card, in any category (1X, 2X, 3X or 5X). That adds up to 15,000 Membership Rewards points over the year, a welcome offer valued at $255.

Earning the full bonus means $9,000 in net purchases spread across 12 monthly billing periods. This offer rewards steady monthly spending rather than one large purchase.

You can use these points as statement credits on everyday or travel purchases, at the same rate either way: 1,000 points = $10.

You can also transfer them to Aeroplan, Avios (British Airways and Qatar Airways), Flying Blue, Marriott Bonvoy or Hilton Honors. With the full welcome bonus, that is a choice between:

15,000 Aeroplan points
15,000 Avios points
15,000 Flying Blue Miles
18,000 Marriott Bonvoy points

American Express Cobalt^® Card benefits

Here is what the card gives you, starting with the benefits cardholders use most.

5X points on eligible eats and drinks in Canada: groceries, restaurants and bars, and home food delivery. A spend cap applies.
3X points on eligible streaming subscriptions in Canada.
2X points on eligible gas, public transit and ride sharing purchases in Canada.
1 additional point on eligible hotel and car rental bookings made through American Express Travel Online.
1X point per dollar on everything else, with no category restrictions.
Points that hold the same value either way: 1,000 points = $10 as a statement credit, or a 1:1 transfer to several airline and hotel loyalty programs.
No minimum income requirement, as with every American Express Canada card.
Additional cards at no extra cost: the first and every other supplementary card is $0.
The Hotel Collection: a room upgrade when available, 12pm check-in and late check-out when available, and up to $100 USD in hotel credit on amenities charged to the room for a stay of two or more consecutive nights, booked through American Express Travel.
Front Of The Line^® presale and reserved tickets for concerts and theatre performances, plus offers and events curated for cardmembers through Amex Experiences.
A soft credit check before you apply: you can see whether you will be approved with no impact to your credit score. This applies to American Express personal card applications.

The 5X categories and where they apply

The 5X rate is the reason most people carry this card. In Canada it covers three kinds of merchants:

Groceries: Metro, IGA, Sobeys, Super C, Safeway, Whole Foods.
Restaurants and bars: sit-down meals, takeout and drinks.
Home food delivery.
Convenience stores (Couche-Tard, 7-Eleven): not part of 5X, 1 point per dollar.

The 2X rate covers gas stations such as Esso, Shell and Petro-Canada, along with public transit and ride sharing.

With the American Express Cobalt^® Card, you earn between 1 and 5 points per dollar:

Category	Points per dollar
Grocery (Metro, IGA, Sobeys, Super C, etc.)	5
Home food delivery	5
Restaurants and bars	5
Convenience stores	1
Streaming services	3
Service station	2
Transport	2
Travel	1
Other	1

That works out to a 1 to 5% return on those purchases. For example, if you spend $1,000 per month across groceries, restaurants and food delivery, you earn $50 back per month, or $600 per year from that category alone. Transfer the points to a program such as Aeroplan instead and the return can be higher.

You can also stack these categories with the hundreds of stores that offer 5x points.

American Express Cobalt^® Card insurance coverage

The card comes with a broad insurance package. The amounts below are the coverage limits; conditions, age limits and exclusions are set out in the certificate of insurance linked in the Insurance section above.

Travel insurance

Emergency medical: up to $5,000,000 for the first 15 days of a trip.
Travel accident: accidental death and dismemberment of up to $250,000 for you, your spouse and dependent children under age 23 when travelling on a common carrier (plane, train, bus or ship) and the tickets are charged to your card. Supplementary cardholders and their families are covered too.
Flight delay: up to $500 for necessary hotel, meal and sundry expenses bought within 48 hours when you are delayed or denied boarding for four hours or more and no other transportation is available. This $500 is an aggregate limit per occurrence, shared with missed connection and delayed baggage coverage.
Delayed baggage: up to $500 for essential clothing and sundries bought within four days when your outbound luggage is delayed six hours or more. This $500 is an aggregate limit per occurrence, shared with missed connection and flight delay coverage.
Lost or stolen baggage: up to $500 per occurrence for all insured persons combined, for checked or carry-on baggage and personal effects in transit, when the airline tickets are charged to your card. Within that limit, jewellery is capped at $300 per occurrence and golf clubs, including golf bags, at $250 per occurrence.
Hotel and motel burglary: up to $500 against the loss of most personal items if your hotel or motel is burglarized, when the stay is charged to your card.

Rental car insurance

Theft and damage coverage is included for a rental car with an MSRP, for its model year, of up to $85,000 excluding all taxes, for rentals of up to 48 days. To use it, decline the Loss Damage Waiver (LDW) or any similar option from the rental company and charge the full rental to your card. There is no cost for this coverage, and it replaces the daily insurance the rental company charges, usually $16 to $23 per day.

Mobile device insurance

Your device is covered for up to $1,000 per occurrence when it is charged to the card, for up to two years from the date of purchase. The payout is based on the depreciated value of the device, which falls by 2% of the purchase price for every completed month, less a 10% deductible. Theft and accidental damage coverage starts on the 91st day after purchase, because the first 90 days are covered by purchase protection.

Purchase protection and extended warranty

Eligible items charged to your card are insured against accidental physical damage or theft for 90 days from the purchase date, up to $1,000 per occurrence for all items combined. The card also extends the original manufacturer’s warranty by up to one additional year on eligible items, with indemnification limited to $10,000 per insured item and $25,000 per Cardmember per policy year for all items combined.

American Express Cobalt^® Card fees

Card fee: $15.99 per month, which equals $191.88 per year, for residents outside Quebec. Quebec residents are billed $191.88 per year.
Additional cards: $0.
Purchase interest rate: 21.99%.
Cash advance interest rate: 21.99%.
Foreign transaction fee: 2.5%.
Minimum income required: none.

Because the fee is billed monthly rather than in one annual charge, you can stop and restart the cost in step with how much you are actually using the card.