Must have just loaded these on Westjet as they were not available a few days ago. Snagged a YEG-YYZ return Dec 22 to Jan 7 for 1600 AM (MC)....next stop my MFU booking on BA to London and beyond, can't wait for that trip :)

Must have just loaded these on Westjet as they were not available a few days ago. Snagged a YEG-YYZ return Dec 22 to Jan 7 for 1600 AM (MC)....next stop my MFU booking on BA to London and beyond, can't wait for that trip :)

So, if my calcs are correct your 14000 AM were earned on a spend of over 50K whereas you could have gotten two economy tickets on AC for that money on the same domestic itinerary. Is that correct? I have factored in generous bonus points over the 15 points per hundred dollars spent for normal purchasing.

So, if my calcs are correct your 14000 AM were earned on a spend of over 50K whereas you could have gotten two economy tickets on AC for that money on the same domestic itinerary. Is that correct? I have factored in generous bonus points over the 15 points per hundred dollars spent for normal purchasing.

No, no, no, Parnel! If you remember people have been accumulating AM's at Safeway out west. Lot's of good soup/tomatoes etc. for points deals ^ .......

So, if my calcs are correct your 14000 AM were earned on a spend of over 50K whereas you could have gotten two economy tickets on AC for that money on the same domestic itinerary. Is that correct? I have factored in generous bonus points over the 15 points per hundred dollars spent for normal purchasing.

Oh how wrong you are. Do you not recall the soup thread :D Yes, Campbells paid for most of that flight by giving me about 1300 miles for buying Soups at $1.25 per box at Safeway. A great deal all on its own; and I love soup! 1600 Airmiles by the way. Oh, 150 more airmiles for getting the WS Mastercard (which is free after the $70 travel credit) and it pretty much was totally earned on bonuses, not spending (I think the cost of the soup was approx $200 :) )

Oh and I might add that on the 7th I can only find a 6pm non-stop to YEG on AP miles which does not work with my BA flight - this is 9 months out! 9pm on WS is perfect.

Is there Safeway in Winnipeg? Sometimes I think when these soup deals come up it would be worth buying a cheap WS flight to YWG (also offset by the $70 MC credit), going and buying a whack load of soup, dropping it at the local food bank and coming home with another couple thousand AM's. These one mile bonuses for a chocolate bar on a Shell fill-up just don't cut it LOL.

Yes, there are Safeways in Winnipeg.

[QUOTE]Oh how wrong you are.

First and last time this year :D

Do you not recall the soup thread :D Yes, Campbells paid for most of that flight by giving me about 1300 miles for buying Soups at $1.25 per box at Safeway. A great deal all on its own; and I love soup! 1600 Airmiles by the way. Oh, 150 more airmiles for getting the WS Mastercard (which is free after the $70 travel credit) and it pretty much was totally earned on bonuses, not spending (I think the cost of the soup was approx $200 :) )

Campbell's notwithstanding, and there are no Safeways in Ontario.....one normally gets about 1 AM per $15 of spend which is roughly 67 miles per $1000. Throw in normal bonuses, that we get for buying mostly plonk at the LCBO, and one might get up to 250 miles per $1000 of spend if we buy bonus stuff only.
I think focusing on Avion and now Diners is the way to go. Admitedly AM are given everytime one shops at mostly LCBO or Dominion stores in Ontario but using the right CC is the best approach.

Another comparison would be buying gas at Shell for AM vs Esso for AE miles. Using the right CC one gets matched dollar per dollar spent on top of the AE miles earned. So one using a platinum AMEX card and getting 15 AE miles on a $45 gas purchase will get the 45 AE miles plus the card bonus after completing minimum spend on the card. So, it could be up to 75 AE miles earned per gas purchase and my gas purchase with two cars are over $100 weekly.
AM gets you about 3 AM miles for the same purchase plus the miles given if one has the BMO Wetjet MC. Again, I think AM collecting is not that good.


Oh and I might add that on the 7th I can only find a 6pm non-stop to YEG on AP miles which does not work with my BA flight - this is 9 months out! 9pm on WS is perfect.

Ah so they put quotas on AM seats also....not just AC.....hmmm

First and last time this year :D....

Too bad every day is Groundhog Day for you! :D

Too bad every day is Groundhog Day for you! :D


ok even I have to admit that was good. :D

Too bad every day is Groundhog Day for you! :D

Nope its always new year's day...but good line in any event...first good one you've had....amybe domestic bliss is becoming of you. :D

No, no, no, Parnel! If you remember people have been accumulating AM's at Safeway out west. Lot's of good soup/tomatoes etc. for points deals ^ .......
I got 550 in one $200 purchase once. I have a lot more toothpaste, toilet paper, and noodles than I'll ever need, however.

AM's collecting isn't very good, other than Safeway bonuses out West.

I've figured that a little planning could yield 1600 AM's for $1600 via Safeway and a "free" Westjet flight if you're a Gold Westjet BMO Mastercard collector.

AM's merchandise redemptions appear to a better deal than their travel redemptions. Car Rental rates in AM's are absurd as are anything but the Westjet airline redemptions (although HMY has had some reasonable discount redemptions lately).

But the only Westjet flight I've taken was due to a 1400 AM booking YVR-MCO.

The best way to collect points in either program is for someone else to pay for the purchase. I just got 80 AM's for the cost of the 2 bags of chips I bought for the double AM bonus when I put $410 worth of fuel in a truck on the company credit card. ^

AM's collecting isn't very good, other than Safeway bonuses out West.Is that like saying AP points collecting isn't very good if you live in McMurdo Sound?

Clearly, in the "west" there are some fabulous deals to be had collecting AMs. And while people in Vancouver consider Alberta to be "east", for the purposes of this discussion, if falls nicely into the category of "West."

I've figured that a little planning could yield 1600 AM's for $1600And my mother and sister have demonstrated that a little planning can yield more than 400 AM's for as little as $100, or 1600 AM's for about $400.

How many Aeroplan points would a $400 expenditure get you, and how far would that get you on Air Canada?

How many Aeroplan points would a $400 expenditure get you, and how far would that get you on Air Canada?

Since I don't like to scrounge asround like a rat for points.................I will get around 350,0000 Aeroplan miles for the 100,000 Q miles that I will fly this year. That gives me over four trips in D to Europe and I'll fly in J mostly while earning these points on either a pass or T+ fares. I like that better than shopping at Safeway for stuff I can't eat for a year and buying tckets that only let me sit in the back of the bus.

I like many others prefer to collect Aeroplan points and redeem them for intl J class tickets, but Safeway hands out Airmiles like candy and you would be foolish not to take advantage of their endless bonus offers. I did my regular shopping last week and earned over 500 airmiles for a $200 dollar spend.

I realize Airmiles can't get you a J class ticket, but they still offer good value for short haul flights and I also like the ability to redeem for Starwood Hotels.

I realize Airmiles can't get you a J class ticket, but they still offer good value for short haul flights and I also like the ability to redeem for Starwood Hotels.

By having a MBNA platinum card for no fees one can collect enough points in one year to get a week's stay in most moderately priced Starwood Hotels.

By having a MBNA platinum card for no fees one can collect enough points in one year to get a week's stay in most moderately priced Starwood Hotels.

Why not use that MBNA card at Safeway and get the best of both worlds! :D

Since I don't like to scrounge asround like a rat for points.................I will get around 350,0000 Aeroplan miles for the 100,000 Q miles that I will fly this year. That gives me over four trips in D to Europe and I'll fly in J mostly while earning these points on either a pass or T+ fares. I like that better than shopping at Safeway for stuff I can't eat for a year and buying tckets that only let me sit in the back of the bus.

That's fine for you, but I doubt it applies for the majority of Air Miles collectors. The point is that you can earn significant miles by buying normal grocery quantities at Safeway. For me, Air Miles are secondary, and only useful due to Safeway bonuses and Westjet Gold Mastercard that allows redemptions with few enough miles to even contemplate a single reward seat or maybe two within a year. Without the Safeway bonuses it would probably be 5 years. I've used the Air Miles for merchandise several times; flight once, car rental twice. If you're only getting Air Miles / Aeroplan through means other than flights, then the accumulation / reward rate is equally pathetic.

Why not use that MBNA card at Safeway and get the best of both worlds! :D

Because last time I looked we had no Safeways in Ontario

That's fine for you, but I doubt it applies for the majority of Air Miles collectors. The point is that you can earn significant miles by buying normal grocery quantities at Safeway. For me, Air Miles are secondary, and only useful due to Safeway bonuses and Westjet Gold Mastercard that allows redemptions with few enough miles to even contemplate a single reward seat or maybe two within a year. Without the Safeway bonuses it would probably be 5 years. I've used the Air Miles for merchandise several times; flight once, car rental twice. If you're only getting Air Miles / Aeroplan through means other than flights, then the accumulation / reward rate is equally pathetic.


If I lived in Winterpeg or Lapland Alberta that might make some sense...but the LCBO doesn't quite cut it for bonuses like one gets at Safeway and the best two mastercards out there for me are Diners and MBNA........where I get free hotel nights with a free credit card. And Diners now has the best redemption of all cards for free flights.

Because last time I looked we had no Safeways in Ontario

Just a generalization for us westerners but perhaps on one of your many outings out here you may just have to hit up one of our Safeway's.


And Diners now has the best redemption of all cards for free flights.
I agree with you there: www.rewardscanada.ca/ccreward.html

I just redeemed 3200 AM and paid $320 for 2 tickets Vancouver-St. John's return for Christmas, for the exact days and times *I* wanted. You'd be surprised what I spent to earn those 3200 miles. The most recent ~1700 were earned on a ~$200 spend @ Safeway. :)

Ron.

I just redeemed 3200 AM and paid $320 for 2 tickets Vancouver-St. John's return for Christmas, for the exact days and times *I* wanted. You'd be surprised what I spent to earn those 3200 miles. The most recent ~1700 were earned on a ~$200 spend @ Safeway. :)

Ron.

I can just imagine what AM must pay WJA for those seats at peak travel time...............pretty damn cheap I imagine.

I just redeemed 3200 AM and paid $320 for 2 tickets Vancouver-St. John's return for Christmas, for the exact days and times *I* wanted. You'd be surprised what I spent to earn those 3200 miles. The most recent ~1700 were earned on a ~$200 spend @ Safeway. :)

Ron.

That is a great deal and like you I am very impressed with the availability in comparison to the other program where its like pulling teeth to get a seat. I suspect much of the cost gets shifted onto Safeway who then shift the cost to manufacturers of promo products. I also suspect BMO has some role where there is a discount given for having the Westjet Gold MC as in the above example. Naturally, given these are redemption bookings WS would not get as much for them as a non-discounted revenue fare. Bottom line is I don't care since it works for me! :)

Now I just need to keep on earning Airmiles so I can fly to connect to BA flights where I am upgraded to Club World :D

That is a great deal and like you I am very impressed with the availability in comparison to the other program where its like pulling teeth to get a seat. I suspect much of the cost gets shifted onto Safeway who then shift the cost to manufacturers of promo products. I also suspect BMO has some role where there is a discount given for having the Westjet Gold MC as in the above example. Naturally, given these are redemption bookings WS would not get as much for them as a non-discounted revenue fare. Bottom line is I don't care since it works for me! :)

Now I just need to keep on earning Airmiles so I can fly to connect to BA flights where I am upgraded to Club World :D

My guess is that WJA is only paid about $200 RT by AM based on some thing I saw recently.

I just redeemed 3200 AM and paid $320 for 2 tickets Vancouver-St. John's return for Christmas, for the exact days and times *I* wanted. You'd be surprised what I spent to earn those 3200 miles. The most recent ~1700 were earned on a ~$200 spend @ Safeway. :)

Ron.

I just booked two trips, Easter weekend and Victoria Day weekend on WS with Airmiles, getting the flights and days I wanted. The issue for me is that YYZ-YVR now generates $165 in fees. If you're using BMO/Westjet Gold the 1400 Airmiles still is good value, but like AP, 'free' travel is a misnomer.

Parnel, there are some good 'passive' methods for earning Airmiles, no scrounging required! Put it on the agenda for the next YYZ meet. Mind you, we'd be skating with Hades the day you'd redeem them for a WS flight - do you need a toaster? :D

I just booked two trips, Easter weekend and Victoria Day weekend on WS with Airmiles, getting the flights and days I wanted. The issue for me is that YYZ-YVR now generates $165 in fees. If you're using BMO/Westjet Gold the 1400 Airmiles still is good value, but like AP, 'free' travel is a misnomer.

Parnel, there are some good 'passive' methods for earning Airmiles, no scrounging required! Put it on the agenda for the next YYZ meet. Mind you, we'd be skating with Hades the day you'd redeem them for a WS flight - do you need a toaster? :D

Yeah.. the fees aren't fun, and I find that there's not a lot of difference for a short haul vs long. ~$130 for Vancouver/Calgary vs $~$170 Vancouver/St. John's. I guess the big difference is in the tax. I've wondered why they don't let you have the option to pay this charge with Miles. They could make a few extra $ this way.

When booking the reward this time, the pressure to buy the travel insurance was pretty intense. I guess they make good $$ on that.

As for the number of miles, I would assume they might lose $ with people flying Vancouver to St. John's or Florida @ 1600 Miles, but I assume most people don't fly these routes, instead would go Vancouver/Toronto at the same number of miles.

Ron.

...I realize the fees are (and always have been) a function of the Airmiles reward structure, but as associated fees increase, it's the marketing optics (of all programs) that irks me. That being said, 1400 Airmiles + $165 is still good deal for a plane ride from Toronto to Vancouver.

Campbell's notwithstanding, and there are no Safeways in Ontario.....one normally gets about 1 AM per $15 of spend which is roughly 67 miles per $1000. Throw in normal bonuses, that we get for buying mostly plonk at the LCBO, and one might get up to 250 miles per $1000 of spend if we buy bonus stuff only.
I think focusing on Avion and now Diners is the way to go. Admitedly AM are given everytime one shops at mostly LCBO or Dominion stores in Ontario but using the right CC is the best approach.

Another comparison would be buying gas at Shell for AM vs Esso for AE miles. Using the right CC one gets matched dollar per dollar spent on top of the AE miles earned. So one using a platinum AMEX card and getting 15 AE miles on a $45 gas purchase will get the 45 AE miles plus the card bonus after completing minimum spend on the card. So, it could be up to 75 AE miles earned per gas purchase and my gas purchase with two cars are over $100 weekly.
AM gets you about 3 AM miles for the same purchase plus the miles given if one has the BMO Wetjet MC. Again, I think AM collecting is not that good.

We've been through this dozens of times, but since AM doesn't interest you, you've never learned there are ways to bring the spend down to almost 1 AM per $1 spent, even though the official rate is 1 AM per $15 or $20 of spend. Again, it comes down to taking advantage of bonus offers when available, and keeping an eye out on additional bonuses at SAFEWAY, DOMINION or SOBEY'S in your respect part of the country.

It is true that SAFEWAY is most aggressive in adding bonuses and making earning easier than it is for those of us east of Manitoba. But DOMINION is upping the ante since it was acquired by METRO.

But the point is one can just as easily earn both AMs and AEs. (Buy with an AE card and earn 1AE mile per $1, or even 1.5AE miles.) And in their exchange ratio, AMs can be as cost effective, if not more so in redemptions, than AE miles. With a BMO Gold card, or with AM Gold status, a ticket anywhere WS flies is just 1400 or 1600 AMs. This can be the equivilent of a 25K AE ticket.

With purchase bonuses, I am pretty much earning 1AM per $1 of spend at DOMINION. This means it costs me $1,400 to earn a WS AM ticket. To earn a 25K AE ticket, I must spend $17,000 on my AmexPlat card! Even an AC ticket with AMs is cheaper: a shorthaul at 1000 AMs would have cost me $1,000 in grocery spend compared with an AE shorthaul ticket at 15,000 AE miles and a Amex spend of $10,000! (And if I use my BMO AM Mastercard, I earn 1 AM per $15 spend, so that makes an even better spend ratio. However, I tend to prefer to double dip and earn AE miles using my AmexPlat.)

Okay even if my spend return drops to 1AM per $5, I am still further ahead than I am earning AE flights. Your examples come from fringe sources of AMs, but even with SHELL purchases, there are plenty of bonuses offered throughout the year to boost the normal 1AM per $20 spent (or minimum litres, I'm not sure since I seldom buy gas...).

But I've also demonstrated where there are significant AM bonuses for certain low-cost online purchases. And one can also take advantage of BAY 10x HBC points bonuses that will boost AM earning too.

Taken together, these offer the average household more earnings with AMs than AE offers. Thus making AMs for most Canadians far better value than AE miles.



Ah so they put quotas on AM seats also....not just AC.....hmmm

Not really. AM capacity on WS is controlled in the same way it is on AC, and as TRAVELCUTS is controlled on AC. These Z-class tickets can come from any low end fare bucket as AM purchases in bulk and then allocates seats from any fare equivilent to AC's TANGO. When I did my WS AM flights last summer, I checked the WS website and found the flights that had AM seats corresponded to the flights that still had the lowest fare categories available, and the ones that did not, were priced quite high for sale.

This is quite unlike AE redemptions that are limited in inventory on flights. And of course, once AE's Classic awards are gone, one is into 50% or more for Avenue awards, and perhaps 100% for the promised "anytime" (that Elites can now get). We know there are only four or five AE Classic Hospitality seats (TANGO class) on most A320s and maybe an equal number of AE Avenue ones.

Not only all the foregoing, but remember with the "Elite" redemption level for AM Gold and BMO Gold Mastercard holders, AM gives transcon tickets on WS at a significant discount, where as AE hasn't offered discounted awards to its elites for two years now! (And these discounts are pretty much available on any flight that has low-rev fare class capacity.)

but even with SHELL purchases, there are plenty of bonuses offered throughout the year to boost the normal 1AM per $20 spent (or minimum litres, I'm not sure since I seldom buy gas...).


It's 1 AM for the first $20 spend, then 1 per $10 thereafter. And another thing that was news to me, but might not be to others, is Rona is 1 AM per $20 per month, not per purchase. You don't have to spend $20 in one shot. They keep track when you swipe and add your monthly spend together.

We've been through this dozens of times, but since AM doesn't interest you, you've never learned there are ways to bring the spend down to almost 1 AM per $1 spent, even though the official rate is 1 AM per $15 or $20 of spend. Again, it comes down to taking advantage of bonus offers when available, and keeping an eye out on additional bonuses at SAFEWAY, DOMINION or SOBEY'S in your respect part of the country.


My last couple of shops at Safeway, I've been averaging almost 10AM per $1 spent. Safeway does seem to have deep pockets lately with Air Miles bonus offers. I don't think they can continue this forever... or maybe they can.. lol. :)

Ron.