Originally Posted by CoryTrevor

Hello,

I recently changed jobs and now have a position that will see me traveling about 20% of my time.

I've been a long time Aeroplan member but never flew Air Canada frequently enough to get any benefit from it.

Now that I'm going go be doing a lot more travel I've been looking into the various Star Alliance rewards programs as most my flights will originate in Toronto and thus will likely be on Air Canada. I've asked my colleagues and they do enough travel that they typically qualify for Altitude 50K and in some years Altitude 75K.

Since I'm such a newbie to this frequently flier world I though I'd reach out to the more experienced for advice on rewards programs.

On the face of it, Asiana looks like a better program as you accumulate points over 2 years and the duration of membership is 2 years. Therefore I could reach Star Alliance Gold status more quickly and keep it longer. Asiana also appears to give you the equivalent of a lifetime Star Alliance Gold membership once you hit a running total of 500,000 miles.

What I'm less sure about is what perks I'd be giving up by not going with Air Canada given I'll be flying out of Toronto exclusively.

ie- will it be harder for me to use my Asiana points to redeem them on an AC flight?

Will I miss out on the little surprise upgrades if I'm not an Air Canada Aeroplan member? (ie does Air Canada not really care if I'm a Star Alliance Gold member and only reward those on the Aeroplan program)?

Appreciate any advice.