Originally Posted by
aryajoon
Thanks a lot, this is helpful! Any advice on which partner airlines to try, and how do you link your Aeroplan account to use on their flights? I tried to search reward flights on ANA, but it requires an account with their frequent flyer program and I don't have one.
I just do all my searches on Air Canada since I don't have another account for other FF programs. If it shows up on Air Canada (use points button selected), it usually means it's bookable with Aeroplan unless it's a phantom space. Its often mentioned here that United Airlines will typically share the same award space as Air Canada, so you can use United search engine as well.
For the ANA flight I found, it was found using the Air Canada search engine, and was bookable online since it's listed and in Air Canada's system. Ticketing will then give me the ref number for the itinerary that works on both Air Canada and the partner airline.
It's not exactly worthwhile to find award space on other FF (like ANA) because they may not be available for booking via Aeroplan.