Overwing, the fine print you need on refunds is at: https://www.aeroplan.com/en/account/...ng_mileage.jsp

It costs CA$135 + tax, per ticket, to refund the miles to your account. If you are within 21 days of scheduled departure, you are only allowed to change tickets, for CA$55 + tax each.

I personally am okay with the web for looking for seat availability, but it does take some work.

Reward flights are not mileage runs, so people prefer to book direct flights. Thus, Aeroplan will run out of cheap seats on direct flights first. Then, if you're not SE, you will either have to pay more points for the direct flights, or endure connections to save points.