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Master Thread American Express Aeroplan cards

Master Thread American Express Aeroplan cards

Old Mar 1, 2019, 9:47 am
  #16  
 
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: YYZ
Programs: AC SEMM / HH Diamond
Posts: 3,140
Originally Posted by yscleo
AC head had stated 8% seats per route is too high
Reference, please?
canopus27 is offline  
Old Mar 1, 2019, 10:19 am
  #17  
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Toronto, Ont., Canada
Programs: Aeroplan; Marriott Platinum; IHG Platinum; Best Western Diamond
Posts: 2,131
Originally Posted by canopus27
Reference, please?
It was reported in several place. Would have to search for that, but I thought this is common knowledge by now.
yscleo is offline  
Old Mar 1, 2019, 10:34 am
  #18  
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 3,359
Originally Posted by yscleo
But the bad PR is mainly due to the ticketing carrier AC adding scamcharges, and lack of seat availability. AC head had stated 8% seats per route is too high, so it should be expected the seat availability will be less. That's not improvement. That's AC "enhancement".
Correct me if I'm wrong here, but Aeroplan is the * transfer partner for AE in Canada and the US correct?

One of the great values in having Aeroplan be a transfer partner for AE is that you know you can use your reward points across a variety of * partners and other airline partners like Canadian North. What's unclear about the new program (and would greatly impact the value of the Aeroplan points) is whether there would be such partner availability in the new program and secondly if it would follow an award chart found on most * airline FFPs. I suspect part of this will depend directly on how many award seats AC releases to their * partners. Sure there's a ton of places AC flies to but partners patch up a lot of the missing coverage in AC's network (i.e. it's been a while since I saw a LHR bound AC flight departing from FRA). Similarly, it will be a real shame if I can't redeem my Altitude points in 2020 for flights to YFB or if the cost is quite prohibitive.

Safe Travels,

James
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Old Mar 1, 2019, 11:14 am
  #19  
 
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: YYZ
Programs: AC SEMM / HH Diamond
Posts: 3,140
Originally Posted by yscleo
It was reported in several place. Would have to search for that, but I thought this is common knowledge by now.
I've seen you mention it before, but no one else, and no root source.

I believe you that you believe it .... but I'd like to understand more about who said it, when it was said, and the context in which it was said.
canopus27 is offline  
Old Mar 1, 2019, 11:26 am
  #20  
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 3,359
Originally Posted by yscleo
It was reported in several place. Would have to search for that, but I thought this is common knowledge by now.
This 8 percent remark is a red herring IMHO. If we want to have a frank and honest discussion about how valuable Altitude points are with respect to award availability and bang for buck, we'd need to have a report... wait there is such a report : IdeaWorks Award Seat Report .

Key takeaways from the report:
  1. AC ranks second in award seat availability globally with some 96.4% of routes having availability overall during the report period
  2. Even for long haul rewards, AC ranks a strong second with 94.3% of routes having availability
  3. AC ranks relatively low in terms of the value of points 2.4% return for non-elites and 4.8% return for elites (compare that to 1.8% and 8.9% respectively from WS)
Considering the fact that AE MR transfers (currently) 1 to 1 to Aeroplan the third point implies that you'll get a 2.4% to 4.8% return on your money spent with an AE card which while not bad isn't as good as other airlines programs. The key question AC needs to ask themselves moving forward with Altitude is: should they favour greater seat availability or greater value for the consumer? Both factors negatively impact their bottom line but given how competitive the travel points landscape is these days, they can't afford to stiff their customers lest we write angry letters to AE demanding UA be a frequent flyer partner.

Safe Travels,

James
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Old Mar 1, 2019, 12:15 pm
  #21  
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: トロント
Programs: IHG Gold
Posts: 4,809
Originally Posted by codfather
I would like to see a premium AMEX card with similar benefits to P25K or E35K. The card would come with a high annual fee ($1000+), but the benefits would be worth it. I know many FFs would not like seeing the priority lines a little longer from credit card benefits, and not from Altitude status.

I think I would pay for a good AMEX card that came with priority boarding, lounge access, free checked bags, etc. Some do exist already, but they seem to have considerably more limitations on them when compared with what I would like to see.
Really? I would never, ever pay $1000 to get P25K status. For the travel I do, it is valueless. I would just stay with a typical $120 a year credit card and keep the $880 difference.
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Old Mar 1, 2019, 1:12 pm
  #22  
 
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 314
Originally Posted by mapleg
Really? I would never, ever pay $1000 to get P25K status. For the travel I do, it is valueless. I would just stay with a typical $120 a year credit card and keep the $880 difference.
There are the CIBC/TD Visa Infinite Privilege cards which are essentially the same as P25K status (priority checkin, some AC lounge passes) for $399/year already so I agree $1000 would be a tough sell.
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Old Mar 1, 2019, 1:13 pm
  #23  
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 3,359
Originally Posted by mapleg
Really? I would never, ever pay $1000 to get P25K status. For the travel I do, it is valueless. I would just stay with a typical $120 a year credit card and keep the $880 difference.
I think the idea of a credit card giving you mid to top tier status is a red herring. Name one premium travel credit card that does this for any airline in the world that belongs to one of the big three alliances. I doubt you'll find a single one! Looking specifically at the AE USA and UK websites one seems the following top-tier airline branded credit card on offer:
  • BA Premium Plus Credit Card (UK)
    • 195 quid annual fee
    • 25,000 Avios sign up bonus
    • 2 for 1 travel voucher after spending 10,000 quid each year
    • 1.5 Avios per quid spent everywhere or 3 Avios per quid spent on BA
  • Delta Reserve Credit Card (USA)
    • $450 annual fee
    • 75,000 sign up bonus
    • Earn 2 miles per dollar spent at DL, 1 mile everywhere else
    • MQM (Status) Acceleration
      • Earn 5,000 MQM sign up bonus
      • Earn 15,000 MQM after spending $30,000 in a year
      • Earn another 15,000 MQM after spending $60,000 in a year
    • Annual Companion Travel Certificate
    • Delta Sky Club Access
    • Main Cabin 1 Boarding
Airlines are smart enough to realize that if they give mid to top tier elite status to every Tom, Dick and Harry then no one would want to be loyal to their airline. What's the purpose of chasing status every year if a bunch of kettles with free AE credit cards get the same benefits as me?

Safe Travels,

​​​​​​​James
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Old Mar 1, 2019, 1:19 pm
  #24  
 
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: YYT
Programs: M-Bonvoy Platinum Elite, Aeroplan 50K, DragonPass, AMEX MR, NEXUS
Posts: 1,715
Originally Posted by tdiddy23
There are the CIBC/TD Visa Infinite Privilege cards which are essentially the same as P25K status (priority checkin, some AC lounge passes) for $399/year already so I agree $1000 would be a tough sell.
P25K would just be a start. I didn't want to push that agenda too much knowing how many SE100Ks are on here! AMEX cardholders getting the equivalent of E35K for a $1000 yearly card would not likely go over well.
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Old Mar 1, 2019, 7:58 pm
  #25  
Formerly known as newbie elite
 
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: YUL
Programs: IHG Diamond Ambassador, Accor Platinum, AC50K
Posts: 2,919
The best airline status I ever got by credit card was the short lived Marco Polo Gold (OW Sapphire) via Amex Plat which paid for itself in BA CW seat reservation fees. Think it only lasted one year.
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Admiral Ackbar is offline  
Old Aug 24, 2019, 7:07 am
  #26  
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: YOW
Programs: TK*S, SPG Gold
Posts: 714
Anyone here actually have the Amex Aeroplan reserve card?

Curious - looks like a terrible card.
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Old Aug 24, 2019, 8:39 am
  #27  
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Windsor/Detroit
Programs: AC*SE, Wyndham Dimond, Marriott Plat, Amex Plat CND & USA, active military, Yoga teacher.
Posts: 148
Originally Posted by jcamp028
Curious - looks like a terrible card.
I used to have the card before I had status. The card is good for when you fly 3-5 round trips a year with bags.
Get your bag checked free.
You get to use the Mill free in international that 35K does not get.
The 2 for 1 redemption is worth $500, you get a $200 travel credit.
So you are paying $199 for a priority pass membership and entrance, Mill pass, 5 free checked bags, priority check in.
LesDorgo is offline  
Old Aug 24, 2019, 9:03 am
  #28  
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Ottawa
Posts: 202
I looked at it years ago when I lost my status with Air Canada and came to a similar concision - $900 is an awful lot for what you get.

The actual cost may be less though, The $200 travel credit lowers the actual cost of the card since anyone considering a travel card presumably spends more than that on travel a year. The annual aeroplan partner ticket may have a similar value. The unlimited lounge access seems great, but you can buy an awful lot of lounge access for that annual fee.

In then end, I went for the CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege which has a very similar features (excluding the $200 travel credit and aeroplan partner ticket, and "only" 10 lounge accesses annually) and costs much less but still not cheap ($400 annually) . I easily get back considerably more in benefits/extra miles than the cost difference from a standard $100 annual aeroplan Visa Infinite so it works well for me, but of course the value of the features depends on the user. That - with Nexus - seems to be a really good combination if your traveling a reasonable amount without status like I do.
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Old Aug 24, 2019, 4:46 pm
  #29  
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: YYZ
Posts: 72
I have had this card for two years, and I am happy with the value overall.

I'm basically a person who does a fair amount of personal travel (8-10 roundtrips on AC metal per year) but I redeem Aeroplan points for many of these trips, so I have not had status for the past few years. I also do a small amount of NA business travel. I probably put about 100K/year on the card, including about 10K of AC spend, with some of that being OPM. Importantly, AC spend is 2 Aeroplan points per dollar on this card.

Both years, I've been able to use the Aeroplan 2-for-1 for a booking I would have wanted to make anyway. So I value the "free" 25,000 points at about $300.

I use the $200 travel credit for a travel purchase I would have made anyway (I compare prices on Amex travel to other sites when booking to ensure that Amex travel prices aren't inflated for the specific purchase). So I look at that as basically $200 cash-equivalent.

So those two things are about $500 in value.

I probably use the free bag more than 5 times per year ($30/bag). Yes it is capped at 5 bags per year in the terms and conditions. Implementation varies, however

So now we're at, at least, $650 in value.

At this point, the residual cost of $250 is similar to, if not better than, other Aeroplan premium cards. For that remainder, the MLL lounge access, priority check-in, unlimited priority pass access, insurance benefits etc. are worth it to me, personally. I understand my situation may not apply to others.
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Old Aug 25, 2019, 12:15 pm
  #30  
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Posts: 161
Originally Posted by swonder

I use the $200 travel credit for a travel purchase I would have made anyway (I compare prices on Amex travel to other sites when booking to ensure that Amex travel prices aren't inflated for the specific purchase). So I look at that as basically $200 cash-equivalent.
.
Is that $200 per calendar year or cardmember year?
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