Youponder

Just heard a radio commercial from RBC offering 12,500 (normally 2,500) startup points plus double points through August 2005. Right now there is no info on their website but if you call in they can do it for you. About a year ago they had a similar promotion but only for 3 months, so for those of you who don't already have the Avion this is a terrific deal.

WindBeneathMyWings

I called RBC to find out more about this offer and I was informed that it is ONLY for new applications and NOT for existing clients. I told the representative that I was a bit surprised that there was no promotion to reward loyal existing customers, but she repeated that the promotion was ONLY for new clients.

Ah well.....

parnel

They periodically have specials for points transfers;I believe last year they had a 1.5 to 1 transfer to BA.

Toronto1970

http://www.rbcroyalbank.com/avionvisa

It appears to only be a 10,000 signup bonus (still a great deal).

Youponder

I did the same thing and after a bit of back and forth they agreed to give me the 10k bonus but not the double points. While that is a nice gesture it can't be compared to 2x points over 11 months. I'm sure there are ways to open a new account even if you already have one.

Last year RBC had the same promo and BA was offering .5 on top of that for a total of 3x points. This one is technically better as its for a much longer period of time.

Thanks for the link. I was told by phone the 10000 is a bonus and the 2500 standard for new Avion. Maybe they meant 2500 upon renewal.

Rad456

Unfortunate, that they won't offer anything to keep their current customers...

tcook052

I've been watching for just such a promo in the fall as I want to dump some points into BA. Shout it out if you spot any please parnel.

parnel

Will do and will you the BA account to transfer points to

acysb87

Might look at this card as a replacement for my expiring DC card.

Sunny Day

They have a habit of showering new cardholders with lots of goodies but forget those who have been with them for a while. Any suggestions on how to get this bonus for existing card holders?

Altaflyer

Given that existing cardholders like me get 2,500 on renewal, which is coming up, it would not seem unreasonable to sweeten the pot a bit this time around given the VERY generous offer to new cardholders - double credits for a YEAR! 10,000 points would seem achievable (including 2,500 renewal bonus) with the right coaxing, or maybe they'd go for "just" giving double credits

I also think they should seriously look at offering a discounted lounge option like AP affiliated cards, perhaps Priority Pass (although they'd probably be swiftly removed from the MLL participation) or AA.

dominick

As an RBC employee, I can see thru the internal site stating that existing card holders cannot cancel, and reapply for the card (which is what I was thinking of doing) or else they'd take away the 10k bonus and the double points...

Altaflyer

Sure, but we can always cancel and take our business elsewhere. While such bonuses are nice, when they make them so nice it just makes existing clients a bit jealous!

parnel

TD gold travel visa offers 7500 miles for new card holders but no bonuses throught the year. RBC has sized up the market properly for now I would say. But if they do their 1.5 to 1 on BA again as they did last year that would be a good deal for existing cardholders. My over 300K of BA miles comes mostly from those promos and I have another 100K or so more points waiting for the next BA promo.
TD does I believe offer simpler use of the points; 10000 points equals $75 toward any class of ticket on any airline at any time. If a ticket is purchased on AC for example in the right booking class u/g certs are still usable. I don't know the cost dynamics or comparisions to RBC visa but it seems well suited for people who put a lot of expenses on visa and don't have any airline loyalty or who want trips beyond the airlines one can now get points or FF trips on.

YOWkid

5000 points for $75, 10000 points for $150.