CanadaDH

It's back! The bonus rate is 20% for this round on all gift cards purchased during Nov 23 from 2-5pm EST.

The Facebook post (copied below) doesn't give the details, but if it's like past sales, that means you get the bonus on the total value of a single shopping cart purchase per credit card used. You can purchase as many cards as you like, up to a max value of $5,000 (USD or CAD) in one purchase transaction. If you're like me and like to load up on these, and need to make multiple purchases,, be sure to use a different credit card for the second purchase to get the bonus.

margarita girl

Thank you for sharing this! ^ For those who aren't good with math, a 20% bonus is equivalent to a 16.7% discount.

FlyerGoldII

Where do I find the news on the Fairmont web site?

I go to the web site and find the link about Fairmont gift cards:

https://www.fairmont.com/marrakech/s...ont-gift-card/


but nothing about this sale.

CanadaDH

It's not always posted on the Fairmont site. Just go to fairmontgiftcard.com. It will redirect you to the following site...

https://www.buyatab.com/custom/fairmont/

Buyatab is the company that manages the cards for Fairmont (and a ton of other businesses). Then just click on the link to purchase the electronic gift card.

kxs250

Planning on buying these for an upcoming stay in the US. Would it be better to buy the gift card in USD and take the forex hit from credit card OR better to buy gift card in CAD and take forex hit with Fairmont at hotel check-out?

nock

CanadaDH

I would buy the gift card in your credit card's home currency. I've found the Oanda F/X rate used by the Fairmont gift card terminals to be excellent. I've tested it before, calling up the spot market rates on my phone at the time of payment, and it's a really, really good rate. I know that none of my credit cards would give me an exchange rate that good. Are the no-FX-fee credit cards available in Canada truly at the interbank spot market rate? I don't have one so I can't compare.

The other reason to buy in your home currency, would be any future trips you will make. Will your future trips also be in the USA, or will you use it in Canada. In other words, if you had left over gift cards after your next trip, what currency would you want them in? I always carry a big balance of Fairmont gift cards, because I want to make sure I get the full value of the available discount on all my stays and all hotel charges during the stay, and know I will have many more stays to use them on. If I'm going to buy more than I need for the trips I already have booked, I'd want them to be in my home currency.

FlyerGoldII

My family and I will be staying at the Fairmonts in Beijing and Shanghai.
Are the gift cards in US dollars - whichever currency one uses for payment.

If the gift cards can be purchased in Canadian dollars, I would presume that the exchange rate in the Chinese hotels would not be as good as with US dollars?

FlyerGoldII

Still do not see the promotional discount (sale) on the web site, even with your links? I believe I have seen the sale advertised in past cycles?

Presumably, during the 3 hours this Friday, the link above will explicitly state that there is the discount?

nock

CanadaDH

I would have no reason to assume that a Chinese hotel would offer a better rate for USD gift cards? This is not like using cash to pay your bill, where it's converted using the hotels posted rate of the day. The hotels have no control over the exchange rate used. The gift card terminals draw their rates direct from Oanda. You can visit oanda.com and use their currency converter to see the rates being used.

CanadaDH

I think you're both right. I've seen it posted before on the Fairmont gift card site before, but not in advance, and perhaps not with every sale. It's really a social media sale. They announce it on the Facebook page, presumably as a way to encourage more followers and new business. They're not exactly sending out e-mail notices to all club members and regular customers to alert them to the sale.

escape4

There is no expiration date on these cards, right?

Does someone know if buying with Chase Sapphire Reserve it will show up as a hotel purchase and therefore get 3x points rather than 1x?

CanadaDH

Correct. No expiration.

I don't have a Chase card, but I can tell you that on all of the Visa and Amex cards I've used over the years, it has never appeared as a hotel purchase. It will appear as "Fairmont-Buyatab" on your card statement, and has always appeared as a Retail purchase category, not hotel/travel. The merchant, Buyatab, manages gift cards for a variety of industries, so I'm guessing that the category of Buyatab's merchant account doesn't switch based on the category of the organization the gift card is for. They alter the description of the merchant on your credit card statement to reflect the brand, but not the merchant category.

They list their clients on their website...

https://web.buyatab.com/clients/

escape4

Bummer. So I guess considering the lost value of points on a credit card it's a 13% discount rather than 17% discount. Not that it's a reason to forego buying gift cards, but something to keep in mind.

I am assuming that when using vouchers, the spend will count towards the 5600 EUR required to requalify for Platinum just like if the room was paid without a gift card?