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✈️ Emirates and Aeroplan team up
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A few months ago, Air Canada and Emirates announced a new "strategic partnership." Basically, this is the airline equivalent of "we like each other, but we don't want to put a label on it just yet."
There were lots of questions surrounding how the partnership would work. Can you earn Emirates miles by flying Air Canada? Could you use Aeroplan points to book flights on Emirates? Or is this just another media stunt to get our hopes up?
Boy, do I have some good news. And no, this doesn't only apply to Canadians. In fact, Aeroplan is arguably the single best points program out there. Check out a more in-depth article here if you want to know the ins and outs.
As of early yesterday morning, Emirates Economy, Premium Economy, and Business classes are available to book with Aeroplan, though First Class will also be bookable beginning in January.
The partnership consists of the following:
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Codeshare agreement (being able to book airlines on the same itinerary)
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Reciprocal points earning (earn Aeroplan points from Emirates flights and vice versa)
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Reciprocal points redemptions (use Aeroplan points to book Emirates flights and vice versa)
That last bullet is what the world is currently raving about.
Here's why Aeroplan is such an exciting program for booking Emirates flights:
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Aeroplan has more partner airlines than any other program on earth, so you can mix and match dozens of other airlines on your Emirates itinerary.
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Aeroplan allows stopovers of up to 45 days for only 5,000 points, which you can now combine with Emirates flights.
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Aeroplan points are incredibly easy to earn since you can transfer points from American Express, Chase, Capital One, and Bilt, all at a 1:1 ratio. That means that most of the cards on our Top Cards list could get you on an Emirates flight.
So how many points will an Emirates flight run you?
That's where things get interesting. If you remember from my article last week, Aeroplan uses an award chart that determines points pricing based on distance flown.
Rather than using the Aeroplan master chart, they've created a dedicated chart just for Emirates 👇
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If we compare this with Aeroplan's existing chart, things look pretty bleak, especially when it comes to first class. In short, the prices are generally higher than the standard award chart. But there's a good reason for this, and it's not as bad as it looks at first glance.
First of all, Aeroplan doesn't pass along carrier surcharges and fuel surcharges to the customer. When you book a flight with Emirates miles, you could end up having to pay hundreds (or even a thousand) dollars in fees along with it.
With Aeroplan, you're only charged a small booking fee and taxes, meaning you'll rarely pay more than $50-$100. So while you'll have to shell out more points, you save quite a bit of money.
Second, the award chart is a liar. I know that's a pretty bold statement. But hear me out.
The award chart says that a business class flight on Emirates will be priced at a minimum of 30,000 points (if the flight is under 2,000 miles).
However, I ran a search for a flight from Istanbul to Dubai (which clocks in at 1,883 miles) and was able to book business class (on the big double-decker a380) for only 20,000 Aeroplan points.
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I'm not sure if this is a glitch in the system or if the award chart is incorrect. Either way, I'm not complaining. And you can bet your bottom dollar that I booked that flight while I had the chance... and maybe a few others, too 😉
The bottom line is this: Aeroplan points are easy to earn, given the transferability from most major banks. This opens up a whole new avenue for people looking to book amazing flights on one of the world's best airlines without shelling out for exorbitant fees.
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🛳️ Cruise News: "Wave season" is just around the corner
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I feel like we don't talk about cruises enough here at the Daily Drop. Sure, I've shared some of the "too good to be true" deals with you, but I think there's much more to cover.
That's why we'll be putting a regular segment in the newsletter called "Cruise News." It's very cool because it rhymes.
Today I want to tell you about "wave season." And no, I'm not referring to literal waves.
Instead, Wave season is the period at the beginning of the year (typically January through March) when cruise companies put on their best promotions.
The logic is this: people in much of the country live in cold weather and are eager to book that warm, sunny vacay. Plus, people have eased back into daily life after the rush of holiday travel and shopping and are ready to plan for the rest of the year.
This also allows cruise ships to fill up their ships well in advance, sometimes even securing bookings a year or two out.
Here's how you can prepare for wave season:
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Pick your ideal cruise port(s) - even if you need to fly to get there. This will determine which cruise lines you'll be able to book.
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Map out some potential dates - When a deal pops up, it usually doesn't last very long. Knowing when you're able to travel will allow you to lock in an amazing, cheap cruise right when you see it.
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Keep reading the Daily Drop - As I said, there will be more cruise content here in the newsletter moving forward. Whenever there's a fantastic promo (this goes for people worldwide, not just North America), you'll know about it.
Wave season will be starting in just a few weeks. If you're a serial cruiser or you've always wanted to try one out, start thinking ahead now so you can ride that wave when it hits. 🌊
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🍪 Bite-size travel tidbits
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Here are some interesting and fun tidbits for you to waste your lunch break looking through later today:
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🏨 Apparently, Accor and KLM read The Daily Drop
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Earlier this week I shared two fantastic travel hacks with you - Accor All's double points promotion and KLM/Air France's December promo rewards.
As fate would have it, these two companies have just teamed up to offer a fantastic way to transfer points to each other's programs.
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You can now transfer Accor All points to KLM/Air France Flying Blue at a 1:1 ratio. Plus, until December 15th, you'll also get a 15% bonus.
Let me tell you why this is so exciting. In the past, the transfer ratio for Accor points to Flying Blue miles was 2:1, meaning if you transferred 2,000 points, you'd end up with 1,000 miles.
Now if you transfer 2,000 points, you'll end up with 2,300 miles. Even without the 15% bonus (which ends on the 15th) you'd still end up with 2,000 miles, effectively doubling the previous transfer value.
Now, I don't want to take credit for this, but it is a little strange that yesterday's Daily Drop featured deals from both of these programs. Coincidence? I think not...
I'm joking, of course. These programs have been partnered for years now, but the timing of this new transfer bonus couldn't be better.
I won't go into too much detail about how you can best maximize this program, but this is the general idea:
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Rack up Accor All points using the promo I mentioned
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Transfer them to KLM/Air France at a great ratio
- Use your miles for trans-Atlantic flights with KLM/Air France Promo Rewards
It's as easy as pie. Or if you're flying KLM, Stroopwaffel. Or on Air France, maybe it's croissants. I'm clearly ready for my lunch break, so I'll leave it there.
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That's all for today! I can hardly contain my excitement about the new Aeroplan and Emirates love affair, given my massive stockpile of Aeroplan points.
Will you jump on your opportunity to book Emirates business and economy flights? Or are you holding out for First Class in January? Will you be taking a cruise sometime next year? Let me know by replying to this email or reaching out on social media.
Ciao,
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