8 Best Ways To Use Air Canada Aeroplan Points for Maximum Value

BY 

Michael McHugh

- UPDATED: May 8, 2021   |    21

1. Travel  / 
2. Airlines

21

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Aeroplan is its own mileage earning program, but you might also have heard of it because it’s associated with an airline serving a number of U.S. destinations: Air Canada.

The current Aeroplan program (which was spun off from Air Canada a while back) has been purchased back by Air Canada.

Long-haul business class flights and adding in stopovers are currently the best ways to extract the most value with your Aeroplan points.

In this article, I’ll cover how you can earn Aeroplan points, how to leverage the Aeroplan network of airline partners, and of course — the best ways to use your Aeroplan points.

Best Ways to Earn Aeroplan Points

Aeroplan points can be transferred from American Express Membership Rewards at a 1:1 rate, from Capital One at a 2:1.5 rate, or from Marriott at a transfer rate of 3:1. Aeroplan points can also be earned directly with Aeroplan Visa Signature Card from TD Bank.

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Marriott Transfers

You can earn Marriott points and transfer those to Aeroplan at a transfer rate of 3:1. Plus, for every 60,000 Marriott points that you transfer, you’ll receive an extra 5,000 Aeroplan points bonus.

Earn Points With Partners

Aeroplan has a number of travel partners that you will find in our best ways to earn lots of Aeroplan points post.

You can earn extra miles by linking your Aeroplan account with its Financial, Travel, Online Retailers, and Brick and Mortar Retail partners.

This is a great way to double-dip, meaning you will earn airline miles plus credit card points in bonus categories.

For example, if you book a car rental with your Chase Sapphire Reserve, you will earn both Chase Ultimate Rewards points for the rental plus Aeroplan points from your account that you linked. Nice bonus earnings!

The 9 Best Ways to Use Your Aeroplan Points

The Star Alliance has an extensive network in Europe as well as strategic partners in Asia, Africa, and South America that allow you to travel all over the world.

In this post, we’ll focus on redemptions that will yield value of more than 2 cents per mile (this means you’re getting great value!).

While the number of miles required for many of these redemptions is high compared to other award programs, there’s still value to be found with your Aeroplan points.

1. Star Alliance U.S. to India: 85,000 Miles in Business Class, One-Way

A one-way business class flight from the Eastern U.S. to India using Aeroplan is likely not at the top of your list of redemptions, but in our opinion, it really should be.

With just 85,000 Aeroplan points, you can book a one-way business class flight on any Star Alliance partner from the U.S. to the Indian subcontinent.

Another option is to use 55,000 Aeroplan points to book a one-way economy flight on any Star Alliance partner.

Aeroplan considers Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka to be part of their Indian Subcontinent region.

Examples of 1-stop Star Alliance flight:

• New York (JFK) to Mumbai (BOM) – Air India, Turkish Airlines

Air Canada doe not pass on taxes and fees for Star Alliance partners, so no need to worry about those here.

Need help earning more Aeroplan points? Here’s our best ways to earn lots of Aeroplan points.

2. Star Alliance U.S. to South Africa: 170,000 Miles in Business Class, Round-Trip

Africa is typically a challenging continent to get to, but it’s also one that’s on many travelers’ bucket lists.

With 170,000 Aeroplan points, you can book a round-trip business class flight from the U.S. to South Africa. One-way flights are half the price.

If economy makes more sense, you can book a round-trip flight for 110,000 Aeroplan points.

Example of 1-stop Star Alliance flights to Africa:

• New York (JFK) to Johannesburg (JNB) – Swiss Air Lines, Turkish Airlines, South African Airways

3. Star Alliance U.S. to Europe: 140,000 Miles in Business Class, Round-Trip

Business class to Europe might not yield the highest cents per mile value, but I think this is the best way to use your miles.

With 140,000 Aeroplan points, you can book a round-trip business class flight from the U.S. to Europe.

First class will likely yield you higher cents per mile value, but it comes with a higher point requirement at 200,000 miles round-trip.

Aeroplan includes all of Europe in one region, so you can fly anywhere in Europe for the same mileage price, as long as the miles flown does not exceed 6,000 (one-way).

Examples of nonstop Star Alliance flights include:

• Newark (EWR) to Amsterdam (AMS) – United Airlines
• New York (JFK) to Warsaw (WAW) – LOT Polish
• Washington (IAD) to Copenhagen (CPH) – SAS

Need help booking an award flight? Here’s our best ways to book Lufthansa business class.

4. Star Alliance U.S. to Australia/New Zealand: 170,000 Miles in Business Class, Round-Trip

While it’s natural to get pumped about flying to Australia or New Zealand in business class, the reality is that award space is limited.

With 170,000 Aeroplan points, you can book a round-trip business class flight from the U.S. to Australia, New Zealand, or the South Pacific.

Examples of flights on Star Alliance partners include:

• San Francisco (SFO) to Sydney (SYD) – Asiana (via Seoul-Incheon), United (direct), ANA (via Tokyo), Singapore Airlines (via Hong Kong or Singapore)
• Los Angeles (LAX) to Brisbane (BNE) via Taipei (TPE) – EVA Air

Hot Tip: Business class availability to New Zealand was nonexistent on the Aeroplan website 6 to 10 months out. You may have more luck using United’s search engine and then either calling Aeroplan to book or finding the same award space on its search engine. 

Need help booking an award flight? Here’s our best ways to book Singapore Airlines business class.

Also, we’ve researched many more ways to fly to Australia using points and miles. 

5. United Airlines Domestic U.S: 25,000 Miles in Economy, Round-Trip

As you may have noticed, Aeroplan charges the same amount of miles that United charges for its own flights.

The kicker with Aeroplan is that it does not charge a close-in booking fee like United does for flights booked within 21 days of departure.

If you are not trying to book a United flight close-in and have United miles or Chase Ultimate Rewards points, it likely makes more sense to simply book the award with United.

With 12,000-25,000 Aeroplan points, you can book a round-trip economy flight on United within the continental U.S. and Canada, depending on the distance.

Note that flights to Hawaii will require 45,000 miles round-trip in Economy, and 70,000 round-trip in business.

Examples of nonstop domestic United flights include:

• Newark (EWR) to San Francisco (SFO)
• Washington (IAD) to Seattle (SEA)
• San Diego (SAN) to Chicago (ORD).

Bottom Line: You have several options to book domestic United flights in addition to using Aeroplan points. Consider using Asiana (Marriott transfer), Avianca (Citi, Amex, Marriott transfer), or Singapore Airlines (Amex, Chase, Citi, Capital One, Marriott transfer). 

Have Amex, Chase, or Citi points? Here’s our best ways to use them: Amex, Chase, Citi.

6. Star Alliance U.S. to Southern South America: 120,000 Miles in Business Class, Round-Trip

The Star Alliance has a solid presence in South America with a number of airlines providing nonstop flights, like Avianca, Copa Airlines, and United Airlines.

With 120,000 Aeroplan points, you can book a round-trip business class flight from the U.S. to Southern South America.

Examples of nonstop Star Alliance flights include:

• Houston (IAH) to Santiago, Chile (SCL) – United Airlines
• Newark (EWR) to Buenos Aires, Argentina (EZE) – United Airlines

Bottom Line: If you have transferable points, you’ll likely be able to find a cheaper point option to southern South America. Programs like Asiana, ANA, and Singapore Airlines require between 70,000-100,000 miles round-trip. 

Have United Airlines miles? Here’s our best ways to use them for maximum value!

7. Star Alliance U.S. to Asia: 170,000 Miles in Business Class, Round-Trip

The Star Alliance has several Asian partners that allow you to access many cities with a nonstop or 1-stop flight.

Partners based in Asia include ANA, Asiana Airlines, EVA Air, Shenzhen Airlines, Singapore Airlines, and Thai Airways.

With 170,000 Aeroplan points, you can book a round-trip business class flight from the U.S. to Asia.

Hot Tip: Flights to Asia in economy are 120,000 miles round-trip, which can be a great way to stretch your miles for a long-haul flight. 

Examples of Star Alliance flights to Asia include:

• Los Angeles (LAX) to Seoul-Incheon (ICN) – Asiana (direct), EVA Air (via Taipei), ANA (via Tokyo)
• San Francisco (SFO) to Tokyo-Narita (NRT) – United Airlines, ANA

Need help booking an award flight? Here’s our best ways to book ANA business class.

8. U.S. to the Middle East: 85,000 Miles in Business Class or 120,000 in First Class (One-way)

Hoping to fly from the U.S. to the Middle East aboard Etihad’s spectacular business or first class cabin? With Aeroplan points you can do just that!

Thanks to the Etihad and Aeroplan partnership, you can use 85,000 miles to fly one-way in Etihad business class between New York City and Abu Dhabi. Want to step the luxury up a notch? Then you can fly the same route in first class for 120,000 miles.

Better yet, Etihad does not charge carrier imposed surcharges on your redemptions via Aeroplan!

List of Star Alliance Partners

List of Non-Star Alliance Partners

List of Hotel Partners

Aeroplan offers 90 different opportunities to earn points with spending at its hotel partners.

For example, you can earn up to 3 Aeroplan points per $1 spent at Sheraton.

List of Car Rental Partners

Aeroplan partners with 3 different car rental companies that allow you to earn miles when you spend money on a car rental.

For example, a car rental with Avis will earn you 500 Aeroplan points per rental, plus a savings of 25%.

Use the Aeroplan Award Charts to Plan Travel

Aeroplan uses 10 award charts to determine flight costs between and within their 4 travel regions.

Aeroplan’s terms and conditions contain a number of rules that are important to review. For simplicity, here’s some of the most important rules to keep in mind as you’re going through the award flight process.

• Mileage is determined by the region, class of service, and whether the redemption is round-trip or one-way.
• Award flights must be confirmed at the time of booking — no waitlisting.
• Aeroplan does not charge a close-in (within 21 days) booking fee like you will find with United Airlines.
• Award flights booked over the phone require a $23 booking fee (C$30).
• Partner flights require a booking fee of $39 CAD.
• Free refunds within 24 hours of booking.
• Can refund awards up to 2 hours before departure (previously was 21 days).
• Award refunds fees are 125 CAD for refunding online, 150 CAD for telephone; free refunds for Air Canada Aeroplan Super Elite 100k members.

Final Thoughts

The Aeroplan program will likely go through some changes in the next few years, but in the meantime, there are still opportunities to maximize your Aeroplan points.

Utilizing the stopover and open jaw allowance — in conjunction with flying long-haul routes in business class — is where you will find the most value.

Business class flights to Europe on carriers that do not impose huge fees is likely the best use of your miles!