Aeroplan has been offering a 35% transfer bonus if you transfer your hotel points to your Aeroplan account. This is one of the highest promotions ever, because there is no minimum amount you need to transfer to get the full 35% bonus. This expires August 21, next Tuesday. These are the two best options to get the maximum value out of your hotel points.

SPG -> Aeroplan Transfer

SPG points transfer at a 1:1 ratio, with a 5,000 bonus every 20,000 points. Since any amount qualifies for the 35% bonus, a 20,000 SPG point transfer to Aeroplan will yield 33,750 points, a 1:1.69 ratio. Transferring SPG to Aeroplan is a good idea if you have a smaller amount of SPG and would like to top up your Aeroplan account.

For example, if you got approved and completed the spend for the Personal SPG American Express Card, you would earn 26,500 SPG points. This would net you 42,525 Aeroplan points, almost enough for a one-way business class ticket from North America to Europe 1. You can transfer a maximum of 74,999 points each time, but the best amount are increments of 20,000 so you get the highest bonus.

If you earned another 17,000 Aeroplan points in your account, that would be enough for a 70,000 mile redemption for First Class between Europe 1 and North America. You could fly Lufthansa First, an amazing flight experience which can include getting driven in a Porsche or a Mercedes to your plane in Frankfurt.

SPG points take 4 calendar days to transfer to Aeroplan, so you should initiate the transfer by August 17. If you decide not to transfer to Aeroplan, there are also many other unique airline partners to transfer to. SPG is the cheapest way to redeem for many awards – from a short-haul coach flight on Alaska to Emirates First Class on their A380. If you have even 60,000 miles, I would recommend redeeming a Marriott Hotel and Air package instead.

Additional Reading: Best Flight Redemptions with SPG

Marriott -> Aeroplan Transfer

A Marriott Hotel and Air redemption is one of the most lucrative if you a have a large amount of points stockpiled. They consist of a 7-night hotel certificate and set number of airline miles. The sweet spot is the Category 1-5 certificate with 120,000 Miles. This costs 270,000 Marriott Points. SPG transfers to Marriott at a 1:3 ratio instantly, meaning you only need 90,000 SPG points for this redemption.

Reports online say that it takes 4-7 days from your Marriott transfer to when the points post to the Aeroplan account. This will backdate to one or two days after you initiate the transfer. That means if you transfer your points today, August 15, the points will show up into your account by August 21. The transaction on Aeroplan will show the date, August 16/17, qualifying you for the promotion. You should transfer your Aeroplan by August 19 if you want to take advantage of the promotion.

With the Aeroplan Transfer Promotion:

90,000 SPG -> 270,000 Marriott -> 7 Night Cat. 1-5 Certificate + 162,000 Aeroplan Miles (120,000 + 37,000 Bonus)

If you were to get other miles, like Alaska Airlines:

90,000 SPG -> 270,000 Marriott -> 7 Night Cat. 1-5 Certificate + 120,000 Airlines Miles

Getting 270,000 Marriott Points

If you don’t enough miles, you can get you enough with just four credit cards.

1: SPG Personal American Express Card – 75,000 Marriott (25,000 SPG) Points (Increased Bonus)

This is one of the best offers for the SPG American Express out there, with the previous bonus at 20,000 SPG points only. After completing the $1500 minimum spend within three months, you will have 79,500 Marriott Points (26,500 SPG points). The increased bonus ends in October.

2: Chase Canada Marriott Visa – 50,000 Marriott (16,666 SPG) Points

You earn the points after the first purchase, which is great. It’s been rumoured this card will be closed for new applications within the next few months, so it’s also an “act-now” card. Your balance is now 149,501 Marriott points after this card.

3: SPG Business American Express Card - 75,000 Marriott (25,000 SPG) Points (Increased Bonus)

As I mention in my SPG American Express Review, you can get this card even if you don’t have a registered business. After getting this card, you will have 229,001 points.

3A: SPG Referral Bonus – 30,000 Marriott (10,000 SPG)

To get the referral bonus of 10,000 SPG points, I recommend trading referrals with a friend. This is where you apply using his/her referral link, and vice versa. They keep your bonus for referring them, and they keep their bonus for referring you. This is a much better method than self-referring, which I strongly recommend against. That is against the T&C and you will be left high and dry in the event it doesn’t work.

4: Scotiabank Gold American Express OR American Express Gold Rewards Card – 30,000 Points

The Scotiabank American Express Gold Card has the first year annual fee waived, and you could get up to 30,000 points ($300 in travel credit) absolutely free. You can use this on taxes on your Aeroplan award ticket. For more details, see my review of the card. Otherwise, you could get the American Express Gold Card which earns you 30,000 Membership Rewards points. You can convert that either to 30,000 Aeroplan points, or 45,000 Marriott points (15,000 SPG Points) for a higher category hotel certificate.

Redeeming a Hotel and Air Package

You have to call Marriott Rewards at 1-800-321-7396 to redeem your package. With your redemption, you now have 162,000 Aeroplan miles, enough to take a mini round-the-world trip in business class, or a First Class round-trip to Europe. In addition, your Cat 1-5 certificate gets you a free week of hotels at hundreds of hotels around the world. I recently stayed at the Renaissance Santiago on my trip to Chile and Easter Island, and the views were truly spectacular.

View the full details of the Transfer Promotion on Aeroplan’s website.

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