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Public transportation is usually the ideal option when I travel alone. However, sometimes that doesn’t make sense. On my last trip in Europe, I used Blacklane for the first time in Monaco. Blacklane is a swanky car service that surprised me with their reasonable prices. My family and I stayed at the Fairmont Monte Carlo with free night certificates, thanks to the expedited Platinum elite status offered by the American Express Platinum Card. Sadly, Fairmont was acquired by Accor last year, and the new program is not rewarding at all.
Booking Blacklane
Our onward flight to Venice was from Nice Airport (NCE), 45 minutes away by car. Uber does not operate in Monaco, so there was two bus options – local with transfers (>10 euros) or one direct to the airport (22 euros). I could also have taken a helicopter at sky-high prices, of course. So for the first time, I booked using Blacklane.
Blacklane – 20% off your First Ride
This made sense because we had several pieces of luggage. As well, my mom fell and injured her leg. The booking process was simple, although it was interesting to note that the prices changed even if you altered your departure time by 10-15 minutes. You can also get 20% off your first ride with voucher code 5LGH4592.
Blacklane – Booking Process
Why Blacklane?
The ride ended up being 71 EUR, which was less than what a taxi would cost. The Mercedes was nice and it helped to have a confirmed pick-up, with notifications when the driver arrived (like other ridesharing apps). In many circumstances, Blacklane could also be cheaper than a hotel car, or Uber during surge pricing. They also have airport service on arrival, which can be helpful after a long flight or at a new airport.
Blacklane – Mercedes
Finally, you also can earn miles with a variety of airline programs, including Singapore Airlines Krisflyer and Cathay Pacific Asia Miles. I added my Lufthansa Miles & More number to earn two points per dollar, and then used my Chase Ink Preferred Visa to pay, earning 3x UR points on travel. Alternatively, Canadians without access to American credit cards could also use the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite to earn two points per dollar with no foreign transaction fees.
Overall, I really liked my experience with Blacklane and would definitely check their pricing next time to see whether it’s a worthwhile option compared to other alternatives.
Use voucher code 5LGH4592 to get 20% off your first Blacklane ride.
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Hi Jeff
Bit confused over non-forex credit cards.
You mentioned that Home Preferred Visa is the only card with no Forex then later mentioned the Scotia Visa has no Forex.
Pls clarify.
The Hometrust preferred visa is the only card with no forex AND no annual fee. The scotia visa has an annual fee but is more suitable for a mainstream card with higher rewards.
Aren’t you then no better off picking up the Rogers WE? No AF and yes you get charged the 2.5% FOREX but it’s 4% cash back off foreign currency purchase.
No, I strongly dislike the fact that you can’t use them towards anything except Rogers purchases, and that you end up paying 5% forex with no rewards if you refund your transaction.
Come on dude you work and live with credit cards, you should know the Rogers charge 2.5% fee on purchase but refunds at spot rate, this has been confirmed by many on RFD.
Not sure where you’re hearing that, but the refunds are definitely NOT at the spot rate.
http://forums.redflagdeals.com/rogers-world-elite-mc-2-rogers-1-75-other-cdn-4-net-1-50-foreign-big-improvement-coming-feb-2019-2179733/
Important bit in OP, has been verified by many many individuals:
Returning merchants in foreign currencies:
2.5% loss, NOT 5%.
Good to know, that was not the case previously. However, reading the last few months, you are only able to redeem for Rogers services. While they said that would be changed, it has not happened. Until that happens, it’s not even worth considering.
Their service can be spotty depending on their local partner.(They contract out to local car services and do not own nor operate their own fleet.) I’ve had problems in various countries and cities ranging from the car going to the wrong hotel for my pick-up (almost missed my flight) to a total lack of professionalism (driver shows up in shorts/t-shirt with a non-business class car). And in terms of customer care for complaints, their standard response is to send you a discount code.
They had a credit card promo last year and they cancelled all the credits. I will never use them. It doesn’t make sense to use them in most cases anyway, except very extremely rare cases maybe, like your situation, and even that is debatable.