It’s no secret that I’m a fan of the Aeroplan program.

I’ve been known to find reasons to use my credit card to collect miles and it’s not uncommon to see me pouring over my statements to make sure I haven’t neglected to claim miles for travel or gas purchases.

So I was intrigued to learn  that Aeroplan is changing things up this year ahead of its 30th anniversary in 2014. After reviewing the changes, I’m pretty happy with where the program is headed but you should review the program changes for yourself to make sure you understand how it affects you and your future collection plans.

Here’s what you need to know:

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1.     The new Distinction Recognition Program:

The goal of the new plan is to recognize and reward top collecting members with preferential mileage levels for redemption, bonus mile offers and exclusive privileges. You’ll now be listed as either a dSilver, dBlack or dDiamond Distinction member based on the amount of miles you’ve collected (25k, 50K and 100K respectively) in a calendar year. Distinction levels are achieved based on miles earned across all coalition partners including airline, travel, retail and financial card partners. The benefits of the program begin January 1, 2014 and include new exclusive flight reward benefits, better travel redemption opportunities, new bonus mile offers and more.

Where to learn more: www.aeroplan.com/distinction

2.     New Market Fare Flight Rewards:

Used to looking for flight reward options under the ClassicPlus tab at aeroplan.com ? Watch for the switch to “Market Fare Rewards” effective January 1, 2014.  Along with the name change you’ll find reduced requirements for the number of miles it will take you to book a flight. All members will be able to see mileage requirements reduced by up to 20%, and Distinction members will be enjoying reductions of up to 50%!  Market Fare Flight Rewards give eligible members  access to every available seat on flights operated by Air Canada, at variable mileage levels.

3.     Cancellation of the Seven Year Redemption Policy:

The “use ‘em or lose ‘em” policy with respect to miles is history.  Under the previous plan, miles that went unredeemed for seven years after they were accumulated were declared null and void and removed from your account – this was supposed to start in 2014. It meant keeping track of dates and risking losing some of your travel currency. No longer. Under the new program, miles won’t expire as long as you stay active each calendar year in the program. To find out more, please visit: www.aeroplan.com/7year

And there’s more:

* As of January 1, 2014, mileage levels for one-way flight rewards will decrease and require only 50% of the miles needed for a round-trip flight. North American one way long haul fares in economy will be reduced from 17,000 miles to 12,500 miles and European one way fares will go from 40,000 miles to 30,000 miles starting January 1st.

* The downside: Mileage levels for certain international routes (to/from North America to Australia, New Zealand & South Pacific; Middle East and North Africa; and Asia) for business and first class ClassicFlight Rewards will increase as of January 1, 2014.  So keep that in mind as you book travel this year.  For more information, visit: www.aeroplan.com/changes

 

This post was sponsored by Aeroplan Canada. As usual, all opinions are my own.