The most effective bank cards for airport lounge entry in Canada for 2024
Airport lounge entry can rework an in any other case gruelling layover into a soothing respite. Lounges could supply free snacks and drinks (together with complimentary alcoholic drinks), free Wi-Fi, plentiful comfy seating, devoted work areas, showers, sleep pods and even spa providers. It’s little surprise, then, that for a lot of frequent fliers, lounge entry is an particularly coveted bank card characteristic. Let’s have a look at the lounge entry playing cards that at the moment high the class in Canada.
MoneySense tip
Bank cards with airport lounge entry include an annual payment, however these charges fluctuate considerably between playing cards. When looking for the proper card, don’t get caught up on the payment alone. Realizing how a lot you fly in a mean 12 months, and what different journey perks you propose to utilize, will enable you decide which card provides probably the most worth.
—MoneySense editors
Greatest general airport lounge entry bank card
At a look: With six complimentary airport lounge visits a 12 months, the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card provides probably the most free visits amongst bank cards in a comparable payment vary. For that motive alone, the cardboard pays for itself. Including to its travel-friendly attract is the truth that it’s one of many few playing cards in Canada that doesn’t cost a international transaction (FX) payment. Different playing cards sometimes cost 2.5% on purchases made in a international foreign money.
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Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite
- Annual payment: $150 (waived for the primary 12 months)
- Earn fee: 3 Scene+ factors per $1 spent at Sobeys shops; 2 factors per $1 on groceries, eating, leisure and transit; 1 level per $1 on all the things else. Plus, pay no FX charges
- Welcome supply: earn as much as $1,300 in worth within the first 12 months, together with as much as 40,000 bonus Scene+ factors and first 12 months annual payment waived. Supply ends July 1, 2024.
- Annual revenue requirement: Private revenue of $60,000 or family revenue of $100,000
The professionals
- Obtain complimentary Visa Airport Companion Program membership, which incorporates six free lounge visits per 12 months, probably the most free visits of any journey bank card in an identical payment vary.
- No international transaction charges on purchases made in non-Canadian foreign money.
- It’s one of many few playing cards that don’t make you guide journey via a proprietary reserving website so as to redeem factors. Whilst you can guide with Scene+ Journey, you may as well guide journey on-line or with any journey company and nonetheless redeem Scene+ factors to cowl the price of your journey.
The cons
- The very best earn fee of three Scene+ factors is just obtainable at a couple of grocery retailers.
- No cell system insurance coverage protection.
- Scene+ factors have a decrease worth when redeemed for reward playing cards or merchandise than when used for grocery purchases and journey.
Greatest luxurious airport lounge entry card
At a look: For Aeroplan factors collectors who need an elevated airport expertise, the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege bank card could be a nice journey companion. It’s filled with journey advantages like limitless free entry for you and a visitor to Maple Leaf Lounges all through North America.
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TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege
- Annual payment: $599
- Rewards: 2 Aeroplan factors per $1 on direct purchases with Air Canada and Air Canada Holidays, 1.5 Aeroplan factors per $1 on eligible gasoline, grocery, journey and eating purchases, 1.25 factors per $1 spent all over the place else
- Welcome bonus: You may earn a welcome bonus of 20,000 Aeroplan factors whenever you make your first buy along with your new card; Earn an extra 40,000 Aeroplan factors whenever you spend $10,000 inside 180 days of Account opening. Circumstances apply. Account have to be permitted by June 3, 2024.
- Annual revenue requirement: Private revenue of $150,000 or family revenue of $200,000
The cardboard additionally comes with a complimentary membership within the Visa Airport Companion Program and consists of six lounge visits, usable at over 1,200 airport lounges worldwide. You’ll actually really feel like a VIP on the airport with different perks like precedence check-in, boarding and baggage dealing with, and also you’ll get peace of thoughts with an intensive suite of journey insurance coverage.
The professionals
- Consists of limitless entry to Maple Leaf Lounges for you and a visitor and 6 free visits per 12 months to DragonPass associate lounges.
- Reap the benefits of a Nexus payment rebate of as much as $100 each two years.
- Comes filled with beneficiant travel-friendly perks like precedence boarding and upgrades, in addition to a companion move.
- The included journey insurance coverage is powerful—with protection for the primary 31 days of your journey in case you are underneath 65, versus the extra frequent 15-21 days. You additionally get flight delay/ journey cancellation protection, frequent service and rental automobile accident insurance coverage.
The cons
- To qualify, you’ll want a excessive private or family revenue.
- Even for a premium card with tons of perks, the annual payment is excessive, at $599.
- Most of the journey advantages (like precedence check-in and precedence boarding) solely apply to flights operated by Air Canada.
Greatest airport lounge entry card for frequent travellers
At a look: It’s one of the costly premium bank cards in Canada, however the $799 annual payment will get you entry to probably the most complete and amenity-laden collection of airport lounges worldwide, together with top-tier American Categorical Centurion Lounges. Relying on the lounge, cardholders could have an infinite variety of free visits and may deliver one companion with them at no further value. Cardholders may make the most of a yearly $200 journey credit score, which basically brings the price of the cardboard all the way down to $599 so long as you make some extent of utilizing the credit score.
American Categorical Platinum
- Annual payment: $799
- Rewards: 2 factors per $1 on eating and meals supply; 2 factors per $1 on journey, plus 1 further level on purchases booked via Amex Journey On-line; 1 level per $1 on all the things else.
- Welcome bonus: You may earn as much as 100,000 rewards factors ($1,000 worth). Circumstances apply.
- Annual revenue requirement: None
The professionals
- The cardboard provides you entry to The American Categorical International Lounge Assortment, which is the most important airport lounge assortment obtainable, that includes greater than 1,300 lounges in over 140 nations. Lounges embody American Categorical Centurion Lounges, Plaza Premium and Delta Sky lounges.
- Get a $200 credit score that may be redeemed in direction of a journey buy made through American Categorical Journey On-line.
- When staying at eligible Advantageous Motels + Resorts, get pleasure from extras like assured late check-out and complimentary each day breakfast for 2.
The cons
- Comes with one of many highest annual charges in Canada.
- The journey medical insurance coverage is considerably lacklustre for such a excessive annual payment—it solely covers you for as much as 15 consecutive days (different playing cards supply 20 days or extra) and doesn’t supply any insurance coverage to those that are 65 or older.
- American Categorical isn’t as extensively accepted by retailers in Canada as Visa and Mastercard.
Greatest airport lounge entry card for infrequent journey
At a look: If you end up in an airport even only a few occasions a 12 months, you’ll respect that the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard provides free membership within the Mastercard Journey Move program offered by DragonPass, plus 4 free passes a 12 months. BMO additionally has one of the versatile redemption applications within the nation, so you possibly can redeem your factors to cowl eligible journey purchases like flights, lodges and automobile leases it doesn’t matter what journey supplier you booked with.
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BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard
- Annual payment: $150 (waived for the primary 12 months)
- Earn charges: 5 factors per $1 spent on eligible journey purchases; 3 factors per $1 on eating, leisure, and recurring invoice funds; 1 level per $1 on all the things else
- Welcome bonus: You may earn as much as 100,000 factors and the annual payment waived within the first 12 months for each the first cardholder and licensed customers.
- Annual revenue requirement: Private revenue of $80,000 or family revenue of $150,000
The professionals
- Comes with free membership within the Mastercard Journey Move program offered by DragonPass, in addition to 4 free passes a 12 months.
- Stable collection of journey insurance coverage that features journey medical, journey cancellation/journey interruption insurance coverage, and delayed and misplaced baggage insurance coverage.
- BMO Rewards has one of the versatile redemption applications within the nation, and you’ll redeem factors for journey purchases with out shopping for from a selected supplier.
The cons
- To qualify, you’ll want an annual private revenue of $80,000 or a family revenue of $150,000.
- The cardboard’s base earn fee of 1 BMO level per greenback comes out to a return of 0.67%, which is significantly decrease than 1 % return provided by most comparable playing cards on generic purchases that don’t fall underneath a bonus class
Greatest airport lounge entry card for travelling to the U.S.
At a look: If you happen to incessantly cross the border to the U.S. for holidays, work journeys or household visits, contemplate the CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite. The cardboard consists of membership within the Visa Airport Companion Program and in addition provides you 4 free lounge visits a 12 months. Each 4 years, you get an announcement credit score of as much as $100 in direction of a Nexus utility payment.
CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite
- Annual payment: $139 (rebated for first 12 months)
- Rewards: 2 factors per $1 spent on journey via the CIBC Rewards Centre; 1.5 factors per $1 on gasoline, groceries and drugstores; 1 level per $1 on all the things else
- Welcome bonus: You may earn as much as $1,500 in worth together with a primary 12 months annual payment rebate.
- Annual revenue requirement: Private revenue of $60,000 or family revenue of $100,000
The professionals
- Features a free membership to the Visa Airport Companion Program managed by DragonPass, in addition to 4 free lounge visits per 12 months.
- Versatile rewards program that permits you to redeem factors for journey, merchandise, reward playing cards, mortgage funds and extra.
- Save as much as 10 cents/litre on gasoline at eligible gasoline stations if you happen to hyperlink your card with Journie Rewards, a loyalty program that helps you earn factors at Pioneer, Fasgas, Ultramar and Chevron gasoline stations.
The cons
- To get the best earn fee of two factors for each $1 spent, you need to make a journey buy through the CIBC Rewards Centre.
- The worth of factors decreases after they’re not used for journey.
- There may be an $80,000 cap on the 1.5-point earn fee, after which you’ll solely get 1 level per $1 spent on groceries, gasoline and drugstore purchases.
Our methodology: How we decide the most effective playing cards
The MoneySense editorial crew selects the most effective bank cards by assessing the worth they supply to Canadians throughout numerous classes. Our greatest bank cards for airport lounge entry rating relies on an intensive checklist of card particulars and options—with a concentrate on people who matter to air travellers—together with the variety of airport lounge visits, annual charges, rates of interest, welcome provides, rewards earn charges and redemption choices, annual revenue necessities and perks. Now we have additionally thought-about the professionals and cons of every card that can assist you decide which of them finest fit your monetary wants. Our rankings are an unbiased supply of data for Canadians. The addition of hyperlinks from affiliate companions has no bearing on the outcomes. Learn extra about how MoneySense makes cash.
Airport lounge entry applications in Canada
| Program | Key particulars | Variety of lounges |
|---|---|---|
| DragonPass | In 2022, DragonPass took over the airport lounge applications for Visa and Mastercard; in Canada, the applications are actually respectively known as the Visa Airport Companion Program and Mastercard Journey Move offered by DragonPass. This system consists of entry to Plaza Premium lounges in Canada, in addition to a whole bunch of various lounge applications worldwide. Lounges characteristic snacks and drinks, free Wi-Fi, showers and enterprise centres. Cardholders can often use their free passes for themselves and for a visitor, however particular guidelines fluctuate by lounge. | Greater than 1,200 worldwide |
| Maple Leaf Lounges | Facilities embody cell-free quiet zones, snacks and drinks, free Wi-Fi and showers. Maple Leaf Lounges can solely be utilized by prospects departing on flights operated by Air Canada, Air Canada Rouge, Air Canada Categorical or a Star Alliance associate airline. | 16 throughout North America and Europe |
| Centurion Lounges | Centurion Lounges sometimes characteristic high-quality meals (designed by award-winning cooks) and drinks (and should even characteristic a signature cocktail), free high-speed Wi-Fi, plush seating and devoted working areas. Some characteristic elevated facilities like spa providers, nap pods and showers. Centurion Lounges are sometimes a part of The American Categorical International Lounge Assortment that options greater than 1,300 airport lounges in over 140 nations. | Greater than 40 worldwide |
get free entry to airport lounges in Canada
A number of journey bank cards supply entry to airport lounges for cardholders. Relying on the bank card, you will get a sure variety of lounge visits yearly in particular nations around the globe. If you wish to get free limitless entry to airport lounges, contemplate a bank card just like the American Categorical Platinum Card which incorporates the American Categorical International Lounge Assortment. The cardboard comes with a reasonably large annual payment, like most bank cards with airport lounge entry, however the card’s rewards and advantages could outweigh the payment in case you are a frequent flier and worth the flexibility to go to airport lounges whenever you’re touring.
DragonPass vs. Precedence Move: Which do you have to select?
DragonPass and Precedence Move are third-party lounge entry membership suppliers. Up till 2022, Precedence Move was the first associate for many Mastercard and Visa airport lounge applications. Nonetheless, DragonPass has change into the associate of selection for many bank card lounge entry applications for playing cards just like the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege and the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite. You may nonetheless entry the Precedence Move program with the American Categorical Platinum Card, nevertheless.
Regularly requested questions
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