Questions and Answers

Hello all,

I have a Canadian American Express Platinum and a RBC Avion Infinite and I’m having trouble deciding which card to put the majority of my purchases. I have roughly about $50k to $60k of charges on my primary card annually.

Being based out of Vancouver, my major travels (not too frequent) are either to England, China/HK, LA, Vegas or NYC. I’d like to avoid BA flights since I’d have to pay all the fees/surcharges on award seats. For Asia, I would fly Cathay or JAL. For Europe, I’m not sure if I should be accumulating Delta Skymiles or AAdvantage Miles/BA Avios. Since I’m located in Vancouver, Delta has more flights to Europe from Seattle. I would prefer to have a short connection with a following long flight (so I can enjoy the amenities of business/first and actually sleep) than breaking up and having two 5-ish hour flights. Not sure if flying Vancouver to LA and then connecting in LA to Europe is better from a miles perspective for AAdvantage Miles versus Vancouver to Seattle and then connecting in Seattle to Europe with Delta Skymiles.

For Avion, $1 equals 1 RBC Reward point which is convertible on a 1:1 ratio for BA Avios, Asia Miles and AAdvantage Miles. There are more frequent conversion bonuses for Avion to BA and AA.

For Amex, $1 equals 1.25 MR which is convertible on a 1:1 ratio for BA Avios, but a 1000:750 ratio for Delta Skymiles and AAdvantage miles. The conversion bonuses to BA has become rather infrequent and the most recent one was only 1:1.25.

Any comments/suggestions are welcome!

[USER=1300]@Ed W[/USER] As you’ve analysed, all the currencies have their advantages and disadvantages. All things considered I would continue to accumulate on your Avion card for eventual transfer to AA. This maximizes your earnings since DL earnings will be lower than 1:1 and they are leading the way in destruction of FF benefits. Even with the upcoming devaluation AA offers several options to maximize value and a partnership with AS to expand transfer options. Long non-stops might not always be possible unfortunately. Good luck!

[QUOTE=”Gaurav, post: 10876, member: 79″][USER=1300]@Ed W[/USER] As you’ve analysed, all the currencies have their advantages and disadvantages. All things considered I would continue to accumulate on your Avion card for eventual transfer to AA. This maximizes your earnings since DL earnings will be lower than 1:1 and they are leading the way in destruction of FF benefits. Even with the upcoming devaluation AA offers several options to maximize value and a partnership with AS to expand transfer options. Long non-stops might not always be possible unfortunately. Good luck![/QUOTE]

Thanks for this! Most of my spending have actually been on my Amex and I’ve only converted my MR to Avios and DL Skymiles. I’ve never used AA before, do you find that the redemptions are better for Cathay/JAL using AA miles than Avios? I’m fine to switch most of my spending to my Avion though. I’d still keep my Amex as I enjoy the other perks (it’s my vanity tax).

You’ll really have to do the math on that since it depends on your route. Avios are usually good for shorter trips being distance based and AA open up more possibilities for a fixed price between zones. There may be direct routes where Avios might work well, I don’t remember whether CX charges fuel or other surcharges that BA would pass on while AA would not.