Points for the unprepared traveller
Loyalty program allows easy booking up to two days before departure
ST. AUGUSTINE, FLA— I’m surrounded by wrinkly knees, Tommy Bahama shirts, loud complaints about sore backs and the score in the latest Leafs’ game. It’s Florida in March.
Each year, millions of Canadians arrive here, accounting for almost half (sometimes more) of all Florida tourists, and contributing more than $2 billion to its economy.
According to Allison Wallace, media and communications manager for Flight Centre, Canadians follow fairly predictable travel patterns at this time of year. Florida, Mexico and a handful of Caribbean islands are the most popular destinations. My wife and I found a free ride to Florida with her parents, who come to St. Augustine on Florida’s northeast coast each year. But we left the task of arranging our trip home until fairly late. We tried booking a return flight using a cache of Aeroplan Miles we’d been hoarding for a couple of years. Because it was last-minute, we didn’t expect to have much success. We had no trouble finding a flight. Aaron Carr, Aeroplan’s general manager of product management and development, isn’t surprised. “There’s an increasing awareness that Aeroplan isn’t just a program for six or 12 months out, but also a program that can allow last-minute bookings,” he says. “Over 20 per cent of our bookings are made within two weeks of the departure.” Aeroplan encourages its members to plan ahead, Carr says. But, he adds, miles can be redeemed up to two hours before a flight. Aeroplan members have access to a last-minute travel tool through the company’s website, which shows an updated list of the top 20 last-minute destinations for that day. “The vast majority of our travel still remains for getaways in North America,” Carr says. “There’s a heavy emphasis on doing March Break in Florida.” Aeroplan isn’t the only rewards program that allows for last-minute travel. The Westjet Dollars rewards program, available to the public since November 2011, offers flexibility. Travellers can bank dollars and redeem them for face value at any time, including peak travel season.
“People are using the program to go to their spring break destinations,” says Marshall Wilmot, WestJet’s vice-president of product and distribution. “A lot of people want to escape the winter this time of year.”
Westjet’s program allows members to apply dollars toward fullprice tickets, too, so you don’t have to redeem all your dollars at once. But, Wilmot says, the program’s greatest appeal is its flexibility.
“The biggest thing that rewards members find frustrating is the limited availability and restrictions around redemption. We’ve eliminated that restriction.”