Aeroplan adds Bamboo Airways as its newest airline partner
Air Canada's Aeroplan loyalty program is often considered one of the best in the industry among award travelers.
This is mainly because of the program's commitment to an award chart, lack of fuel surcharges, ability to add stopovers, ease of earning and Aeroplan's ever-growing list of airline partners.
Just a week after adding SunExpress to its roster of airline partners, the loyalty program is adding Bamboo Airways as its first partner in Vietnam.
Let's take a closer look at what this means for Aeroplan members.
Related: Maximizing Aeroplan: How I added a stopover to my award ticket for 5,000 points
The basics
As of Nov. 8, Aeroplan members can earn and redeem points for travel on Bamboo Airways, a relatively new airline based in Vietnam.
The airline was founded in 2017 and already has a solid route network, especially for domestic flights within Vietnam.
More interestingly, however, Bamboo Airways has long-haul international destinations such as London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Melbourne, Australia. The airline also plans to launch long-haul service to Los Angeles in the near future.
Bamboo Airways doesn't currently have any partners, so Aeroplan is the only way for most travelers outside of Vietnam to book award tickets on the airline. This opens up even more opportunities for Aeroplan members to book award flights from the U.S. and Canada to Vietnam, as they can connect to Bamboo Airways flights from its international outposts.
Related: Why you should do the math before booking an Aeroplan stopover
Sample itineraries
Thanks to this new partnership, you can now redeem Air Canada Aeroplan points on Bamboo Airways flights. Like all Aeroplan partners, Bamboo Airways follows Aeroplan's standard partner award pricing chart to determine redemption rates between and within its travel zones.
Aeroplan breaks up the world into four regions — North America, Atlantic, Pacific and South America. To know exactly how many points your award ticket will cost, it's important to know what zone you're flying to and from.
Bamboo Airways flights can be combined with flights on other Aeroplan international partners to create larger awards. Bamboo Airways' hubs for international travel are Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
With Bamboo's Los Angeles service not yet launched, you'll need to connect to or from another Aeroplan partner if you plan to fly from the U.S. to Vietnam with the airline.
For example, you can get to major hubs like Seoul's Incheon International Airport (ICN) with Asiana and then connect to Bamboo Airways flights to cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
As of now, Bamboo Airways is well connected to major Asian hubs including Tokyo; Taipei, Taiwan; Bangkok; and Singapore, to name a few. Thanks to Aeroplan's award chart, some of the shortest Bamboo Airways flights cost just 8,000 Aeroplan points.
If you plan to redeem one of these tickets, you can transfer points from American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Capital One and Chase Ultimate Rewards to Aeroplan at a 1:1 transfer ratio.
You can also transfer points from Marriott Bonvoy at a 3:1 ratio with a 5,000-point bonus for every 60,000 Marriott points you transfer.
Related: Your ultimate guide to searching award availability for the major airlines
Earning Aeroplan points with Bamboo Airways
As part of the new partnership, you can also earn Aeroplan points when flying on cash fares with Bamboo Airways. Aeroplan members earn points based on a percentage of the distance flown. It is worth noting that Bamboo Airways flights don't count toward elite status qualification with Aeroplan.
Related: Complete guide to Aeroplan's stopover and routing rules
Bottom line
Air Canada Aeroplan continues to impress and has added Bamboo Airways as another international airline partner.
This new partnership offers Aeroplan members convenient access to a wide range of destinations in Vietnam. Even better, Bamboo Airways will soon be launching long-haul service to Los Angeles, allowing for other great points redemption opportunities.
Aeroplan has been on a roll with adding new airline partners. Just last week, the carrier introduced partner awards on Turkish carrier SunExpress. We've also seen the loyalty program add partnerships with Oman Air, Virgin Australia and Gulf Air, among others, over the last two years.
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