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 might 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 marvel, then, that for a lot of frequent fliers, lounge entry is an particularly coveted bank card function. Let’s have a look at the lounge entry playing cards that presently prime the class in Canada.
MoneySense tip
Bank cards with airport lounge entry include an annual payment, however these charges differ considerably between playing cards. When looking for the right card, don’t get caught up on the payment alone. Realizing how a lot you fly in a median yr, and what different journey perks you propose to utilize, will make it easier to decide which card presents probably the most worth.
—MoneySense editors
Greatest total airport lounge entry bank card
At a look: With six complimentary airport lounge visits a yr, the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card presents probably the most free visits amongst bank cards in a comparable payment vary. For that purpose 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 overseas transaction (FX) payment. Different playing cards usually cost 2.5% on purchases made in a overseas forex.
featured
Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite
- Annual payment: $150 (waived for the primary yr)
- Earn price: 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 yr annual payment waived. Provide ends July 1, 2024.
- Annual earnings requirement: Private earnings of $60,000 or family earnings of $100,000
The professionals
- Obtain complimentary Visa Airport Companion Program membership, which incorporates six free lounge visits per yr, probably the most free visits of any journey bank card in an identical payment vary.
- No overseas transaction charges on purchases made in non-Canadian forex.
- It’s one of many few playing cards that don’t make you e-book journey by a proprietary reserving website so as to redeem factors. Whilst you can e-book with Scene+ Journey, you may also e-book journey on-line or with any journey company and nonetheless redeem Scene+ factors to cowl the price of your journey.
The cons
- The best earn price of three Scene+ factors is barely out there at a couple of grocery retailers.
- No cellular machine insurance coverage protection.
- Scene+ factors have a decrease worth when redeemed for present 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 is usually 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.
featured
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 in every single place else
- Welcome bonus: You may earn a welcome bonus of 20,000 Aeroplan factors while you make your first buy together with your new card; Earn a further 40,000 Aeroplan factors while you spend $10,000 inside 180 days of Account opening. Circumstances apply. Account should be accepted by June 3, 2024.
- Annual earnings requirement: Private earnings of $150,000 or family earnings 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 in depth 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 yr to DragonPass accomplice lounges.
- Benefit from 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 go.
- The included journey insurance coverage is powerful—with protection for the primary 31 days of your journey if you’re beneath 65, versus the extra widespread 15-21 days. You additionally get flight delay/ journey cancellation protection, widespread service and rental automobile accident insurance coverage.
The cons
- To qualify, you’ll want a excessive private or family earnings.
- 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 choice of airport lounges worldwide, together with top-tier American Specific Centurion Lounges. Relying on the lounge, cardholders might have a limiteless variety of free visits and can even carry one companion with them at no further value. Cardholders can even benefit from a yearly $200 journey credit score, which primarily 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 Specific 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 by 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 earnings requirement: None
The professionals
- The cardboard provides you entry to The American Specific International Lounge Assortment, which is the biggest airport lounge assortment out there, that includes greater than 1,300 lounges in over 140 international locations. Lounges embrace American Specific 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 Specific Journey On-line.
- When staying at eligible Superb Lodges + Resorts, take pleasure in extras like assured late check-out and complimentary every 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 Specific isn’t as broadly 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 yr, you’ll admire that the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard presents free membership within the Mastercard Journey Go program offered by DragonPass, plus 4 free passes a yr. 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, accommodations and automobile leases it doesn’t matter what journey supplier you booked with.
featured
BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard
- Annual payment: $150 (waived for the primary yr)
- 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 yr for each the first cardholder and licensed customers.
- Annual earnings requirement: Private earnings of $80,000 or family earnings of $150,000
The professionals
- Comes with free membership within the Mastercard Journey Go program offered by DragonPass, in addition to 4 free passes a yr.
- Strong choice 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 may redeem factors for journey purchases with out shopping for from a particular supplier.
The cons
- To qualify, you’ll want an annual private earnings of $80,000 or a family earnings of $150,000.
- The cardboard’s base earn price of 1 BMO level per greenback comes out to a return of 0.67%, which is significantly decrease than 1 % return supplied by most comparable playing cards on generic purchases that don’t fall beneath a bonus class
Greatest airport lounge entry card for travelling to the U.S.
At a look: Should you ceaselessly 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 yr. Each 4 years, you get a press release credit score of as much as $100 in direction of a Nexus utility payment.
CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite
- Annual payment: $139 (rebated for first yr)
- Rewards: 2 factors per $1 spent on journey by 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 yr annual payment rebate.
- Annual earnings requirement: Private earnings of $60,000 or family earnings 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 yr.
- Versatile rewards program that means that you can redeem factors for journey, merchandise, present playing cards, mortgage funds and extra.
- Save as much as 10 cents/litre on gasoline at eligible gasoline stations should you 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 price of two factors for each $1 spent, you should make a journey buy through the CIBC Rewards Centre.
- The worth of factors decreases once they’re not used for journey.
- There may be an $80,000 cap on the 1.5-point earn price, after which you’ll solely get 1 level per $1 spent on groceries, gasoline and drugstore purchases.
Our methodology: How we decide the perfect playing cards
The MoneySense editorial staff selects the perfect bank cards by assessing the worth they supply to Canadians throughout numerous classes. Our greatest bank cards for airport lounge entry rating is predicated on an in depth record of card particulars and options—with a deal with people who matter to air travellers—together with the variety of airport lounge visits, annual charges, rates of interest, welcome presents, rewards earn charges and redemption choices, annual earnings necessities and perks. We now have additionally thought-about the professionals and cons of every card that will help you decide which of them greatest fit your monetary wants. Our rankings are an unbiased supply of knowledge 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 Go offered by DragonPass. This system consists of entry to Plaza Premium lounges in Canada, in addition to lots of of various lounge applications worldwide. Lounges function snacks and drinks, free Wi-Fi, showers and enterprise centres. Cardholders can normally use their free passes for themselves and for a visitor, however particular guidelines differ by lounge. | Greater than 1,200 worldwide |
| Maple Leaf Lounges | Facilities embrace 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 Specific or a Star Alliance accomplice airline. | 16 throughout North America and Europe |
| Centurion Lounges | Centurion Lounges usually function high-quality meals (designed by award-winning cooks) and drinks (and should even function a signature cocktail), free high-speed Wi-Fi, plush seating and devoted working areas. Some function elevated facilities like spa providers, nap pods and showers. Centurion Lounges are sometimes a part of The American Specific International Lounge Assortment that options greater than 1,300 airport lounges in over 140 international locations. | Greater than 40 worldwide |
Tips on how to 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 may get a sure variety of lounge visits yearly in particular international locations world wide. If you wish to get free limitless entry to airport lounges, contemplate a bank card just like the American Specific Platinum Card which incorporates the American Specific International Lounge Assortment. The cardboard comes with a pretty big annual payment, like most bank cards with airport lounge entry, however the card’s rewards and advantages might outweigh the payment if you’re a frequent flier and worth the power to go to airport lounges while you’re touring.
DragonPass vs. Precedence Go: Which do you have to select?
DragonPass and Precedence Go are third-party lounge entry membership suppliers. Up till 2022, Precedence Go was the first accomplice for many Mastercard and Visa airport lounge applications. Nonetheless, DragonPass has develop into the accomplice of alternative 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 Go program with the American Specific Platinum Card, nonetheless.
Often requested questions
Extra of Canada’s greatest bank cards:
What does the * imply?
Affiliate (monetized) hyperlinks can generally end in a fee to MoneySense (owned by Ratehub Inc.), which helps our web site keep free to our customers. If a hyperlink has an asterisk (*) or is labelled as “Featured,” it’s an affiliate hyperlink. If a hyperlink is labelled as “Sponsored,” it’s a paid placement, which can or might not have an affiliate hyperlink. Our editorial content material won’t ever be influenced by these hyperlinks. We’re dedicated to all out there merchandise available in the market. The place a product ranks in our article, and whether or not or not it’s included within the first place, is rarely pushed by compensation. For extra particulars, learn our
MoneySense Monetization coverage.
