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Aeroplan is the frequent flyer rewards program of Air Canada, the flag carrier and largest airline in Canada, headquartered in Saint Laurent, Montreal, Quebec. The airline is currently a member of Star Alliance, which means that Aeroplan members can earn Aeroplan points by flying with any Star Alliance airline (as well as with several non-Star Alliance airlines). Aeroplan members can also earn points in a variety of other ways, including booking hotel stays, renting cars, buying merchandise and more.
Once you collect a sum of Aeroplan points, those points can then be redeemed in many different ways. You can book hotels, rent cars, buy gift cards, donate to charity and more. However, like almost all frequent flyer programs, the best way to redeem points through Air Canada Aeroplan is to purchase award flights on Air Canada or one of its partner airlines.
Air Canada is one of the most beloved frequent flyer programs in the world, largely due to the fact the program has a massive list of 48 airline partners with which you can redeem Aeroplan points. And, award flights from all of these airline partners (except Emirates and Fly Dubai) are priced according to a series of zone-based award charts, which makes it easy to find sweet spots through the Aeroplan program.
Air Canada prices its own award flights using a similar set of zone-based award charts, which work the exact same way as the partner award charts.
Aeroplan Award Charts For Flights on Air Canada
Air Canada prices its own award flights according to a zone-based series of award charts. In order to use these award charts, you need to first find out your zones of departure and arrival. Then, you need to find the specific award chart for your route. Next, you must determine the distance of your flight in miles (the Great Circle Mapper is a good tool for this). With those steps completed, you can find out the cost of your Air Canada-operated award flight based on your cabin class.
Here is a map of the zones that determine the prices of Air Canada- and partner-operated award flights:
Using this map, you can determine which zone you’re flying out of and into and then find the corresponding award chart for your flight.
You should be aware that Air Canada’s own award charts express prices as ranges. For instance, if the list price is “20,000–35,000”, then the award cost may cost anywhere between 20,000 Aeroplan points and 35,000 Aeroplan points.
It’s worth noting that all of the award flight prices listed below are for one-way travel. If you want to find the price of a round-trip flight, you can simply double the value listed in the award chart.
Within North America
This is the award chart for Air Canada flights within the North America zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Premium Economy | Business |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–500 | 6,000–10,000 | 10,000–20,000 | 15,000–25,000 |
| 501–1,500 | 10,000–15,000 | 15,000–25,000 | 20,000–35,000 |
| 1,501–2,750 | 12,500–17,500 | 20,000–35,000 | 25,000–60,000 |
| 2,751+ | 17,500–25,000 | 30,000–45,000 | 35,000–70,000 |
Between North America and Atlantic Zones
This is the award chart for Air Canada flights between the North America zone and the Atlantic zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | First |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–4,000 | 35,000 | 60,000 | 90,000 |
| 4,001–6,000 | 40,000 | 70,000 | 100,000 |
| 6,001–8,000 | 55,000 | 90,000 | 130,000 |
| 8,001+ | 70,000 | 110,000 | 140,000 |
Between North America and Pacific Zones
This is the award chart for partner flights between the North America zone and the Pacific zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | First |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–5,000 | 35,000 | 55,000 | 90,000 |
| 5,001–7,500 | 50,000 | 75,000 | 110,000 |
| 7,501–11,000 | 60,000 | 87,000 | 130,000 |
| 11,001+ | 75,000 | 115,000 | 150,000 |
Between North America and South America
This is the award chart for partner flights between the North America zone and the South America zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | Firsts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–2,500 | 20,000 | 40,000 | 60,000 |
| 2,501–4,500 | 30,000 | 50,000 | 80,000 |
| 4,501+ | 40,000 | 60,000 | 100,000 |
Between Atlantic and Pacific Zones
This is the award chart for Air Canada flights between the Atlantic zone and the Pacific zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Premium Economy | Business | First |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–2,500 | 25,000–50,000 | 30,000–65,000 | 40,000–75,000 | 50,000–100,000 |
| 2,501–5,000 | 30,000–60,000 | 50,000–75,000 | 50,000–175,000 | 80,000–200,000 |
| 5,001–7,000 | 40,000–70,000 | 65,000–80,000 | 60,000–200,000 | 100,000–250,000 |
| 7,001+ | 40,000–70,000 | 80,000–110,000 | 60,000–200,000 | 100,000–250,000 |
As an example, let’s say that you wanted to book a one-way Air Canada-operated award flight from Toronto, Canada (YYZ) to Santiago, Chile (SCL) in business class. Since Toronto is in the North America zone and Santiago is in the South America zone, you’d need to reference the award chart for flights between the North America and South America zones.
Then, you need to find out the distance of this flight in miles. According to the Great Circle Mapper tool, the distance of this flight is 5,332 miles.
So, using the award chart above, we can predict that the award price of this one-way business-class Air Canada award flight would be between 60,000 and 200,000 Aeroplan points (which is, unfortunately, a very wide range).
Aeroplan Award Chart For Flights on Partner Airlines (Except Emirates and Fly Dubai)
When determining the price of partner award flights, except those operated by Emirates or Fly Dubai, you can use the same map to determine your departure zone and arrival zone:
Then, once you know your travel zones, you can find the corresponding award chart and determine the price of an award flight based on your cabin class.
Unlike the award charts for Air Canada-operated flights, rates for partner award flights are an exact value (not a range).
Within North America
This is the award chart for partner flights within the North America zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business |
|---|---|---|
| 0–500 | 6,000 | 15,000 |
| 501–1,500 | 10,000 | 20,000 |
| 1,501–2,750 | 12,500 | 25,000 |
| 2,751+ | 22,500 | 35,000 |
Between North America and Atlantic Zones
This is the award chart for partner flights between the North America zone and the Atlantic zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | Firsts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–4,000 | 35,000 | 60,000 | 90,000 |
| 4,001–6,000 | 40,000 | 70,000 | 100,000 |
| 6,001–8,000 | 55,000 | 90,000 | 130,000 |
| 8,001+ | 70,000 | 110,000 | 140,000 |
Between North America and Pacific Zones
This is the award chart for partner flights between the North America zone and the Pacific zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | First |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–5,000 | 35,00 | 55,000 | 90,000 |
| 5,001–7,500 | 50,000 | 75,000 | 110,000 |
| 7,501–11,000 | 60,000 | 87,500 | 130,000 |
| 11,001+ | 75,000 | 115,000 | 150,000 |
Between North America and South America
This is the award chart for partner flights between the North America zone and the South America zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | First |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–2,500 | 20,000 | 40,000 | 60,000 |
| 2,501–4,500 | 30,000 | 50,000 | 80,000 |
| 4,501+ | 40,000 | 60,000 | 100,000 |
Within Atlantic Zone
This is the award chart for partner flights within the Atlantic zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | Firsts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–1,000 | 7,500 | 15,000 | 25,000 |
| 1,001–2,000 | 12,500 | 25,000 | 40,000 |
| 2,001–4,000 | 25,000 | 45,000 | 65,000 |
| 4,001–6,000 | 35,500 | 60,000 | 90,000 |
| 6,001+ | 50,000 | 80,000 | 130,000 |
Within Pacific Zone
This is the award chart for partner flights within the Pacific zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | First |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–1,000 | 8,000 | 20,000 | 25,000 |
| 1,001–2,000 | 12,500 | 30,000 | 50,000 |
| 2,001–5,000 | 25,000 | 45,000 | 60,000 |
| 5,001–7,000 | 37,500 | 60,000 | 80,000 |
| 7,001+ | 55,000 | 90,000 | 130,000 |
Between Atlantic and Pacific Zones
This is the award chart for partner flights between the Atlantic zone and the Pacific zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | First |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–2,500 | 25,000 | 40,000 | 50,000 |
| 2,501–5,000 | 40,000 | 60,000 | 80,000 |
| 5,001–7,000 | 50,000 | 80,000 | 100,000 |
| 7,001+ | 5,6000 | 110,000 | 140,000 |
Within South America
This is the award chart for partner flights within the South America zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | First |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–1,600 | 10,000 | 20,000 | 30,000 |
| 1,601+ | 20,000 | 35,000 | 50,000 |
Between Atlantic and South America Zones
This is the award chart for partner flights between the Atlantic zone and the South America zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | First |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–7,000 | 45,000 | 80,000 | 100,000 |
| 7,001+ | 60,000 | 100,000 | 130,000 |
Between Pacific and South America Zones
This is the award chart for partner flights between the Pacific zone and the South America zone:
| Distance (miles) | Economy | Business | First |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–11,000 | 60,000 | 90,000 | 130,000 |
| 11,001+ | 80,000 | 140,000 | 200,000 |
As an example, let’s say that you wanted to book a round-trip award flight from Vienna, Austria (VIE) to Beijing, China (PEK) in Austrian Airlines economy class. Since Vienna is in the Atlantic zone and Beijing is in the Pacific zone, you need to reference the award chart for partner flights between the Atlantic and Pacific zones.
Then, you need to find out the distance of this flight in miles. According to the Great Circle Mapper tool, this flight would have a distance of 4,644 miles.
Thus, if you were to fly one-way from Vienna to Beijing in Austrian Airlines economy class, it would cost you 40,000 Aeroplan points. However, since this is a round-trip award itinerary, you’d need to double that amount, and so the total cost of the round-trip flight would be 80,000 points.
Redeeming Aeroplan Points For Air Canada Upgrades
It’s worth noting that, while you can redeem Aeroplan points for upgrades, Air Canada doesn’t publish an award chart for upgrades. Instead, Aeroplan members can bid for upgrades with the AC Bid Upgrade option.
To use this option, you must already be booked in economy or premium economy class on an eligible flight operated by Air Canada, Air Canada Rouge or Air Canada Express.
The Bottom Line
Aeroplan, the frequent flyer program of Air Canada, allows members to earn Aeroplan points by flying on Air Canada, flying with airline partners, spending on Air Canada co-branded credit cards, shopping with retail partners and more. You can redeem Aeroplan points in a variety of ways. But, the best way to maximize the value of your Aeroplan points is to redeem them for flights with Air Canada or one of its many partner airlines.
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10xTravel is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
Editors Note: Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
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