RBC Avion Visa Platinum

The RBC Avion Visa Platinum is the mid-tier offering for RBC’s Avion line-up, offering a way to earn RBC Avion points for those with a lower income.

That being said, the sign-up offer is currently equivalent to their flagship RBC Avion Visa Infinite product, making this an excellent value proposition.

Bonuses & Fees

This card is currently offering a welcome bonus of 35,000 RBC Avion points for new cardholders, a welcome improvement from the standard offer of 15,000 points.

The signup bonus is awarded as follows:

• 35,000 RBC Avion points upon approval

The annual fee of $120 is not waived for the first year, but the value of the bonus points easily exceeds the costs of getting the card.

Earning Rewards

With this card you’ll earn 1 RBC Avion point per dollar spent on all purchases.

In terms of everyday spending, this card has a standard earning rate and is on-par with many other entry-level cards. The earning rate is weak and any spending should be directed towards credit cards with higher earning structures, like the American Express Cobalt Card.

Redeeming Rewards

There are a variety of ways to redeem RBC Avion points for a high value.

As a transferable currency, RBC Avion points can be converted into British Airways Avios, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, and WestJet Rewards at a 1:1 ratio, as well as American Airlines AAdvantage at a 1:0.7 ratio.

Avios, Asia Miles, and AAdvantage will all provide a means to book business class and First Class flights on Oneworld airlines, which will be by far the best value for your Avion points if you’re interested in travelling internationally in style.

Look out for 10–50% transfer bonuses to these partners too, which can boost the value of your points even further. For example, in their most recent promotion, you’d get a 30% bonus on any RBC Avion points you transfer over to British Airways Avios.

These can be some of highest value uses of RBC Avion points. If you signed up via the current 35,000 Avion points offer, for example, and transferred the points over to Avios during a 30% promotion, you’d get 45,500 Avios – good for a number of short-haul flights, or enough to make solid progress towards a multi-carrier ticket.

You can also redeem via the Air Travel Redemption Schedule, which lets you use Avion points to book round-trip economy class tickets departing from Canada, up to a certain maximum ticket price. As a baseline, you can also apply Avion points to any travel purchase at a rate of 1 cent per point.

Your RBC Avion points never expire for as long as you’re a cardholder. If you cancel or switch to a different RBC product, you have 90 days to redeem your Avion points before they go away.

Perks & Benefits

The RBC Avion Visa Platinum does include a host of interesting benefits, including 12 months of free DashPass from DoorDash.

It also includes a 3¢/L saving on fuel at Petro-Canada, along with earning 20% more Petro-Points and Avion points upon using your card to pay.

Furthermore, RBC Avion cardholders can save 20% at Hertz as well as earning 2x the points if using your card.

Finally, you can earn 50 Be Well points for every $1 spent on eligible products at Recall, as well as a have an improved redeeming ratio of 25,000 Be Well points = $10.

Insurance Coverage

The RBC Visa Infinite Avion comes with decent insurance coverage, as would be expected for a card with a $120 annual fee:

• Travel accident insurance, covering death or dismemberment, of up to $500,000

• Car rental collision/loss damage insurance, which allows you to save on the daily insurance charged by car rental companies

• Trip cancellation insurance of up to $5,000 and trip interruption insurance of up to $5,000

• Flight delay insurance of up to $500 for reasonable expenses incurred

There’s also a very compelling purchase protection scheme in place that will reimburse you for accidentally lost or damaged personal property within 90 days of purchase, up to a maximum of $50,000 per year, as well as an extended warranty feature that automatically doubles the original manufacturer’s warranty.

Overall, the insurance on this card is better than other entry-level travel cards in the market, making it a solid option if you can’t meet the income requirements or if just getting started in the game.