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It sounds like you won the travel lottery. You signed up for the HSBC World Elite Mastercard, and you suddenly have 80,000 travel reward points to use, but you can do better. With 100,000 points, you can go somewhere hot or cool any time of the year. It sounds like a lot of value. Is it really that easy to travel for free? What’s the catch? What does it really mean to your travel budget? Actually, it means a lot.
Calculating the World Elite Travel sign-up benefits
You need to understand how fast you can earn your 100,000 travel reward points. When you sign up to the HSBC Mastercard World Elite Travel Card, you first get a signing bonus of 20,000 travel reward points. That is the equivalent of $100 CAD available to you for travel. Next, you can earn up to another 60,000 bonus points when you spend at least $1,000 each month for the first 6 months, worth up to $300 in travel value.
At the same time, your first year’s annual fee is waived. Normally, this card will cost you $149 CAD per year. In your first year, you can put that $149 toward travelling. You just earned a $400 value by signing up and using the card. You’re up to 80,000 travel reward points. That was easy.
Now all you need is another 20,000 points. With the cost of groceries, transportation, and entertainment, you’ll get there in a snap. If you put it on your World Elite Mastercard, your bills will actually earn you a vacation.
Here's an example:
Your HSBC World Elite Mastercard earns you 4 points per dollar on eligible grocery, gas, and drugstore purchases. As of 2022, the average family of 4 spends about $15,000 on groceries per year. Shop with your HSBC World Elite Mastercard and you're looking at an easy 60,000 points from your grocery purchases alone.
BOOM! You just crushed your goal and actually earned 140,000 points in the first year, worth $700 in travel value. After all that, you don’t have to do anything else but get that ticket to your hot or cold paradise.
How to earn more travel reward points
How you spend your money has a big impact on your extra travel points. You already have 20,000 points just by signing up. Then you earned another 60,000 for spending $1,000 a month for the first 6 months of having the card. The rest of the year can earn you even more travel reward points.
Earn extra travel reward points with every purchase
In the next nine months, you can earn 6 points for every $1 in travel-related purchases or 4 points for every $1 spent on eligible grocery, gas, and drugstore purchases. Have you seen the cost of gas? A couple of fill-ups and you might have two tickets to hot Caribbean nights or maybe skiing your tallest mountain yet.
Add $100 in travel enhancement credits every year
You’ve decided to redeem some or all of your travel points for the winter holidays. You can upgrade your seats for free. Actually, your World Elite Mastercard gives you $100 to make your travel experience better. You can use the money to pay for extra bags like skis or overweight baggage because you’re hauling presents with you. Maybe all of your children’s sand toys take up a lot of room. Every year that you have the card, you get $100 toward making travelling easier.
Also, your card gives you access to Loungekey airport lounges. You can use your annual enhancement fee to pay for the tickets to get in. You can relax in a quieter, more comfortable space and let your vacation start early.
Tips to increase your travel budget
Using your travel points to travel for free is great. A lot depends on finding a flight, hotel, or package that fits your budget. Here are some tips to make your travel budget go even further.
- Use your World Elite Mastercard for online travel booking. Your card gives you 10% off travel booked on HSBC Expedia and Agoda websites.
- Use your credit card to earn discounts at the airport. Your World Elite Mastercard gets you 20% food, shopping, and spa treatments at the airport.
- Spend $0 on foreign currency fees. Whether in person or online, when you pay with your World Elite Mastercard, you are only charged the exchange rate. That could mean hundreds of dollars saved.
A penny saved is a penny earned. You’re on your way to a sunny destination and you arrived at the airport really early. Maybe your flight is delayed because of bad weather. The best part of travel is knowing that you can afford it. The HSBC World Elite Mastercard just makes everything more affordable.
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About The Author: Stefani Balinsky
Stefani Balinsky is the former Editor in Chief at Hardbacon. She has been writing professionally since her days at McGill University and her summer internship at the Just for Laughs Festival. She has multiple degrees from McGill University and her PMP from the Project Management Institute. She loves data and research as much as she loves a good story. She has held marketing positions in publishing, health, and fintech companies. She also has an entrepreneurial mindset that feeds her curiosity. She can be reached on LinkedIn.
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