The Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo is the one bank card in Canada that immediately earns Cathay Pacific Asia Miles via its welcome supply and on on a regular basis spending.
Asia Miles gives members entry to one of the best award availability for Cathay Pacific flights, in addition to helpful redemptions on oneworld-member airways.
Let’s check out the the reason why you would possibly think about the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo, in addition to the way it stacks up in comparison with different playing cards within the Canadian market.
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Supplementary cardholders: |
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$80,000 (private), $150,000 (family) |
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What we love: robust welcome bonus, 15% low cost on Cathay Pacific flights, World Elite Mastercard advantages. What we’d change: enhance class incomes charges, embody airline-specific advantages.
Welcome Bonus
One of the vital essential issues to contemplate when making use of for a bank card is the energy of the welcome supply. It’s additionally price contemplating how simple it’s to satisfy the minimal spending necessities, as it’s a must to work a lot tougher with some playing cards than others.
Since its launch in December 2023, the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo has a welcome gives of 27,000–60,000 Asia Miles.
Fortuitously, all gives have had comparatively low minimal spending necessities of $3,000–5,000 within the first three months, and the factors from the welcome bonus have all the time been awarded in full through the first 12 months.
Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo
- Earn 35,000 Asia Miles upon card activation†
- Plus, earn 25,000 Asia Miles upon spending $5,000 within the first three months†
- Then, earn 4 Asia Miles per greenback spent on Cathay Pacific flights†
- And, earn extra Asia Miles at Neo’s companions†
- Get pleasure from a 15% low cost on Cathay Pacific flights†
- Minimal earnings: $80,000 (private), $150,000 (family)
- Annual payment: $180
We worth Asia Miles at 1.6 cents per mile, and utilizing this valuation, we worth a welcome bonus of 27,000 Asia Miles at $432 and a welcome bonus of 60,000 Asia Miles (the cardboard’s all-time excessive) at $960.
Relying on the way you select to redeem these miles, the worth may find yourself being price roughly than these figures. Anticipate the next return for journey in premium cabins, and near par for redemptions in financial system.
Incomes Charges
With the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo , you earn Asia Miles on the following charges:
- 4 Asia Miles per greenback spent on eligible Cathay Pacific purchases
- 2 Asia Miles per greenback spent on all eligible overseas foreign money purchases
- 1 Asia Mile per greenback spent on all different eligible purchases
As soon as once more, utilizing our valuation of 1.6 cents per Asia Mile, you’re taking a look at an efficient return of 6.4% on Cathay Pacific purchases, 3.2% on eligible overseas foreign money purchases, and 1.6% on all different eligible purchases.
The return on Cathay Pacific purchases is great, and in case you’re a frequent flyer with the airline, you’ll be getting a terrific return in miles in your purchases.
The elevated Asia Miles you obtain on overseas foreign money purchases exterior Canada is offset by the two.5% overseas transaction payment it’s a must to pay on those self same bills. For out-of-country bills, you would be higher off utilizing a bank card that doesn’t levy overseas transaction charges.
The baseline incomes charge of 1 Asia Mile per greenback spent and its efficient 1.6% return is sweet, however there are additionally different playing cards to contemplate that provide the next baseline return.
Along with the above incomes charges, the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo has unique companions with which you earn considerably increased Asia Miles for each greenback spent.
When you store at one in every of Neo’s many companions, the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo instantly turns into extra helpful.
Sadly, the listing of companions isn’t made public till after you’ve utilized for the cardboard, and the companions listing is pretty restricted and comes with spending restrictions.
Redeeming Asia Miles
You possibly can redeem your Asia Miles for award flights with Cathay Pacific and its accomplice airways, together with oneworld airways like British Airways, Qatar Airways, Japan Airways, and extra.
In the previous few years, Asia Miles has gone via a few devaluations, with some being extra vital than others.
Nonetheless, there’s loads of worth to be present in this system, particularly in case you prioritize journey with Cathay Pacific. That’s since you’ll discover one of the best (and within the case of premium cabins, the one) award availability on Cathay Pacific flights with Asia Miles.
In Canada, Cathay Pacific gives continuous flights from Hong Kong to Vancouver and Toronto.
One-way redemptions between Hong Kong and Vancouver value out as follows, with a modest quantity of taxes and charges:
- Economic system: 27,000 Asia Miles
- Premium financial system: 50,000 Asia Miles
- Enterprise class: 88,000 Asia Miles
Whereas one-way redemptions between Hong Kong and Toronto value out as follows:
- Economic system: 38,000 Asia Miles
- Premium financial system: 75,000 Asia Miles
- Enterprise class: 115,000 Asia Miles
Outdoors of those routes, listed below are some examples of what you are able to do when you’ve amassed a wholesome sum of Asia Miles:
- Fly Cathay Pacific First Class from Hong Kong to Beijing for 43,000 Asia Miles
- Fly Cathay Pacific First Class from Hong Kong to Tokyo for 50,000 Asia Miles
- Fly British Airways enterprise class from North America to London for 63,000 Asia Miles
- Fly American Airways enterprise class from the US to Australia for 89,000 Asia Miles
- Fly Cathay Pacific First Class from Hong Kong to London or Los Angeles for 125,000 Asia Miles
- Fly Japan Airways First Class from Tokyo to New York for 135,000 Asia Miles
Insurance coverage Protection
With the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo, you obtain the next insurance coverage advantages:
- Emergency medical insurance coverage: as much as $1 million for journeys of as much as 14 days for these aged 60 and youthful
- Journey interruption insurance coverage: as much as $1,000 per individual, as much as $5,000 per journey
- Journey cancellation insurance coverage: as much as $1,000 per individual, as much as $5,000 per journey
- Flight delay insurance coverage: as much as $500 ($250 per day for affordable and obligatory bills for a missed connection, denied boarding, or flight departure delay).
- Misplaced/delayed baggage insurance coverage: as much as $1,000 for delays of six hours or longer
- Auto rental collision/harm insurance coverage: for as much as 48 consecutive days on autos with an MSRP of as much as $65,000
- Resort/motel housebreaking insurance coverage: as much as $1,000 to cowl the harm to or the lack of private gadgets ensuing from the housebreaking at your resort or motel room
- Buy safety: for up 90 days from date of buy
- Prolonged guarantee: doubling the producer’s guarantee, as much as one extra 12 months
For a journey bank card with a $180 annual payment, the journey and retail insurance coverage protection on the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo isn’t fairly as robust as we’d like.
For instance, the emergency medical insurance coverage of as much as $1 million solely covers cardholders aged 60 and youthful for 14 days.
There are different bank cards with decrease annual charges that provide extra safety, longer protection, and embody advantages for these as much as 65 years of age.
The Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo additionally doesn’t present cellular system insurance coverage, which is usually seen on related journey playing cards with an equal, or perhaps a decrease, annual payment.
Lastly, numerous co-branded airline bank cards will cowl you for flight-related insurance coverage protection on award bookings with the airline. The Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo doesn’t.
Typically talking, while you pay for an award reserving with a co-branded bank card that earns the factors/miles you earn with the cardboard, the insurance coverage protection applies.
For instance, in case you pay for the taxes and charges on an Aeroplan reserving with an Aeroplan co-branded bank card, or a Flying Blue reserving with the Air France KLM World Elite Mastercard, you’re coated the identical as in case you’d booked the flight with money.
Sadly, this isn’t the case with the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo.
For insurance coverage protection on an Asia Miles award reserving, you’re higher off paying for the taxes and charges with a unique bank card, such because the Nationwide Financial institution® World Elite® Mastercard®, since you might be then coated for insurance coverage in your journey.
In any other case, the journey insurance coverage advantages supplied by the cardboard are pretty typical for a World Elite Mastercard.
Different Options
Probably the most noteworthy distinctive profit on the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo is the supply of 15% off the bottom fare while you make a money reserving via the Cathay Pacific web site and use your Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo with a promo code listed on the Cathay Pacific web site to make an eligible buy.
This profit is simply accessible till December 31, 2025 (although it appears to get renewed yearly), and solely covers one-way or round-trip flights departing from Canada. The complete listing of phrases and circumstances may be discovered on the Cathay Pacific web site.
With the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo, you additionally obtain normal World Elite® Mastercard® perks, together with paid lounge entry via Mastercard Journey Cross, powered by DragonPass.
In any other case, the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo lacks airline-specific advantages. Notably, there aren’t any distinctive advantages for Cathay Pacific flights provided to cardholders except for the low cost.
Whereas Neo advertises this card as coming “unique membership perks” equivalent to on-line precedence check-in, additional baggage redemption, and Cathay Pacific enterprise class lounge redemption entry, the fact is that these are merely advantages loved by all base-level Asia Miles members.
In the case of additional baggage and Cathay Pacific enterprise lounge redemptions, this merely means that you’ve got the choice to redeem Asia Miles for these perks, which once more is one thing that anybody with an Asia Miles membership can select to do.
Different Playing cards to Think about
The Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo is price getting in order for you a pleasant enhance to your Asia Miles stability, you may make good use of the 15% low cost, and/otherwise you store on the Neo companions that earn elevated Asia Miles with this card.
Nevertheless, in case you’d prefer to discover a bank card that earns airline miles, there are different choices that provide you with extra flexibility or that earn Asia Miles at a heightened charge.
For instance, the RBC® Avion Visa Infinite† earns RBC Avion factors, which you’ll switch to The British Airways Membership and Cathay Pacific Asia Miles at a 1:1 ratio, in addition to American Airways AAdvantage at a 1:0.7 ratio.
This offers you extra flexibility for award bookings with oneworld airways, since totally different loyalty packages have totally different candy spots. Typically, you may ebook the identical flight with a number of packages, however the pricing is perhaps extra beneficial with one over the opposite.
The one draw back to the RBC® Avion Visa Infinite† is that it has slightly low incomes charges. Nevertheless, in case you even have an RBC® ION+ Visa – constructing what we prefer to confer with as The Optimized RBC Credit score Card Portfolio – you may earn 3x Avion factors on many frequent each day bills:
- Earn 3 Avion factors† per greenback spent on qualifying grocery, eating, meals supply, gasoline, rideshare, each day public transit, electrical automobile charging, streaming, digital gaming and digital subscriptions
In different phrases, with The Optimized RBC Credit score Card Portfolio, you may earn 3x Avion factors on the above classes, which is primarily like incomes 3x Asia Miles (since Avion factors switch 1:1 to Asia Miles.)
The Optimized RBC Credit score Card Portfolio
In the meantime, in case your main objective is to build up Asia Miles, you would think about the American Specific Cobalt Card which earns American Specific Membership Rewards (MR) factors that may simply be transformed to Asia Miles at a 1:0.75 ratio. In different phrases, every MR level may be exchanged for 0.75 Asia Miles.
With the American Specific Cobalt Card, you earn MR factors on the following charges in your purchases:
- 5 MR factors per greenback spent on groceries and eating in Canada (as much as $2,500 monthly)
- 3 MR factors per greenback spent on eligible streaming companies
- 2 MR factors per greenback spent on gasoline, transit, and rideshare in Canada
- 1 MR level per greenback spent on all different purchases
There’s numerous flexibility with Membership Rewards factors, however in case you intend to transform all of your MR factors to Asia Miles on the charge of 1:0.75, the incomes charges on the Amex Cobalt are primarily as follows:
- 3.75 Asia Miles per greenback spent on groceries and eating in Canada (as much as $2,500 monthly)
- 2.25 Asia Miles per greenback spent on eligible streaming companies
- 1.5 Asia Miles per greenback spent on gasoline, transit, and rideshare in Canada
- 0.75 Asia Miles per greenback spent on all different purchases
As you may see, in most spending classes, you would find yourself incomes nearly 4 occasions as many Asia Miles through the use of your American Specific Cobalt Card as an alternative of your Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo.
American Specific Cobalt Card
- Earn as much as a complete of 15,000 MR factors upon spending $750 in every of the primary 12 months
- Earn 5x MR factors on groceries, eating places, bars, and meals supply
- Earn 3x MR factors on eligible streaming companies
- Earn 2x MR factors on gasoline and transit purchases
- Switch MR factors to Aeroplan, Avios, Flying Blue, Marriott Bonvoy, and extra
- Benefit from the unique advantages of being an American Specific cardholder
- Bonus MR factors for referring household and pals
- Month-to-month payment: $12.99
Conclusion
The Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo gives a stable welcome bonus and the distinctive advantage of 15% off Cathay Pacific flights.
Regardless of being the one co-branded Cathay Pacific Asia Miles bank card in Canada, the cardboard doesn’t supply any extra Cathay Pacific perks, and the class incomes charges are comparatively low.
If you may make use of the advantages that do exist, or in case you’d like to spice up your Asia Miles stability, then the Cathay World Elite® Mastercard® – powered by Neo deserves consideration – particularly with an all-time excessive supply.
Nevertheless, there are different playing cards to contemplate in case you’d prefer to earn extra versatile factors for journey, or in case you’d prefer to have higher returns on each day spending.
