CIBC Aventura

TYPE
Bank
WEBSITE
CIBC Aventura
PHONE
1-888-232-5656
BEST WAY TO REDEEM
Travel

With CIBC being one of the big five financial institutions in Canada, it’s no surprise that many Canadians have an Aventura credit card in their wallet. Similar to TD Rewards, Aventura is CIBC’s in-house reward program which presents a plethora of redemption options. Some house significant value whereas others are not even worth considering.

Let’s take a look at how you can earn more Aventura points and get phenomenal value out of your points on all future redemptions.

Earning CIBC Aventura Points

CIBC Aventura points can be earned via two methods: credit card welcome bonuses and organic credit card spending.

Credit Card Bonuses

Similar to other bank loyalty programs, the quickest way to earn CIBC Aventura points is through credit card sign-up or welcome bonuses.

Below is a table containing all of the credit cards that earn CIBC Aventura points, their respective welcome bonus, and their total value:

Credit Card Welcome Bonus Net Value
CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite Privilege Card 80,000 Aventura $1,261 Apply
CIBC Aventura Gold Card 40,000 Aventura $880 Apply
CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite Card 40,000 Aventura $880 Apply
CIBC Aventura Visa Business Card 25,000 Aventura $550 Apply
CIBC Aventura Visa Business Plus Card 25,000 Aventura $550 Apply

There are various data points that speak to the ability to hold multiple CIBC Aventura credit cards at once. That being said, if there is a good welcome bonus like the 45,000 Aventura points offer we saw previously, it may be worth applying for multiple cards.

Credit Card Spending

CIBC Aventura points are also earned for all eligible organic spend on any CIBC Aventura credit cards. You can earn the most points possible by maximizing specific category spending on the correct CIBC Aventura earning credit card.

The best organic earning rates can be found on the CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite Privilege card:

  • 3 Aventura Points per dollar spent on travel purchases made through the CIBC Rewards Centre.
  • 2 Aventura Points per dollar spent on dining, entertainment, transportation, gas, and grocery purchase.
  • 1.25 Aventura Points per dollar spent on all other purchases.

Redeeming CIBC Aventura Points

Cardholders can redeem points via six methods: Aventura Airline Rewards Chart flight redemptions, CIBC Rewards Travel Centre, Shopping with points, statement credit, financial products, and gift cards or merchandise.

The best redemption value you should aim to achieve within the CIBC Rewards program is 1 cent per point when redeeming for cash equivalent products (in the right situation) and 2.2 cents per point when redeeming towards travel.

Aventura Airline Rewards Chart – Flight Redemptions

The Aventura rewards program has its own flight redemption award chart, presenting a solid value proposition in redeeming your points. For comparison, this is a very similar setup to redeeming RBC Avion through the RBC Rewards Air Travel Redemption schedule.

Within the Aventura Airline Rewards chart, there are multiple bands of redemptions:

  • Canada & US Short Haul – 10,000 to 20,000 Aventura (up to $400 in value)
    • Within a province, territory or U.S. state or to an adjoining province, territory or U.S. state.
  • Canada & US Long Haul – 25,000 to 35,000 Aventura (up to $800 in value)
    • From any location in Canada or U.S. to any location in Canada or U.S (except Hawaii and Alaska).
  • Mexico, Alaska, Hawaii, Central American, Caribbean – 40,000 to 60,000 Aventura (up to $1,000 in value)
    • From any location in Canada or U.S. to Mexico, Hawaii, Alaska, Bermuda, Central America, or the Caribbean.
  • Europe – 50,000 to 70,000 Aventura (up to $1,300 in value)
    • From a major gateway in Canada or U.S. to select destinations in Europe.
  • Rest of the world – 75,000 to 125,000 Aventura (up to $2,000 in value)
    • From a major gateway in Canada or U.S. to select destinations in Africa, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, South Pacific, the Middle East, or South America.

The maximum ticket price denoted above for each redemption band is before taxes and any other applicable charges. In order to book an Aventura Airline Rewards flight, log into the CIBC Rewards Center or call the Aventura Travel Assistant at 1-888-232-5656.

CIBC Rewards Travel Centre

When booking travel through the CIBC Rewards Travel Centre (CIBC’s in-house travel agency), Aventura points can be applied towards the booking at a rate of 1 cent per point (meaning 10,000 Aventura points would be worth $100 towards your booking).

In order to book travel within the CIBC Rewards Travel Centre, simply log into your CIBC Rewards account and visit this page. You can then search for the hotel, car rental, or vacation package of your choosing.

While this can present an opportunity for redemption if you are looking to book a hotel, rental car, or any other travel expense, you should never use this feature for flight redemptions. Instead, look to the Aventura Airline rewards chart in the section above as you will be able to get much better value out of your points.

Shopping with Points

CIBC’s “Shopping with Points” redemption option gives cardholders the opportunity to apply their Aventura points towards a purchase of their choice that was charged to their card.

In order to redeem Aventura using the “Shopping with Points” feature:

  • Make a purchase using your Aventura credit card that has the points you want to redeem
  • Sign in to your CIBC online banking account
  • Find the pending transaction, click on it, and click on the “Redeem with Points” button
  • The redemption statement credit will be posted on your account within the next few business days

When using the “Shopping with Points” feature, points are redeemed at a value of 8,000 Aventura points for $50, or 0.625 cents per point which is poor value.

However, the redemption of Aventura through this method has presented some significant value in the past. For example, CIBC has run promotions where you can use 50% less of your Aventura points when redeeming for travel purchases through this method, meaning you can receive 1.25 cents per point which is a crazy strong redemption value for cash equivalencies.

Not to mention, you can cash out Aventura using the refundable hotel trick with this method.

Statement Credit

Similar to many other financial institution loyalty programs, you can apply CIBC Aventura points towards your credit card statement balance through the “Payment with Points” feature.

When redeeming Aventura points through this method, redemptions start at a minimum of 4,000 Aventura points required for a statement credit of $25 (a value of 0.625 cents per point). This is far below the typical value of 1 cent per point you can expect to receive from your Aventura when redeeming for cash equivalents, so it is recommended that you avoid using your points in this manner.

Financial Products

CIBC Aventura points can also be redeemed towards CIBC financial products including mortgages, lines of credit, and investment accounts (such as an RRSP or TFSA).

Redeeming Aventura as a credit towards any of the above-mentioned financial products works out to a value of 0.83 cents per point which is below our 1 cent per point target for cash equivalent redemptions. Cardholders must have a minimum of 12,000 Aventura points to make a redemption with this method.

Gift Cards & Merchandise

CIBC Aventura points can be redeemed for both merchandise and gift cards, similar to many other bank loyalty programs.

Redeeming for merchandise is never a good option and should be avoided. On the other hand, while we typically are against redeeming for gift cards, there are a few pockets of brilliance within the CIBC Aventura program. For example, there have been promotions in the past where you could redeem points for Chevron gift cards at a rate greater than one cent per point.

One of the other strong options is to redeem Aventura for Save on Foods gift cards at one cent per point. These gift cards can be used at Save on Foods to purchase other gift cards of your choosing. With this in mind, it might be worth considering if it makes sense for you to cash out your Aventura for gift cards.

Frequently Asked Questions

CIBC Aventura points have a rough value of 1 cent per point when redeeming for cash equivalent products (in the right situation) and a rough value of 2.2 cents per point when redeeming towards travel.

It depends on two things: the itinerary of your flight redemption and if you are redeeming Aventura through the Aventura Airline Rewards chart versus the CIBC Rewards Travel Centre.

They are very different programs and cannot easily be directly compared. While Aventura may be more straightforward to redeem for flights, you can extract much more value out of Aeroplan especially if you prefer to fly in premium cabins.

No, Aventura points cannot be transferred to your Aeroplan account.

If you hold an active CIBC Aventura credit card, your points will not expire. If you close a CIBC Aventura card, your points will be available to be redeemed for 60 days. After 60 days, they will expire.

Yes, through a few methods including redeeming for “Shopping with Points”, for statement credit, financial products, and gift cards. It is important to note that some of these methods do not present the best redemption value for your points so do your research before redeeming.

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12 comments on “CIBC Aventura

  1. Hello need info on how it works my adventures points for a trip, is it good for all inclusive trip.
    Thank you

    Reply
    • Hey Allan,

      You can turn your Aventura points into a statement credit using the refundable hotel trick. From there, you can either withdraw the cash at a CIBC ATM (for no fees) or just make normal purchases on the card to draw down the balance. And hey, you could absolutely use the extra cash to book an All Inclusive!

      Reply
    • Hi Norma,

      The best way to currently redeem CIBC Aventura points is through the “Shopping with Points” feature, taking advantage of the refundable hotel trick. You can book a refundable hotel on Hotels.ca/Expedia.ca using your Aventura credit card, apply the Aventura points towards the hotel booking in your CIBC account, and then cancel the booking which will leave you with the redeemed cash value of the points.

      Reply
      • Hi Josh,
        Do you know can we use the points to partially cover a hotel expense? One time I got my all points partially covered my travel package. But another time the CIBC agent said it cannot be redeemed for partial hotel expense.
        In addition, there is no option to use 50% less point when shopping with points. I have to call every time.
        Lorus

        Reply
        • Hi Lorus,

          I’m actually not sure. I always cash out my full Aventura balance against a hotel booking, but have never tried a partial redemption using only some of the Aventura balance (unless if your total points balance only covered a portion of the hotel).

          I would probably err on the side of what the rep told you since I haven’t experienced this myself. Personally, I would recommend cashing out all your Aventura points on a hotel booking via shopping with points, as that is the best value available at the moment.

          Reply
          • Hi Josh,
            I meant that the rep said my points is not enough to cover the full hotel expense and thus I cannot redeem it.
            I am not sure what you did. Should the hotel fee less than the points value or more than it?
            Thank you!

          • Hey Lorus,

            Got it. For example, I just redeemed 41,000 Aventura this week (worth around $512) for a hotel booking that cost $900 total (which means that the Aventura did not cover the full balance). As long as you have Aventura points, once you make a valid hotel booking, you should be able to go into your CIBC credit card account and apply your Aventura points to the pending charge on your Aventura credit card (note the charge must be pending and cannot be finalized to use the “shopping with point feature”).

  2. I’d like to browse the rewards catalogue to redeem for gift cards. How can I view the catalogue when I don’t do on line banking?

    Reply
    • It is best to sign up for online banking. I am not sure you can browse without signing in, but you can redeem by calling the CIBC Rewards Center alternatively.

      Reply
  3. I don’t bank with CIBC. I would like to redeem my points for gift cards or cash…what are my options? Also I prefer to speak to someone re this. Thanks

    Reply