Avianca LifeMiles launches two Amex playing cards

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Exciting news for travelers and points and miles enthusiasts! Avianca, Colombia’s leading airline, has teamed up with fintech innovator Cardless to launch two new credit cards: the Avianca LifeMiles American Express® Elite Card and the Avianca LifeMiles American Express® Card. These two cards, launched May 21, promise to elevate your travel experience with a host of exclusive benefits. Time will tell if one of these cards can break into our best travel cards list.

Why are LifeMiles so coveted? 

LifeMiles, the rewards currency of Avianca, is consistently regarded as one of the best rewards currencies for Star Alliance redemptions. Star Alliance has 26 member airlines, with recognizable names such as United Airlines, Lufthansa, and Scandinavian Airlines as just a few examples.

While I have yet to redeem miles on Avianca personally, I have friends that redeem LifeMiles for great trips and sing its praises. Our Senior Editor on the credit cards team, Dia Adams, recently redeemed LifeMiles to fly nonstop from Washington, D.C. to London on United for only 20,000 LifeMiles and minimal taxes. 

Outside of flying on Avianca and earning rewards via credit card spending, you can accrue LifeMiles by purchasing miles directly from Avianca or transferring points from various programs (Capital One, Citi Thank You, and American Express). You can often find purchase miles deals costing about 1.3 cents per LifeMile.

The LifeMiles program through its many partners can help you travel to Colombia, England, New Zealand, among hundreds of other locations around the world—the Star Alliance network is vast. Having cards that earn them directly could be a huge benefit to the right points portfolio. 

Avianca LifeMiles American Express® Elite Card details

The Elite card comes with an annual fee of $249, but offers several benefits that might just make the annual fee worth it. The welcome bonus can reach 100,000 LifeMiles after spending $25,000 on the card in the first 365 days (60,000 LifeMiles are earned after spending $4,500 in the first 90 days).

The earning rate on this card is strong; for every dollar spent, cardholders will earn 3x miles on Avianca airlines or LifeMiles purchases, 2x miles on dining, 2x miles on all other travel, like hotels, taxis, and other airlines, and 1x miles on all purchases.

Elite cardholders will be able to receive double the number of LifeMiles earned with the card each statement cycle, up to 1,000 extra LifeMiles. So you can basically earn 2X on the first 1,000 points you earn each month, meaning if you spend $500 at restaurants you would earn 2,000 LifeMiles plus the 1,000 bonus.

Cardholders will also receive a complimentary monthly subscription to LifeMiles+, LifeMiles’ new monthly subscription product offering in the United States. This service costs $20/month without the card, so if you were going to get it anyway the card holding cost would be vastly reduced. Below are some of the perks you’re eligible to receive with this brand new subscription:

• Cardholders’ subscription to Lifemiles+ will include the “Lite” tier at no additional cost, and will include an additional 500 miles per month, or 6,000 miles annually, automatically added to the cardholders’ Lifemiles account.
• 10% redemption discount on Star Alliance flights.
• Up to 25% redemption discount on Avianca flights.
• Reduced or fee-free cancellation and changes.
• On bookings made through LifeMiles.com, cardholders will get up to 40% more miles on LifeMiles Hotels, and up to 10% redemption discount on LifeMiles Cars.

To view rates and fees of the Avianca LifeMiles American Express® Elite Card, see this page.

Avianca LifeMiles American Express® Card details

The standard Avianca LifeMiles American Express® Card has an annual fee of $99 and cardholders can earn a welcome bonus of 40,000 LifeMiles after spending a total of $3,000 in the first 90 days.

In addition to the welcome bonus, cardholders will, for every dollar spent with the credit card, earn 2x miles on Avianca airlines or LifeMiles purchases, 2x miles on dining, 2x miles on groceries, and 1x miles on all purchases.

To view rates and fees of the Avianca LifeMiles American Express® Card, see this page.

LifeMiles Silver Elite status as a cardholder perk

LifeMiles has four status levels (Red Plus, Silver, Gold, and Diamond) and each of the new credit cards provides Silver status. Silver status grants benefits such as:

• 30% bonus miles accrued on Avianca flights for Silver status elite members. Applies to tickets purchased in classic, flex and business fares.
• Priority check-in, boarding, call center service and baggage handling.
• 5 complimentary lounge passes and 2 companion pass lounge entries to Avianca’s 12 VIP lounges.
• 1 additional checked bag in economy fare up to +1 of 23 kg (50 lbs).
• 10% discount on premium seat purchase on Avianca.com.
• Silver status members of LifeMiles will also enjoy the benefits of Star Alliance Silver status including priority reservations waitlist and priority stand-by on Star Alliance eligible flights.
• To learn more about all the benefits available for LifeMiles Silver Elite status members, click here.

My take on the Avianca LifeMiles American Express Card and the Avianca LifeMiles American Express Elite Card

I’m most excited about the Elite Card with its 60,000 LifeMiles after spending $4,500 in the first 90 days and the 10% redemption discount on Star Alliance redemptions. Star Alliance member airlines serve over 1,300 destinations, effectively unlocking the majority of the world—meaning 60,000 LifeMiles can essentially take you across the globe. 

I would love to take a trip to Colombia and visit Cartagena and Cali—both have direct flights to/from New York’s JFK on Avianca. I have visited Bogota and Medellin and found the cities to be great places to visit and am excited to experience more Colombian culture. 

Silver status on Avianca could easily provide benefits above and beyond the annual fee, especially if an upgrade to Business Class clears (it’s been known to happen even with entry-level status). While my near-term travel plans do not include Colombia, for the right deal I could very well see myself grabbing this card and making a trip to Colombia on Avianca. 

For those of you not based in New York, Avianca offers flights from the following destinations in the US: Miami, Ontario (California), Orlando, San Francisco, Washington Dulles, Oakland, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Houston, Fort Lauderdale, Dallas, and Boston, providing U.S.-based travelers with ample options to reach Central and South America. 

Are the Avianca cards right for you?

But before you apply, it’s important to know a couple of things about LifeMiles. The first thing is that they do expire. With the card they won’t expire as long as you hold the card, but if you cancel the card the clock will start ticking. 

The other thing to know is that LifeMiles are not a 101-level product and should not be anyone’s first foray into miles and points. Avianca’s customer service, while much improved, still is not exactly known as top-tier and if you need to change or cancel a flight you may find the process frustrating. If you want to collect Star Alliance miles with minimal work, an easier-to-use card such as the Aeroplan® Credit Card might be a better fit.

Aeroplan® Credit Card

Intro bonus

Earn 60,000 points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open.

Annual fee	$95
Regular APR	21.74%–28.74% variable

Which card is better?

For Star Alliance travelers looking for status, the Avianca LifeMiles American Express card might be right for you as it gives you miles and status benefits at a low annual fee. The earning rates on the standard card are respectable, but not earth shattering. On the other hand, travelers looking to visit Colombia, or the rest of Central and South America, on a Star Alliance carrier or those travelers with deep ties to Star Alliance redemptions should consider the Elite card and its strong earning rates and benefits. The ability to earn up to 100,000 LifeMiles coupled with Silver status benefits could easily tip the calculus in the direction of this being a great travel rewards card.

A fun note about the Avianca LifeMiles American Express Elite card is that the card is made of metal, following the standards set by other premium travel cards, but it also has raised bumps outlining North America, showcasing Avianca’s commitment to the North America-based traveler.

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