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Last summer, my wife and I decided to take the quintessential trip to Quebec, dividing a week between Montreal and Quebec City. And while we didn’t really need a car to get around either location, we decided to rent one to drive between them. And while I’ll admit that it’s not the most scenic drive in Canada, we couldn’t beat the price of the rental car – CA$13 in taxes.
How to Earn Free Rental Days With National Emerald Club
Every major rental car company offers a loyalty program, but most are pretty lacklustre. For example, the Avis Preferred loyalty program offers one point per dollar spent on rentals, but free rental days start at 700 points and are usually even more. Other programs have similar ways of earning and spending points.
In contrast, National Emerald Club works a lot differently. You earn one credit per rental, up to seven days, and one per week for rentals longer than that. Base members earn a free rental day for every seven credits, while Executive members only require six, and Executive Elites earn a free day with just five credits.
For me, this is a far better system than Avis or Hertz, which awards points based on the price of your rental and your status. Frequent travellers who rent cars for just a day or a few days will earn free-day rentals much faster than they would with National’s competitors.
The great thing about these free-day credits is that they are valid for one-way rentals, with most classes of cars that can be specifically reserved, including luxury cars and minivans. Furthermore, they’re valid at participating locations in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and even in many cities in Asia, Europe, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. And most importantly, you can use them for one-way rentals, without incurring surcharges. And finally, you can redeem free day certificates at Enterprise locations in the U.S. and Canada “for a limited time” (which isn’t specified). Credits towards a free day do not expire, so long as your account is active, but once earned, free days expire at the end of the following year. And just note that your credit card’s insurance may not apply if you pay for the entire rental with free day certificates; check your card’s guide to benefits to be sure.
How I Rented a Mercedes-Benz With National Executive Elite Status
When you have Executive Status, you can pick any car from Emerald Aisle. But by having Executive Elite status, I’m also able to choose from another section that includes more high-end luxury vehicles. For our trip from Montreal to Quebec City, we reserved a full-size car, skipped the counter, went to the Executive area, and selected from one of several C-Class mid-size sedans that were available. Luxury cars aren’t guaranteed in the Executive Aisle, but they are commonly there. Then, I just showed my driver’s license and credit card before departing the lot. The process took just a few minutes, and we saved the CA$300 that this rental would have normally cost.
YUL-YQB: One-Way cash rate
YUL-YQB: One-way Free Day Rental
How to Get National Executive Elite Status Through Credit Cards and Status Matching
Executive status requires 12 paid rentals or 40 paid rental days in a calendar year, while Executive Elite status requires 25 paid rentals or 85 paid rental days in a calendar year. However, Executive status is a perk of many credit cards, including the American Express Platinum (both business and personal), the Chase Sapphire Reserve and any Visa Infinite card. In Canada, Visa Infinite cards include the TD Aeroplan Visa, the Scotiabank Passport, the Scotia Momentum and the CIBC Dividend. Alternatively, National will also match your status to nearly any airline, hotel or rental car program using the instructions at this link. That’s how I quickly matched my Hyatt Globalist status to Executive Elite status, and I was on my way!
Is National Emerald Club Worth It for Free Rental Days?
National’s Emerald Club is the class leader among rental car loyalty programs, and they make it incredibly easy to earn status. With Executive Elite status in hand, you can quickly earn free day awards that are exceptionally valuable for one-way travel. And when a free, one-way rental allows you to avoid paying for airfare or train tickets, then you can travel in style for much less than you might have imagined.
Related Reading: The Best Ways to Save Money on Car Rentals
