June 15 , 2010

Travel made easy with new Scotiabank site

Book travel online with new secure web offering

Scotiabank has announced the launch of a new ScotiaGold Passport Visa travel booking website. The online initiative allows ScotiaGold Passport Visa customers to log on in a safe and secure travel agency environment to book flights, vacation packages, hotels and car rentals. As a special offer, ScotiaGold Passport Visa customers will receive 250 points for just visiting the new travel booking site at www.scotiarewards.com.

"Heading into the summer vacation season, the ScotiaGold Passport Visa travel booking website may make our customers' travel plans a lot less complicated and much more enjoyable," said Gillian Riley, Senior Vice-President and Head, Retail Payments, Deposits and Lending, Scotiabank. "The website complements Scotiabank's suite of credit products and services and reinforces our goal to respond to a wide variety of customer preferences and needs."

The ScotiaGold Passport Visa travel booking website - operated by third-party travel agent, Hogg Robinson Canada Inc. - provides 24-hour access to real-time search results and bookings, with flexible online payment options, using points, ScotiaGold Passport Visa, or a combination of both.

"At Scotiabank we are committed to offering customers flexible and unique borrowing solutions to meet a variety of needs," added Vivek Chandra, Vice-President, Credit Cards, Scotiabank. "Our first objective is to provide our customers with the best value for the financial services we provide."

Scotiabank is currently offering 20,000 travel reward points, or $200 in travel rewards, to new ScotiaGold Passport Visa cardholders, with an additional 10,000 points, or $100 in travel rewards, upon renewal of the card after one year. The annual fee is $99 for the first year and $110 thereafter.

ScotiaGold Passport Visa offers five per cent cash back on all eligible travel - including flights, cruises and packages - when booked through Scotia Rewards - online or over the phone. ScotiaGold Passport Visa customers have the flexibility to book with any airline, any time, with no grid system, no seat or airline restrictions, and no booking fees. The ScotiaGold Passport Visa also provides industry leading insurance coverage including 31-day out-of-country travel insurance and rental car collision insurance.

Scotiabank is one of North America's premier financial institutions and Canada's most international bank. With close to 68,000 employees, Scotiabank Group and its affiliates serve approximately 14.6 million customers in some 50 countries around the world. Scotiabank offers a diverse range of products and services including personal, commercial, corporate and investment banking. With more than $526 billion in assets (as at April 30, 2010), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto (BNS) and New York Exchanges (BNS). For more information please visit www.scotiabank.com.