I recently received my first bill from CIBC Aerogold, and I am pleased with the new feature of 1.5 Aeroplan miles for money spent at gas station, groceries, and drugstores.

I spent $535 on the card last month and got 137 additional Aeroplan miles, which gave me a total of 672 miles. Plus, I got my 15,000 miles for applying online.

The thing that I really like about the additional miles is that you can get them almost anywhere. A full list of participating merchants can be found here.

As a reminder, I also have an Aeroplan page where you can find the latest limited time bonuses that Aeroplan is offering.

Having returned from my second trip to Las Vegas, I thought I would share what I best like about the city of sin. I strongly recommend that everyone go there at least once.

There is no easy way to understand Vegas until you have been there. I guess I consider it a Disneyland for adults.

What are the best parts?

• Choice. Whatever you want to do- it is available. From gambling, dancing, drinking, shopping- whatever you want to do for fun, you can find it.
• Restaurants- there is an incredible variety of food at all different kinds of price levels.
• Atmosphere- I guess because most people are there on vacation everyone is friendly and fun.

What don’t I like about Vegas? There are a couple of things:

• Walking- there is just waay too much walking neccessary, even to go to a hotel which is nearby
• It is very easy to spend a lot of money- especially when you can take cash advances from your credit card without even your pin number
• Be very careful of the fees you pay at machines- I took out money three times while in Vegas- the first two times I had a fee of 4 dollars which I consider high but acceptable. The last time I made a withdrawl the fee was an unbelievable 24 dolars!!! I only noticed when I got the printout of my transaction.
• The TV channel selection in my hotel room was horrible. I know the hotels want you out of the room and in the casinos but they could at least have a couple of decent channels.

If you are planning a trip to Vegas and are on a budget, don’t miss

• Half price show tickets at the big coca-cola bottle next to the MGM- this could save you a lot of money. The only catch is that they do not have seats for all shows.
• The free magazines in every hotel list all of the attractions of all hotels and they also have coupons at the back.
• If you are tired of walking the bus can take you the full length of the strip for only two dollars. If you are staying on the strip this is just as fast as a taxi for a fraction of the price.
• If you are wanting to drink but don’t want to pay a lot, sit and play at a penny lot machine. At most casinos it does not take long for the waitress to come around. Don’t forget to tip her though.
• Free attractions- the hotels on the strip are attractions in themselves, but there are many other attractions which are free such as the volcano at the Mirage, the fountains at the Bellagio, the moving statues at Caesars, etc…

For more Vegas info, the best site I have seen is Cheapo Vegas