Scotiabank's Scene+ Points Rewards - NerdWallet Canada (2024)

If you’re mostly familiar with the Scene+ rewards program because of its association with movie theatre chain Cineplex Odeon, you might wonder if signing up is worth it.

But Scene+ points can be redeemed for a lot more than a night at the movies. Let’s dive in and find out how to get the most out of being a Scene+ member.

How Scene+ works

Scene+ was originally launched in 2007 as Scene, Cineplex Odeon’s rewards program. At the time, Scene points could only be earned on Cineplex purchases and redeemed for free movies and discounts at the concession stand. That changed in 2021, when Scene and Scotiabank’s Scotia Rewards programs merged and became Scene+. Since then, Scotiabank’s rewards credit cards have been co-branded with Scene+.

Scene+ operates similarly to other popular rewards programs, like Air Canada’s Aeroplan and American Express’s Membership Rewards. Program members can use a co-branded credit card or debit card to earn points, present their membership card when making purchases at Scene+ retail partners or do both and really ramp up their points totals. Scene+ points can be redeemed for a variety of merchandise and experiences.

Where can you earn and redeem Scene+ points?

You can earn Scene+ points at a variety of different businesses, including grocery stores, pharmacies and restaurants. You can also earn points online through travel or merchandise purchases.

When redeeming Scene+ points, each point is worth approximately one cent.

Grocery stores, pharmacies and liquor stores that offer Scene+ points

• Sobeys, Voila by Sobeys, Sobeys Pharmacy and Sobeys Liquor.
• Saveway, Pharmacy at Safeway and Safeway Liquor.
• FreshCo and FreshCo Pharmacy.
• Thrifty Foods, Thrifty Foods Pharmacy and Thrifty Foods Liquor.
• IGA and Voila by IGA.
• Foodland.
• Needs.
• Lawtons Drugs.
• Rachelle Bery.
• Les Marches Tradition.

The points earned at these businesses will vary depending on digital and in-store offers. You can typically redeem 1000 Scene+ points for $10 off of purchases at participating grocery stores.

Restaurants that offer Scene+ points

You can earn one Scene+ point for every $3 spent on dine-in or take-out purchases at:

• Harvey’s.
• Swiss Chalet.
• East Side Marios.
• Montanas BBQ and Bar.
• Bier Markt.
• Kelseys Original Roadhouse.

If you’d like to use those points while dining, you can redeem 500 Scene+ points for $5 in savings at participating restaurants. At some locations, you may even be able to put your points toward alcohol purchases.

Entertainment spaces that offer Scene+ points

Scene+ points can be earned at The Rec Room and Playdium locations, as well as at Cineplex Odeon theatres and online at the Cineplex store.

You’ll earn one point for every dollar spent at The Rec Room and Playdium, and five points for every dollar spent on movie and entertainment purchases at Cineplex theatres, concession stands (excluding alcohol) and the Cineplex store.

At The Rec Room and Playdium, you can redeem 500 points for $5 that can be put toward games, food and fun. At Cineplex, redeeming 100 points will get you $1 off movie tickets or purchases made through the Cineplex store. You can also redeem 500 points for $5 off food and drinks at the movies.

Other ways to earn and redeem Scene+ points

• Travel purchases. Earn three points for every dollar spent on hotel and car rentals made through Scene+ Travel, Powered by Expedia. Redeem 100 points for $1 off vacation bookings.
• Online shopping. Earn points when shopping from hundreds of retailers participating in Scene+ Rakuten. Points can be redeemed for gift cards at over 60 retailers and brands, or for anything you like at the Scene+ Apple or Scene+ Best Buy online stores.
• Other Scotiabank products. Scotiabank offers two Visa debit cards that earn Scene+ points. Several bank accounts earn points, too, including the Ultimate Package, Preferred Package, Student Banking Advantage Plan and the Getting There Savings Program for Youth.

Scotiabank credit cards that earn Scene+ points

There are currently six Scotiabank credit cards that earn Scene+ points, including:

• The Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card.
• The Scotiabank Gold American Express Card.
• The Scotiabank Scene+ Visa Card.
• The Scotiabank American Express Card.
• The Scotiabank Platinum American Express Card.
• The Scotiabank Scene+ Visa Card for Students.

You don’t need a Scotiabank credit card to earn Scene+ points, but they are an effective way of juicing your points total and claiming rewards more quickly. Let’s see how many points you can earn by being a Scene+ member and shopping with a Scotiabank credit card that earns Scene+ points.

Our example purchase will be a fairly typical shopping trip: groceries at a participating Scene+ retailer, lunch at a participating restaurant and gas for the week. We’ll assume a $100 spend each on groceries and gas and $60 on lunch for a total of $260.

• Your Scene+ membership entitles you to 20 points on lunch and nothing on gas. The actual number of points you earn at the grocery store will depend on what you buy and what offers are available, but we’ll assume one point per dollar spent, which gives you another 100 points. Your total points earned as a Scene+ member for this excursion is 120.
• Paying with a Scotiabank credit card, like the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card, you earn 600 Scene+ points on your grocery purchase, 300 points on lunch and another 300 points on gas. Your total points earned with this Scene+ credit card is 1,200.

Your Scene+ points for the day total 1,320 — 1,200 more than you would earn just by being a Scene+ member.

Making Scene+ work for you

Managing your Scene+ rewards is relatively easy.

1. Register at sceneplus.ca and receive a Scene+ card number. Your Scene+ card number can be added to digital wallets for easy access when shopping.
2. Download the Scene+ app from either Apple’s App Store or Google Play. The app isn’t required, but it will help you keep track of your Scene+ points balance and claim exclusive offers.
3. To earn and redeem Scene+ points through Rakuten purchases, you’ll have to link an existing Rakuten account to your Scene+ account. You can do that by visiting rakuten.ca/scene.
4. Cineplex now charges an extra $1.50 booking fee when buying movie tickets online or through the Cineplex app, so you may want to consider buying your tickets in person to avoid having your Scene+ rewards eaten up.
5. Remember to redeem your points. They’re unlikely to expire, but they can’t be transferred to another Scene+ member.
6. You can redeem your Scene+ points in-person when making purchases at participating retailers or through the Scene+ app by clicking “Rewards” and choosing how you’d like to put your points to work.