The Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard is one of the top offerings from Desjardins, with exceptional earn rates of up to 3% in the Desjardins BONUSDOLLARS Rewards program.

Aside from the high earn rates, you'll also unlock iron-clad travel insurance and perks, as well as mobile device insurance.

For a reasonable $130 annual fee, this is a card to be reckoned with in the credit card gladiatorial arena (if there ever were such a thing). Here's everything you need to know about this card, both good and bad, as well as a comparison with some similar cards.

Pros of the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard

World Elite Mastercards are known for their outstanding perks, and the card that Desjardins offers in this tier is no exception. We've listed out 5 awesome things that you'll be able to enjoy if you decide to go with this card.

1. Earn a ton of BONUSDOLLARS everywhere you shop

Let's dive right into your everyday earn rates. The Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard earns points using the Desjardins BONUSDOLLARS rewards program at a fast clip. Here's an easy-to-digest breakdown:

• 3% cash back on groceries
• 2% cash back on restaurants, entertainment, and public transportation
• 1.5% cash back on all other purchases

The nice thing is that their highest-earning category is groceries, maxing out at 3%. Since groceries are bought by pretty much everyone, it's very useful and rewarding for most Canadians to get this credit card.

2% on 3 different categories is also a nice plus, but 1.5% on all other purchases is even better because it means the base earn rate is high. Even if you don't specifically spend in one of the bonus categories, you'll still be getting more than 1%, which can be considered above average.

To make a long story short, having popular categories all boosted is excellent in itself, but having a high base earn rate is one of the things that a lot of credit cards are missing. I remember my first credit card having a base earn rate of only 0.5%, meaning that unless I spent every dime I had at Superstore, I'd feel lucky if I ever earned more than a couple bucks per month.

2. Excellent insurance, even if you're over 65

Let's talk travel insurance. First, you'll immediately see that the insurance coverage for this card is outstanding. There's a total of 9 types of coverage, but the standout here is definitely the coverage for seniors. Normally, once you hit 65, it's so long and good luck. But with this card, you'll still get some level of coverage as you go into your sunset years.

Here's what your emergency medical care coverage looks like for the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard:

3. Free lounge access in Montreal

If you travel through Montreal-Trudeau Airport, the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard unlocks complimentary lounge access to the Desjardins Odyssey Lounge. In total, each card on the account will be given 8 free passes.

4. Car rental perks

A smaller perk but always nice to have if you're travelling in a foreign city that's not super bus-friendly, the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard grants discounts of up to 25% off at the following rental car companies, as well as other perks like discounts on surcharges or free additional drivers.

• Hertz,
• Thrifty, and
• Dollar.

5. World Elite Mastercard perks

As this is a World Elite Mastercard, the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard comes with your standard World Elite Mastercard perks. These include:

• lounge access to over 1,300 airport lounges aside from the Desjardins Odyssey Lounge in Montreal (no free passes, unfortunately),
• Priceless Experiences, and
• cash back rewards through the Mastercard Travel Rewards program when you use your credit card abroad.

Cons of the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard

As good as this card may be, it'd be bad if we only sing its praises in this review. Here are some downsides to the card that you should be aware of before applying for it.

1. No welcome bonus

It's very common for credit cards to have some sort of welcome bonus or some other type of limited time offer on their cards. Especially for getting World Elite or Visa Infinite cards, this has become a common recurrence.

For this card, there aren't any little extras that go along with what it already offers.

2. No physical branches outside of Ontario and Quebec

If you're not living, laughing, and loving in Quebec or Ontario, just keep in mind that there are no physical branches outside of those 2 provinces. This is only really a problem if you have to go in to resolve a problem or prefer more old-school, Pepperidge Farm style methods.

Comparison to the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard

As the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard is a rewards credit card under the World Elite Mastercard designation, let's see how it compares to a popular credit card of the same class, the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard.

First, we'll start off with a good ol' comparison table:

	Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard	BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard
Normal earn rate	* 3% cash back on groceries * 2% cash back on restaurants, entertainment, and public transportation * 1.5% cash back on all other purchases	* 5 points per $1 spent on travel * 3 points per $1 spent on dining, entertainment, and recurring bills * 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases
Average earn rate	1.8%	1.09%
Number of insurance types	9	14
Welcome bonus	No welcome bonus at this time	$125 GeniusCash + Up to 90,000 100,000 bonus points, first year free (terms)
Lounge access	8 free passes to the Desjardins Odyssey Lounge in Montreal	4 free passes to any DragonPass lounge
Annual fee	$130	$150

With BMO Rewards points being worth less than Desjardins BONUSDOLLARS, the higher average earn rates on the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard makes it a clear winner in that category, though this is buoyed a lot by the big grocery earn rates.

But with more insurance and a big welcome bonus (where 100,000 points is worth $670), the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard fights back with excellent first year value.

And that's not even considering that the BMO card has an extra $125 in GeniusCash on approval.

In terms of lounges, the Desjardins card has a higher number of passes, but the flexibility of the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard is likely much more valuable since its Mastercard Airport Experiences membership unlocks well over 1,000 lounges around the world, so unless you're based or travel often to Montreal, BMO is the big winner here.

Insurance-wise, even though BMO has more coverage types, the coverage offered by Desjardins on a whole is much more valuable. You can compare the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard's insurance coverage with the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard's coverage for more information.

One category where the Desjardins entrant takes the win is in terms of annual fee, saving you $20 per year.

It's actually pretty close in terms of the 2 cards, but we'll leave it up to you to decide which is best for you and your spending habits.

FAQ

Does the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard have a welcome bonus?

Unfortunately, the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard does not currently have a welcome bonus.

What kind of insurance coverage does the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard have?

The Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard includes 9 types of travel insurance. One top-tier insurance coverage it has is that its coverage extends beyond the age of 65, so it makes for a must-know credit card for seniors who want to see the world.

What other perks are included with the Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard?

The Desjardins Odyssey World Elite Mastercard comes with 8 free lounge passes at the Desjardins Odyssey Lounge in Montreal, as well as car rental discounts of up to 25% and the standard World Elite Mastercard benefits.