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Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Review
The Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa offers decent BONUS-DOLLARS cash back rates on many common categories, plus solid insurance. That said, there are other cash back credit cards that optimize these categories even further.
Apr 25, 2026 1:26 AM
Written By
Lead Writer
Edited By
Credit Card Expert
Reviewed By
Credit Card Expert
The Bottom Line
For more flexible cash back on similar categories, you may want to consider alternative cash back credit cards.
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on Desjardins' website
RECOMMENDED CREDIT SCORE
300Poor
560Fair
660⁎Good
725⁎Very Good
760⁎Excellent
Rewards
- 2% in BONUS-DOLLARS on restaurant & pre-authorized purchases (up to $6,000 spend per category)
- 2% in BONUS-DOLLARS on entertainment and transit purchases
- 1% in BONUS-DOLLARS on all other purchases
Insurance
Coverage
Extended Warranty
1 year
Purchase Protection
90 days
Mobile Device Insurance
$1,000
Trip Cancellation
$500
Trip Interruption
no limits
Travel Medical Insurance (64 & under)
60 daysTravel Medical Insurance (65 to 75)
15 days
Baggage Delay
$1,000
Lost or Stolen Baggage
$1,000.svg)
Car Rental Damage & Theft
Yes
Benefits
Details
Car Rental Discount
25% off base rate off Hertz car rental, no young drivers or additional driver surchargeCar Rental Discount
10% off base rate off Thrifty or Dollar rental, no young or additional drivers surcharge
Eligibility
Credit Score
GoodAnnual Income
N/A
Card Details
Interest Rates
Purchase APR
20.90%
Cash Advance APR
21.90%
Balance Transfer APR
21.90%
Fees
Annual Fee
$110
Additional Cards
$30
Eligibility
Minimum Individual Income
N/A
Minimum Household Income
N/A
Credit Score Estimate
Good
Type
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Comprehensive insurance
- Decent rewards
- Car rental discounts
Cons
- High annual fee
- No welcome offer
- Limited branch access
Our Detailed Review
How to Earn Rewards with the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card
Here's how you collect BONUS-DOLLARS Rewards using the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card:
- 2% in BONUS-DOLLARS on restaurant & pre-authorized purchases (up to $6,000 spend per category)
- 2% in BONUS-DOLLARS on entertainment and transit purchases
- 1% in BONUS-DOLLARS on all other purchases
How to Redeem Rewards with the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card
Here's a brief look at the redemption categories applicable towards Desjardins BONUS-DOLLARS Rewards, ranked from most valuable to least valuable:
- Travel
- Financial Products
- Entertainment
- Restaurants
- Gift Cards
- Merchandise
Travel, financial products, entertainment, and restaurants all yield the highest 1 cent-per-point (cpp) value.
To learn more about these redemption categories and the rewards program as a whole, check out our Credit Card Points Value Calculator.
Benefits and Perks
3 Benefits of the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card
There are a few benefits that might make the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card worthwhile.
The Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card earns decent rewards on popular spending categories like dining, entertainment, transit, and pre-authorized payments. Earning rewards on categories like dining is especially impressive since these expenses can be particularly expensive.
Travellers will appreciate the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card's insurance coverage, including important protections like trip interruption, trip cancellation, and emergency medical insurance for seniors.
In addition to its rewards program and coverage, the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card comes with a couple of car rental discounts. Applicable companies include Hertz, Thrifty, and Dollar rental locations.
Drawbacks and Considerations
2 Downsides to the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card
Of course, there are also a couple of downsides to consider before committing.
Unfortunately, the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card comes with a high annual fee, making it less appealing to budget-conscious applicants.
Applicants may also be disappointed by the fact the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card lacks an intro offer, giving it less sign-up incentive.
Compare to Similar Cards
Comparison to Top Cash Back Credit Cards in Canada
Although the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card has a unique rewards program that offers cash back in the form of BONUS-DOLLARS, we still thought it best to compare this card against some of the top cash back credit cards in Canada, offering rewards in similar categories.
Desjardins
2.3
Tangerine
4.6
Simplii Financial™
4.3
Annual Fee
$110
$0
$125
$120
First year rebated
$0
Welcome Bonus
—
$120 bonus after spending $1.5k in 3 months + 1.95% balance transfer promo rate for 6 months
—
10% Cash Back (up to $200 value)
20% cashback† up to $500 in spending
Rewards
1% - 2%
0.5% - 2%
1% - 5%
1% - 4%
0.5% - 4%
Welcome Bonus Details
Earn Rates
Insurance Coverage
Extra Benefits
Requirements
Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card vs Tangerine Money-Back World Mastercard
The Tangerine Money-Back World Mastercard is recognized as one of the best Tangerine credit cards in Canada. This cash back card allows you to pick two earn categories out of 13 offered by Tangerine. Among these options are restaurants, recurring bill payments, entertainment, and public transportation. You can even select a third category when you deposit your rewards into a Tangerine Savings Account. The coverage on this card isn't quite as extensive as the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card, but it comes with more benefits such as a Dragon Pass airport lounge membership, Mastercard On-Demand and Subscription Services, and a FlexiRoam 1GB Data Roaming Plan. While this contender avoids annual fees, it includes some high annual income requirements.
Verdict: The Tangerine Money-Back World Mastercard is an affordable, customizable cash back alternative with more perks. That said, it has fewer coverage categories and is less accessible than the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card.
Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card vs Neo World Elite Mastercard
Known as both one of the best cash back credit cards in Canada and one of the best Neo Financial credit cards in Canada, the Neo World Elite Mastercard earns plenty of cash back on groceries, recurring purchases, and gas. These categories (among many others) can be optimized even further when you purchase from Neo Partners. Essentially, the earn rate on restaurant purchases and recurring payments is higher, both initially and after partner boosts. The coverage on the Neo World Elite Mastercard is also superior, offering protections like car rental, hotel burglary, and flight delay insurance. For benefits, expect a Dragon Pass airport lounge membership. Note, however, that the annual fee and annual income requirements are quite high.
Verdict: For better optimization on dining and recurring purchases, plus impressive cash back on gas and groceries, opt for the Neo World Elite Mastercard.
Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card vs Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite Card
The Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite Card is ranked as one of the top recurring transaction credit cards in Canada. As such, this card collects better cash back on recurring payments, not to mention groceries, gas, and food delivery purchases. When it comes to daily transit, the earn rates are identical. This card also has slightly more coverage than the Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card, but some shared coverage values aren't quite as high. For perks, cardholders receive car rental discounts at Avis and Budget Rent A Car locations, plus Visa Infinite Exclusive Benefits. While the annual fee is higher, it's waived for the first year of membership. That being said, applicants will need to meet some annual income requirements to qualify.
Verdict: The Scotia Momentum Visa Infinite Card is a better cash back credit card for recurring purchases.
Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card vs Simplii Financial Cash Back Visa Card
The Simplii Financial Cash Back Visa Card is one of the best dining credit cards in Canada. Unsurprisingly then, this competitor pockets more cash back on eligible restaurant, bar, and coffee shop purchases. The card also optimizes gas, groceries, drugstore, and pre-authorized payments (at a slightly lower rate). Unfortunately, this card only comes with basic purchase protection and extended warranty insurance and it also lacks perks. On the bright side, there's no annual fee and just a small income requirement.
Verdict: The Simplii Financial Cash Back Visa Card is best for dining purchases.
Frequently Asked Questions
Honestly, there are other cash back credit cards in Canada with better reward rates on shared popular categories like dining and pre-authorized payments. Some even come with no annual fees.
No. The Desjardins Odyssey Gold Visa Card doesn't have any annual income requirements.
No. BONUS-DOLLARS cash back must be redeemed towards eligible:
- Travel
- Financial products
- Entertainment
- Restaurants
- Gift Cards
- Merchandise
Which is still pretty generous.
About the author
Sara Skodak
Lead Writer
Since graduating from the University of Western Ontario, Sara has built a diverse writing portfolio, covering topics in the travel, business, and wellness sectors. As a self-started freelance content ...
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Kevin Shahnazari
Credit Card Expert
Kevin started FinlyWealth and juggles a bit of everything—digging into data, running our marketing, and keeping the finances on track. Before this, he spent years as a data scientist at tech companies...
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Abid Salahi
Credit Card Expert
Abid leads the design and engineering of the FinlyWealth website, making sure everything runs smoothly and looks great. He’s a seasoned software engineer who follows best practices and designs interfa...
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