Points Scrounger

That one is out in the suburbs. There aren't really coffee shops as such, nor particularly "cheap" pizza n Coke options either. Closest are individual beers at around $5 a pint, though in Portland I once had a bartender refuse to charge a single drink ... well he did, but started out with "management doesn't like charges under $5." I replied that a tip would bring the charge over that.

My usual charges are Indian or Ethiopian buffets for $10 a visit, or a German lunch (Bratz) for about the same, although they won't let diners charge tips.

Open Jaw

This is just a heads up for everyone here at FT.

I just spoke to RN about the above listed bonus and I was told that the 2 bonus miles will be only on dines until 3/31/12. So any dine after that date will not earn the bonus. I understand what the bonus at the website says but that's not how they are awarding the bonus miles. I surely hope RN is wrong because I have a monthly steak and beer night and earn a ton of miles for these dines.

pgary

American Airlines has improved its new member offer to 1,500 miles. Strangely it is not listed in the Bonuses section. Use this link to see it..

Points Scrounger

A reminder to rate your dines so they count towards those whopping two extra miles!

greek2me

I received an email 2/22 that Southwest is now doing the Get Ahead Bonus as well.

"Earn 2 bonus Rapid Rewards® Points per dollar on top of what you already earn for dining with the
Get Ahead Bonus.

Consider this your chance to sample all the glitz and glamour of the next level of Rapid Rewards DiningSM Membership. To qualify, you'll need to register, spend $75 at program restaurants by April 13, 2012 and complete your dining reviews within 30 days of each visit. You'll instantly begin earning 2 bonus points every time you dine through May 15, 2012 and complete a review.

The sooner you begin, the more time you'll have to earn, so get started now. For details, got to http://www.rapidrewardsdining.com/bonus.htm"

Points Scrounger

I went to do the required review of a dine earlier this week, and got a screen that said basically: "Oops - this restaurant is no longer part of the plan!" There was a two-question survey and a general comments field before submitting. Is this new?

sdsearch

At least in UA MP Dining, it appears that the reviews after you've cleared the initial $75 spend hurdle may not be necessary. (Btw, the wording at UA is different than for Southwest above, in that it doesn't repeat "and do a review" for "every dine" past the $75.)

I noticed this when my 2/$ bonus points for my second week (after $75 total completed) posted without me having yet completed all of the reviews for the dines for which the bonus points posted.

demkr

I had ended up completing the reviews anyway. Even though the new survey is kind of a pain (especially when you're doing it for the same restaurant) I want to make sure to get those whopping 2 extra MP miles

Perhaps the system recognizes if you've already done a survey for that particular restaurant? In San Fran, we actually have a surprisingly limited selection of places to go, and some of which just aren't worth the trouble to going to food wise, especially in my neighborhood.
So pretty much every place I've gone I have already surveyed multiple times.

Honolulu and NYC are my favorite locations for maintaining VIP Status. In Waikiki, for example, you can have 3 good meals at 3 different restaurants per day, and reach VIP status at the end of your vacation. Even stopping for coffee at Honolulu's Island Vintage Coffee location earns you miles. Most of my points earned are actually when I'm away from home.

We had such wonderful bonuses in 2009, and then it seems like in 2010,2011, and especially 2012 everything just died down. I'm also noticing that a lot of restaurants that I used to go to inside and outside of town have left the program (Such as Tiki's Grill in Waikiki)

Open Jaw

[QUOTE=demkr;18214731]I had ended up completing the reviews anyway. Even though the new survey is kind of a pain (especially when you're doing it for the same restaurant) I want to make sure to get those whopping 2 extra MP miles

Perhaps the system recognizes if you've already done a survey for that particular restaurant?


I do not think the review would be recognized by the system. I just do all reviews for the same restaurant. I do not want to take any chances. Normally when I do two dines in the same night at the same place, it's because I get one bill for my drinks while I wait for an open table and the other for my meal. Other times I just forgot to add a drink to my takeout meal or someone else wants to add more food after I already paid the the bill.

sdsearch

The system (in general, not the promo) certain recognizes when you've dined before at the restaurant (within that program, that is). It gives you one form of the survey if it's the first time it recognizes you dining there (often, for me, though, it's a restaurant I did dine at before using an RN program but using a different RN program!), asking if it was your first visit there and how you found out about it. It gives you another form of the survey if it's not the first time, asking you to rate in order your top 5 reasons for returning to the restaurant. (I hate that "because it participates in the program" is not one of them! They do later ask the question "did the particpation influence your decision to dine there?", but they don't ask you to rate how important that factor was.).

Thus RN is gathering no data on what portion of my total dines are RN dines!

Points Scrounger

You win -- my Delta "qualifying" dine just posted, with only the amount exceeding $75 getting anything extra. Makes me want to stick with only Priority Club from here on in as those points count towards elite status.

Open Jaw

I just wanted to remind everyone that the Get Ahead bonus ended on 3/31/12 even though the information page at the RN website states it's on April 30. Surveys have to be completed by that date.

Points Scrounger

As I understand it, if you qualified by 3/31 (in a specific plan), dines during April continue to be eligible for that extra 2 mi/$ bonus.

Jailer

Based on even my limited reading skills, I read it the same way (emphasis added):

Here's how to earn 2 AAdvantage® bonus miles per dollar:

1 Register for the Get Ahead Bonus*

2 Spend $75 at program restaurants by 3/31/12 and complete
your dining reviews within 30 days of each visit

3 Earn 2 AAdvantage® bonus miles per dollar for each
subsequent dollar spent dining through 4/30/12 (and continue
completing dining reviews within 30 days of each dine)


However, trying unsuccessfully to log into the get ahead bonus details on the AA RN site, now all I get is a blank page, so I suspect that Open Jaw is correct.

sdsearch

I just called up Mileage Plus Dining Customer Service, and asked them is the Get Ahead bonus over, or does it continue to April 30 for those who already completed the requirement, and they said it continues to April 30 if I've aleady completed the requirement.

I then mentioned the blank bonus page, and they said that's because no one who hasn't completed the requirement by now can do so any more.

So it seems OpenJaw is not correct.

I will therefore continue to dine only in the program I'm registered for GET AHEAD with (in my case Mileage Plus Dining), for at least the next couple of weeks, and only if I don't see any more GET AHEAD bonuses post next week (this week's GET AHEAD bonus posting will cover dines in the last week of March, so it posting doesn't by itself prove anything regarding this argument) will I assume it actually ended.