Response to change: anybody else Idining like a wild banshee?
Jan 15, 2005, 11:56 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: SoCal; DO-RAGS: Old Gold tagged, PIP, LatPass 1/2, AA 4MM, HH LT Diamond, Marriott Titanium/LT Plat, Omni
Posts: 9,190
Response to change: anybody else Idining like a wild banshee?
Although not really premeditated, I’m finding that my response to the program being gutted is to get while the getting is good. So far in January, about a dozen dines and approaching 6,000 miles. Anybody else going hog wild?
Jan 15, 2005, 5:43 pm
#2
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Location: RSW
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Not quite, but I am thinking of getting in 12 dines each on my 3 airlines in case their "bonuses" and "merchants" are any good.
Jan 15, 2005, 11:11 pm
#3
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Programs: AA- Lifetime Platinum; Marriott - Lifetime Platinum: Starwood - Gold; IHG - Platinum
Posts: 2,201
Yes, I am idining as much as possible and will continue to do so until the changes come through in July. Year to date I have about 2500 miles coming per month for dining with 2-3 family members. Then there will be 1000 AA bonus elite miles added per month.
Jailer: you must be dining clients to be so far ahead of me? I have been using Idine for all it's worth for several years now. I just wish I could use it more for business!
I am going to be really missing the program when the draconian changes set in!
Jailer: you must be dining clients to be so far ahead of me? I have been using Idine for all it's worth for several years now. I just wish I could use it more for business!
I am going to be really missing the program when the draconian changes set in!
Last edited by paradocs; Jan 21, 2005 at 12:28 pm
Jan 16, 2005, 8:04 am
#4
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: O'side.,CA
Programs: AA MM, SPG Plat., HHonors GLD, Hertz PC
Posts: 104
I'm taking clients out very, very frequently and averaging ~2-3K miles per month. I'd average more, but there are just some restaurants and bars that are just too irresistable to avoid when traveling- and since the quality of some iDine places lag... 
Jan 16, 2005, 8:50 am
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: SoCal; DO-RAGS: Old Gold tagged, PIP, LatPass 1/2, AA 4MM, HH LT Diamond, Marriott Titanium/LT Plat, Omni
Posts: 9,190
Originally Posted by paradocs
Jailer: you must be dining clients to be so far ahead of me?
Jan 21, 2005, 12:30 pm
#6
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Programs: AA- Lifetime Platinum; Marriott - Lifetime Platinum: Starwood - Gold; IHG - Platinum
Posts: 2,201
Originally Posted by Jailer
True pdocs, and a lot of those clients are inmates, who have Idine pizza brought in once a week on my dime. I wish I could have found mile o’pizza close to more than just one of our halfway houses, but still a sweet deal.
Jan 21, 2005, 5:59 pm
#7
Join Date: Dec 2003
Programs: AA Plat Pro, United Silver, Marriott LTT, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Diamond, IHG Platinum
Posts: 1,120
Well, I am going to make sure I get at least 3 dines/month for the 500 pt AA bonus until then. I'll do it by buying gift certs for my fave restaurant when I need extra dines. Then start using the GCs after 7/1 when the points go down. 
Feb 3, 2005, 10:26 am
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: SoCal; DO-RAGS: Old Gold tagged, PIP, LatPass 1/2, AA 4MM, HH LT Diamond, Marriott Titanium/LT Plat, Omni
Posts: 9,190
Lt. Commander Montgomery Scott to Captain James T. Kirk (insert Scottish lilt here): “Capt’n, I canna give ya even a wee bit more. If we don’t drop to impulse the warp infusion coils will seize and the engines will blow us to Kingdom Come.”
“Dammit Scotty, give me more power, the treaty with the Klingons goes into effect July 1st, and I want to grab up all the territory for the Federation while I can.”
“Sirs”, says Cadet Newman, “I’m just an extra and my chances of surviving this episode are slim anyway (here Spock calculates 1,283,417 to 1). I’ll go into the core and manually infuse the anti-matter.”
Twenty dines and 8578 miles in January. I may have to throttle back to impulse or my gut is gonna blow.
“Dammit Scotty, give me more power, the treaty with the Klingons goes into effect July 1st, and I want to grab up all the territory for the Federation while I can.”
“Sirs”, says Cadet Newman, “I’m just an extra and my chances of surviving this episode are slim anyway (here Spock calculates 1,283,417 to 1). I’ll go into the core and manually infuse the anti-matter.”
Twenty dines and 8578 miles in January. I may have to throttle back to impulse or my gut is gonna blow.
Feb 6, 2005, 9:48 am
#9
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Fort Worth, TX, USA
Posts: 665
No more than 12 per month
With four of us as registered members, it takes 12 visits per month of each of us to get the AA 500 bonus miles so it's still 12 only (granted we do actually 6 visits - split the bill in half over two cards). Doing this all last year has allowed us to qualify as an Elite member for the new program and HIGHER bonus level. I hope that the 500 bonus miles stays after February as that is when the current AA elite bonus program ends.
Feb 6, 2005, 11:10 am
#10
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: check swarm
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Gift Cards
To try for the status, and "bank" some miles, I've been buying a few electronic gift cards at a few places in the program.
I'm also frustrated by how fast restaurants in my area (LA) come and go in the program, buying a gift card gives me a little "insurance" against restaurants either leaving the program or stupid rules like needing a reservation or specific day rewards.
But the reality is that I'll likely stop my habit of consulting iDine/Rwards Network before dinging come the changes this summer. Too bad, it was good while it lasted.
I'm also frustrated by how fast restaurants in my area (LA) come and go in the program, buying a gift card gives me a little "insurance" against restaurants either leaving the program or stupid rules like needing a reservation or specific day rewards.
But the reality is that I'll likely stop my habit of consulting iDine/Rwards Network before dinging come the changes this summer. Too bad, it was good while it lasted.
Jun 30, 2005, 10:47 pm
#11
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: SoCal; DO-RAGS: Old Gold tagged, PIP, LatPass 1/2, AA 4MM, HH LT Diamond, Marriott Titanium/LT Plat, Omni
Posts: 9,190
And so the sun sets on the idine pig-out. Thought that I'd get 10k per month, or 60,000 miles before the idine gutting, but with idineries unexpectedly dropping like flies prior to the change and with me somewhat losing interest, I only managed 47,742 idine miles. Unless they conjure up some unforeseen promos, I’d be surprised to get another 10k for the remainder of the year. T’was grand while it lasted.
Jul 1, 2005, 4:38 pm
#12
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Los Angeles, CA, USA
Programs: AA Plat, BA, DL, Frontier, NWA, SWA, UA, HHonors Gold, Priority Club Plat, Choice Priv, BW, Diners
Posts: 1,554
Originally Posted by Jailer
And so the sun sets on the idine pig-out. Thought that I'd get 10k per month, or 60,000 miles before the idine gutting, but with idineries unexpectedly dropping like flies prior to the change and with me somewhat losing interest, I only managed 47,742 idine miles. Unless they conjure up some unforeseen promos, I’d be surprised to get another 10k for the remainder of the year. T’was grand while it lasted.
And as to idineries unexpectedly dropping, maybe it had something to do with them "knowing" (not explicitly, but through a new cost restructuring at their end) that they'd have to become 10 milers on July 1 or else drop out?
Anyway, I guess you have to resume your pig out right away, because you may only have one more year to do it, right?
Jul 1, 2005, 4:51 pm
#13
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Programs: AA- Lifetime Platinum; Marriott - Lifetime Platinum: Starwood - Gold; IHG - Platinum
Posts: 2,201
Jailer: My family is up to about 32,000 YTD.
I suspect your interest in the program will go through a serious renewal. (I think I even saw you say so on the other thread).
I suspect your interest in the program will go through a serious renewal. (I think I even saw you say so on the other thread).
Jul 1, 2005, 6:31 pm
#14
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: SoCal; DO-RAGS: Old Gold tagged, PIP, LatPass 1/2, AA 4MM, HH LT Diamond, Marriott Titanium/LT Plat, Omni
Posts: 9,190
Curses to Idine: they have spoiled my plans to go on a diet.
In retrospect, maybe getting that second mortgage to buy Idine gift certificates wasn’t such a good idea after all.
So, in a day of FT ups and downs, the LatinPass folks frown while the Idiners smile. I say show some solidarity and take a LatinPasser out to eat.
In retrospect, maybe getting that second mortgage to buy Idine gift certificates wasn’t such a good idea after all.
So, in a day of FT ups and downs, the LatinPass folks frown while the Idiners smile. I say show some solidarity and take a LatinPasser out to eat.
Jul 8, 2005, 10:13 am
#15
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Programs: AA- Lifetime Platinum; Marriott - Lifetime Platinum: Starwood - Gold; IHG - Platinum
Posts: 2,201
Anyone else notice that while logged in to dining the individual restaurants are back down to 5 miles per dollar? Just as most of them were before July 1.
However, on the home page it still tells me about the elite member bonus valid thru 6/30/06.
Weird!
However, on the home page it still tells me about the elite member bonus valid thru 6/30/06.
Weird!