Every dollar we spend at a hotel, we expect some reward points in return. And rightfully so. We can’t help it. We have been spoilt by these loyalty programs. But it’s too late to do anything about it anyway. So let’s just accept who we are and focus on earning even more points.
Dining is one of the largest portions of our spending at hotels. Sometimes a day’s meals could cost as much as a night stay would.
When you are staying at a hotel and bill your dining to your room, you generally get reward points. However, when you are not staying at the hotel, it becomes complicated.
Some hotels now offer the same earning rate for points on dining for walk-in customers as an in-house guest would get. Some have different programs altogether. Like several others, Hilton has its own Dining Program for its restaurant-only customers.
Hilton Honors Dining Program
As the name suggests, Hilton Honors Dining Program lets you earn Hilton Honors reward points for all your dining spends at Hilton properties.
The number of points you earn depends on your level with the dining program. This is different from your Hilton Honors status.
Hilton Honors Dining Program Levels
There are just 3 levels of the Hilton Dining Program. Even the highest one is pretty easy to achieve.
| Level | Earning | Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | 2 points per $1 | Base level |
| Select | 5 points per $1 | Opt-in to receive email communications from Hilton Honors Dining. |
| VIP | 8 points per $1 | Email Opt-in plus 11 or more dining transactions in a calendar year |
Once you get upgraded to VIP level, you retain the status for the current year and the next one.
How does Hilton Honors Dining Program works?
Hilton Honors Dining Program works by tracking your spending basis the credit card used for settling the bill at the restaurant.
You need to update your credit card details in your account settings on the site. Then when you use the same card for payment, it’s automatically tagged to your account, and points are rewarded for the same.
I would recommend holding to the bill till the points have been posted to your account, just in case.
You can add up to 5 credit cards to your account.
Sign-up bonus: 1000 points
You can earn a bonus of 1000 Hilton Honors reward points if you sign-up now and place an order within 30 days of sign-up. The order value needs to be a minimum of 25$. You also need to complete an online survey.
You can read more about and sign-up for the bonus here.
You need a Hilton Honors account before you sign-up for the dining program.
Be careful about the cards you add
You might be participating in another dining rewards program that tracks your spending basis your credit card number.
If that’s the case, then you should be using separate cards for each program. Most of these programs are managed by the same company and you don’t get bonus points twice on one card.
Now works on Online ordering, delivery, and take-away as well.
Hilton Honors Dining program now works for online ordering as well, apart from the regular delivery, take-away, and dine-in spends.
All online orders must be placed through the Hilton Honors Dining site in order to earn Bonus Points. You won’t earn points on orders placed through third-party sites and apps.
You can view the list of participating restaurants here.
Website access issues
At times the website for the Hilton Honors Dining program is not reachable or shows a 403 Forbidden error. Especially from outside of the US.
If you are stuck with one of those errors, using a VPN service (tried on NordVPN) generally resolves it.
Conclusion
This program is worth enrolling in, especially if you are a regular at Hilton restaurants.
You need to be careful about the cards though. Better to use a separate card for every such program. Then all you need to do is remember to use the correct one. :)
