Yodlee/H&R Block Tax Software: 2 for 1 Companion Airfare Tickets

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I received an interesting offer from Yodlee this week, of course after I already filed my taxes. I discussed how we use TurboTax free federal software and my State’s website for State taxes in this post a couple of weeks ago. A quick note for those not familiar with Yodlee. It is a good website for consolidating all of your financial and travel related accounts, and uses some nice tools for budgeting, etc. It took me several years to feel comfortable entering all of my online information into a website, but eventually I finally felt comfortable with the concept since it was widely used. We keep all of our financial, airline, and hotel accounts in Yodlee, and then have access to our balances, account numbers, and passwords anywhere we have internet access. It makes it slightly easier than having to always remember tons of login credentials. Ok back to the offer.

Yodlee has teamed up with H&R Block to offer tax filing software, apparently directly through Yodlee’s platform. After logging into your account, click on the Tax Center tab at the top. From there, click File My Taxes, which will take you to H&R Block’s website. Then the offer reads…

Get rewarded! Once you’ve completed filing your 2010 federal and state taxes with H&R Block At Home™, you will receive two round-trip airline tickets for the price of one. When your Companion Fare certificate arrives, book your flight online or by phone and you’re on your way! See terms and conditions below for restrictions that apply.*

* TERMS AND CONDITIONS: Receive one coach class, discounted roundtrip companion airline ticket with the purchase of the first coach class, roundtrip, airline ticket. Blackout dates may apply to certain destinations. 14-day advance purchase and Saturday night stay may be required. Fares are subject to change without notice. Election of airline varies by market. Airline service is not available in all markets. The companion ticket program applies to the base fare only. Normal taxes and fees charged by the airline will apply to both tickets. See complete Terms and Conditions as stated in the airline voucher and companion booking site. Yodlee and H&R Block do not provide travel services and is not affiliated with Promotions In Travel LTD. Additional restrictions may apply.

Beginning at 12:00:01 am Pacific Time (“PT”) on February 23, 2011 and ending at 11:59:59 pm PT on April 18, 2011 (the “Promotion Period”), an Eligible Participant will receive a certificate for one (1) discounted roundtrip companion airline ticket with the purchase of the first coach class, roundtrip airline ticket for completing the filing of their 2010 taxes through H&R Block At Home during the Promotion Period, limit one (1) per Eligible Participant. For those that qualify, offers may be fulfilled within ten to twelve weeks from Promotion end date.

This incentive offer will only be awarded to the first 750 individuals that complete the tax filing online process through the Yodlee H&R Block At Home FinApp offered on Yodlee MoneyCenter.

So I have several questions. 1) I am assuming that you will not be able to file the free Federal version and need to pay for state. 2) This offer is only limited to the first 750 people. Has this been met? 3) What are the terms of the voucher? Do I need to go through a third party vendor, who may be charging me double what the airline would charge?

Well the first question is not to hard to answer. After linking into H&R Block’s website through Yodlee, the Deluxe package for the Federal portion is $29.95. Each State filing is $34.95. Therefore, my 2 for 1 airline ticket voucher is now costing me 1 roundtrip ticket, taxes on both tickets, plus $64.90 in tax software…hardly a deal yet unless I can book an international fare.

The second and third questions are extremely difficult to answer. The terms of the offer are located here. The limited number of redemption for this offer (750) would appear at first to be easily met, considering this promotion has been running since Feb. 23, 2011. I did not even know about it until they sent me an email yesterday (3/8/11). Therefore, I would be hesitant to file my taxes through this offer if you were counting on the airline ticket voucher. However, if you were already planning on paying for tax software, and are a member of Yodlee, then you might as well at least try to go through their offer in the hopes that you at least get something for the money.

As for the third question, in the terms it states “Yodlee and H&R Block do not provide travel services and is not affiliated with Promotions In Travel LTD. Therefore, there is a third party vendor you need to deal with on the voucher. This opens up a whole bunch of questions that I will not be able to answer including what airlines do they have access to fly? Are they limited on days and times for flights? How do the costs compare with going directly through the airlines? What about additional fees that Promotions in Travel may try to add on to the price? Will we earn airline miles?

Overall, I am never too impressed by these offers. Several years ago I received one for purchasing tires through National Tire and Battery (NTB). Long story short, I never used the voucher and could not even give it away because there were so many restrictions (I could give it away, but nobody wanted it).

Register Now for Cleveland Zoo ElephanTuesday Preview

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The completion of the African Elephant Crossings exhibit at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is a major accomplishment. The area is the first major reinvestment at the zoo since the Rainforest project in 1992. The elephant project has been my personal favorite and most important endeavor that the zoo could undertake.

Yes, elephants have always been my favorite animal, but in addition, the exhibit and aging building needed some new energy. As we traveled the country going to other zoos, we constantly were reminded of the eyesore that was the old elephant exhibit. The Cleveland Zoo was falling behind relative to what other zoos across the country were accomplishing. The new elephant area will not only be gorgeous and aesthetically pleasing, but will help guide and improve the elephant program, increase education, and hopefully be a good stepping stone to launch new projects throughout the zoo.

Want to see the return of the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo elephants to their new home without all the crowds? If you are a zoo member, you can now register for the free private events going on this summer. If you are not a member, I strongly encourage you to join, not only because you have access to the zoo year round, but the reciprocal access to zoos across the country is priceless. We more than pay for our membership every year by visiting other zoos when we travel.

Go here, and after signing into your account, you will be allowed to register for the various ElephanTuesday events.

Tour registration for April, May and June tours will begin on March 8, 2011at 8:30AM.

Tour registration for July, August and September tours will begin on May 31, 2011 at 8:30AM.

Tour registration for October and November tours will begin on August 30, 2011 at 8:30AM.

I was worried at first because you are only allowed to register two people to the event of your choosing. We have two little ones, under the age of two, who are currently free to the zoo, so I was not sure how this event would work. I called the zoo and confirmed that both of our kids will be able to attend the event with us. This will work out perfect because the event we registered for will be warmer weather, and our newborn will be 8 weeks, old enough to take out in public.

2182 Brecksville Restaurant Review

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This weekend we decided to use a Groupon we purchased a while back to a newer restaurant called 2182 Brecksville. They are located at the 8918 Brecksville Road, Brecksville, OH. Shortly after we arrived and asked the obvious question, we learned they were named 2182 because they are located at the corner of State Routes 21 and 82. As you can tell, we knew very little about this restaurant, and since we are foodies, we always enjoy trying new places.

Seeing as we just had our second son less than two weeks ago, my wife was extremely excited to get out of the house and enjoy her first drink in over 9 months. Dinner and tickets to see Shrek the Musical were plans for an ideal date night. I called to make reservations to 2182 the night before, and was shocked to hear they were completely booked. We were quite disappointed to know they typically fill up with reservations at least a week in advance. It is a combination of the Groupon effect as well as they are a really small, intimate place with less than 20 tables. However, we made alternative dinner arrangement, but I decided several hours before leaving to try again just in case something opened up. To both my and the host’s surprise, they told me I was the “luckiest guy in Brecksville” as the last opening was available for 5:30 for two guests; the perfect arrangements.

We arrived right on time, as seems to be our trend lately, since it’s so difficult to get out of the house with two little ones. Luckily though, this was a date night and we had babysitters, so we did not need to carry the kids and all their luggage along too, allowing us to arrive on time. We were able to park on Brecksville Road right in front of the establishment since it was not peak time. The restaurant had a comfortable, intimate glow from candles and gorgeous chandeliers. We were ushered to our table and there were very few other people at the time.

What was a little uncomfortable was because they are so small, the tables are practically right on top of your adjacent guests. There was a quiet, gentle older man sitting next to us, waiting for his food to arrive, drinking a glass of red wine. We were quickly met by our waitress who brought glasses of water and the drink menu. I anxiously handed the menu to my wife to let her lavish in the moment. She chose a glass of Brut Prosecco sparkling wine from Gasparini. Since they did not stock my favorite drink of choice, Three Olives Cherry Vodka, I chose a Three Olives Vanilla Vodka and Ginger Ale. Seeing as I love Three Olives in general, it was a nice change and great choice.

Along with our drinks, we were brought some dinner rolls with a flavored butter spread while we looked over the menus. As we listened to the waitress review the specials, and discuss our various options, the quiet man next to us commented that the prime rib, which had arrived at his table minutes earlier, and the field green salad were great choices. After reviewing all the various options, we had the appetizer special, Seared Ahi Tuna, Wasabi Potato Salad, Miso Aioli ($11). Again, since my wife was pregnant for the previous 9 months, she was excited to get to try some “raw” fish. When the appetizer arrived shortly thereafter, there were four thin slices of tuna with a scoop of potato salad. The combined flavors and gentle textures were nicely paired.

For our first course, my wife ordered the Field Greens, Grape Tomatoes, Goat Cheese, Toasted Almonds, Roasted Garlic, Honey and Red Wine Vinaigrette ($8), and I ordered the Lobster Bisque with Sherry Cream ($9). As is tradition, my wife and I share, or at least let each other sample, our choices. The lobster bisque was good, with a very minor hint of sherry, and small chunks of real lobster. The soup was served really hot, and hit the spot. My wife’s salad was AMAZING! The ingredients were fresh, the goat cheese very creamy with a mild taste, and slivered almonds always add an excellent texture and taste. In addition, the homemade honey and red wine vinaigrette was stellar. I have to admit, the old man was right that the salad was probably the best part of the whole meal.

For our main dishes, my wife ordered the Sirloin Steak Frites, Broiled Center Cut Sirloin, Rosemary and Sea Salt Pommes Frites, Bernaise Sauce ($19), and I ordered the dinner special, Pan Roasted Fillet of Sole over Saffron Rice Pilaf, Broccolini, Lemon Butter ($25). My wife’s sirloin was a generous serving done to perfection, and the frites had an excellent flavor from the rosemary and sea salt. I was surprised to see a steak served with fries at a premium restaurant, but my wife reminded me of the places French inspiration, for which frites were acceptable. My sole was light and flakey with a very mild lemon butter sauce, over a generous serving of rice. Perhaps my favorite part of my meal though was the broccolini, which were cooked al dente.

Overall, we were really impressed with 2182 Brecksville. Service was excellent, the food was of course good, and because we were able to use our $70 Groupon (purchased for $35), and place the remaining balance on our Discover More card, earning an additional 5% this month, our total expenditure including tip was $95. Is it expensive, sure. Did we order more food than we may have because we had a gift certificate, certainly. Was is worth it?

Absolutely! Having a long over due date night, where my wife could fully enjoy herself (even though she did call in to check on the boys several times, but who is counting?), as well as seeing the awesome rendition of Shrek the Musical, made for a great evening!