Airport Hotels via Hotwire or Priceline?

[Dasha]

Looking for a hotel room for the night before our cruise. Anybody had luck getting a quality room at in the Orlando airport vicinity using Hotwire or Priceline? If so, what did you get and what the the star ratings?

Thanks,
Dasha

 

[WhenYouWish]

We got the Amerisuites 2 1/2 star rating on Hotwire for the night before our cruise at $46. I believe it has a free airport shuttle as well. Hope this helps.

 

[prymsu]

I know that Barb and Tony always use something like this for booking their hotels. Barb has lots of trip reviews, so you could go to her site www.castawayclub.com and check out her reviews of the different hotels that they have stayed at booking through online sites.

 

[AprilN]

We got the Marriott Orlando Airport on Hotwire for $58/night, total of $70.95 for a one night stay. This hotel is rated 4 out of 5 stars on Hotwire - a rather nice business hotel. We stayed in a Marriott hotel in Irvine last September and were quite impressed. We made this reservation back in May, to stay on 2/21/03.

The Marriott might not be as exciting as others nearby, but we will be flying in from CA the day before, so we're basically looking for somewhere kinda nice to crash for the night. Since this hotel is now reserving for $109 via various websites on our date, DH and I definitely feel like we won the "Hotwire lottery"!

April

 

[mcnuss]

Try Expedia, too. They have their own Expedia Special rates that are sometimes exceptional and you know what you are booking. I am too nervous (or maybe too picky) to use Hotwire or Priceline; I am terrified to get a horrible place.

 

[prymsu]

I think the price Barb and Tony pay is usually under $30 per night, and they almost always get airport shuttle. I am sure once she visits the boards, she will be able to give you a really good idea of prices and what hotels they have used.

 

[mcnuss]

Just for the heck of it, I looked at Expedia and used 9/20 as the date of stay. I found approx. 10 hotels for less than $75, with about 3 in the $35 range. I just don't like having to commit before knowing what I am committing to.

 

[Dave_from_Marietta]

All Orlando airport-area hotels offer a courtesy shuttle although some of the smaller properties stop running them after midnight.

 

[atigeg]

Hello!
We use Priceline and Hotwire a lot. Via Hotwire, we've always gotten the Amerisuites, and it's generally around $33 (I can tell which one it is because it has the "suite" amenities, even tho' they don't give you the name). Their shuttle is very prompt.
Via Priceline I've gotten the Renaissance and two different LaQuintas for $27-$28. Their shuttles were all fine too...the only one I've had trouble with is the Fairfield, which we got free with Marriott Rewards points. It took them 90 minutes, and they refused to give me an explanation...I guess that was a case of getting what I paid for. The others are typically 10 to 20 minutes for pick-up...you can call them all via the courtesy phones in the MCO baggage claim area. A lot of the time we get a free breakfast too. A hint for Priceline...if you book pretty far in advance, La Quinta is probably what you'll get. Book closer to the date and it may be something else (the Renaissance was a real luck-out). I prefer not to stay at the airport hotel because we have Happy Limo pick us up in the morning, and I like doing the pickup at an offsite hotel rather than the crowded airport.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[Dasha]

It appears that Hotwire and Priceline only do double occupancy rooms. As we are a party of four, does this mean we are out of luck?

Getting a $30 room and calling the hotel to make sure 4 can stay in it only to have the price go up seems riskier than making the 4 person reservation through Expedia, Orbitz et al.

Dasha

 

[inkkognito]

I don't know if this would work or not, but maybe you could call the MCO Amerisuites, explain that you will most likely be booking a room via Hotwire, and ask them your question. I'm sure they get enough Hotwire clients to be familiar the policies. Since LaQuinta seems to come up a lot on Priceline, you could call them too. Just explain that someone you know has gotten them a lot on Priceline, so you want to check their policy on 4 people just in case you end up with them too. It never hurts to ask!
Typically, the rooms we're gotten have had two beds so 4 could have easily fit in them. For some reason, the hotels seem to put Priceline/Hotwire guests (or at least in our case) in adjoiners, but thankfully we've never had a disturbing level of noise.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[my3kids]

Look at biddingfortravel.com and click on Orlando under the Hotel category. That will show that hotels typically come up in the airport area and the price people got them for. That is the most useful site for learning to use Priceline that I've seen.

While I love Priceline I tend to stear clear of Hotwire. Sometimes their prices are actually higher than you can get on places like Expedia, and their star rating isn't as accurate as Priceline. I really believe if you only bid 3 or 4 star on Priceline you are going to get a great place. I'm not as convinced with Hotwire.

You can also get information on the prices of rental cars in different locations, and at the bottom of the page they have links for any bonus money opportunites available currently. Often there will be a bonus of $5 per night for hotels....you bid $20 and the price actually offered would be $25...etc. Great website.

Once you get your hotel room purchased call the hotel directly. You can request a king room or a room with 2 double beds...whatever you want. But, Priceline only guarantees a room for double occupancy. I supposed you could find yourself in a situation where the hotel would only put you in a room with a single queen, but I I've never had trouble requesting the type of room we wanted.