Anyone used Priceline for Chicago?

[WDWorld2003]

I'm taking my daughter to Chicago in mid-May and the hotel prices are very high. Has anyone successfully used Priceline for hotels in Chicago? Also, is it worth it to buy their insurance?

I have the Hilton Garden Inn booked but it is over $200 a night with their high tax. Thanks for any help!

 

[Beth76]

Yes I have. Two years ago I got the Millenium Knickerbocker for $90 a night. I used the area "Michigan Avenue North" and 4 stars. If you're not picky about your hotel I would highly recommend using priceline. And by picky I mean exact location, pool etc. The Millenium was a gorgeous hotel right off around the corner from Hancock and water tower. I wouldn't have chose it on my own (looks a little too fancy for our family) but it served our needs just fine. Check out www.biddingfortravel.com for a little help.

 

[WDWorld2003]

Thanks..... how far before your trip did you bid?

 

[antmaril]

Yes. My friend and I were going to see Oprah and she did Priceline for the hotel. We got the Westin on Michigan Avenue for $100.

 

[Beth76]

I'm pretty sure it was less than a month before we went.

 

[robinb]

I assume that you are staying between May 19-22 during the "National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show" at McCormick Place North. There will be 75,000 delagates who will be looking to stay downtown .

http://www.choosechicago.com/smi/calendar.cfm#may

I would choose a different weekend if you want to stay downtown. Priceline will not help you if there are no rooms! If a hotel chain can get near rack rate from a conventioneer, they won't sell that room through Priceline for a discount. If you really want that weekend and you'll have a car, I would recommend staying out in the suburbs and drive in for the day.

I would also suggest that you read www.biddingfortravel.com before you bid. It's a wealth of information for those bidding on PL, plus it has a list of the most recent successful bids.

 

[antmaril]

Duplicate post - deleted.

 

[WDWorld2003]

Actually, we are staying May 12-16th.........

 

[WDWorld2003]

Bumping

 

[robinb]

Sorry about the date confusion. $200 for the HGI is still pretty pricy. Did you look at Bidding For Travel? You can also consider using Hotwire. The website: http://www.betterbidding.com/ will help you decipher Hotwire's icons for each hotel. You'll pay more for Hotwire, but you also have a better chance to knowing exactly which hotel you will be getting. Here's the list for Chicago: http://www.betterbidding.com/index.php?showtopic=642&

 

[WDWorld2003]

Thanks Robin.... I'm a little nervous and will do some reading before I bid.

 

[gypsydoodlebug]

I used it and won Hotel 71 in 2003. Unfortunately, we got bumped to another hotel because it was full when we arrived. We were NOT happy -- it was in a residential district that was quite a distance away from where we'd originally planned to be. But that was the hotel's fault, NOT Priceline. I've been bumped twice (in Chicago and also in Scottsdale, AZ) using Priceline because they would rather bump Priceline customers than those paying higher prices.

But other times I've used Priceline it's been fine.