Driving down~Priceline hotels in advance, or wing it on the road?

[momtotwinglesx4]

I'm driving down with my 5 kids from NW Illinois and plan on taking it slow. Will stay at a hotel 2 nites on the way down, probably the 1st nite around Paducah, KY and the 2nd nite around Valdosta, GA. I want a short drive into Orlando on the 3rd day. If I get my hotels arranged in advance thru Priceline to save money and not have to worry about where we'll be staying, then I'm stuck with those stopping points. I keep thinking, what if I get tired and want to stop sooner, or if we're doing fine and want to go further before stopping. How have you all handled this? I sure don't want to be stuck paying rack rates, or not being able to find a hotel at all (right before Christmas, 12/19 & 20). Any advice?

Thanks!

Sue

 

[nasmith]

Personally I would priceline it- First because those will be heavy travel days (being the first weekend before everybody's Christmas vacation starts) and I would be terrified of not having a place to stay at all (especially if it got late - my rest stops took longer than planned, etc.) Also- I hate driving around a strange city in the dark looking for lodging - and since it's winter it gets dark very early-- I'd much rather have my handy-dandy maps to my hotel in my Hot little hands and not worry about getting lost and driving thru unsavory parts of town. One word of warning about Priceline- they only guarantee a room for 2 people (ie. 1 bed)- so if you have more than that travelling, then you might not have enough beds---You can ask at the front desk for 2 beds, but they don't have to give them to you.
If you want to take a chance- then I would do some research. get the phone numbers of most of the chains along the way- and then call them from your cel phone to ask about rates instead of going in and asking---I think you get a better rate that way (They don't know that they have you over a barrel- looking for a room at 8:00pm with tired cranky kids in tow).
Only My personal opinion--- I've done alot of cross-country drives- and always just winged getting a room at the last minute- but that was mostly back in my "single""Stay at Motel 6" "If I can't get a room, I can always sleep in the car" days. (MY, Has my Life changed!!) . Have a safe drive! Jill

 

[WDWisTheBest]

I am not sure I would use priceline though. You do not know in advance which of the motels Priceline will assign to you from a given "zone". Also, you may be assigned one that is not close to an interstate exit and you might have to hunt for it after dark. Of course if you know the motel name in advance, you can get directions online. But, a Priceline room may not be sufficient for you and five kids. With that in mind, I would doubt even more trying Priceline given the circumstances of travel that you have.

I would make reservations at motels at which you think you might want to stop. I would not guarantee them but would ask for either a 4pm or 6pm hold, depending on the chain's policy.

Then, I would vary my driving pattern, taking into account the days that I am traveling, i.e. December 19 and 20. Since they could be busy days for travel, and I might encounter weather enroute, I would plan on stopping before dark. That increases your chances of finding an available motel.

If I wanted to travel longer, if the weather were not a problem, then I would have alternate motels already picked out in advance and reservations made in advance. They can always be cancelled enroute.

Finally, here is what www.BiddingForTravel.com has to say about more than 3 people traveling and using Priceline:
"1. We are 3 or more people wanting to share one hotel room. How do we know if the hotel will allow this and that we will get a room with two beds? We want to be guaranteed a smoking/non-smoking room. We want a room with kitchen facilities.

You are only guaranteed a room with double occupancy, regardless of what type of rooms the hotel may offer. Any special requests must be made directly with the hotel once your bid has been accepted, but the hotel is not obligated in any way to accommodate the request. It is very important to note that there are some hotels that Priceline uses that offer only one bed in a room, especially when bidding 1* or 2*, but it has happened at all quality levels. This should be taken into account if you require more than one bed. As to smoking/non-smoking, a hotel will take a request but can offer no guarantees. There is no way to bid for a suite or for a room with kitchen facilities. Again, you are bidding for a room only."

 

[reBLUE]

When I drove down to FL, I made reservations with the different Marriott brand hotels. Most have an excellent cancellation policy (i.e. up to 6 pm the day of arrival), and they do not require a deposit - only a guarantee (they only charge your credit card once you arrive, or if you actually don't show up without canceling).

 

[tinaluis]

We prefer to use Priceline (rather than a conventional reservation) because they are sooooo much cheaper and we are willing to take a chance that we might want to travel farther or stop sooner. Most times, when I'm making the reservations, I think that maybe we'll be able to travel farther but when we're actually travelling, we're glad to be able to stop. We live in Chciago and we usually drive to Marietta (which is just before Atlanta) on the first day and stop overnight and then onto WDW the next day. IMO I would drive a little farther than Paducah,KY the first day because the drive from Paducah to Valdosta is longer (if I remember right). Good luck -- I think Priceline is the way to go!

 

[WDWisTheBest]

Here is what someone had to say about the 2.5* Courtyard by Marriott in Paducah, KY:
"Paducah, KY--Courtyard 2-1/2*
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We have stayed here twice, once due to priceline. Both visits were quite nice. All Courtyards are pretty much the same. We had a little trouble finding it because it was dark, the hotel driveway is not directly off of the main road and the sign pointing us in the right direction is very small and not lighted. One of our rooms had a balcony but most do not. We had the king room with a pull-out sofa the first time and two double rooms the second time(priceline visit). Wonderfully, they were connecting and very clean. Much better than our stay in Tifton's Courtyard through priceline. The all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet, although not cheap ($6.95/person???) was rather good. This was a nice hotel stay for the money; I think my bid was for $12/night/room. "

That post was in July of 2001 though.

And here is a post about the Baymont Inn in Paducah:
" stayed here one time and it was quite different from my stay at the 2 1/2 star in Paducah.
It's the first time I was made to feel less than a regular guest because of using priceline and I have stayed at many of them in different states, large cities and small towns.
The hotel was nowhere close to being even 1/2 full, my guess would be 1/4 perhaps. I asked for a room with a kingsize bed and was very quickly informed that due to my type of arrangement, I was not elligible for that.
Let me note that both rooms are the same in every way, only difference is one has 2 doubles and the price for both is the same.
The room looked very worn, carpeting and furniture both. It was clear to me I was given a room at the lowest level as far as condition. I even sent an e-mail to the company after my return because I was so dissatisfied with the treatment I was given.
The one thing this hotel gives you as far as savings is a complimentary breakfast in the morning so if you're traveling as a family it would be a good deal, but don't expect anything great as far as room condition.
Next time I will be happy to bid the few dollars more for the 2 1/2 star for a much more pleasant stay and buy my own breakfast in the morning. "