Has Anyone Used Hotwire For Hotels???

[Hambletfamily]

I was thinking of using Hotwire for Hotel can get 3.5 star for $49.00 night but I am just wondering the type of hotel they are? Has anyone use this before. Thanks for your help.
Melaina

 

[DiSNEY[MOMMA]]

I havn't used Hotwire yet, but we just used Priceline to book out rooms for March 27th-29th. We got a 4-Star hotel (Crowne Plaza Resort) for $50.00 a night. I trust priceline, but in all honestly, I don't know really what the difference between the 2 sites are
Have you tried Priceline before?!

 

[Hambletfamily]

I just looked at priceline. We are booked at Anaheim Marriott Suites $119 right next door to Crowne Plaza. I know that's a good price, I'm just trying to stretch the dollar for more spending money. Thanks for your help. Have a great trip. Looks like we will be leaving when you arrive.

 

[DiSNEY[MOMMA]]

More spending money is always good
When is your trip?!

 

[NotSoLittleMermaid]

I've used Hotwire many times for my DL trips and have nearly always been pleased with the results. I don't mean that I ever got a bad hotel, or a dump--I haven't. I've never gone lower than 2 stars, usually go 2.5 or 3, but for 2.5 I've gotten Holiday Inn Express, with free wireless and breakfast. In Jan., I got a 3.5 for $59, it turned out to be the Hilton at the convention center and it was very nice, but...the parking was $15-19 a day and internet was $10 day, which I didn't find out until I got the name. Of course they always say that there could be extra fees for parking and internet, so they're covered. It just made me a little mad that the extras were so much more. I went with the higher star rating because I was taking my nephew and my sister wanted me to (I think she was afraid I'd get us some dumpy place ) and she was paying so it didn't matter to her. But whenever I go by myself I go for the 2 or 2.5 stars and have never been disappointed. I've used Hotwire many times to get rooms in the Palm Springs area too.

 

[bumbershoot]

Check out betterbidding.com. Check out the hotwire pages, hotels specifically, and look at the disneyland area. You can read what hotels people have gotten recently...when I was using hotwire, I noticed that the 3.5 star hotels were Hyatt and Hilton at the convention center. I can't remember if I was looking at disneyland north or south though.

You can also look at the amenity list on hotwire and compare it to the lists on various good neighbor hotels...I knew that mine would be Hyatt or Hilton b/c of the list and the way they put things, like golf course and tennis courts, b/c those sites mention those things.

So check out betterbidding and you'll be able to figure it out pretty closely.


For the record, we got the Hilton for 59 base rate for a night in December.

And a warning...hotwire might tell you that there is a resort fee or parking fee, but they will not tell you *how much*. In the case of Hyatt and Hilton, they both have a $15 fee for parking. It's good to know that there will likely be a fee, and then once you know what hotel you have, check for any fees on the hotel's website!

 

[DReynolds86]

I used Hotwire and got the Crowne Plaza Anaheim for $72.00. I don't exactly like not knowing which hotel I'm booking, but I understand that's how they keep their prices down.

 

[mousey]

I used priceline and got the Hilton Suites near Angels stadium for $47 a night.

 

[tlynk]

I use Hotwire and Priceline often when staying in Anaheim. However, the past few times I've used them I ended up with Crown Plaza. This hotel is very nice, but the parking is a little away from the main lobby building and behind a scary area. I wouldn't want to park there in the dark unless DH was with me, and I've read about thefts on Trip Advisor. Otherwise Hotwire and Priceline are the way to go.

 

[Hambletfamily]

Thank you all for your help. We took the plunge. We used Priceline and booked at Crowne Plaza for $50.00 a night. We booked two rooms. We are going March 21 -26th.

 

[youmyflower]

I have used it numerous times. It's ok if you don't have a preference where you stay. Their definitions of "Anaheim North" and "Anaheim South" are pretty liberal. It's really hit or miss. My best score on there was a $13/night suite. I think we were in Placentia. I can't remember the name of the hotel though, I wanna say it was a Marriott...

 

[50sjayne]

Good job. I believe there is a complimentary shuttle which makes it a good one to get.

 

[MichaelColey]

We got the Crowne Plaza for $45/night through Priceline for our upcoming March trip. They do have a free shuttle that runs every 30 minutes. There's a $12/night resort fee that includes parking, the shuttle, and Internet.

Hotwire and Priceline star ratings really don't match up that well. A hotel that is 3 1/2 star on Hotwire might just be 2 1/2 or 3 star on Priceline. Priceline usually ends up being cheaper than Hotwire. With a little research (amenities and TripAdvisor ratings), you can often figure out which hotels are which in Hotwire, which is handy if you want a good chance at getting a specific hotel. It's a bit tougher when there are so many hotels, though.

If you're not familiar with the concept of free re-bids, this is what you can do to get the lowest possible price at Priceline.

1. Before you start check to see what zones don't have the star level of hotel that you will be bidding for. These are your free rebid zones.
2. Figure out the lowest price you think you might be able to get and the highest price you're willing to pay, and divide that out between the number of zones. For me, it was the Disneyland zone and three free rebids, and I picked $40, $45, $50, and $55.
3. Bid in the zone you want (Disneyland) for the lowest price.
4. If rejected, raise your bid and add one free rebid zone.
5. If you go through all your free rebids, go to plan B.

 

[cjordan08]

I've used hotwire and priceline i usually go with whoever has the better deal. I haven't been disappointed yet.

 

[pomlover]

I've used hotwire and priceline i usually go with whoever has the better deal. I haven't been disappointed yet.

I second this - just be aware that sometimes Hotwire does not list extra fees that will incur from the hotel such as parking, resort, microwaves, mini-fridge, etc.

 

[DReynolds86]

I second this - just be aware that sometimes Hotwire does not list extra fees that will incur from the hotel such as parking, resort, microwaves, mini-fridge, etc.

$5.00 bottled water...

 

[alvernon90]

Another great site is biddingfortravel.com, but they are a bit more focused on Priceline than Hotwire. Doesn't hurt to check it out, though!