Priceline

[momrek06]

Howdy DISer's!

I am going to travel south to La Jolla, CA., for Thanksgiving to spend with friends and family. I want to book a room on priceline for DH & I. When would be the best time to book that.....NOW or would I have a chance at getting an even better deal if I wait until closer to the holiday?

Thanks!

 

[daannzzz]

I have not used Priceline for the Holiday time. I have done Priceline for trips early as well as late. What you should do is try now if you want but bid low. If you don't get it you can try again every week or two. Put in a price that you would be thrilled with. If you don't get it now you could later.

 

[momrek06]

I have not used Priceline for the Holiday time. I have done Priceline for trips early as well as late. What you should do is try now if you want but bid low. If you don't get it you can try again every week or two. Put in a price that you would be thrilled with. If you don't get it now you could later.

Thanks, yes, that sounds like a good idea. I will start low and take it slow....hahaha!!!

 

[tinatark]

Go to biddingfortravel.com to see what hotels are available in the area you want to stay in. The list won't be complete, but they're pretty accurate. You can also get an idea of what's available by faking a booking on priceline.com - I believe the hotels you can blindly book are the same as these.

You can get "free rebids" - by selecting the star level you want, then re-bidding in adjacent zones which do not have those level hotels. Just be sure you would accept a hotel in one of those zones, in case something unexpected pops up! You can also get free rebids by starting with resort or higher, then add 4* and higher, then 3* and higher, if those levels are available in the area you want. Just start with the highest level in the zone, if you put in a 3*, it looks for 3* or higher.

I did this for Thanksgiving week - we wanted a hotel in Jacksonville, FL, near the airport, checking in on Sunday before T-giving, out on the Saturday after. There were 3-3 star hotels, Holiday Inn (I really wanted it, it's older, but has a nice indoor/outdoor pool and bar area), Hyatt Place (new hotel, great concept) and the Loft Hotel (trendy, modern)... All of them were around $90/night. I started in the airport zone with a $25 bid, rejected, added another adjacent area $30 - rejected, then added another adjacent area and $35 - accepted, at the Hyatt Place! We got 2 rooms for $550 for the week - the hotel is brand new, and the reviews are great- the complaint I've seen is that the 47 in. HDTV is too close to the bed! Okay! Free wi-fi, Free cont. breakfast. We saved over 50% from what we usually pay for a condo further away!

I would start bidding now, as you have to wait 24-48 hours before rebidding the same area/star levels.

 

[momrek06]

Go to biddingfortravel.com to see what hotels are available in the area you want to stay in. The list won't be complete, but they're pretty accurate. You can also get an idea of what's available by faking a booking on priceline.com - I believe the hotels you can blindly book are the same as these.

You can get "free rebids" - by selecting the star level you want, then re-bidding in adjacent zones which do not have those level hotels. Just be sure you would accept a hotel in one of those zones, in case something unexpected pops up! You can also get free rebids by starting with resort or higher, then add 4* and higher, then 3* and higher, if those levels are available in the area you want. Just start with the highest level in the zone, if you put in a 3*, it looks for 3* or higher.

I did this for Thanksgiving week - we wanted a hotel in Jacksonville, FL, near the airport, checking in on Sunday before T-giving, out on the Saturday after. There were 3-3 star hotels, Holiday Inn (I really wanted it, it's older, but has a nice indoor/outdoor pool and bar area), Hyatt Place (new hotel, great concept) and the Loft Hotel (trendy, modern)... All of them were around $90/night. I started in the airport zone with a $25 bid, rejected, added another adjacent area $30 - rejected, then added another adjacent area and $35 - accepted, at the Hyatt Place! We got 2 rooms for $550 for the week - the hotel is brand new, and the reviews are great- the complaint I've seen is that the 47 in. HDTV is too close to the bed! Okay! Free wi-fi, Free cont. breakfast. We saved over 50% from what we usually pay for a condo further away!

I would start bidding now, as you have to wait 24-48 hours before rebidding the same area/star levels.

WOW, that is awesome!!! Hyatt's are beautiful!!! Thanks for that idea about biddingfortravel.

Out of curiousity, how long did it take you to get the Hyatt.....several days of low bidding?