Priceline Hotel: 4* San Francisco (USW-Nob Hill) Parc 55 Wyndham

[Lisalark]

Hello Better Bidding!

Yes, I will use this site's link to book. :-)

I am planning to stay in San Francisco Sunday 9/5/10 and Monday 9/6/10 nights. I'm not overly familiar with the city and want to be in a neighborhood with accessible transit (I will not have a car) and where I would feel safe walking around as a single female, at least during normal hours. I don't mind a bit of trash or non-aggressive panhandling, but don't want to feel scared.

So far I'm thinking a 4* in any of the following Priceline districts downtown would be fine: Financial District-Embarcadero, SOMA-Moscone Center, Union Square East, Union Square West. Any of these I should avoid because of safety issues or transit access? Also recs on what order I should bid on (ie. all fine but start USE, then add SOMA, then FD, or something to get the best hotel/location possible).

What price should I reasonably start bidding at for these nights? Are the SF 3 1/2* properties in these districts nice enough that I shouldn't hesitate to lower my star rating to get a better deal? I don't need luxury, just a clean, well-maintained room and hotel. I'm thinking I'll start around $70 a night but really have no clue. As a grad student I'd rather not go much above $85 a night.

Thanks for your help!

[SD Vince]

My personal experience is that the SOMA-Moscone area will have fewer transit options. All other areas you mentioned will have access to BART, cable car, and light rail.

You should be safe walking alone any of your choice areas, except maybe really late at night.

The Embarcadero area is quieter in the evenings than USE and USW.

I've seen the Parc 55, a 4* in USW (great location by the way), and the Hyatt Regency, 4* in the Embarcadero win for $85 regulary. I've stayed at and enjoyed both.

--Vince

[Lisalark]

Awesome, thanks Vince! I'll stay away from SOMA initially then, transit is important to me.

[slruud]

Rates are not too high for your dates, so $85 or under should be possible for a 4*. I would read the FAQ's and get an understanding of free rebidding. I myself am partial to the Financial District/Embarcadero as it is a lot less busy than the Union Square area. The public transportation is more than adequate to get one around easily, so any of your prefered areas would work. Good luck.

[thereuare]

Nice to see you receiving some useful replied already...

Please confirm, is this a one nite or two nite stay? (ie- is your check-out 9/6 or 9/7??)

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[Lisalark]

Thanks for the question, sorry for the confusion - I would be checking out Tuesday the 7th, so staying the nights of the 5th and 6th.

[Lisalark]

Something else I was wondering about at 4* hotels in SF - how much should I expect to pay in extra fees? I don't use minibars, will have my cell, won't have a car, don't plan to use the gym (walking SF hills is enough activity for one day) but probably will use the internet. And what about resort fees? If I pay $85 for a room per night, will I actually end up spending another $20 or so on internet and random fees?

[Lisalark]

:) Ok guys, here's an update on what I tried today on PRICELINE:

8/18/2010

I used the site's PRICELINE link!

4* in downtown SF

FD $55 rejected

FD + USE $58 rejected

FD + USE + USW $61 rejected

FD + USE + USW + CC (dummy) $65 rejected

FD + USE + USW + CC (d) + MLS (d) $68 rejected

FD + USE + USW + CC (d) + MLS (d) + SFON (d) $70 rejected

FD + USE + USW + CC (d) + MLS (d) + SFON (d) + SSF (d) $73 rejected

FD + USE + USW + CC (d) + MLS (d) + SFON (d) + SSF (d) + (d) $75 rejected

This was my first experience trying Priceline and there were a few things I found interesting. First, the taxes and fees add substantially to the cost! I think my final attempted bid of $75 per night was actually well above my preferred $85/night rate once taxes and fees are factored in (and this does NOT include possible resort fees, internet fees, parking for folks with cars, etc.). All in all, this makes me feel like Priceline in this particular case isn't that great of a deal . . . but I will probably play around again tomorrow. The known taxes and fees are visible before confirming your bid, but who knows with resort fees and such.

Hotwire has a 4 star hotel in USE with guaranteed non-smoking and no resort fee for $113 - but I can't figure out how to get a quote on taxes and fees without entering my credit card. Frustrating. Anyone have any suggestions on known good quality transparent places to stay in SF? I'd be ok with a lower star rating if I knew exactly what place I was getting and it had good ratings.

The saga continues . . .

[Gallus50]

On HOTWIRE, ask for more info or click as though you're going to book. The taxes or fees are on the left in a red box.

If you want a translucent booking, look at BEAV's post in Off Topic of IDing Lastminutetravel.com's bookings, then see what's available and prices. You can ID every last one with the posted method, and you may find a 3.5* or 3* you find acceptable for your stay.

September is a popular time to visit and prices are not typically low. That being said, if it's Labor Day weekend, FD and business hotels should be quieter than others ...

[thereuare]

First, the taxes and fees add substantially to the cost! I think my final attempted bid of $75 per night was actually well above my preferred $85/night rate once taxes and fees are factored in (and this does NOT include possible resort fees, internet fees, parking for folks with cars, etc.). All in all, this makes me feel like Priceline in this particular case isn't that great of a deal

The only additional fee you'll pay vs. a traditional booking is PRICELINE's booking fee, which would run about $7 on a one nite stay... the savings experienced thru PRICELINE / HOTWIRE should be much more than this, still making either better than a traditional purchase.

The known taxes and fees are visible before confirming your bid, but who knows with resort fees and such.

I don't think there are too many Resort fees in this area, but internet fees would be an unknown... and i wouldn't expect free internet at too many 4* hotels.

[Lisalark]

Thanks for the advice! That four star on Hotwire with guaranteed non-smoking and no resort fee comes to $275 total for two nights; I also identified a cute 2.5* with a friend's help that has great TripAdvisor reviews, guaranteed nonsmoking, free internet, for $224 for two nights and a great 3* for $250 a night. Sooo, trying Priceline now for a 4* for $200 or less all in. I'll report back!

[Lisalark]

Ok - second day bidding! I started at $70 (used this site's PRICELINE link) and it looked like this for awhile:

FD $70 rejected

FD + CC (d) $72 rejected

FD + CC (d) + USE $74 rejected

FD + CC (d) + USE + USW $76 rejected

FD + CC (d) + USE + USW + etc.

I ended with a rejected bid of $83 a night having used all the dummy zones while actually trying for FD, USE, or USW 4*, which came to an offer of $200.83 all in (without free internet, hopefully no resort fees, and no guarantee of non-smoking). :) From reading TripAdvisor, it sounds like some of these four star hotels understand what four stars means and work to make all guests happy, and some need a little help. It makes me totally freaked to go to 3.5* or 3* on Priceline!

For tomorrow, I think I will start at $75 and go up to an all-in of about $210. With the cost of internet, that would be about equivalent to the transparent highly reviewed free internet/non-smoking 2* I found, and about $25 less than the transparent non-smoking 3* I located . . . decisions decisions.

Thanks again, Better Bidders, I'll keep you posted.

[thereuare]

Thanks for the update.

Keep in mind that guest expectations are quite different at a 2* property vs a 4* property...

I would ilkely take a 3.5* with great revies vs. a 4* with poor reviews as i think the 3.5* would be a better experience.

However, a 2* is an entirely different perspective, and i'd rather have a 4* with mediocre reviews vs a 2* with great reviews. Offer me a poorly rate Hilton, Sheraton, etc vs. a well reviewed Days Inn and i'll take the Hilton, Sheraton, etc every time.

Just my .02

Thanks for using the PRICELINE links to begin your bidding.

[Lisalark]

Hey Everyone!

I got the Parc 55 Wyndam for 9/5 and 9/6 (check out 9/7) for $95 a night on Priceline, or $228.38 all-in for two nights. I contacted the reservations folks right away through the website about non-smoking and this was the response with the request below:

****************************************

Dear Lisa,

Thank you for contacting Parc 55 Wyndham,

Your request has been noted on your reservations

Best,

PARC 55 WYNDHAM San Francisco-Union Square

Sandra Kavai | Reservations Department

Message Topic:Reservation Inquiry

Comments or Questions:

Hello,

I just used Priceline for the very first time and was lucky enough to

get a reservation for your hotel:

Reservation Information

Reservation Name: ***

Hotel Confirmation Number: ***

Hotel Request Number: ***

I wanted to write you right away with a request for a non-smoking room;

I have severe allergies and unfortunately cigarette smoke tends to

trigger respiratory issues. Looking at TripAdvisor and your website it

seems like you are super responsive to requests provided folks actually

voice concerns! So I thought I'd give you a heads up and hope that a

non-smoking room is open. Oh - and number/size of bed(s) is a

non-issue.

Thank you for your time and consideration, looking forward to getting to

know the Parc 55 and visiting San Francisco,

Lisa

*********************************************

So I guess that means they will abide by my need for non-smoking . . . ? I sure hope so! When I check in I'm also going to ask for a quiet room, judging from the reviews this place can get loud, and quieter rooms are basically higher rooms. Overall I'm pleased with the experience thus far, I only paid $5 more than I would have for a very highly rated 2* transparent reservation all-in and the best I could do with Hotwire or lastminutetravel was $250. I'll let you know if I feel nickle and dimed come the actual stay, though! Internet is $12 and apparently spotty coverage/low band-width, so I may just use their time-limited complimentary stations and avoid the issue. Other advice for the Parc 55?

Bidding history today:

9/20/2010

FD $75 rejected

FD + USE $77 rejected

FD + USE + USW $80 rejected

FD + USE + USE + CC (d) $82 rejected

FD + USE + USE + CC (d) + FW (d) $85 rejected

FD + USE + USE + CC (d) + FW (d) + MLS (d) + SFON (d) $90 rejected

FD + USE + USE + CC (d) + FW (d) + MLS (d) + SFON (d) + SSF (d) $95 ACCEPTED

So you might try bidding between $90 and $95 for those dates - I only had one dummy zone left and was getting sick of the process. :)

[AaronJB]

Congrats on your success. :)

Excellent rate, and glad to hear that the hotel was able to take your non-smoking request. It is a request, which doesn't 100% guarantee non-smoking, but likely that the hotel has noted the request and will try to give you a NS room at check-in if one is available.

Thank you for sharing your win and please use the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

Enjoy your stay.

[Gallus50]

If you really need wi-fi and don't want to pay the fee, you may want to find it free. For example, Union Square - a block away - has it free and clear, I believe. Also many coffeehouses (you may have to pay at Starbucks, but it's not much) and strangely, now, McDonalds has free wi-fi all over the country. So if you don't want to pay - especially in SF - you shouldn't have to.

[rick728]

how you pick a dummy zone?

What is a dummy zone?

I am also trying to book a hotel in San Fran.

thanks :)

[slruud]

If you really need wi-fi and don't want to pay the fee, you may want to find it free. For example, Union Square - a block away - has it free and clear, I believe. Also many coffeehouses (you may have to pay at Starbucks, but it's not much) and strangely, now, McDonalds has free wi-fi all over the country. So if you don't want to pay - especially in SF - you shouldn't have to.

What rock you been hiding under Gallus50???? Starbucks has been free everywhere since the last 3 or so months.

The last time I got Le Meridien in the Financial District, and not wanting to pay for internet access, I was able to connect up to the signal from Club Quarters. Would one consider it stealing??? Maybe, but that's another thread.

[Gallus50]

I've been hiding under the Micky D's rock. When I have to work and my daughter's at dance class, I hang out in the warm, cozy ambiance of the McDonald's nearby. I typically get the Mocha Frappe; no chocolate drizzle. :)

There is a local coffeehouse I used to go to, but they made me mad. Long story. No Starbucks near the studio, though, so no SB for me.

[thereuare]

how you pick a dummy zone?

What is a dummy zone?

See the reply(s) in the Priceline Re-Bidding thread you started.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[Lisalark]

Hey Everyone,

Thanks for the advice on hunting down free internet. Actually I'd rather go to a coffee shop or McCafe (I have still not gotten over the fact that McDonald's is now billing themselves this way, although I can see how it's a savvy marketing move), just so I can people watch instead of being asocial in my hotel room! As long as it isn't too late at night, anyway.