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Priceline Bidding Strategy


agedude
By agedude,
in

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First time posting. I've used Priceline for many years and also followed the advice on this site. I've recently bid on 4* hotels in Paris, Barcelona, Madrid, and Seville, bidding $85 per night. I will be traveling between 27 Sep and 10 Oct. Every time and at every location, my bid has been rejected but I am being offered a 4* hotel at the $114 - $118. For example, I bid $85 for a 4* in Paris, the same price I paid for the Marriott Rive Gauche 18 months ago. I get rejected and am offered a 4* Latin Quarter-Montparnasse hotel for $118 (Marriott again I assume). Over the last 5 years I've been able to book 4* hotels in major European cities (London, Paris, Munich, Vienna) for $70 -$85 between 90 - 120 days in advance. What I am wondering is has anyone else noticed the same type pattern when using Priceline? Specifically, instead of accepting a deep discount initially the offer is being rejected and the bidder is given what I consider a "reasonably" priced alternative. I've had Priceline reject offers in the past and give an alternative, but normally the alternative is $5-$15 higher than my bid. Not a consistent $20 -$25 higher, not at 4 different locations simultaneously, and not with essentially the same counteroffer price at 4 different cities. Do you think Priceline has essentially changed its bidding strategy to push these more "reasonable" prices of $114-$118 per hotel? Do you think waiting longer to book, i.e. >30 before the stay may result in getting a "discounted" price of $70-$85 per night? Any feedback or advice would be greatly appreciated.

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Welcome to BetterBidding!

I've used Priceline for many years and also followed the advice on this site.
We're glad to hear the information on the board has been helpful with your previous purchases, but will also say it's disappointing that this is your first post... why not share your wins with the board in order to help other users, just as the posts of others were helpful with your own purchases :)

The "reasonably" priced alternatives is what we refer to as a counter-offer and is disussed in more detail here: Priceline Suggests Price to Pay.

I don't seem to recall counter-offers being as low as $5, but likewise don't see any trend in the 'suggested price' getting any higher either. We have seen counter-offers at just a few dollars more, as well as nearly double the bid price... as well as not seeing any counter-offers when a subsequent bid just $1-$5 more was accepted (so it's not necessarily a factor of how close you are which determines the bid)

It's possible that the prices you paid were during a lower 'season' for European travel and this is a higher season, and therefore requires a higher bid amount, a difference in the strength of the dollar vs. local currencies/euro, or simply that the areas you're currently bidding have higher than usual prices for your dates.

I would hope that going forward your begin to share your wins with the board and also use the requested PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to begin your bidding.

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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We're glad to hear the information on the board has been helpful with your previous purchases, but will also say it's disappointing that this is your first post... why not share your wins with the board in order to help other users, just as the posts of others were helpful with your own purchases :)

Thank you for your help and advice. You are also correct in chastising me for being a user and not a contributor. My bad and it won't happen again. I did get a $5 counter offer once on a 4* in Anaheim, bid $40, offered $45. I had also been going to Europe during Christmas season so you are probably right about "low season" rates. I didn't think about it. I feel better bidding now that an "expert" has shared their opinion and advice. Thanks again for the help and feedback.

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