celedon

Thanks Blueskies for weighing in. Won Crown Plaza Heathrow at first bid of $60.

:)

Oops, posted in wrong place. Last time I looked Heathrow was in London.

celedon

I'm planning to bid $60 for the above. (unless you advise otherwise.) I notice TOBB bidders have won at that price and my objective is to get a hotel lined up quickly-- Tropical Storm Ophelia is expected to hit Halifax and I'm a bit afraid of a power outage. (Leaving to begin trip on the Sept 23)

My ceiling for a 4* would be $65. I know Luton would be rebid zone. But then given circumstances maybe I shoud go straight to bidding on 3* if the 4* $60 bid did not go through.

The URL for savings barn is still good I take it.

Merci.

Celedon

Bid accepted for Copthorne Tara Kensington. Was hoping for the Millennium Gloucester but at least it is cheap and in Kensington! Some of the reviews bring Fawlty Towers to mind. I must bring my sense of humour and a flashlight.

Thanks everyone.

Your Offer Price: $81.00

Number of Rooms: 1

Number of Nights: 2

Subtotal: $162.00

Taxes & Service Fees:

$37.33

Total Charges: $199.33

Previous bid of $70 rejected.

I tried the $70 Kensington bid suggested by WillTravel and got the following message. "If you are willing to raise your price by $22, you can try the same request again right now." I don't know what this is telling me except the obvious. I leave it to better tea leaf readers than me.

In my previous post, was I clear enough to point a way to a strategy?

Thank you for all this great advice. (If anyone ever needs infomration on Nova Scotia, I'm your gal)

First of all WillTravel, I set off to make my Kensington bid and got bogged down in the search for the Savings Barn URL. Found it this am with all the other messages from iwitche, kayess and thereuare. Wrote a response, lost it somehow.

So my number one objective is inexpensive in Kensingon. If need be, I could put up with a bit more luxury in Mayfair but we are not going to the theatre and will likely content ourselves with walking tours (which muster at Tube stations) and early nights.

So I think Kensington, Mayfair, Westminster, and since we are staying over a weekend, City may be called into play.

Thanks once again. You are so helpful!

Acceptable zones are Kensington, Mayfair and Westminster. Limit will be $110. Let the excitement begin! (No rush though, I appreciate the demands on your time.)

Merci, WillTravel!

Yes, I can see the Thistle Bloomsbury is not a crowd pleaser. Thanks for pointing that out. Perhaps Westminster might be a replacement zone for Bloomsbury?

Can anyone explain the $10 bonus for me?

Thanks Thereuare. I think my zones are Kensington, Mayfair and Bloomsbury. I'm hoping to get a Kensington hotel for $85 ish. (Not how it works, I know, but it's a nice thought. ) Top bid at about $110 perhaps and if that doesn't work out, will consider staying at an airport hotel. Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

We're going to have a siblings reunion in Europe--some of us are in Canada; some in Australia so it seemed like a stellar idea to meet in Italy! But, first, two of us would like to visit London, en route, and turn to BB for some bidding advice--also stellar!

From what I've read a 4* in Kensington would seem central and reasonably priced. I notice that South Bank is the only rebid. Others seem to use Mayfair and Bloomsbury in the bidding process.

Will later be bidding a Heathrow airport hotel for return.

I'm bidding early because I'll be off line from mid June to mid Sept. (But if need be I could find a site.)

Much obliged for any and all advice.

The bad news is that my friends' trip fizzled. The good news is that I am always singing the praises of betterrbidding.com! Hope that makes up for taking up your time.

Oh, and the reason I couldn't find the MTE hotel is because it was going to be a two night stay; I should have described the dates to you as Mar 25-27.

Thanks, once again.

Azzever,

Celedon

I can't find theunidentified 4*hotel for $180. What area is it in?

The boutique hotel is 3.5* in Midtown Central.

I'm seeing the Beekman on EasyClickTravel for $180 and, on Hotwire, a boutique hotel with a restaurant and business center at $196. What might this be?

Additional info: I was thinking 4* but that may not be possible at such short notice on a holiday weekend. Also what to do about the car?

A friend made a spur of the moment decision to go to NY for the Easter weekend. (March 25-26) They want to be in midtown, where they could walk everywhere. I told her I'd ask you if a bid of $150 was at all in the right ball park. And, if not, what would you think might work. I tried to sell them on the Jersey Hyatt but they are going to be driving for 12 hours and wanted to be more central.

The Jersey City Hyatt is indeed a remarkable deal and coming home at night to that glittering view is wonderful. I have these two comments to add:

Although it is a four minute PATH ride to NY, you are in a different state and long distance telephone rates are in effect. We made three short calls to NY, one of which was a voice mail pick up that cost $10. The total phone bill came to more than $50. We pleaded ignorance and they very kindly eliminated the charges. A local prepaid long distance phone card is probably a good idea.

We took a shuttle from the hotel to LaGuardia @ $35 each. After going flat out for six days, it was a relief to not to worry about PATH connections. (By the way it was quite sobering to find the PATH train runs right through the hollowed out ruins of the WTC site)

Well, that PATH station couldn't be much closer to the Hyatt, now could it? We'll definitely be trying that option. Thanks for that and also the cheap eats recommendations.

We are now a week away from our trip and I'd like to pursue your comments re :taxis and the Jersey City Hyatt. I am not in what you'd call vigorous good health so, while travelling with luggage, I will have to cab it. We will be transferring from NY to Jersey city late Saturday night by cab, a less expensive time of day for cabs, perhaps?

Also, know of cheap eats in the Sheraton Russell area? We are not big eaters.

So this is what you had to say about cabs from/to the Hyatt

" A taxi from Jersey City to LGA will likely cost you about $45-$50 plus tip (when it comes time let me know and i'll suggest a local taxi that is reasonably priced and i use them myself... or somebody advertising a special in the local paper).

A taxi from NYC to Jersey City varies depending upon traffic and/or what part of NYC you get the taxi. It's usually not worth doing this since the PATH is so inexpensive and the taxi fare is 'double the meter' plus the return toll ($6!!)... this means it usually runs about $35 or so as a ballpark... much more than the $1.50 PATH. If the taxis are having a slow nite you can sometimes negotiate a fixed fare, but being from out of town, you probably won't have a good idea of what a 'slow nite' looks like for them, and even then they're not giving away the farm, as maybe you can knock $5 off the rate."

Much obliged for your input.

Celedon

My niece and I are going to NYC in March for six days. We will be staying in at the Sheraton Russell in Midtown East for three days at $144. For the last three days we're staying on the Jersey side at the Hyatt Regency (Jersey City) at $48. (Weekend rates at this Hyatt are the lowest.) So the average night cost is $96. US, not including taxes and fees. We are also Canadian so we get to add an additional 20 percent. But it is an incredible bargain still. I don't think I could say in a hotel in my own hometown for as little, let alone NYC!

So if you're willing to split your trip you can have the experience of staying in Manhattan and cut the costs by staying a few days in Jersey City.

Betterbidding.com provided the advice on the bidding and were, as usual, unbelievably helpful.

Hooray! Won 3* Newark (Jersey City) Hyatt Regency on first bid of $48.

Your Offer Price: $48.00

Number of Rooms: 1

Number of Nights: 3

Subtotal: $144.00

Taxes & Service Fees:

$28.55

Total Charges: $172.55

Thanks Thereuare for all the help!

Where do I start the bidding? With no free rebid zones do I bid, wait 72 hrs, bid, etc? What say you of all of this. Thanks once again.

Won Hotwire bid at $144 for the 3.5* Sheraton Russell for 3/2-3/5.

Now I'm off to the New Jersey section and bid for 3/5-3/8. I notice there are no free rebid zones there for a 3*, so does this mean I bid, wait for 72hrs and rebid. Where should I start the bid do you think?