Anon

Check non-stop flights out of Bellingham (BLI) on Alaska Airlines -- they can sometimes be more than $100 RT/person cheaper to HNL than out of SEA.

Here's some additional info that may help others re the Waikiki Beachcomber changes - - I'm not asking for any help, and I'm giving details so that you can independently confirm this if you wish: A Hotwire search made today for a Waikiki stay from 7/19/11 to 7/26 for 2 adults and 1 child (1 room), resulted in the following: 1. A $71/nt Hotwire opaque offer for a 2* Central Waikiki area hotel listing all amenities as "Near Beach, Pool(s), Laundry Facilities" and stating "still gathering reviews;" 2. No other Central Waikiki area Hotwire opaque offers; 3. A $101.86/nt 3* Central Waikiki area transparent offer from "trusted partner Hotels.com" for the Aqua Aloha Surf & Spa that shows all amenities as "Boutique Hotel, Near Beach, Pool(s), Laundry Facilities, High-speed Internet Access;" 4. a $175/nt 3.5* Central Waikiki area transparent offer from "trusted partner Hotels.com" for the Holiday Inn Waikiki Beachcomber Resort that shows all amenities as "Near Beach, Smoke-free Rooms, Pool(s), Restaurant(s), Laundry Facilities, High-speed Internet Access." At first blush, this seems to indicate that: the rebranded Holiday Inn Waikiki Beachcomber Resort is indeed now located in the Central Waikiki zone, but (i) upgraded from 3* to 3.5* and (ii) it has a new, more extensive amenity list; the Aqua Aloha Surf & Spa can be offered on Hotwire with yet a third amenity list (dropping "Complimentary Breakfast" from the originally reported amenity list); and the 2* Central Waikiki area hotel mentioned above is some hotel other than the Waikiki Beachcomber. I say at first blush, because these conclusions assume that when Hotwire lists transparent hotel offers from "trusted partner" Hotels.com, Hotwire lists each of those hotels with the same star level, amenity list and map area that Hotwire would use if Hotwire was offering the same hotel opaquely. Seems like a reasonable assumption, but proof of that is above my pay grade for this stuff. Seems like this potentially useful Waikiki Beachcomber info is "buried" in this Aqua Aloha Surf & Spa topic - feel free to put this into a separate Waikiki Beachcomber topic if there's a way to make it easier to find by someone searching for info on the Beachcomber.

Heads up! Amenity list change! On 2/5/11 I was offered a 3* hotel in Waikiki Central for the night of 7/26/11 for which "all amenities" were listed as Near Beach, Pool(s), Laundry. It appears that the only Hotwire hotel previously reported to this board anywhere on Oahu at any star level with that exact amenity list was the Waikiki Beachcomber Hotel. Although I gather from the pinned Hotwire hotel list that the Beachcomber was previously reported as being in the "Oahu (Waikiki Beach)" area or in the "Oahu (South)" area, I determined that it is physically located on the inland side of Kalakaua Avenue, and therefore appeared to be in (but right on the edge of) the Hotwire map zone now designated as "Oahu (Waikiki Central)." I was hoping for the Waikiki Beachcomber Hotel because of its location, but decided to purchase only 1 night to "look behind the curtain" for what will be a somewhat longer stay. Turns out the wizard wasn't there. I don't recall if my original Hotwire listing showed a "per cent recommended number." for the offered 3* hotel. Based on the exact amenity list match with what was previously reported for the Beachcomber and the Beachcomber's physical location, I didn't pay attention to the "per cent recommended" number. My bad. I ran another search for the same date just now to check, and an otherwise identical 3* offer comes up that says "We are still gathering reviews for this property." That search today also pulled up an offer for a 2* hotel in "Oahu (Waikiki Central)" at $71, for which the entire amenity list is ALSO "Near Beach, Pool(s), Laundry, and which also states "We are still gathering reviews for this property." I saw on a Trip Advisor review of the Beachcomber that signage to rebrand it as a Holiday Inn location was being installed around Halloween of 2010. What are the odds that the rebranded Beachcomber is now being offered with the same amenity list, but downgraded to a 2* hotel in the "Oahu (Waikiki Central)" zone? Would the rebranding cause Hotwire to start gathering an entirely new set of reviews for the Beachcomber? Has anyone reported getting the Beachcomber after Hotwire began using an "Oahu (Waikiki Central)" map zone? If so, what map zone was it in? Too many questions, not enough answers. Because exact location is important for this particular trip, I am now planning to rent a condo at the VRBO website for my other nights.

Your Offer Price: $13.00 (per day) Total Rental Days: 4 days Subtotal: $52.00 Taxes and Fees: $43.94 Total Charges: $95.94 Bid History: Decided to start fairly low after seeing reports here of $8 - $10 winning bids on earlier dates 1/27 $ 9 (after low bid warning and message that $14 would have a "great chance") 1/30 $10 (after low bid warning and message that $14 would have a "great chance") 2/02 $11 (after low bid warning and message that $14 would have a "great chance") 2/05 $12 2/11 $11 (after seeing transparent Priceline compact rates drop for my dates) 2/14 $10 (after seeing transparent Priceline compact pricing drop further for my dates) 2/17 $11 2/20 $12 (after getting a message on transparent Priceline site that there were no cars available on my dates because of rapid changes in inventory levels - weird) 2/23 $13 successful bid (despite pre-submission message that $13 was so far below current retail rates that there was almost no chance it would be accepted)

Because my original post mentioned the fact that the ESA Valley View had gotten some awful reviews on tripadvisor .com, I thought in fairness I should comment on my stay. I got a clean, quiet room on the 3rd (top) floor at the very back corner of the hotel property. The unit was clean, had a bedroom with a king-size bed and a separate adjoining room with a sitting area and kitchen, a small bathroom, and a walk-in closet. The bed had a firm mattress, so I got a good night's sleep. I had a very good stay at the Valley View ESA. Although I did not make any requests of hotel staff apart from calling the day before to make sure I would get a non-smoking room, the front desk people I dealt with at check-in and check-out were courteous and efficient. The hotel was less than a 10 minute walk to the Rio, which has good restaurants and a free shuttle to the Strip. The Palms was only slightly farther away -- still an easy walk. I would not stay here for a romantic weekend with my significant other, but would definitely return if looking for comfortable, inexpensive lodging with easy access to the Strip.

If you haven't booked yet, here are some transportation options that may help you get to the Rio from the Strip. Excerpted from: http://las-vegas-hotels.tripadvisor.com/Tr...ing.Around.html Monorail: A favorite way to travel because it is up in the air! The monorail is open 7 days a week from 7 a.m. - 2 am (3 am Friday - Sunday). It travels from the MGM Grand to Sahara Ave and can hold 72 seated riders and 152 standing riders. You can purchase tickets at some major hotels on the strip or even on the Monorail

$35.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 1 Subtotal: $35.00 Taxes and Service Fees: $10.71 Total Charges*: $45.71 This is the Extended Stay America at 4270 South Valley View, a little south of the Rio. Bid History: 1/27 $29 [Convention Center] generated counteroffer of $39 that I ignored; 1/27 $31 [Convention Center + West of Strip] rejected; 1/28 $33 [Convention Center] generated invite for immediate rebid of at least $42, that I ignored; 1/28 $35 [Convention Center + West of Strip] successful at a West of Strip location. Lowest rate for the South Valley View location at www.extendedstayamerica .com website for Friday, 2/9/07, was $124.99/nt. I won't be surrounded by splendor, but I was just looking for a place to crash for a night on this quick trip. Reviews at tripadvisor .com are awful, but the extendedstayamerica .com website says the hotel has been "newly renovated." I figure for one night I can risk it. If I don't make it out alive, my thanks now to everyone for sharing their bidding info on this board.

Your Offer Price: US$63.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 1 Subtotal: US$63.00 Taxes and Service Fees: US$17.81 Total Charges: US$80.81 3* Bid History for one night stay on 1/7/07: 12/18 $52 12/19 $55 (generated offer to allow immediate rebid of at least $70 which I ignored) 12/20 $63 winning bid Available fixed rates today for a one night stay at the Cologne Marriott on either 1/1/07 or 1/7/07: Marriott .com 99 euros = $130.68/nt "weekend" Internet rate (cancellable) Hotels .com $156.62/nt ($166.17 all in) Mobissimo .com $150.42/nt ($180.92 all in) via Lodging .com Priceline .com $182/nt ($213.04 all in)

After seeing low but fairly old successful bid postings, I made the following rejected 4* bids for one night in Cologne (1/7/07): 12/08 $48/$52 12/09 $54/$56 12/10 $58/$60 12/11 $62/$64 12/12 $65/$67 12/13 $70/$72 12/14 $72/$74 12/15 $78/$81 12/16 $85 (generated offer to allow immediate rebid of at least $107 that I ignored) 12/16 $87 I did not want to bid higher than $87 for a 4*, so on 12/18 I began bidding for a 3* (see following post). On the off chance that new 4* inventory might appear, I got in three more sets of lower 4* bids as a precursor to my 3* bids (because even if rejected the 4* bids would not impact my 3* bidding). 12/18 $74/$76 12/19 $77/$81 12/20 $75/$85

Your Offer Price: US$63.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 1 Subtotal: US$63.00 Taxes and Service Fees: US$17.81 Total Charges: US$80.81 3* Bid History: 12/18 $55 (generated offer to allow immediate rebid of at least $70 that I ignored) 12/19 $59 12/20 $63 winning bid -- even though the "small chance" warning popped up for any proposed 3* bid of less than $66

After seeing low but fairly old successful bid postings, I made the following rejected 4* bids for one night in Cologne (1/1/07): 12/08 $48/$52 12/09 $54/$56 12/10 $58/$60 12/11 $62/$64 12/12 $65/$67 12/13 $70/$72 12/14 $72/$74 12/15 $78/$81 12/17 $85 (generated offer to allow immediate rebid of at least $107 that I ignored) 12/17 $87 I did not want to bid higher than $87 for a 4*, so on 12/18 I began bidding for a 3* (see following post). On the off chance that new 4* inventory might appear, I got in one more set of lower 4* bids as a precursor to my 3* bids (because even if rejected the 4* bids would not impact my 3* bidding). 12/18 $78/$80

Your Offer Price: US$69.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 1 Subtotal: US$69.00 Taxes and Service Fees: US$16.07 Total Charges: US$85.07 Bid History: 12/17 $60 (generated notice that immediate rebid of at least $77 would be allowed) 12/18 $64 (generated notice that immediate rebid of at least $81 would be allowed) 12/19 $69 successful Available fixed rates for same hotel on same date: Westin website direct -- 164 euros = $215.96/nt Internet only prepaid rate Priceline.com -- $214.53/nt ($243.63 all in) Hotels .com -- $223.81/nt ($237.46 all in) I also looked for the hotel at Mobissimo .com but did not see it listed among Rotterdam hotels offered on that date.

Your Offer Price: US$114.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 2 Subtotal: US$228.00 Taxes and Service Fees: US$61.30 Total Charges: US$289.30 Bid history: 12/08 $72/$76 12/09 $80/$82 12/10 $84/$86 12/11 $88/$90 12/12 $94/$98 12/13 $102/$106 ($102 bid generated an offer to allow immediate rebid of at least $124) 12/14 $110 (generated an offer to allow immediate rebid of at least $132) 12/14 Winning bid of $114 -- The warning "Based on recent data, your price has only a small chance of being accepted" showed up for any proposed bid of less than $113 on 12/14. Available fixed rates on 12/14 for same hotel dates: 149 Euro/nt ($196.05/nt) -- prepaid "Internet rate" on direct Le Meridien hotel website $186.38/nt on Priceline.com -- $403.98 all in $188.05/nt on hotels .com -- $417.04 all in

Your Offer Price: $17.00 Total Rental Days: 4 Subtotal: $68.00 Taxes & Fees: $27.54 Total Charges: $95.54 Successful bid was made on 11/7. Failed Bid History: 9/5 $12 Compact 9/9 $13 Compact 10/12 $13 Compact 10/18 $13 Compact 10/22 $14 Compact 10/26 $14 Compact 10/30 $16 Midsize 11/3 $15 Compact (with message allowing immediate compact rebid) 11/3 $16 Compact 11/3 $13 Economy

Successful bid made on 12/7 was $16/day midsize for 1/13 - 1/16 (3 weekend days) at IAD (Dulles) -- for a total of $66.27 all in from Avis. Bid history (all for 1/13 - 1/16 at IAD): 1. On 11/30, my proposed compact bid prices, before final submission, resulted in Priceline messages, for any proposed bid under $13/day, that such a low bid was unlikely to be accepted. I bid $12/day anyway and got rejected. 2. On 12/7, I tried several proposed compact bid prices (without finally submitting them) to see where the breakpoint was that would again trigger the Priceline message that my proposed bid was so low that it was unlikely to be accepted. This time, for any proposed compact bid that was low enough to trigger the "unlikely to be accepted" warning message, I also got an additional Priceline message informing me that if I bid $17/day I had a "great" chance of being successful, and a "good" chance at $16/day. 3. I then tried several very low proposed economy and mid-size bids on 12/7 (without finally submitting them), and for each I got not only the "unlikely to be accepted" warning message, but also the the additional Priceline message telling me at what price I would have a "great" or "good chance of being accepted. 4. After steps 2 and 3 above, the breakdown of these helpful hint messages from Priceline on 12/7 was as follows: "Good chance" "Great chance" Economy $16/day $17/day Compact $17/day $18/day Midsize $18/day $19/day 5. On 12/7, I then proposed a compact bid of $14/day ($3 under the "good chance" hint), which did not trigger an "unlikely to be accepted" warning message, so I finally submitted it. It was rejected. 6. On 12/7, I then proposed a mid-size bid of $16/day ($2 under the "good chance" hint), which did not trigger an "unlikely to be accepted" warning message, so I finally submitted it. It was accepted by Avis. I am a Priceline newbie, but I wonder if Priceline programs its system to tell bidders, after an unsuccessful bid triggering the 7 day wait period, that they have a "good' chance at $2/day above the price that would actually be accepted. It seems logical that Priceline would want to avoid losing new customers by having them get frustrated by a series of unsuccessful bids. Has anybody else gotten the "good chance" and "great chance" bid price hints? Maybe Priceline programs its system to consistently suggest there is a "good chance" at $2 above the lowest price price at which the bid would be successful. Anyone who submitted a bid at the "good chance" price would feel like he got a pretty good deal, and Priceline presumably pockets some portion of the $2/day overbid. Anyway, food for thought. I suppose it would be pretty easy for Priceline to program its system to generate the "good chance" and "great chance" bid suggestions only for relatively new customers like me. Have any repeat Priceline customers out there gotten these "good chance" and "great chance" bid suggestion messages in response to preliminary lowball proposed bids?