controlyar

Thanks Admin. Date of stay is Friday June 13, 2008. When you mention to close browser and re-access PL, does this mean: sign in and if bid fails close and then re-open browser PRICELINE and sign in again? If not, what is the significance of just closing and re-opening? It appears as though 1 extra bid is gained using the method you described. I will definitely use the referral link you provided to win the hotel. Thanks for your assistance.

Just need some assistance with bidding and a question regarding re-bidding. If I search for Mississauga on Priceline, and I wish to stay at a 2.5 in Mississauga, are the only rebid zones Scarborough/Pickering and Toronto East? So would this mean I have 3 bids total to try and get a hotel here? Are there any chances that Priceline changes their hotel ratings, so there infact may be some hotels there? Or does Priceline guarantee that there are re-bid attempts b/c no hotels are located in those other two zones? Thanks.

Do people ever win hotels other than the Metropolitan at the 3star rating? This seems to be the popular one.

FYI Hotwire is not the same as Priceline. They are two very unique websites. Priceline - you select a specific region for bidding and a star level - the system matches you - there is no way of narrowing down ahead of time which exact hotel you have a chance of receiving, nor what the amenities are - you can use the priceline hotels list published on this site to get an idea of the hotels priceline uses and maybe narrow down the hotels you are likely bidding on - some areas only have 1-2 hotels hotels at a particular star level, so the odds are you will be matched with one of these hotels - you can use past bids and hotels listed under the non "name your own price" section of the site to help get an idea of the kinds of hotels priceline has in its system currently, although it does not necessarily match up with the bidding portion of the site - keep your fingers crossed when you bid :) Hotwire - you select a hotel in a specific region and a star level that is listed - not all combinations are always available - the amenities are listed and you can use the hotwire hotel list published on this site to match up the hotel profiles - you can also use the vacation packages option in Hotwire to create a dummy vacation to attempt to see what kinds of hotels Hotwire has in its system and again try to match up the amenities - keep you fingers crossed, but not as hard since you likely know which hotel you will be receiving

Yes, once my lockout period was reset I made multiple successive bids. I think I used around 12 of 16 possible bids. Thanks.

Update on bidding: Selected 4* Ottawa DT - bid $120 - rejected Selected 3* Ottawa DT - bid $100 (lowest Hotwire price was $136 and that seemed to be a match for Crowne Plaza) It seemed to be sitting at the waiting screen for a while (at least 1 minute) and then I got a message indicating that "they are working on my request" and I can click on a link to check the status of the request. I crossed my fingers and clicked on the link a few minutes later. It was accepted and then I eagerly scrolled down and had won the Marriott Ottawa ! It was exactly what I had hoped for - I has feared I would end up with teh . I bid higher since the next option would have been adding Hull and that would imply getting the Holdiday Inn Gatineau, which could be had on Hotwire for $95 is not worth that kind on money in my opinion - I have stayed there before. And yes I used the savingsbarn link :) Just curious, but what is really happening when you get the "working on request" message ? Computers don't need time to think as far as I know :)

That is correct. The behaviour was not consistent, which is why I always questioned if the priceline system is 100% computer based with a fixed set of rules. I guess it is possible the hotel happened to release some more rooms during the time which I was bidding, dropping the rate slightly. At $145 I was told to add $22 more dollars. At $150 , the bid was simply rejected. Bidding again at $150, I was told to add $25 more dollars. Bidding again at $150, I believe I was rejected. Bidding again at $150, and it was accepted.

Well my Montreal hotel is now covered although I am second guessing things. My 24-hour lockout was reset and I decided to have another go at it. I started at $120 (where I left off yesterday) and kept bidding on a 4* - I had the opportunity of 16 possible bids by using the rebid strategy so I had plenty of bids to try. Once I got up to $145, I got the message that if I added $22 more dollars I could bid again. I tried rebidding at $150 and was rejected and I decided that I would not go any higher - some 'sanity' prevailed that I couldn't keep going higher. I still had a few more bids left so I bid $150 a few times and sometimes got a message that if I added $25 more dollars I could rebid. I just rebid $150 and then magically it was accepted. If my finals bids were not accepted, I was going to start over and select 3* and keep going. The price is steep but I ended up getting the Sofitel. And yes I always used the Savingsbarn link :). This hotel is going for $169 on Hotwire so I guess I saved some money. I am wondering if I should have waited a few more days though. Priceline - $150 USD ~ 197CDN final price Hotwire - $169 USD ~ 219CDN final price Sofitel Website ~ 307CDN final price

Update on bidding: Bid 3 Ottawa DT* - $80 - rejected Add Hull - $90 - rejected

The HW rate for 4* is now $169!! I should have booked before I went to work. HW shows Fitness, Restaurant, High-Speed Internet, Business, Spa. I guess I will have to jump when I see a decent price.

Well I bid up to $75 so far. It seems demand is much higher this year compared to last year. Unfortunately, I can't find any winning bids for the same weekend in Ottawa this year to compare against. I do need a room and want to get it for the least amount of money like everyone else. I guess $100 is a reasonable "limit", although I will pay more if I have to. I am likely locked-out for 24 hours now ( I don't want to add more areas or reduce the star level, yet), so I will continue to increase my bidding amount later but more aggressively.

The stay is just one night - 06/30/07 - 07/01/07. The HW rate is 4* for $119. HW shows Fitness, Restaurant, High-Speed Internet, Pool, Business, Spa which should be a match for La Centre Sheraton. Can you please confirm ? Thanks to your strategy I was able to get 10 bids in and I have a few more left too :). The difference is only $9 now and I would probably just rather go with HW since the hotel is very nice. Yellowdog, , where are you getting the $242 or $205 dollar amounts from ? Not sure where those numbers are coming from. thereuare, thanks for the explanation. I figured it is also averaging the cost over the days where demand is lower as well like you said. Well its $85 vs. $110+ (probably peaking at $120 since thats the HW price).

I am also looking for a 3* in Ottawa- Hull (Ottawa) for 7/1/07 - 7/2/07 - Canada Day. Bid 4* - $60 - rejected Add 3* - $68 - rejected Add Hull - $75 - rejected People were winning the 3* Marriott for $45-55 last year for the same dates ! Any ideas with this one ? Hotwire is showing 3* for $152.

superagentnyc, what day did you bid ? I am assuming you posted the same day you bid. I bid on June 22nd (today) in the morning and can't even get anything up to $110.

I see that the Intercontinental was won for $85 around the same dates and recently as well. I bid Montreal DT starting at $75 and after 10 bids (adding zones - none of rest contain 4*) was up to $110 and still getting rejected. I was bidding early in the morning 5AM EST - I figured maybe there was no operator on the other end to make any sort of counter-offer. Can that happen (or is it all computer based) or is the demand actually very high ( I know this is a long weekend and all) ? Hotwire has a 4* on now (likely Le Centre Sheraton) for $120 so I might just go for that since its a really nice hotel. Any bidding help is appreciated. Should I wait another day or two ? Thanks in advance.

First bid at $70 was rejected (based on previous bids) , so I gave $77 a try and got it. Marriott Vancouver Pinnacle Downtown Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 3 Subtotal: $231.00 (US dollars) Taxes & Service Fees: $47.05 (US dollars) Total Charges: $278.05 (US dollars) I used the Savingsbarn.com link.

Not to thread hi-jack but, if you are driving to Manhattan...is it recommended to park your vehicle in NJ someplace and then carry your luggage on the PATH system to the hotel? Or to take the NJ transit (320) to Port Authority/Times Square and cab/walk to the hotel. Does everyone just pay the ridiculous parking fees? My dilemma is this: Last bus is 1:00am for NJ Transit to Secaucus/Park Plaza and I am fairly sure some nights we may be in the city past 1:00am. I have also heard taxis do not like to cross the border but if they do, they double the fares! I imagine $80 will land a 3* (embassy, crown, holiday inn) or the 2.5* Amerisuites. But then if I stay out past 1:00am, I will be stranded!!! OR should I do this....land a 4* in Manhattan for $120 and pay $40 for parking ($25 if lucky). <---this is very expensive and double the price of the Secaucus hotel option. :o So, the question is....Can I leave my car in NJ someplace for free and get a lift to the hotel in Manhattan? Is this a wise decision? The main thing here is price as well as the 1:00am issue. Please help THEREUARE. :) Care to drive me & my party into Manhattan from Hoboken at a fee? :) j/k

I used the Savingsbarn link. I am very pleased that my offer was accepted. 1st bid: rejected at $65. 2nd bid: accepted at $76 Subtotal: $76.00 Taxes & Service Fees: $20.08 Total Charges: $96.08 Option to add a night for $386. I declined. :) Thanks to the previous posters for providing a ballpark bid. And to the admin: thereuare...I sent you a PM.