Southam

Three hotels have been purchased for this fall. In each case, bidding started at $55US and was raised $5 a day. All at 2 1/2 stars in Toronto Downtown North. Best Western Primrose -- $75. Location, 111 Carlton Street. Big hotel, substantially redecorated. Four blocks walk to Yonge/College subway station. Parking garage entrance around the corner on Jarvis. Convenient to Ryerson University and the "gay village" on Church. Bond Place Hotel, end of November -- $75. 65 Dundas St. E. Smaller hotel, redecorated in boutique/budget style. Prime location one block from the Dundas Square-Eaton Centre hub on Yonge. Relatively low-cost parking garage nearby. Bond Place Hotel, just before Christmas -- $60.

I started bidding at $50 and added $5 a day. Accepted at $65. Lowest rate from the hotel itself would be approx. $95 before taxes. This hotel is rated 2.5 stars, has small rooms and was redecorated two years ago. Excellent location at Dundas Square. However, in that Priceline area and bidding at that star level, I have in the past landed 3.5 stars for about the same price. Here are all the hotels in this area that I have bought over several years using the same strategy: Bond Place, Delta Chelsea, Primrose (once), Holiday Inn (both Downtown Central and Bloor-Yorkville,) Hilton Garden Inn Toronto City Centre, Comfort Inn Downtown, and the Marriott Courtyard Toronto Downtown. Room size and freshness of decor varies of course, but all benefit from the convenience of being near Yonge Street with its shopping and subway stops. The Holiday Inn Bloor-Yorkville and Hilton Garden each is several blocks further away from Yonge and a little fancier than some of the others. For my needs, Downtown North has been a reliable bargain-finder.

On Aug. 4 I bid $55 US for 3 1/2 stars Toronto downtown north on Sept. 1 and 2, rejected. Bid the same price for 3 stars, rejected. A bid for $56 at 2 1/2 stars was accepted for the Bond Place Hotel. This medium-sized hotel, in an excellent location on Dundas Street East a couple of minutes walk from the Dundas Square-Eaton Centre intersection on Yonge Street, has been under renovation for the last six months. Its rooms are not huge but decently maintained. Overnight parking in a nearby underground garage is cheaper than normal for that area. Cheapest rate for those two nights on the hotel Internet site is just under $100 Canadian.

On July 20, bid $65 for 2 1/2 stars on Sept. 25/10 in Downtown North. Accepted. The Courtyard by Marriott is a long-standing property (which has had several operators over the years) on Yonge Street, just north of the Carlton subway stop. It is very well located for both downtown and midtown attractions.

Park Inn, three stars in downtown Toledo, closest hotel to the Toledo Mud Hens baseball park. On July 20 bid $55 for July 25 accepted. Hotel's own site offered just under $100.

Quebec City hotel in the central area requested for Sept. 3 and 4. Bid on 3 1/2 stars, beginning at $60 on July 13. Gradually increased the bid. On July 20, $90 was turned down but I was offered the two nights at the price of $105 US per night. Accepted; the booking is for Loews Le Concorde. This is not exactly cheap, even though it is one of the city's biggest hotels. But this is the September holiday weekend with the tourist season still going strong. Smaller properties are going for much higher prices on various agency boards. In QC even the bed-and-breakfasts rarely cost under $100 unless well outside the central area.