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You can use whatever credit card you want, it doesn't have to match the name of the person who is checking in. There are many people that have paid for rooms via Priceline that friends or family members will be using. No matter whose credit card you use, make sure that you correctly fill in the name of the person that will be checking in, as that is the only thing the hotel really cares about.

Welcome to BetterBidding. You can have an infinite number of priceline accounts, but what is it you're trying to accomplish by doing so? If you simply are trying to create an extra account for another family member so that you can bid again without waiting 72 hours, then it won't work, as Priceline typically usually checks internet cookies, email address, and credit card number in order to make sure it's not a duplicate bid (so if any of the three are the same, your bid will get 'kicked out' as a duplicate). You may also want to check out this thread: MORE THAN 1 PRICELINE ACCOUNT

Welcome to BetterBidding... it's always nice to have another enthusiastic member. Opinions are always welcomed here :) Glad to have you aboard.

Glad if finally worked out for you and that we were able to help! It's funny how you can be off by $15 and Priceline will give you a counter-offer, yet you can be $1 away and have them not say a word! Look forward to your review when you return to see how you feel you are treated. Have a great trip.

You don't know if you're seeing them all, just need to try different dates, which is why i'm updating the lists all the time whenever i see a new hotel that isn't already on the list. You're now starting to see how time consuming the process can be. I'll copy this info over the the Arizona section, but since you did the work i don't want to take the credit (by having this info appear under my name). If you'd like you can copy/paste it yourself as a reply to the Hotwire Hotel List by City category OR you can just type a message there with the word "test" in the body and i'll copy/paste it for you later on. Have i been slacking that much on the board that you've now fixed two things? :) I tried to do the most popular areas of the Hotwire Vacation package first, and then have been adding areas as requested. So thanks for taking care of the Tucson zone for me!

One more idea.... see if you can 'identify' the hotels that are being offered to you via the regular hotel package and then see how much extra those hotels costs via the Vacation Package.... the difference in price should theoretically equal the cost of the airfare or car rental (depending which package you're looking at). Then subtract the cost of the car rental or airfare from the Dolphin or Swan vacation package to figure out how much the hotel would cost on its own (if it was offered). How does the cost of the Swan/Dolphin compare to the cost of the 4* hotel that is being offered to yo. Not really sure if i did a good job explaining my thought process on this one, so if you need clarification of what i mean, feel fee to ask.

Thanks for posting. GO BLUE!

You right, and i've been meaning to, so i thank you for taking action and doing it for me :) Keep up the good work, i could always use assistance on the board. Thanks for picking up the slack!

I believe weekend rates would traditionally be cheaper on the weekend, not more expensive (and a check for one date an random confirmed the above, but i could have picked a bad date to test the theory). As per THIS POST from just a few days ago, bidding the same zone and for a weekend date, $65 was a successful bid, so bidding $64 may have left you just a little short. I compared the hotel's website rate for the 'win' at $65 with the rates for your dates, and they are the same, so when you have the opportunity to bid again, i would at least include $65 somewhere in my round of bidding (it doesn't have to start at that level if you have re-bids, but if you're willing to spend at least that much, i would make sure that i bid accordingly to include a $65 bid in the process). Of course, still no guarantees, but as of now my best guess is that your $64 bid may have missed by $1. As well, i have heard of $65 bids rejected and $66 bids accepted in this zone, so if rejected at $65 for some reason, i wouldn't be raising my subsequent bids by too much after that point (certainly not $5 increments). Let us know how it goes.

I guess i should have clarified a bit more.... In my experience, generally speaking, most hotels don't change their Priceline rates as the arrival date approaches (one particular hotel in Las Vegas being the exception that i can think of right now). The rates that the hotels offer Priceline generally remain constant throughout, with the rate mostly determined by season (ie- offering a Priceline rate of $40 during low season and $55 during high season). There are of course exceptions to this rule, and some hotels have multiple 'low season' rates and multiple 'high season' rates (ie- during low season, they're offer Priceline rate of $35 if hotel is projected to be less than 50% occupied and $45 if over 50% occupied, while during 'high season' offering $50 if below 50% occupany and $60 if over 50% occupany). Of course this is adjusted for when conventions and special events are in town. I guess the (long winded :) ) point i'm tying to make is that i believe rates for a specific date stay fairly constant, and are usually only changed if they see that actual occupancy is significantly different than what was previously projected. It's usually more of a question of 'availability vs. no availability' rather than 'low price vs. high price'.

As always, thanks for posting. It appears that this hotel was recently upgraded from 2.5* to 3*. Have a great time in Vegas (and Goodl Luck).

No problem... i'm on the job! That's one of the benefits of Hotwire, no risk of upgrade. Along similar lines... I'm currently debating what to do for a hotel stay in August. The hotel i want in the area via Priceline hasn't opened availability yet, and i know raising my bid at this point will likely result in the 'next' hotel in the list, which i'd be happy with, but would prefer the other. I just looked at Hotwire and a new hotel has appeared in the rotaion(which i suspect is the Embassy Suites) which i've never stayed at but have read great reviews about the chain.

The HOTWIRE link was removed as well. If you would like to use SavingsBarn.com for Hotwire, they have added a link below the Priceline box on their page. I just visted there to see if it was up, and it is indeed there (it's directly under the Priceline Rental Car and Airfare links). If you have a problem, you could also visit their Hotel page or most of their other travel pages which also have links to Hotwire. From elsewhere on this board: Yes there was, and unfortunately, that link was removed as well. I hope our users continue to use the above links that are still available (Expedia, Orbitz, Travelocity) when their plans allow. Also, please let us know if there any other sites that you use regularly, or think would be relevant to have on our site, as we will try to obtain links to those companies as well. Have no fears though, with or without additional links, i will continue to cover any expenses that are involved in running the board.... i'm having too much fun with it and really think we're building a great online community! As i stated above, i will be using SavingsBarn.com for my own purchases whenever possible as i'd like to see them survive, thrive, and do well... in hopes that somewhere in the future there will be a policy change and we can re-establish a link to them. I also think their site provides a valuable resource for researching travel plans and checking prices. Knowing first hand the effort that goes into building and maintaining a website, i'd rather see any affiliate commissions benefit a small business than kept by some large corporation (which is what happens if you don't go thru an affiliate).

I'm all for that! We just need everyone to continue to spread the word with people they know and other message boards they post at. We're only about 4 months old right now, and you'd be surprised how little Hotwire info there was after 2 months. So we've actually made some good headway recently. It will take some time, but we'll get there! Thanks for helping us get one step closer.

Are Spa and Children's Activities too when you click on "View Hotel's Amenities"? On Hotwire's description there is only enough space for 8 icons, but when clicking on "View Hotel's Amenities" you can see the complete list if there are more than 8. Thanks for the follow-up!

If you click on "View Hotel's Amenities" does it also show: Spa, Children Facilities, Laundry Nice job and the "Double the Difference Guarantee"!! As always, thanks for reporting your results.

I don't think rooms are handed out to each company in alternating fashion as you propose.... the hotels objective is to unload excess inventory, so they're not typically holding back any inventory that they expect to give out in the following week. Whatever they don't expect to sell, they'll make available at once so there is the greatest opportunity for Pricleline/Hotwire to sell it. With that said, there is indeed different criteria for what levels of occupancy are necessary for Priceline to get hotels and a at what level Hotwire gets hotels. One problem that you may be encountering is how Hotwire rotates properties (ie- how Hotwire determines which 4* property to show you, if more than one is available) I'm not sure if the cookies on your computer are used so that you're not given different hotels from search-to-search, but you may want to try clearing them between searches. I'd also check to see if either the Swan or Dolphin are available for your dates via the Vacation package. This should at least be an indication if Hotwire potentially has availability for your dates thru their 'regular' hotel product. Let us know how it's going and if you make any head-way by peaking into the Vacation product as mentioned above.

Thanks for both follow up posts :) I guess the "my account" doesn't keep track of Customer Favorite status.

It would be appreciated if you could post your winning bid in the NY section, as contributing your information would be appreciated by future users, just as i'm sure you have beneifted from the information posted by prior users. The board can only do well if we all give as well as take. In regards to your question: -call the hotel and put in a bed request (especially if you know the 'priceline rooms' are only of a certain bed type) -check-in early in the day (but after offical check-out time) when there are the most number of rooms unassigned -join the hotels affinity program and have the number entered on your reservation. If the clerk tells you you're not eligible to get points on your reservation, tell them "i know, but i'd like it recorded in the system for any incidentals i charge to my room during my stay" -hand them their affinity card along with your credit card when you check in -smile and be friendly at check-in -mention you're there for a special occaision (birthday, anniversary, etc) If you're not happy with the first room given, be willing to ask for another one and talk to a manager if neccessary. If your still not happy, ask for names of management that you speak with as well as ask them (the manager) for the phone number to call at corporate HQs if you want to complain. Sometimes knowing that you intend on complaining is enough to get what you want, as the manager doesn't want to deal with a complaint filed with the corporate office regarding themselves or their hotel. NO MATTER WHAT, always be polite with the hotel staff, including management. I will add, my cousin just stayed at the NYC Hilton Towers (and she 'cares' where she sleeps) and she said she had a great stay and that she'd be happy to stay there again.

Thanks for clarifying the sub-zone.... i didn't see that (and not knowing Hawaii, i can never keep the names of all the islands straight). Could you give the dates that you were able to show this hotel at this rate? I tried a few dates and can only pull up a 4.5* hotel at $151 (and other various prices that are not $145), and i'd like to get the amenities for this hotel (and hopefully have zen confirm them) I agree that sometimes Hotwire inflates their prices too much, but if they do (relative to traditional booking vehicles) then we have the right to 'zing' it to them with their "Double the Difference Guarantee." Only thru taking advantage of their gurantee and hitting them in their own pocket, will they learn and make their rates more consistent.

Thanks for following-up and reporting your results. Glad you were ultimately successful, have a great time in Chicago! (and eat a slice of pizza for me, please)

Yes there was, and unfortunately, that link was removed as well. I hope our users continue to use the above links that are still available (Expedia, Orbitz, Travelocity) when their plans allow. Also, please let us know if there any other sites that you use regularly, or think would be relevant to have on our site, as we will try to obtain links to those companies as well. Have no fears though, with or without additional links, i will continue to cover any expenses that are involved in running the board.... i'm having too much fun with it and really think we're building a great online community! As i stated above, i will be using SavingsBarn.com for my own purchases whenever possible as i'd like to see them survive, thrive, and do well... in hopes that somewhere in the future there will be a policy change and we can re-establish a link to them. I also think their site provides a valuable resource for researching travel plans and checking prices. Knowing first hand the effort that goes into building and maintaining a website, i'd rather see any affiliate commissions benefit a small business than kept by some large corporation (which is what happens if you don't go thru an affiliate).

Since you come back and follow-up your posts, you're doing just fine :) Since no board can exist without the contribution of its users, we are just grateful for those that report their results, and if some information is left out, we nicely ask for a clarification. This way there is no hurt feelings on either end and the information eventually is filled in. I find if you slap the hand that feeds you by criticizing posters, then nobody wants to post at all, and that doesn't help anyone. This is why one of the few rules that we do have is "BE NICE to others".

Skipper, I would be careful thinking that you're looking at the same 4.5* property without being able to match up the amenities. There are likely other 4.5* hotels within Maui besides this one (but then again, i don't know the area at all, and don't even know the Hotwire zone within Maui that this falls within). I don't know if you're joking or not regarding not understanding the high hotel prices for your own dates, but prices are a function of supply and demand and if Hotwire's prices is higher than prevailing rates elsewhere, you can always try to take advantage of their "Double the Difference Guarantee"

I guess everyone will be happy with whatever i decide :)