Dman

I'm pretty sure that the only 4* hotel in Rancho Mirage or Cathedral City with a casino would be Agua Caliente.

FYI, there are currently three 4.5* properties in Wailea. They are the Fairmont Kea Lani, the Grand Wailea, and the Andaz. They all cost quite a bit more than the 4* resort properties, which are the Makena Golf Resort, and the Mariott Wailea. Non-opaque rates for the three 4.5* resorts are typically $450 or more per night, usually at least $150 per night higher than the Makena Resort and the Marriott. Frankly, if you got any of those three properties for $250 per night, it would be a screaming great deal, although I personally am not a fan of the Grand Wailea because it is vast and massive, the other two, being the Andaz and the Kea Lani, are spectacular. But you are by far most likely to win the Grand Wailea if you win any of them. And it would certainly be expected to cost you more than a $50 premium per night over the Makena Resort or the Marriott. Whether or not it's worth it, depends upon how much you like the Grand Wailea and it's massive scale - personally, I'd prefer the Makena Resort for the $175-190 it usually goes for.

FYI, I just got back from a stay at the Hyatt which was offered to me as part of a promotion to try to sell the timeshares that they are builting. The deal was $850 for 5 nights including taxes and resort fee (which comes out to $170 a night all in except for parking). I also got a $100 resort certificate which I used to pay for the parking ($14 a night) and one meal. The deal was predicated on attending a timeshare sales presentation - which was a very soft sell and which was over in less than an hour - and I didn't buy and got no push back for not buying. I am wondering if these $145 rooms are on the side facing the construction and just about nothing else (which the timeshare deal I got was). As the resort fee is $30 a night, and the taxes and Priceline fees are going to be another $25 or so, the Price.line price of $145 is still more than the Timeshare 5-night promo deal of $850 for 5 nights all in - but I would suggest that if the Priceline rooms did NOT overlook the construction zone, it could still be a better deal. BTW, the fact that the timeshare deal rooms overlooked the construction was fully disclosed when I booked it, and I was fine with it - the room itself was spacious, well appointed, and who goes to Maui to stay in the room anyways.

Wouldn't be shocked if it was the new Kapaa Courtyard.

Princeville is not a free rebid at 3.5*. You very easily could get the Westin Princeville instead. Which is a very good hotel, but, of course, you'd be in Princeville, not Poipu. I'm personally trying to get Poipu as a split between the other half of my trip, which I already booked on a deal that Starwood is giving owners at the Westin Princeville. Since 2/3 of my trip is already in Princeville, I DON'T want Princeville for the remaining third of it. But the fact that Starwood is running very aggressive promo deals for their owners on the Westin Princeville says to me that they have plenty of vacancies - which means you could easily win it while trying for Poipu if you include it in the bidding zones. So it is DEFINITELY NOT a free rebid zone. I would also add that next January is peak season, so there's almost no way that the Sheraton would release inventory for those dates at the best Priceline rates this early. You probably won't see availability on Priceline in January at good prices until at least September or October.

FYI, at least presently, Hotwire on their non-opaque ratings, considers the Excalibur to be a 3* and the Luxor to be a 3.5* property. Do they state what the resort fee is? Because the MGM Grande's resort fee is higher than Monte Carlo and Tropicana, and those are the 3 main candidates. BTW, that's NOT the amenities list for the specific property you are looking at, that's the generic descriptor of "resort" on Hotwire.

I would guess, from the free parking (which the Marriott does NOT have) that this is the Makena Resort (formerly the Prince in Makena).

I hate to say it, but he'd have won the Westin with a bid of $50.

You're bumping up against the NAB trade show, which is one of the larger trade shows in Vegas that week.

Given what you are asking for, I would suggest using HOTWIRE to try to get either Planet Hollywood, Tropicana, or Hard Rock. If you use PRICELINE, you could easily pull Luxor or Monte Carlo and these would have an older crowd, with less of a pool scene.

Encore base rooms are bigger, and of course, everything in one is useable by guests in the other. Effectively, it's one hotel. But if you prefer the rooms in Wynn, then your preference is valid.

Actually, Encore is very slightly nicer, but they are effectively the same quality.

And in that specific zone, the two potential properties that could some day suddenly emerge on PRICELINE as 5* properties would be the MGM Signature, and the Marriott Grand Chateau. Both of these are upscale condo properties where the quality of the rooms is legitimately 5*, but the quality of on-site amenities and service offered is really not as comprehensive as a true 5* resort hotel.

I would add that I personally would prefer the Tropicana to the MGM, and I would also point out that the Paradise tower of the Trop is actually closer (meaning, a shorter walk) to the MGM's casino than most of the rooms in the MGM itself are to their Casino.

You might wish to book directly a 2 BR suite at the MGM Signature. These also come with a convertible Queen Sofa bed, that I have slept on and it's a good quality mattress. I would add that, while the rooms at the MGM Signature are definitely 5* quality, the service is not up to that level, like it is at Wynn, or Bellagio, or Cosmopolitan.

The Westin is considered to be a Resort, while the Sheraton and Marriott are considered to be 4* on PRICELINE. On HOTWIRE, they are all considered to be 4*. Basically, the reason you won the Westin is that $47 was too low for it, and $49 was not. If you had added 4* and not raised your bid by $2, you probably would have won either the Sheraton or the Marriott at $47. FYI, just the other day, I was unsuccessful bidding $47 for a resort only, but I added 4* and kept my bid the same $47 and I won the Marriott. Last year, I won the Westin for $50, after not winning it for $47 but only bidding for a resort.

Keep in mind that, in terms of your budget, both the Sheraton and the Hyatt have a $25 a night resort fee in addition to whatever the cost of a winning bid + taxes + PRICELINE fees is Also, presently, the Sheraton is temporarily considered a 3.5 star because of some ongoing renovations, while the Hyatt is considered a resort. But the situation with the Sheraton and how it is ranked within PRICELINE and HOTWIRE could change at any time.

FYI, the Westin has better reviews. I believe that it comes up with either 90% or 95% recommendation (When I read through the reviews of a HW 4* $58 property having 95% recommend last year, one of the reviews cited the location on the Marina, which would rule out the Sheraton - But if could possibly be the Marriott. Oh, and BTW, I just won on priceline the Marriott with dates in May, for $47 bid. On PL, the Westin and Sheraton are considered to be 4* properties, while the Westin is considered to be a Resort. Last December, I got the Westin for $50 bid on PL. The Westin and Marriott are considered to be equally nice, both slightly nicer than the Sheraton, which, I'm betting this property with 85% recommending reviews happens to be.

After visiting Puerto Vallarta last year and realizing what I great bargain it was, I was looking to return. Last time, I got the Westin for $50 a night. This time, I was hoping for either the Westin or the Marriott. I started out bidding for a resort for $47 (knowing that the Westin was the only possible resort that might come up in that price range). The bid was rejected, and I then added 4*, knowing that I could get either the Sheraton or the Marriott at this price, and I had a slight preference for the Marriott due to it's location. The same $47 bid was successful. My current plan is to stay at this resort (it IS a resort, PL rating notwithstanding) for the first 3 nights and then to move into a small place in the Zona Romantica once I arrive (there are plenty of them available, at prices from $25-40 a night all in). But I have also been given the option to extend this stay into the weekend at the same rate, and I may consider it.

The Trop is quite nice after the recent renovation, and if you want to hang at the casino and restaurants and shops at Mandalay Bay, there is a free tram to there that stops right by the corner of the Excalibur that's closest to the Tropicana. It's like a 50 yard walk from the Tropicana's front door, across the bridge over Las Vegas Blvd toward Excalibur. So it's VERY convenient to get to Mandalay Bay from the Tropicana.

IMHO, the Tropicana is nicer than the Monte Carlo. Also, they are a 10 minute walk apart.

They had one pool open, and about 10-20 people were using it (well, sitting around it, not actually swimming) during the times I looked last week, when the high temperatures just about reached 70 degrees. All the pools were filled and clean, so they could open them all whenever the weather and the demand warrants it.

I just returned from a stay at the Tropicana. IMHO, the newly renovated Trop is one of the nicest 4* properties in all of Las Vegas. I personally prefer it to Treasure Island. But, realistically, it should come down to where, geographically, you prefer to be. Would you rather see the stuff in the vicinity of the Venetian, Ceasars, Mirage - that would auger for picking TI. If you'd rather see stuff in the vicinity of the MGM, New York, New York, Excalibur, Mandalay Bay, that would augur for picking the Trop. City Center is sort of midway between them. Also, when are you going? Is pool important? if so, I'd say the Trop's pools are nicer.

Well, it's true that the Tropicana USED to be a dump, but a year ago, it was treated to a $180 Million top to bottom renovation. And right now, it is, IMHO, one of the nicest 4* properties on the strip. I just stayed there from Jan 2-5, of course, that being a slow week, I paid a tiny fraction of what it cost on Dec. 31. But the hotel itself is VERY nice, and much more intimate than most Vegas Mega-properties like Monte Carlo, Mirage, MGM, Treasure Island, etc. I'd go so far as to say that it is every bit as nice as any of those places. And if you want to spend time in a mega Casino with a dozen restaurants, the dining options and casinos of MGM, New York New York, and Excaliber are all about 100 yard walks away. The Trop's casino is also quite unusual for Vegas, and though very small, it is also quite bright and airy, a total change of pace from every other casino in town. Unfortunately, I didn't win any money there, but I didn't lose much either. The new management and renovation of the Tropicana has resulted in the most dramatic improvement I have ever seen to a property. It has been transformed from a Circus-Circus caliber dump to a really NICE 4*, that I would frankly say right now might be the nicest 4* on the entire strip - especially if the huge size of the MGM and Mirage is not really what you're looking for.

If the places actually charge resort fees, you've got 3 choices. 1) Pay the fee 2) Don't stay at any place that charges Resort Fees, and don't use Opaque services like Priceline or Hotwire whenever there is a chance you may have to pay a resort fee. 3) Fight the fee. In my experience, this will be an arduous and unpleasant process, and you will need to be willing to make a scene in public. I'd probably be less willing to do this in Mexico than in the U.S., because I have better trust in law enforcement in the U.S. Also, if the hotel actually discloses the fees in their own websites or promotional information - you probably won't be successful. I have been successful in getting the fees waived in instances where they were NOT properly disclosed anywhere prior to check-in, AND I was willing to make a scene. I simply challenged the hotel staff/manager to show me where the fee was disclosed prior to my making an uncancellable booking, and I would pay it. Upon their inability to do so, and me making a scene in their lobby, I have generally been able to get them to waive the fee. But, it is certainly an unpleasant process to do it. My goal is to make levying those fees AT LEAST as unpleasant for those that do it in secret. But there aren't any alternatives that will work. But I have not experienced that Mexican hotels charge these fees. Certainly, in many places in the U.S., they are prevalent. As for Mexico, I can only speak to Cabo and Puerto Vallarta, where I have never seen these fees. I haven't been to Cancun since Resort Fees began rearing their ugly heads in places like Vegas, Palm Springs, and Orlando, FL.