Kaskimondo

Saw previous bids of $41 for this property in JAX Airport zone at 3* so we bid $41 as well & won on first bid. Regular priceline rate was $85. Thanks to previous bidders for their better bidding posts. EDIT: Mod, please add date of 12/20/2010 to post title. Must have accidentally deleted it. Bid for room & posted this thread on Android phone traveling at 70mph down the highway. (passenger) Gotta love technology!

So...I tried bidding everyday since my last post, weeks of bidding. NADA. I tried all kinds of combinations to win a room. Bid up to $120, split the dates, added Union Square East and West, SOMA and even lowered the star rating a few times and tried for Fisherman's Wharf, no luck. I kept watching the rates on Hotwire, Priceline and other sites as well as on the hotel sites. I really wanted to get either the Hyatt Regency, Hilton Financial or some other comparable property. The rates stayed very steady for our dates on Hotwire and Priceline, fluctuating up a bit and then down and then going up again. But unfortunately, never lower enough where I thought I would get a win within the price range we wanted for eight nights. It's basic math. If the price is too high you'll never get the 30-50% off deals if you don't bid the right amount. And the "right" amount was unfortunately, too high. Luckily we got a room on 1800hotels.com for around $120 an night for the Hilton Union Square and booked it last week. A day later, that rate vanished. Like I said, luckily. I figured we had until Tuesday to bid and cancel if we won a better deal, but that didn't happen. Before securing the Hilton we looked at some VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner) properties. Some of them were very attractive but as you would expect for this time of year, BOOKED. And the ones that weren't booked were either slightly above what we wanted to pay or had dates for only a partial stay. Not wanting to waste a few hours or more checking out of one place and into another to save a few dollars, I figured it would be easier and hassle free to just stay at one property for this trip since we have so much stuff planned everyday. So I am glad that we got the Hilton for our week in the city! And so...what did I learn from this experience? I learned that if you want to visit San Francisco in October....BID EARLY. It's one of the busiest times of the year for the city as far as events, conventions and for people who like to be in town for Indian summer. I hope my simple experience can at least help a few other people who are looking to come to San Francisco this time of the year and want to get a deal of a hotel.

Yeah, it's tough to get a deal for that week. There are so many things going on around town that hotels are selling out and taking advantage with higher rates.

Yes, only bidding Embarcadero. Might consider bidding other zones the week before we arrive. I bid on the first weekend dates to see what would happen. Did 3 & 4 nights with Embarcadero and all the free rebid zones, nada.Yes, I'm also thinking that I'm very near the price, maybe $10-20 away, but I'd like to pay around $100 if I can help it. As the date gets closer, maybe we''ll up the bids just to make sure we can get a win Thanks for the help. I'm using the PRICELINE B link.

Yes, I bid up to $105 for the last 3 days with no luck. Tried splitting the bid for the weekend only up to $100 and didn't get anything yet either. I'll keep at it and hopefully we'll get lucky. Thanks.

Thanks for the confirm and advice, Colfax. Looking forward to our trip and I hope we get some nice accommodations. Will definitely post details of our win here.

Thanks Colfax From what I can tell it seems like either South San Francisco or Fisherman's Wharf don't have four star choices. Is that right? Please confirm.

We're traveling to SF on 10/2-10/10 and need some solid advice. From doing research on here and elsewhere, looks like October can be a bit tricky since there are lots of conventions and events around town. Budget is around $100 a night, hopefully less, but can go higher if pressed. We'd like to get the Embarcadero area and want to know the free rebid zones for *4 stars. I know about Marina/Cow Hollow and Civic Center, anymore zones? Also, do you guys think we will be able to get a room for 8 nights consecutively, or will we have to split? I only ask because I don't see many 8 night stays posted. With the past experiences posted on BB as a guide it seems like a few weeks before our dates is when hotels may release rooms to priceline after all of the rack rate travelers have dwindled. Do you think this trend will continue this year, or should I start bidding now? Thanks!

3* Denver (Downtown) Adam's Mark Hotel $51 8/31-9/2 Saw other people winning this Hotel for $51 so decided to bid that and won on first try. I maybe could have gotten it lower but didn't want to hassle with it. Parking is $15 a day self park, $22 Valet. The Taste of Colorado is going on this weekend across the street from the hotel so I thought they might be trying to sell it out quickly since they have a $89 a night deal on their website.

Got the Hyatt at Penn's Landing for the 6-7th of September for $95 a night. Historic District-Waterfront 4* Customer Favorite Selected amenities include Restaurant(s), Pool(s), Fitness Center, High-Speed Internet Access, Business Center. Seems like a nice place, good location and I've heard it has great views of the city.

Thanks for your help guys. I ended up booking through Hotwire for $102 a nite, got the Candlewood suites as expected. Not a bad deal at all for free parking and such. Didn't feel like taking a chance and having no room. Just in case you guys didn't know the 14th Annual New York Super Boat Grand Prix is that weekend. Should be cool to check out. We'll probably head over to Liberty State Park to watch it that Saturday. Maybe that's why the rates were still high for this weekend. Here's the link. BOAT RACE I also ended up booking 2 nights in Philly and got the Hyatt at Penn's Landing for $95 a night, not bad and it looks like a nice place. Thanks again!

Thanks for your help everybody .Do I have to wait 72hrs now? I tried to find out where it says that on thier website. Maybe I'll just bite the bullet and go hotwire.

I'd like to get the Candlewood for $80 a night if I can. Then we can spend 5 days in NYC. My girlfriend also wants to visit Hoboken because her Grandfather used to live there. GO BLUE! :) BTW, I used the Savingsbarn.com link

2* Should I select the 1* option, because there aren't any one star places in that area?

I just did 5 bids in the $75-80 range and changed the dates with no luck. What should I do?

Selected amenities include: Fitness Center, Kitchenette, High-Speed Internet Access, Laundry Facilities (self-service)

Yes, I did read the review here and on TA. So if I settle on Candlewood suites, would it be better to get the hotwire deal since it's cheaper than their online rate booked directly?, or would it best to try a pricleine bid and get an even lower rate? And what's an easier way to "guarantee" the Candlewood? I've been weighing weiging the pros and cons and the Candlewood looks like the better place of the two, IMO. Thanks for the reply.

Hi guys. I would like to get a room at either the Hyatt Jersery City or Candlewood Suites for the weekend of 9/9 - 9/13. I know I can get the Candlewood through hotwire for about $102 a night, but do you think I can get the Hyatt for that price or less on Priceline? Would it be difficult to get that hotel at that time? We're loooking to be close to the train and have parking. The view from the Hyatt looks good, but do you guys think it's worth it to stay there over the Candlewood suites? I know Candlewood has free parking and it's 4 blocks from the train station but it's probably not as nice a hotel as the Hyatt. Thanks. BTW, great site and info.