carlm

Thanks for all your help everyone!! Got the Westin Bonaventure, its going for $100 more a night on Expe.dia right now!

Oh and when you type "use this link to re-access PRICE.LINE" it means close out of the current Priceline, click on your link and I can immediately bid again? No waiting period in these scenarios?

Thank you for clarifying for me. I am still a bit confused on some parts. Even though you separated it by lines, I'm bidding the new rebid zone with the price UNDER it? Not on the same line? Select 3* Downtown...Bid $80, if rejected add re-bid zone...LAX East Inglewood and Bid $85, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE Select 3.5* Downtown and re-bid zone (NOT the same re-bid zone you used above)...Manhattan and Bid $90, if rejected add re-bid zone...LAX East Inglewood and Bid $95, if rejected add re-bid zone...Wilshire and Bid $100, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE Select 4* Downtown and re-bid zone (the one re-bid zone that you have not used previously)...Culver City and Bid $105, if rejected add re-bid zone...LAX East Inglewood and Bid $110 if rejected add re-bid zone... Manhattan and Bid $115 if rejected add re-bid zone...Wilshire and Bid $120 If the above is rejected you can buy this 4* Downtown hotel (confirm your dates on the landing page) for $125/nite. Is this right? Am I associated the right step with the next bid increase? And did I choose all the correct hotels for only wanting 3+stars in downtown area? I'm so sorry I'm such a noob!

Thank you, yes I do have some questions, I'll copy your link and write my questions in another color: Select 3* Downtown... Bid $80, if rejected add re-bid zone...LAX East Inglewood (I am still bidding the same $80 that just got rejected since I added another zone right?) Bid $85 (do you mean if my $80 LAX East Inglewood got rejected?), if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE Select 3.5* Downtown and re-bid zone (NOT the same re-bid zone you used above)...If I am changing the star level from 3 to 3.5 why can't I just do downtown (you said AND re-bid zone) Bid $90, if rejected add re-bid zone...Culver City Bid $95, if rejected add re-bid zone...Wilshire Bid $100, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE Select 4* Downtown and re-bid zone (the one re-bid zone that you have not used previously)... Bid $105, if rejected add re-bid zone...Manhattan Bid $110, if rejected add re-bid zone...I ran out of zones now Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $120 Sorry I am confused!

I don't really have a max budget, I just want it as cheap as possible! Knowing that full price is ~$199. Its just 2 of us in my room. Maybe if my bidding goes well the other people will cancel their hotel res and use priceline!

Hello, I am new to Priceline- used it one time about 2 years ago so can't remember a lot! I need 1 hotel rooms from Feb 7th-9th in LA. I am going to an event at the Staples Center, so I believe my zone should be LA- downtown? I don't know if any other zones would be feasible. I've never been to LA before. The lowest I would stay is 3 stars. I want to save money but don't want to stay in a dump or an unsafe area. Help for bidding strategy/hotels would be appreciated!!! My friends are staying in Doubletree and paying $199/night. I'd like to pay less!

So, I ended up getting the W hotel in Midtown East for $145 a night. Comparing to Expedia, including all taxes and fees, each room saved $209.40. I'm happy with that! Due to time constraints, I skipped the first paragraph you did and just did MTE and TS starting at $90 through $110 and then just closed and re-opened as directed but when straight for the bottom with all 3 districts and higher bids to save time. I am curious since earlier in this thread you had stated you were predicting the W hotel for $145, yet your max bid for me only went to $133? Lastly, I called the hotel to find out about my room type and she said they can't guarantee any room type or even take any requests until check in. I asked her the type of rooms and she said king, queen, and twin. PLEASE tell me that I will not end up in a room with 2 twins?? I think my family would kill me! Thanks for everyone's help!

For the strategy above, on your very first bid you put all areas you wanted to stay in? Why wouldn't you bid let's say $110 in one zone --> $120 in Zone A and B --> $130 in Zone A, B, C....wouldn't that increase the likelihood of winning in those areas vs. what's the advantage of putting all your wanted zones on the very first bid?

The least expensive room.

Ok I am ready to bid today! I am back from my vacation, its been awhile so to summarize I am willing to stay in 3 districts, 4* or 5*. My order of preference is Midtown East, Times Square, Financial District. Please tell me how to proceed and exactly what to do! Also I would appreciate if someone could respond to what I previously posted but never got an answer: "Also another question popped into my head- my family from abroad who will need 2 rooms. I read somewhere they are very strict about who's person's names you assign to the room. One room is a child and a teen (unsure if she is 18 or not). Can I put her father's name down for both rooms or does it have to be different people's names?" Last question- why am I supposed to click the PRICELINE links in everyone's posts vs. just going to the site? Its the same site right?

Edit: We will stay in Midtown East, Times Square, or Financial District (that is my order of preference). 4* or 5*. And let's say I bid $150 and its accepted. Does that include all taxes and fees as well? (If not how much do those generally run?) Thank you!

Well could you just also tell me if what I typed is correct? That's the only way I'll know if I understand. Also another question popped into my head- my family from abroad who will need 2 rooms. I read somewhere they are very strict about who's person's names you assign to the room. One room is a child and a teen (unsure if she is 18 or not). Can I put her father's name down for both rooms or does it have to be different people's names? Based on below and the 2 areas I want to stay- it seems I should have 3 real bids before I proceed to dummy areas, correct? Midtown East 4* --> add Times Square 5* --> add Times Square 4* Brooklyn – 4 Central Park South – 4 Chelsea Area – 4 Coney Island – 2 Downtown - Financial District – 4 Empire State Building Area – 4 Hell's Kitchen – 4 Long Island City – 3 Lower East Side – 3 Madison Square Garden - Convention Area – 3 1/2 Midtown East – 4 Midtown West – 4 Morningside Heights - Harlem – 3 Queensborough Bridge – 3 SoHo - Tribeca – 4 Times Square - Theatre District – 5 Upper East Side – 3 Upper West Side – 4

Thanks so much for all these tips. I have figured out that my out of the country family wants 2 rooms, so the occupancy is no longer a problem. The only problem I have now is convincing my father to use Priceline :) Obviously none of us have ever used it and he is nervous about getting stuck in a hotel that turns out to be sub-par. Although with only choosing 4*, I figure that is unlikely?? Are there any 4 stars out there in Midtown East/Times Square that people have complained about? I am trying to learn while waiting to use Priceline about re-bidding. Wanted to double check to make sure. First off, on the FAQ it states "If you're new to the concept of re-bidding you're strongly encouraged to confirm your re-bid zones with the board before proceeding". How would that work? B/c the purpose is to be able to bid again immediately, but if I post on here, that may not be replied to until many hours later. Or am I misunderstanding? Aside from that, is this correct if the 2 hotels I know I'd love are the Benjamin and Marriott Marquis: Choose Midtown east, 4*, starting bid (suggestions appreciated!) If it gets rejected, add Times Square and increase my starting bid (by...???) ****i.e. I should do these as 2 separate bids to increase my chances, instead of choosing both zones the first time, correct?***** If my 2 zones get rejected, proceed to rebid: Click on a zone and if it has no 4* or 5* hotel, I am safe to keep it checked and move on ****do I still leave my previous 2 zones checked that I want, or unclick 1 and try with the dummy zone, and if that doesn't work add my 2nd preferred zone plus the dummy zone?**** If that is rejected, unclick dummy zone #1 and find dummy zone #2 ****so I should ONLY have one dummy zone checked at any certain time I have read I think. Is this true? Why?***** And each time I re-bid whether its by adding my 2nd real zone, or the dummy zones, always raise my bid price? I appreciate all the help and will let you know when I'm ready to begin bidding so I can get some tips, I'm nervous!

Thanks for helping me! Another thing that's making this confusing is trying to coordinate with my family in Italy, through, facebook, with their teenage daughter :) I'm waiting to see if they want 1 or 2 rooms. Its 2 adults, a teen, and a child. So if they do want 1 room, is it possible to get 2 beds or is it just "based on double occupancy" and there would be no way to do that? The other 2-3 rooms are 1-2 adults each, 1 or 2 beds, it wouldn't matter. If we could get each room for <$150 a night, that would be ideal. As far as zones I am not an expert on the area. I have stayed at Marriott Marquis and the Benjamin and liked both those areas. Also, if I am making the reservation for the whole group, when I have to enter my CC information, is there an option to pay with multiple cards? I'd like to avoid paying for 10 nights of expensive NYC hotel rooms myself! Thanks so much!

I am new to Priceline and have never used it before. I need 4-5 hotel rooms from August 18-19th (both those nights) in NYC. First off is bidding for multiple hotel rooms going to help or hinder me? My goal would be to stay at the Benjamin. But we also like for example the Marriott Marquis. I want only 4 stars (apparently 5 stars is not an option?). Like to stay near the Statue of Liberty or theater/times square district. Any help would be appreciated! My family is hesitant to try out Priceline for such a major trip/many rooms but the hotels are so expensive!