GM Mike

If you guys are leaving Baltimore during the day, I'd vote for MARC train. That'll deliver you to Union Station in DC for $7.50, as I recall. The three zones you picked out are the ones that seem to be popular for the tourists here, tho I've never really planned a DC visit so I can't be more helpful. (And I think you did just fine for your Baltimore stay. You came to us prepared to pay $90 to stay outside the city and commute in, then decided the Wyndham off hotwire would be fine for $77, then ended up getting that same hotel for only $50. You basically got 1/2 off what you planned to pay and now you're staying downtown and not having to commute. Ain't nothing wrong with that!)

While I admire your tenacity in not giving up... it's possible the hotels just aren't releasing inventory to priceline right now. You've booked a refundable backup reservation, right? There may not be better advice than to keep bidding at a level that offers you SOME savings, and hope that the inventory opens up. If it doesn't, you'll have to pay full price.

So did you go anyway? :)

So what do you think? Will you move down to 3* now or wait your 72 hours and bid again at 4*?

Too late at this point to bid on PL or HW... Theoretically the Courtyard at 5660 IH-35 North (512) 458-2340 and the Fairfield at 959 Reinli St (512) 302-5550 have rooms - Courtyard at $89 or $80 with AAA, Fairfield at $89 or $84.55 with AAA. If you want to book online, please use the betterbidding link: Marriott Hotels I'd call the hotel directly after you book to confirm the reservation. Courtyard has decent tripadvisor ratings, Fairfield is unrated.

Be careful - one of those has 3* bidding. Make sure you're checking them individually before you start bidding. You're having fun, right? :)

Up to you. Since up to $80 is in your budget, you could go ahead and bid for both at once, and if you don't get it, then try again with splitting, since your search date would be different. If you split now, you might be able to get a lower total cost, but I don't know if it's worth moving unless you have to, since you only have two nights in Baltimore.

I think you misunderstood me. Split a 5 night stay into 2 and 3. Get the first 2. It's a hotel you like. MAYBE add 1 or 2 more nights, but obviously not all 3, and have to then bid on only the last 1 or 2 nights at a higher rate. Potentially helpful in situations where you're not sure where the split date should be.

Sign up at BaltimoreFunGuide.com. Every week they send an e-mail with links/codes to get half price admission to up to a dozen Baltimore area events. For example, this week's e-mail included two classical music events, two museums, a collectibles show, and an historical society. Each one, quantities limited, was offered half off. Don't know if they spam, but I haven't gotten any yet. Do let us know if you make use of any of the offers and how painless it was.

There is a very small but possible chance that the room you are forced to take is too small to accommodate a rollaway. Again, this is very unlikely, but always a possibility. There are a few horror stories floating around this board about it. My take is that the absolute worst that happens is you get a cramped room and you two share a bed. I think it's highly unlikely, but I wouldn't want to suggest any strategies to you without you knowing that. Now given that you can tolerate that risk... I'd agree that the Inner Harbor is the happening part of Baltimore and personally wouldn't consider staying anywhere else in the city. There is also the possibility you could rent a car for only your days in Baltimore, at the airport, return it to the airport, then take Amtrak to DC from the BWI airport train station. But personally, I'd rather just be in the Inner Harbor and not have to deal with that. If you look back at last summer, folks here were often getting 4* hotels in the $70-$80 bid range in the Inner Harbor/Downtown zone. That's right around your maximum, so if your priority is quality within your price range, rather than absolute lowest price, I would start by trying to bid for 4* up to your maximum, which will be around a $76 bid. Failing that, I'd go with a lower bid on 3*'s and/or taking the hotwire offer. You've got a lot of time to make this work. Just remember, if you bid on priceline or take a hotwire offer, you can NOT make changes to the dates. So don't start either until you know your plans won't change. There are a lot of free rebidding opportunities for Baltimore. Before you do any bidding, you should make sure your plans are firm. At that point, let us know, and thereuare will prepare a strategy based on what you'd prefer. Again, I'd start with 4* bids, up to your limit of $76. Others may have a different opinion which I would welcome them to give. Make sure you also read the "Free Rebids" article cited wayyyy up above by blindman. You seem to have the right mindset for this. You could be one of those people who ends up finding the whole process to be quite fun. :) When you're ready to bid, please make a summary post with: Target * level, zone, maximum bid, firm dates.

Just about everyone here has. In general, most people would suggest that you don't mention how many people you have (though, in your case, 2 is fine. but we often have people who want to fit 3 or 4 people in a room and that's against the rules) Instead, just request what you want. Something like "we'd prefer two double beds, non-smoking. can you arrange for that, please?" Generally 3* and higher it's rarely an issue, unless the hotel is sold out and they really need those two bedded rooms for guests who booked directly into that room type. Remember, your room type is "run of house", which means the hotel is allowed to assign you any room they want, provided it has at least one double bed or two twin beds. At 3* and above, it's probably 98% you'll get at least one queen. I don't know about the odds of getting two beds. I've rarely needed it, but whenever I have, I've gotten it. In general, be polite, respectful, and know exactly what you want when you call. You may also be able to get/pay for a rollaway, get a sofa bed, or use an air mattress. Be as flexible as you can. Personally, I often just call the morning of my arrival, an hour before check out time or an hour before check in time, as those tend to be the slowest times at the front desk. I'm always honest; desk clerks have great BS detectors. I tell them I'm excited to visit their city, look forward to staying at the hotel, and let them know what I prefer. I almost always get what I want. If I don't, I ask again, politely. Then I ask again when I check in. If I still can't get it, I graciously take what I'm given. As a priceline guest, I get last pick. It's the trade-off for the discount. I travel more than the average person. I've also been a desk clerk and a supervisor at upscale and mid-tier properties. I've had almost universal good or great luck getting what I want, when I ask for something reasonable, no matter how I booked or what I paid. Biggest mistake people make is not knowing what they want. So be specific, polite, and respectful. You'll almost certainly get it. Oh, and welcome to betterbidding. :)

One thing to note about the Wyndham, though, is that many reviewers report getting single queen bedded rooms. You never did answer the question of if you could deal with a situation where you can't get two beds. Note that if you search hotwire for triple occupancy, you get a rate of $98/night, outside your price range. If and ONLY if, you can deal with the single bed situation (i.e. pay an upgrade fee if necessary, or I suppose spend a lot of time talking to a manager, or someone sleeps on the floor) my intuition is that you should be able to score a pretty good deal from priceline for your dates. You have plenty of time to bid and lots of rebidding opportunities. Once you decide if that's a possibility thereuare can put together a great strategy for you. There is a lot of inventory open for your dates right now. That weighs heavily in your favor. You could start with a round of 4* bids and then move to 3* if you wanted, or start with low-ball 3* bids now to scoop up a really good deal. It's entirely up to you what level of risk is acceptable. Your maximum total cost of $90/night gives a maximum bid of $76 on priceline for 2 nights in baltimore. That's within range of wins we've seen here at 4*. Also, if the Wyndham is showing on hotwire for $77, there's a good chance it will come up on priceline for less. Again, there are no guarantees in this game. You have to tell us what's acceptable risk to you. As far as staying in Baltimore and commuting to DC, I did the reverse once, and while it was fine, I can't really imagine doing it on vacation. (Then again, unlike blindman, I am often ok with changing hotels every night.) You should be able to get some good deals in DC too, and if you're willing to commute, you could consider hotels outside of downtown and take the Metro where you want to go. If you bid smartly, you should be able to get what you want, if the inventory is there. If you decide to stay the whole time in Baltimore, there is MARC commuter train service from the inner harbor for $7 each way to DC Union Station, last outbound around 6:30 and last return around 7:30. That's not very late, and it doesn't run weekends. You also haven't told us why you're taking this trip. Is it just a vacation or are there particular places in these cities you need to go? (And thanks for that China Bus link blindman, good info.)

rynodaddyo, welcome to betterbidding... One caution I would offer is to not get caught up in a "bidding frenzy" and forget that you have other options. We just took a 7 night roadtrip out west, and only 3 of our nights were priceline nights. We booked four directly. One of those was a priceline hotel at which we decided to stay another night and neogtiated directly with them. One was because we absolutely wanted to guarantee an ocean view if it was possible in our price range -- and it was, booking directly with a hotel, but we couldn't guarantee it with priceline. The other two were because we found deals directly that priceline and hotwire couldn't beat. It is ABSOLUTELY essential that, before you begin bidding, you know exactly what your maximum price is, and what quality level you find acceptable. Then force yourself to make a fully refundable backup reservation somewhere, so you know when to stop bidding. Also, if you can't tolerate the risk that you might get one double bed, smoking, you may not want to bid on priceline. I think most people here would agree, that's maybe a 2% risk, but if you can't tolerate that, stick with 3-person occupancy on hotwire or book direct. Should be fun to help you sort through all of this though.

I could see it being useful if you split your bid and then could add some of the additional nights anyway. Assume you have a 5 night stay. PL rejects a 5 night bid. You split and bid for the first 2 alone, guessing that's the right way to get around the problem. You could then add another night and only have to deal with bidding for 2 more later, rather than 3. So I guess that's something...

This hotel is *fantastic*... you'll have a great time. Make sure you sign up for the Omni Select Guest program, if you haven't already, and call them in advance to add your number to the reservation. They will take very good care of you. :)

That's interesting. They're offering room only for 72 and 15 days parking+room for 129. I wonder if you could just pay the 57 extra and buy up directly from the hotel?

Both Palmer House and Chicago Hilton are fine hotels. Palmer House is a somewhat better location for activities in the loop and close to the L. Chicago Hilton is on the far south side of Michigan Ave so most activity would be a long walk, though it's only about 3 blocks from the L. Is there a reason you need to be in the Loop area? I'm seeing a 4* N. Michigan Ave/Water Tower/Gold Coast at $96. Could be Ambassador East or Drake or Westin... all are at least decent hotels, and then you'd be in a much better location for shopping. So I guess the question is, what do you want to be doing with your nights off? And what college are you visiting? :)

3* Lenox Suites in Chicago (Magnificent Mile - Wacker Drive) on Hotwire has closed. According to www.lenoxsuites.com it's opening as the James Chicago Hotel "early 2006".

Note that the National Restaurant Show is May 20-23, 2006, at McCormick Place. It's either the #1 or #2 biggest convention in Chicago, as I recall. It's going to be tough finding a room anywhere downtown. If attendance is down this year you may see rates come down right before you want to arrive tho, when the room blocks are released. Perhaps also rooms will be released earlier if attendance is clearly not meeting expectations. Have you considered staying out by the airport and taking the L downtown? Good luck.

I'm curious to know exactly which zones you bid, in which order, and the timing of the bids, to get those strange results.

The other thing that popped into my mind is Skydiver could have split the bid, got the first three nights at a lower rate, and almost certainly then had been able to just buy the fourth at rack or AAA rate. It may very well have been cheaper overall. But, as they say, the bidder is happy, and that's all that really matters.

That depends. Can you deal with the risk that you get a small smoking room with one double bed and no room for a rollaway? It's a very small chance, but it is a possibility, and you have no recourse if the hotel wants to stick you in a room like that.

Although, reading back over this thread.... apparently some of you are having really good luck with the monetary inducement. Good for you. :) (Tho it doesn't surprise me at all in Vegas...)

An interesting thread. Among other professions, I spent several years in college at a front desk, and for a while was a front desk supervisor at an upscale hotel. My take... I don't think the tip is necessary and, if displayed before receiving the upgrade, probably improper. Each clerk has authority to upgrade you to a certain point anyway. The grinding monotony of checking in guest after guest is maddening. If you are different -- are pleasant, cheerful, strike up a conversation, and know exactly what you want -- I have never met a clerk who wouldn't just go ahead and upgrade you -- if what you request is within the bounds they're allowed to offer at all. Most clerks I've met, however, get uncomfortable when money is involved. Most of the time, they're on camera. A manager would certainly frown upon a scheme of giving the upgrade in exchange for the money. You're putting someone who is probably quite poor in a position of risking their job to get that money. Furthermore, they are trained to keep you happy, so declining the money and not giving the upgrade is probably going to get you upset, perhaps enough to talk to a manager anyway. You've put that clerk in a potential no-win situation. The much better solution is to approach the clerk respectfully, pleasantly, and with the ability to convey what preferences you have. Then, when you get settled into your room, go back and tip then, if you like the upgrade! If the clerk is questioned on it, clearly there was no "deal" being made -- you were just an appreciative guest. Overall, though, I don't think you have a much better chance from paying than from simply treating the clerk like an actual human and knowing what you want. Another tactic that's worked very well for me is to call ahead the morning you plan to arrive. Slowest times are generally about an hour and a half before check out (so either 10:30am-11:30am or 9:30am-10:30am) or an hour and a half before check in (1:30pm-2:30pm for a 3pm check in). I confirm the reservation, let them know when I'll be arriving, and then express my preferences and ask for the clerk's help in trying to hold those for me. I've almost always gotten exactly what I wanted. I always make sure I share with them how excited I am to visit their city and to stay at their hotel. I don't mention priceline -- why should I give them an excuse to not help me? I also make sure to write to the front office manager/general manager after my stay and pick out, by name, the people who helped me. That's just as financially valuable when it comes to review time.

Keep in mind, before you even consider continuing, that priceline rooms are for TWO people. In the ideal case, you could get a room with two double beds and they won't care how many people you put in there. In the worst case, you get a tiny room with ONE double bed, and the hotel is vigilant about making sure there's no more than two people in the room. Strictly speaking, if the hotel chooses to do this, you have no recourse, as you agree to accept a room for TWO people. Are you willing to accept the risk, however small, that you may, at the very least, be charged additional fees for having extra people in the room? Also, have you considered using hotwire, which allows you to search for a room by occupancy, ensuring you have proper accommodations for four people in one room?