willman42

Tried re-bidding strategy from $75 - $115 with no luck. Closed browser/cleared browsing data, tried again but Priceline wouldn't let me bid for another 2 hours. I saw that the Express Deal was only about $15 more than my last bid anyway so I went with that. TOTAL = $333.04 for 2 nights, after tax/fees. Looks like a REALLY nice place!

How can I help? I see the property has been added to the list. Also, the NYC Airports list shows only the Laguardia Plaza Hotel under Express Deals - does this mean that 3* Express Deals have only been reported to award this particular hotel?

Started at $70, increased in +$5 increments while adding re-bid zones. Closed/reopened my browser once I ran out of zones, finally got the $130 ($164.89 after fees + tax). At the time, the Priceline Express Deal for 3* in LaGuardia sector was $136, so I didn't really save much... Wish I would have gotten the Marriott, but it's only one night. I also thought it would be more like $100 because it's a Thursday night and I'm booking 1 day ahead. Maybe I should have waited until a few hours before? I've had good success with that before... And I used the PRICELINE link! Cheers :)

Ok I provided my follow up to that thread, thanks for reminding me. I know I said I wanted a certain degree of certainty with this trip, but both my girlfriend and I love the process of bidding on hotels and the excitement of doing it within 24 hrs of the stay, so just disregard what I said - I'm willing to play :) I think the trip will be a lot of sightseeing, since we've never been before. Definitely want to get some authentic deep dish too ;) The "old town" scene sounds interesting though, but I think when we go on trips we like to treat ourselves a bit, especially since it's just 2 nights we can afford to stay at a place with a little higher nightly pricetag. So I still think we'll want a Downtown hotel, and just tackle the beast from there. Our nightlife is more low key- no clubs, more bars.

Sorry, I forgot to reply with what I decided on. I didn't use Priceline or Hotwire for these stays. For some reason at the time, I wanted to stay at 2 specific places and wasn't willing to take the gamble on a hotel. I can't for the life of me remember why- I LOVE the adventure and excitement (and savings!) of bidding on hotels....

I normally do all this myself, but this is for my girlfriend's birthday so I want to make sure everything goes right :) I want to stay in either Downtown - River North or Magnificent Mile because I've noticed there are a TON of good breweries in the North Chicago area and we plan on hitting those up for sure. Lincoln Park sector would be best for proximity to those, but I want to get a nice 4.5* hotel in a more exciting downtown area, so I'm willing to take a cab a few miles to the brews from Downtown. I've seen quite a few people on here score a 4.5* Mag Mile hotel for anything from $85 - ~$140, which is a fine budget for me. I understand there are 11 sectors in which I can safely re-bid, so what should be my starting bid, and what should be my increment? Is $85 a pie in the sky for these areas? It's only a 2-night stay 8/26 - 8/28. I've had success in the past winning rooms the day of the stay (I know- I'm livin' life on the edge!), but being that this is my gf's birthday weekend, I'd rather not screw this up. So should I make the bids today, or is it perfectly fine to bid the day of/day before? Thanks much, William

Thanks! Just want to first note that the "Priceline Maps" link at Step 1 is broken (says page not found) :) Ok so I'll just let you know my criteria (not having luck finding much data using the other resources...). Dates: Miami 5/7 - 5/8, Key West 5/9 - 5/11 Desired Rating: 3.5* - 4* Zones: Miami South Beach (Collins or Ocean Drive), Key West (Old Town) Budget: Hopefully <$200/night, at least for Miami. What should I expect for Key West? Also, will I inevitably face resort fees for any hotel I get in South Florida, even if it's not a "resort?" Thanks in advance, William

Hello all, I just want some feedback on what price range I'm looking at for a 4* hotel in South Beach (prefer either Collins Ave or Ocean Dr), as well as a 4* in Key West - Old Town (definitely not New Town) in May. I'm hoping May is considered off-peak at most places. I can't find any historical wins for these areas, but if that data is available somewhere please point me in the right direction. Thanks, William

Started at $50 with both the Downtown and Amherst zones and did $5 increments. PL told me to up my bid to $104 but I didn't. After I bid $90, I decided to drop the Amherst zone, so my $95 bid was just for Downtown. I think this must be the nicest hotel in Buffalo, but the pictures of the rooms I've seen aren't impressive... I hope I'm wrong and my girlfriend and I won't be disappointed.

This was a last-minute booking, so I didn't have time to low ball, but Priceline said the average cost per night in this area was about $195 (which I know is inflated), so I think I made out OK. If I had a week to book, I'm sure I could have gotten a better deal.