Colfax

I think it could take something like $130-160 to win a 3* in USE/USW/FW for these very expensive dates. Before you raise your bid or drop your quality level you could try up to $135 for 4*/3.5* in the other two Downtown zones: SOMA-Moscone and Embarcadero. The third night of your stay, a Sunday, has good availability and I think you can probably win a 4*/3.5* on Sunday alone for less than you've already bid. It's Friday/Saturday that are the problem. Any interest in going someplace else for the weekend (Monterey? Napa?) then SF on Sunday? Or stay at SFO airport Fri/Sat and move downtown Sunday?

Wow, things are really tight when $100 isn't enough for a 3* in Civic Center zones! All three nights are expensive, but your last night, Friday Aug 12, is worse than the other two. It's possible that the 3* strategy I gave will work for 8/10-8/12. Then we'll have to figure something else out for Friday night. Are you willing to split your stay? If so just repeat what you already tried but for for 8/10-8/12. Or if you'd rather try up to $100 for 2.5* for all three nights (no moving) let us know and someone will offer a 2.5* strategy. Please start your bids with this PRICELINE link.

Unfortunately you're travelling on expensive dates and I don't think $100 will be enough for a 3* Downtown or Fisherman's Wharf, although I hope I'm wrong. $100 may be enough for a 2.5*. Hotwire is a good barometer of what might be available on Priceline and Hotwire's least expensive hotel Downtown is a 1* in Civic Center South for $147. Next is a 3* in USW for $178. Hotwire's only option in Fisherman's Wharf is a 3* for $198. Here's my suggestion for a 3* first. If a 3.5* has a lower Priceline rate than the 3* your bid will be upgraded. 1) Click this PRICELINE link. 2) Select USE, USW, SOMA, Embarcadero and bid $80 for 3*. 3) Add Civic Center South and Civic Center North and bid $80 again. 4) Add Fisherman's Wharf and bid $90. 5) Add Marina-Lombard (a rebid zone) and bid $100. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

Generally speaking Priceline rates in most large cities are higher than a year ago, but as always rates are date specific. Despite the Decibel Festival rates don't look particularly high for 9/30-10/3, so it's possible you can win a 4* for low $100's or less...if not now then closer to your dates. I'm not familiar with Decibel Festival but if a lot of attendees are locals they may not need hotel rooms. When bidding for a 4* in Seattle you have NINE rebid zones. Those are zones that only have less than 4* quality. If you need help ID'ing your nine rebid zones please ask. I suggest $80 for a 4* in Pike Place zone. Then raise $3 per rebid zone. You have enough rebids to take you up to $107. If $107 isn't enough for a 4* I think it's likely enough for a 3.5*. Please start your bids with this PRICELINE link. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

For which quality levels did you bid up to $135? 4*? 3.5*? 3*? Please use these HOTWIRE and PRICELINE links for your puchases.

I bid this for friends who wanted to be near Legoland. First we tried North County Coastal for Friday + Saturday nights. Rejected up to $150 for 3.5* and 3*. Switched dates to Sunday + Monday to get better rates, but it was still expensive. Rejected bids for Sun + Mon: $130/3.5* (Sheraton Carlsbad $279) $110/3* (Holiday Inn Marina $207) Dropped down to 2.5*. $90 rejected with counteroffer. $95 accepted by Holiday Inn Express Oceanside, a new addition for the Hotel List. Holiday Inn Express Oceanside 3170 Vista Way Oceanside, CA 92056 Not a stellar deal as HIE's rack rate was $122, but this was the best we could come up with. Parking, breakfast, and internet were free. Two beds were given on request with no upgrade fee. There's a second Holiday Inn Express in this zone, closer to the ocean, and that one was $199. Bids placed through the BetterBidding PRICELINE link. p.s. To update the Hotel List the 3* Holiday Inn Carlsbad by the Sea is now called Carlsbad by the Sea Resort.

Echoing Gallus's comments, Fisherman's Wharf and/or Downtown are both good places for a young couple to stay. Whichever area you choose you'll almost certainly be visiting the other and it's easy to travel between the two. Since these are expensive dates it will be your budget that dictates your hotel options. What is your bidding limit/budget per night for this trip? $100 probably won't be enough for a 4* or 3.5*. Are you willing to go higher? Or are you looking for the nicest hotel available for $100?

The key question is: Are you willing to switch hotels once in order to be near Carmel one day? If you're willing to move once my suggestion is stay the first three nights in SF City (by "SF City" I mean any of the Downtown zones or Fisherman's Wharf) and your last night in Monterey, which is on the route to Carmel. You can drive to Stanford and/or Great America from Downtown SF in one day. It's only Carmel that's too far for a day trip and back. If you don't want to switch hotels once then staying four nights at the Airport or San Jose will be more central to your scattered destinations than SF City, and also cost less than downtown SF, probably by about half. But Airport and San Jose aren't as interesting as staying in SF City, and staying at the airport will only shave about 10-15 miles off your 115 mile trip to Carmel. Which of these basic structures appeals to you most: 1) 4 days SF City (either FW or Downtown) 2) 4 days outside SF City (either airport or San Jose area) 3) 3 days SF City + 1 day near Carmel (probably Monterey) 4) 3 days SF airport + 1 day near Carmel (probably Monterey) After you decide on the basic structure we can talk more about the various zone options within each structure.

I'm going to assume you don't have a car and do the Hotwire ID's now, in the interest of time. Probably this hotel isn't in the Tenderloin but what concerns me is that Travelocity doesn't say how many people reviewed the hotel. If there are 100 reviews and it's rated 4 or 5 then you can feel sure it's probably really 4 or 5. But if there's only 1 or 2 reviews and it's rated 4 or 5 those could be planted reviews from the hotel itself. Since Travelocit doesn't say how many reviews there are I think it's safer to buy something you know isn't in the Tenderloin---on Priceline, Hotwire, or someplace else. As for the Hotwire options: 2* Marina-Cow Hollow $98. This is an unknown hotel but with 55% approval I would pass. There are some bad hotels in this zone. 2.5* USE $118. I think this is the Mosser Hotel, which hasn't been reported as a Hotwire win before. This might be a good backup but I think you might find something better by bidding on Priceline. If you're willing to spend $110 my suggestion is to bid on Priceline---first up to $110 for a 3* in Priceline's USE, Embarcadero, and SOMA zones. Then if that's rejected bid up to $90 for a 2.5* in Priceline's USE and Embarcadero zones. Anything you might win in those zones will be a safer area. If those fail, then either purchase the 3* TravelocityTop Secret or the 2.5* USE on Hotwire. Let us know your thoughts and someone can provide a 3* Priceline strategy if you like. If you'd rather purchase the Travelocity or Hotwire options please use the board's links and let us know what your get.

Hey, slruud...you're a pro. Don't pretend you're not. :) Lazaz...Before I try to ID the Hotwires I'll wait to hear if you have a car or not, as that could affect where you decide to stay.

Will you have a car or not? Hotels that charge for parking only charge guests that have a car. Don't worry....20 days is plenty of time. Sit tight and we'll figure out something. :)

This is a peculiar offering. Hotwire says it's rated 4.5/5 on TripAdvisor, and 2* hotels usually aren't rated that high. On TripAdvisor I don't see any hotels rated 4.5/5 hotels in Northridge-Van Nuys zone, at any quality level. The closest I find is the Howard Johnsons Reseda, which is rated 4/5. So HoJo's Reseda would be my best guess. You can book it for $75.20 on HoJos website, so a $68 purchase on Hotwire won't be much savings, if any, after Hotwire's transaction fee. I doubt you're going to buy it but if you do please use this HOTWIRE link and let us know if this is HoJos or not.

I understand your English just fine, Lazaz. When Trave|ocity first started their Top Secret Hotels program it was easy to ID the hotels. But Trave|ocity's made some changes to the program and now it's very difficult to ID Top Secret hotels with any degree of confidence, and I'm not able to ID this one. Since you're sure you don't want to be near the Tenderloin and this hotel might be there (although I doubt it since the review comments rate its location 5 out of 5) I don't suggest purchasing. It's a gamble anyhow. The Redwood Inn is up on Lombard Street. I'm not familiar with that hotel but the location isn't very central for a tourist without a car. I'm wondering if we can come up with some other options for you. When you search Hotwire for your dates do you see anything within your budget in USE, Embarcadero, or Fisherman's Wharf zones? If you do and you'll post the icons someone will try to ID. The Tenderloin is in USW zone, so if you don't purchase that zone you won't be in the Tenderloin. (Although USW zone is much larger than just the Tenderloin, and there are many fine hotels in USW that aren't near the Tenderloin.) If you want to look at HW please start your search with this HOTWIRE link.

Why aren't you including USE in your 4* bids up to $120 now? Unless there's a 4* in USE you're trying to avoid bidding both zones will improve your chances. All the reported 4* in USE are within one block of USW zone, so it's pretty much the same neighborhood. Someone else won the Grand Hyatt in USE for $110 for other October dates (not your dates), so under $120 may be possible there.

The links that you posted don't work here. For what dates are you seeing this Travelocity Top Secret offer? The Redwood Inn isn't near Union Square, if that's where you're trying to stay.

I worry when someone says they're bidding for a hotel because I did. I'm known for my low standards, and if you don't like the HIE I'll feel responsible, valencia. :) HIE's not the fanciest place Downtown but for $39 with parking, internet, and breakfast included you can't go too wrong. If they give you a room near the loud ice machine go downstairs and politely ask for something else. Hope it works out.

Fisherman's Wharf and Union Square are considered safe areas to walk before midnight, and they're connected by cable car, or you can take a cab. I know you said you don't want to switch hotels but driving to Carmel and back from downtown SF, all in one day, won't be convenient. It's 115 miles each direction and heavy traffic the whole way. You could easily spend 4-5 hours in the car that day, not counting the time you'll spend driving around Carmel. Since you're also visiting Stanford and Great America, which are on the way to Carmel, it makes more sense to me to spend two days in SF and two days closer to your other destinations, probably near San Jose/Santa Clara/Milpitas. Doing that will really cut down on your driving. San Jose area hotels also cost much less than SF, maybe less than half. But we're happy to help whatever you decide. Let us know if you want help with a bidding strategy and where.

Have you attempted any bidding yet? What's the plan? Do you want to try for 4* in USW now or wait awhile?

Welcome to the board, SophiaH. 2* is the highest rating Priceline offers in Marina-Lombard zone. If you want 3.5* or higher that means FW or Union Square, not Lombard. Immediate rejections, within one or two seconds, aren't unusual. More often it takes a little longer, less than 30 seconds. No special meaning should be given to how quickly you're rejected. Sometimes Priceline's servers are busier than others. In order to bid again you have to change something other than price. Either add a zone, change your dates, or bid a different quality level.Based on rates for your dates, which are fairly busy, I think $100 is too low for a 3.5* in Fisherman's Wharf, and it's probably too low for a 3*. 3.5* Sheraton FW $292 3.5* Hyatt FW $280 3.5* Hilton FW $269 3* Holiday Inn FW $229 You probably need to be bidding more in the $140-160 range for a 3.5*, and maybe a little lower for a 3*. Someone can give a bidding strategy that starts at $100 and goes up to a higher figure in small steps, if you're interested. You can also bid from $100 to $150 (or whatever other number you choose for your bidding limit) in FW and Union Square together, and that way get the least expensive 3.5* or better that's available in any of those zones. If you want to keep it under $110 that might mean a 3* in USE or USW; a 2.5* in FW; or Civic Center North or South zones. Let us know how you want to proceed, or if you have other questions. Please use these HOTWIRE and PRICELINE links for your puchases and searches.

Welcome to the board, rickshi. A moderator will fix the dates in your subject line when they see this. September and October are still busy tourism months in San Francisco. But even within busy months some days are busier than others and what matters are the rates for your exact dates, 10/9-10/11. At this time rates look moderate or average---not very low and not very high. That said I don't think $70 will probably be enough for a 3* in the five most popular zones: Fisherman's Wharf, USE, USW, SOMA, and Embarcadero. I think somewhere in the $70-100 range could be enough for 3* though. Since your trip is still more than two months away you could try bidding up to $70 for a month or so, and then if you're not having luck, raise your bid higher at that time. I think $70 might be enough for a 2.5* in USE or USW, or Civic Center South zones. And $70 will be more than enough for a hotel near the airport, but that's not the preferred location for most tourists. If you'd like to try up to $70 for a 3* now let us know which zones you want and someone will suggest a strategy. Or ask if you have other questions. Please use these HOTWIRE and PRICELINE links for your purchases and searches.

You won't necessarily get a $110 rate if you wait. The other bidder bid the day before his stay apparently and got a great deal as a result. But we've also seen people wait til the last minute and get nothing, when they could have had something if they'd bid earlier. It's happened to me! Rates vary by day, sometimes dramatically. And a $60 rate change isn't large in the scheme of things. I've seen the Hilton charge $109 to $459 for different days in the same week. Also you're bidding for a Friday/Saturday and the bidder in the other thread was bidding for a solo Monday night. Single night stays are sometimes less expensive than longer stays. If you don't want to bid as high as $150 this far in advance you could bid up to $125 or $130 now, for example; then if no luck raise your bids higher as your travel dates approach. Did you ever make a decision which zones you want to bid in? Please use this PRICELINE link when you get ready to bid.

LastMinuteTravel.com has what looks like the Intercontinental for $181.18. It's a 4* in LMT's Beverly Hills/LA zone and tagged "Best Value".

This hotel must be a recently addition to Hotwire because it only has 10+ reviews. Intercontinental has many hundreds of reviews and it's not a Boutique. One possibility is the W Westwood. It has the Spa and the 4/5 TripAdvisor rating matches. The Hotwire rate is $228 and you can book it on W's website (if it is the W) for $258, so it's not an especially compelling deal. If you purchase please use this HOTWIRE link and let us know what you get.

The $20 Trick It's about offering a tip to the desk clerk to get an upgraded room. Mostly it's a Vegas thing but sometimes works in other cities too.

Welcome to the board, gg100. This hotel hasn't been reported to the board before and I'm having trouble ID'ing it. Two of the hotel's Hotwire icons--Beachfront and Oceanfront--seem to contradict each other. Hotwire defines Beachfront as "Property is located on the beach". Hotwire defines Oceanfront as "Property is located along the ocean but not directly on a beach". So is this hotel on the beach or not? I don't know what to look for. Maybe someone else will have a guess at the identity. At any rate the 45% approval rating is not confidence inspiring. For $89 Hotwire also has a 3* with only a Laundry icon that has a much stronger 80% approval. This matches previous reports for the Best Western All Suite Hotel. If you purchase one of these please use this HOTWIRE link and let us know what you get, or ask if you have other questions.