Jump to content
Loading...

netpog

Members
  • Posts

    28
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by netpog

  1. Hotline offered a blind Greenwich-Stamford 4* hotel for $85 ($106 gross, with fees), so that was my fall-back. I saw blind offers for 3.5* hotels from HOTWIRE for $85, and PRICELINE for $81 ("Hint: You've booked here before", so I think it was NOT the same hotel.) Because my preference was Greenwich, which is where both the known Hotwire 4* hotels are in (there are no known 4* hotels in the Priceline list for Lower Fairfield), on my first attempt I bid for 4* up to $81, with no success. Then I tried 3.5*, expecting to land in Stamford. With no rebid zones, my first offer was accepted. (I was happy stay somewhere random for a $20 discount, but no less than that.) Obviously, the hotel lists and the bidding helper were very valuable. And of COURSE I used the link to PRICELINE! (Actually, I used the helper, which does the same thing.) PS: The PRICELINE EXPRESS $81 offer was for "Stamford Rated 8.0 out of 10 (or higher) "Pets Allowed Restaurant Free Internet Indoor or Outdoor Pool Fitness Center No Smoking Rooms/Facilities" I think it was the Sheraton Stamford. (That's the only 3.5* hotel I've stayed in, there, through Priceline.)
  2. I wanted *this* hotel, to connect with business associates. The amenity listing matched both this one and the Holiday Inn LAX. But I figured it out: see my previous posting. (Upshot: the reported Tripadvisor rating matched the Crown Plaza's. Plus, another listing showed Spa Services, which is almost surely the Holiday Inn LAX, although the hotel lists don't include Spa.) Price was $99/room/night. Currently $176 on Expedia & Hotels.com Master Bu Kyin told his novice disciples, "Typing a URL is not The Way. The True Way is revealed to those who use BetterBidding's links to Hot.wire and to Price.line." And the novices were enlightened.
  3. The BetterBidding Hotwire hotel list for LAX currently shows no 3.5* hotel with Spa Services, but I see one now on Hotwire. I believe it to be the Holiday Inn Los Angeles Airport, which does have such a thing. (According to Expedia, and probably the HI website, and also a member post from a few months back.) Suggestion: One way to identify hotels, when the amenity lists are identical might be to use the Tripadvisor rating, which Hotwire gives (not necessarily in all views). So although the Crown Plaza LAX and the above Holiday Inn LAX might show identical amenities, the Crown Plaza has a TripAdvisor rating of 4, and Holiday Inn only 3 or 3.5. Question: How can we correct the hotel lists? Below are the full amenity lists for the two hotels in question, with notes. On the BB Hotwire hotel list, they can have identical amenity lists. (For example: See the last listing for each, which matches the first entry below.) This listing does match the BB hotel list: 3.5* Crowne Plaza Hotel - Los Angeles Int'l Arpt (Confirmed: a friend booked it) FULL AMENITIES: Free Internet, Boutique hotel, Airport shuttle, Fitness center, Pool(s), Restaurant(s), Business center, Self-service laundry, Internet access, Accessible for visually impaired, Accessible for hearing impaired, Accessible path of travel, In-room accessibility, Accessible bathroom, Accessible parking, Roll-in shower Tripadvisor: 4 Hotwire: "4.5 of 5 rating" This listing isn't on the BB hotel list. It adds Spa Services. There's no pool. Not Boutique 3.5* Suspected Holiday Inn Los Angeles Airport (But NOT confirmed) FULL AMENITIES: Free Internet, Airport shuttle, Fitness center, Restaurant(s), Business center, Self-service laundry, Internet access, Spa services, Accessible for visually impaired, Accessible for hearing impaired, Accessible path of travel, In-room accessibility, Accessible bathroom, Accessible parking, Roll-in shower Hotwire says Tripadvisor=3, but it's 3.5 at Tripadvisor.com
  4. Can the Hotwire hotel list for LAX be updated with this information? As of now, none of the 3.5* LAX hotels show "spa services", so that amenity would be a give-away that we're looking at the Holiday Inn.
  5. For every single bid, including the winning one, I was warned that my bid had "a low chance of being accepted", and was invited to raise my bid immediately. I started with Economy: $17Priceline offered me $32/day, blind, for $192 with fees.I was given a second chance, a free rebid on Economy: $22Priceline then offered me $32/day, on Budget, this time only $183 with fees.(I noted that the prices were very similar from Economy at $32, thru Full-size at $34)Compact: $25Free rebid on Compact: $27Mid-size: $30Total price: 4 days @ $30 + Fees @ $64.71 = $184.71 And, of course, I used the BetterBidding link to Priceline!
  6. This hotel is not on the Hotwire hotel list. (Do I have to do anything to get it added? Or does it happen automatically, from this posting?) It's apparently newly opened. Pet friendly, BTW, but that was not one of the amenities listed. Amenities listed were: Free Internet, Boutique hotel, Fitness center, Business center, Self-service laundry, Internet access Price with fees for two nights was $396. Of COURSE we used the BetterBidding HOTWIRE link, via BiddingHelper.com.
  7. I bid too high: first bid accepted. (And there are plenty of free rebid zones for 3.5 stars.) The blind listings werent that much more than this, but I was in a hurry.
  8. The hotel-list feature is great! Indeed, the site is full of great features and helpful links, and I thank you for it. But the fact that the hotel lists ask for a page-reload, and do so INCREDIBLY frequently, is maddening. I have several tabs open, as I plan my trip, and that one always pops to the top, and INSISTS that its dialog-box pop-up be acknowledged. It comes across as insecure and needy, and it really deserves to enjoy a better sense of self-esteem. Seriously: It's a fine page, despite it's anxiety about showing me the very-freshest data. And the data does NOT in fact change every few minutes. If it wanted a refresh after a couple or few hours, and didn't demand acknowledgement with a mouse-click, I'd feel less hectored and harassed by it. As it's now implemented, that page does not seem to be seeking healthy relationships with your users. Thanks again for a great website, Dan
  9. Thanks for that quick repair! It'll help anyone else who (like me) was going nutty trying to figure out what's offered in that zone. It's a geographically big one, but happily enough all four of the known Priceline-bidding hotels are close to each other, near the conference center, and are 3* or 4*. (Hotwire is also known to have a 2* Red Roof Inn, further East.)
  10. Third bid, because there are many rebid zones. Was probably the same 4* hotel I saw on Hotwire, which jumped from $109 to $121 immediately after my win. NOTE that this zone can be hard to find on BetterBidding's Priceline hotel list! It's listed, oddly enough, under "MD - DC", but that wasn't obvious until the bid-sharing web form made it clear. (It is easier to find on the Hotwire list, under DC, where you'd expect it.) Despite that "MD" category in the hotel list, the wins get posted under Washington DC. For others who are searching: people seem to have won only this, maybe the 4* Gaylord, and the 3* Aloft and Rennaissance, based on my searches. All of them walking distance from each other.
  11. Economy & compact cars were $15/day via PL and Expedia. Sadly, my first bid was accepted, so I'll never know how well I might have done. (I was planning to rebid on larger cars, since the prices didn't change much at all, through full-size.) I listed the same pick-up and drop-off time, to save an extra day's rental. Anybody know if these guys have a grace period, for late returns? Des Moines Intl Airport (DSM) Pick-Up Date & Time:Friday, July 18 2014 - 3:30 PM Drop-Off Date & Time:Monday, July 21 2014 - 3:30 PM Your Offer Price:$9.00 (per day) Total Rental Days:3 SubTotal:$27.00 Taxes and Fees:$20.25 Total Rental Car Charges: $47.25 You saved 24%!* As always, I entered PL through betterbidding's link.
  12. Many rebid zones, so I went up in $5 steps. At $75 I was invited to rebid at $96, so I knew that I was getting close. The PRICELINE EXPRESS price is $91 for that hotel (there are few high-end hotels in West Des Moines). The Hot.wire blind price was $94. Also interesting: At one point, I closed the window (it was the BiddingHelper.com) and then re-entered PL (using the widget at the top of each betterbidding page) and I was allowed to bid for West Des Moines zone, and ONLY that zone, for the second time today. I was logged into PL both times. Last time I did this, I won the same hotel at $70 (sorry if I forgot to post! it was early March). I wonder if I paid more because it's the last minute? ETA: I just checked out the "Priceline Maps" tab, at the top of every page here, for the first time. That feature is BRILLIANT! Thanks for it.
  13. I just hate having my first bid accepted! I should've known, since Hotwire had cars at $13.95/day. (Which was only 20% more, given Priceline's higher fees.) Now, Hotwire was pretty good in its own right! A 4-day rental was $101 there, while it was $172 at the best alternative on Kayak. I paid $88 for my compact. But I then accepted Priceline's offer to pay another $10 ($2/day) to bump up to Mid-Size. And of course I entered PRICELINE via betterbidding's link. That was pretty exactly the least I could do.
  14. Bad strategy: I carelessly added this 3* zone AFTER I added the 2nd rebid zone. Tsk! I surely left money on the table. Guess I better make sure a get a good night's sleep before bidding another one. (Then again, six different non-blind sites agree on $139 for this hotel. So I got some discount, nonetheless.)
  15. Many bids, including several zones, and I was forced to go this high and down to 3 stars. Looks like last-minute is a bad thing. Note, by the way, that PRICELINE is now calling this zone "Fenway Area - Brookline". (I guess nobody knows where Brighton is. Which is sad news for those of us who live there.)
  16. After failing to land a Rye, NY, hotel (bidding to $70 at 3.5*+) I landed this one on the first bid at $60. Of course, if I had searched this forum first, I'd have started lower: The previous two posts were lower than mine, and were similarly last-minute. But this price ain't bad! (BTW, this hotel is shown on the hotel list as 3.5*, "previously 4". But Priceline shows it (again?) at 4 stars.)
  17. I was aiming for The Essex, the only 4-star hotel (outside Stowe) so there are many rebid zones. I started at $65, jumped by $5's, and won at $105. Plus ~$20 for taxes & fees = total about $125. You pay The Essex a $15 resort fee no matter HOW you book. On Expedia: $239.20 + $38.48 = $277.68 On Hotwire: it's now $127 + 19 = $146 It's easy to identify The Essex on Hotwire by amenities (Shuttle,Pool,Hi-Speed Internet,Golf, and oh yes the $15 resort fee!) And, of course, I used BetterBidding's link to PRICELINE, via the QuickQuote form.
  18. First bid failed, at $61. Priceline offered a free rebid, if I would go to $79 or higher. My next bid, at $69, was accepted.
  19. (NOTE that the Seven Gables is listed as 4* on this board, previously 3*.) I bid by increments, since there are many free-rebid zones. I was turned down at $80, and was offered an immediate rebid at $93. I instead bid $90 (because I was confused; I'd meant to increase by $5) and won. This is a very highly-rated hotel on Trip Advisor, so I'm happy to see it at 3.5*. Of course, I used BetterBidding's link to PRICELINE.
  20. Of course, Hyatt Regencies are all pretty-much alike, in terms of facilities and amenties. (Comfortable, nicely-appointed.) This didn't have the best engineering staff, perhaps (missing lightbulbs, badly-adjusted doors, minor stuff like that). But this particular hotel had a startlingly-pleasant staff! What a nice place to stay! All the workers there were impressively sweet. And by the way, if you are at ALL interested in railroad peculiarities, catch a ride on the Dinky -- the tiny rail line from Princeton Junction to the Princeton campus. And enjoy the wikipedia story: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princeton_Branch
  21. Got it on my first bid, which will of course leave me perpetually wondering: what MIGHT I have gotten away with? But, seriously, I saw nothing for 3.5* in this zone below $40. So I doubt I left much if anything on the table. But. Still. I see that I somehow checked the "travel insurance" box, blowing $10. Oops. Be careful out there, people! And of course we are all using BB's PRICELINE link, aren't we?
  22. Glancing at the forum (thanks, ZachAttak4!) I expected $90 to be necessary. So, I added rebid zones (not bothering to restart bidding, given the many free zones), and tried $60, $70, and $80 before being accepted at $85. And, yes, let's all use the BB link to PRICELINE
  23. Rejected (as expected) in Cambridge for 4* at $125 Then switched to Waltham. Rejected at $80. Accepted at $90. Maybe I should've gone by $5 increments. After all there are many rebid opportunities here, and Hotwire offered 4* in Newton-Waltham for only $109, which was almost surely THIS hotel.
  24. Including fees, that's $150 for the 6 days. I had found a great price, $23/day (plus fees=$174 for the 6 days) on HOTWIRE, and based my PRICELINE bid from there.
  25. Surely could've gotten by for less, but was booking same-day and was nervous. (I don't know that anyone's had a turn-down there.) Had already been refused a 3* bid on Norwalk, at $52. NOTE, gang, that this Hyatt is in "Old Greenwich" CT which is closer to Stamford than Greenwich. So it's in the history sometimes as "Stamford", sometimes as "Greenwich."
QUICKQUOTE [X]
PRICELINE & HOTWIRE on one screen!
NOTE: Priceline searches for
DOUBLE OCCUPANCY ONLY
Room %roomN%:
Age of child:
FINDFAST[X]
×
×
  • Create New...