elviswife

Hi there - after looking at LOTS of listings, threads, reviews, etc until my eyes are crossed, I think I want to bid on a four star hotel in the financial district. I think this will suit me - from what I can tell it's a bit quieter at night, and the 4 star properties would probably suit me fine. I don't want to spend more than $175 (before taxes) if I can avoid it. If you can suggest a bidding strategy, I would appreciate it. I know I'm probably limiting you because that's really the only area I want to stay in (which is why I need help with the strategy). I know the 4 stars in Union Square would probably be great, too, but I am nervous about a lot of street noise (I'm a light sleeper). If anyone has another opinion, I would be happy to hear it. Thanks in advance for your help. And yes, I will make sure to start my bidding through your PRICELINE link. :)

also, the link in your reply took me to a thread that hardly had any current posts on it. I found more updated information in these San Francisco Hotwire and Priceline San Francisco forums. Just in case anyone else is looking....

Well, the tripadvisor reviews I have seen all say great hotel, dodgy area. And the posted rate is around $145 I think? So for $35/night, it would seem a great deal. Just be careful in the area.

Sorry, I thought by showing you that my backup is a room at the Laurel Inn for $150, that would cover that. I guess I would say for PRICELINE or HOTWIRE, I wouldn't want to bid more than say $120-30 before tax when I can get the other for $150. Thanks for any help!

Hi again - what I guess I forgot was my ACTUAL question! :) I am hoping you can tell me some of the hotels I might expect to get at the 3, and 4 star level, and at what prices, and ameneties in the different areas (I guess I am looking at USE/USW/maybe Embarcadero if there are dining options at night). I have looked at the listings for what others have gotten... I get a little nervous about getting the ONE crap location that has a 3 star rating even though it should be lower or something. I know, Priceline is not for the faint of heart, but hoping for a little help from my friends! :)

Hi All - Traveling to SF on 10/26 for business, leaving 10/29. My Conference is at St. Mary's Cathedral at the corner of Gough and Geary. Although business is paying for this, would like to save my (non-profit) office some $ by going Hotwire or Priceline if I can. I understand there is a BIG conference in town these days (not mine) that is driving availability down and prices up, so any help is appreciated. And I am looking for 3 star boutique or up if I can (i usually stay at Joie D'vivre hotels, or Hilton/Hampton Inn, or Marriott). I won't be driving - I'll be taking the Bart from the airport and then walking or taking the public transportation. I don't think I want to stay in Japantown (although close to conference) because I have looked at Tripadvisor and the Tomo looks like I would feel uncomfortable with their decor and the others top complaint is thin walls (I sleep light). I also don't want to stay in the Fisherman's Wharf area. My last concern is that I AM traveling by myself. So safety is a concern at night. I want to be able to go to dinner if I want, and not be held hostage inside my hotel. So I think Civic Center is out? Because it encompasses the Tenderloin area? For example, I was considering the Cova Hotel, because the HOTEL was getting wonderful reviews. But everyone said don't walk alone (it's in the Tenderloin). My backup (call and book directly) is The Laurel Inn in Pacific Heights for about $150/night, or I think maybe the Hotel Carlton in Union Square for about the same $. I'm not in town to shop or see shows, so I don't need to be near shopping or anything like that if I had to choose. I would rather have a nice room than "quick" access to shopping. I hope I don't sound too picky - just want to be able to have a comfortable, clean, safe stay. :) Any help is appreciated!!! You helped me with a trip a couple years ago and it was GREAT! :)

I just wanted to add a couple of items to my "quickie" review above: *Free self parking (never had a problem finding a spot), $15/night valet *$9.95/night internet access in room (bummer) *no in-room microwaves; however, you can take items down to the restaurant and they will microwave for you (but not give you any utensils or plates to eat on) *restaurant prices and room services prices are exactly the same (except for the $2 charge and 18% service/gratuity they add to room service) *on premises sushi bar *in room coffee and tea, with "to go" cups and lids *no honor bar *fitness room very large and well equipped *cabanas at the pool *"gift shop" on premises, but didn't visit, so I can't speak to that *toiletries are a "spa" brand I didn't recognize, but they were nice quality *you can walk to Great America from the Hyatt, and the 101 is only about 1 mile away *there are several "shopping areas" w/in 1-3 miles for food (In 'N Out Burgers, Jamba Juice, Starbucks, sushi, mexican, Ben and Jerry's, Baja Fresh, McDonalds, Bennigans, Carl's Jr, Jack in the Box, Sizzler, Indian and Chinese, etc) as well as a large AMC movie theatre *view of golf course and parking garage from back of hotel - if you crane your neck you can see Great America *no mention of priceline when checking in - just that it was prepaid All in all, a fabulous property - especially with a low winning bid on priceline! :)

We just returned from a stay at the Hyatt - also booked for $50 through Priceline. Just wanted to mention that we were treated very well - no mention of Priceline (on the check in it said CODE: WBID). We called the night before and asked to be in one of the RENOVATED rooms on an upper floor. The lower floor rooms are not yet renovated, and they look not so good. The renovated rooms have large LCD TV screens, long desk, updated decor, fridge, etc. Much nicer. Just thought I would mention it - give a call and I am sure it won't be a problem. Just to let you know, if you were planning on bringing your own DVD player, they will not hook up to the new TVs. They might tell you they will, but they don't - trust us. It was a pain. :)

thanks for thinking of me slruud. But my Mother-in-law is footing the bill for the lodging, so it's her budget we need to try and stay inside. Unfortunately, she has more of a Travel Lodge budget, which is why I thoiught I would try on Priceline. But thanks for the info, and I will keep working on it. :)

So I ended up just booking the Moorpark through the hotel. I ended up with 4 nights at $179/night AAA rate. I decided that once you took the $159 Hotwire rate (on whatever that hotel actually is) and added a $20/night parking rate it was a wash anyway. PS - I got this rate by calling the hotel. It had been removed from their website, so if I had booked that way, it would have been $189/night. So I called them directly and had no problem booking it. And this way I KNOW for sure where we are staying and I am almost certainly going to be happy with it (if all the glowing reviews and the #1 most popular hotel in San Jose ranking on Trip Advisor are to be believed.). Based on the reviews, it sounds like there are two restaurants next door, a gas station across the street (convenient for someone who is going to be doing day trips), and it is "one freeway exit away" from Santana Row - so lots of things nearby. Good enough. :) Thank you for all your help - the only way we could afford the Moorpark is because we got such a great deal at the Hyatt through Priceline for our other days in San Jose. So thanks!! Now back to my problem with Portland... sigh. :)

Colfax, you are right! I missed the little "next" that takes you to the additional reviews. I have gone and checked it out and am still worried because people either seem to "love" or "hate" the DeAnza. And often when traveling we get the "gee, that's never happened before" response whenever something goes wrong. So we are a little leery of this property.... I am thinking of just breaking down and purchasing the Moorpark which is a 3* but is ranked #1 of all the hotels in San Jose on Trip Advisor. And I can only find one or two "bad" reviews on the place. AND they have a pool - which I really want. ALthough it sounds like to get a "walk around and shop" experience we would have to drive a couple miles to Santana Row. That doesn't seem so bad, when it seems like we are almost certain to have a good experience based on the reviews. And when you factor in parking fees at the DeAnza, you end up with the same rate as at the Moorpark (which has free parking). Soooooo.... Can't resist, though. Still going to try Priceline for Los Gatos before booking Moorpark! ;0

just added additional night to our stay at the Hyatt, now checking out Aug 6. Used Priceline's add a night feature, and got the additional night for $50 as well. :)

yeah, I try to take into account that one person may have just had a bad experience or is a grumpy hard-to-please person overall. It was just that there were only 4 reviews listed, and 2 of them were from bad experiences. And all four reviews were recent, so it's not like they went through a bad spell and now they cleaned up their act, y'know? So I posted a thread in the San Jose forum there and asked for more insight... Yes, I saw the (ridiculously high) rate for the 4* Los Gatos. I am so sad, cause the more I looked into it, the more it seemed the area and the hotel are what I was really looking for (the theme parks are for my husband, these days are for me). Sigh. I will keep keeping on and hopefully get these booked sometime before our trip. :)

i have checked the reviews for the DeAnza on tripadvisor.com and see two fabulous reviews and two horrible reviews - all within the past couple of months. Yikes! Anyone have any insight?? Good catch on the "B" icon not matching, Colfax. Darn. I am asking Trip Advisor San Jose for more insight as well. sigh. I am so close to finally finishing the booking for this vacation.... :) sigh.

good tip. I forgot I was in HOTWIRE territory now! :)

dates searching July 29 check in, Aug 2 check out.... hotwire rate $159/night with these amenities: Boutique Hotel Property offers a distinctive, unique or eclectic atmosphere. Many boutique hotels are smaller, hip properties in an urban setting, or renovated hotels with historical flair. Fitness Center Guests have access to exercise equipment; an additional charge may apply. Restaurant(s) Property offers at least one restaurant on the premises; hours and days of operation may vary. Business Center Guests have access to business equipment and services; an additional charge may apply. High-speed Internet Access Guestrooms are equipped with high-speed Internet access; an extra charge may apply. No San Jose Downtown 4* boutique hotel for check in July 29, out July 30. Back in rotation for check in July 30, out July 31. Up to $162/night for check in July 31, out Aug 1. Back to $159/night for check in Aug 1, out Aug 2. I read in an earlier post the Hotwire lists only one hotel per star level at a time/per area. That it lists hotels with the lower nightly rate (per the hotel) first, and then once it sells those, goes to the next expensive and lists that. IS that true? Cause if it is, this might be the Montgomery (which is what I am hoping for) and not the DeAnza. Thoughts?

this is probably out of date now, but for what it's worth... when I do searches in San Jose, Milipitas didn't have any 4* hotels listed. I used that zone repeatedly for my rebids....

I see that this is an old thread, but thought I would add my two cents as a similar situation happened to me. I saw a 3.5* in Sacramento/Cal Expo - Arden listed. I think I chose it for $75/night for 7 nights. I was hoping it would be the Hilton in the area - seemed to fit with amenities and star listing. It was the Doubletree! A hotel that is listed as 2* on some, has terrible reviews, and is listed as an example of a 3* on Hotwire's own website. I had a bad feeling based on the reviews I read, and confirmed by the front desk clerk who told me they put Priceline customers in the old wing in a "standard" room. So I called Hotwire, and was told that sometimes properties which would normally be given a certain star rating are "upgraded" to a higher rating because they are exceptional and deserve the higher rating. With a little more digging, the CSR and I discovered that a Hotwire "inspection" team had been there in April and DOWNGRADED the hotel from 3.5* to 3*. So I was issued a full refund on the spot because the star rating didn't match what was on the website. So - it is possible to get a refund - but you have to show where they were in the wrong.

sorry I wasn't more specific - I used Kayak.com. It seems to be a search engine that checks the hotel's websites as well as sites like Travelocity, reserve travel, etc. I have found it to be accurate within $5 or so, and accurate for the dates I was looking for (i did cross reference to double check on a few). I tried the one you suggested, and I had a hard time navigating with all the panes open. :)

4* boutique hotel, downtown San Jose, fitness center, restaurant, high speed internet access, business center, no pool. $159/night. Right now Montgomery is about $189 on their site, and DeAnza is $229 on theirs. The DeAnza says they do release inventory to Hotwire, and Montgomery says "call back in the morning and ask so and so." Anyone here have any insight so I can maybe get my vacation booked tonight (finally!)? :) THanks!

I just won a bid for $50/night at Santa Clara Hyatt for Aug 2 - 5. I had originally tried looking for the hotel during the week, and was denied up to $65. Then Colfax suggested I try to bid for it later in the week/weekend, since it's a business hotel and probably had more availability then. Their website prices for $73/night Th/Fr/Sat convinced me he was correct. So I changed my dates, and got it my second bid out. I started at $45 and the second bid was $50. This was on priceline - don't know if you are referring to Hotwire.... Good luck! :)

Thanks for the info! Now I know what they look like and can take it into consideration when bidding. I ended up not accepting the offer to bid, used a free rebid and upped my bid $5 - and got the room! So I saved almost $10/night. :)

Hooray, I finally won one part of my bid!!! Yay! Thank you for all your help. I went to Hotwire and found what nights they had the "4* Santa Clara" listed and checked each day's listing to see how much it was going for. So I picked the three consecutive nights that had the lowest price ($73) and bid first $45 and got a priceline "increase your bid by $13 now and don't change anything else" opportunity, decided to just do a free re-bid adding a zone, bid the $50 and got it! Yay! :) Hyatt Regency Santa Clara 4-star Sunnyvale - Santa Clara 5101 Great America Parkway Santa Clara, California 95054 408-986-0700 Check-In Date: Thu, Aug 2, 2007 / After 03:00 PM Check-Out Date: Sun, Aug 5, 2007 / 12:00 PM Amenities: Remote control TV w/ premium channels Telephone w/ voicemail Radio Alarm Clock Iron and ironing board Hairdryer Business services 24 hour front desk Restaurant Room service Bellman Concierge Fitness center access Your Offer Price Per Room, Per Night: $50.00 Subtotal: $150.00 Taxes & Service Fees: $25.59 Total Charges*: $175.59

I was bidding on my hotel room, and when the bid came back denied, it said "we are offering you this one time opportunity to increase your bid without changing any other aspects of your offer. If you are willing to increase your bid by $13, you can rebid right now." Is this the "counteroffer" people have spoken of? Does it indicate anything? Like you are only $13 away from winning the bid?

okay, i am starting to get a little confused. I checked out a hotel site, and plugged in my dates to see which Portland downtown hotels are available all three nights for the dates I am looking for. The MOST availability is in the Aug 20-23 slot with nine 4* hotels available (although I think some of them may not be 4* on Priceline, like the Hilton and Embassy Suites). But this is also the slot that has the rooms listed at the most expensive rates overall. The prices ranged from $194 for the Hilton to $440 for River Place, with the majority listed in the mid $200's (Westin, Marriott, Monaco, Lucia). The last sets of dates Aug 27-30 and Aug 28-31 have the same three hotels listed: Marriott - $179, Westin - $183, Paramount - $150. On Hotwire, the first set of dates (Aug 13-16 and 14-17)gives me a boutique 4* with SPA for $163. Aug 20-23 and 21-24 gives me no 4* at all. The third set of dates (Aug 27-30) gives me a 3.5* "customer favorite" with no pool, and Aug 28-31 gives me that same 3.5* as well as the same Boutique 4* with SPA for $139 this time. SOOOOO... where I'm confused is this - it seems that the dates with the more availability should have more listings on Hotwire (and I'm guessing Priceline). And yet those are the dates with NO availability on Hotwire. Does anyone know how close to the actual dates (in general) hotels release their stock to Priceline and Hotwire? Colfax, yes I am trying to nail down a date so can purchase MIL her plane ticket. Should I purchase in the week where the regular hotel website is showing a lot of availability (although at higher prices) and hope they release some stock to Priceline? Or go with another date when prices are lower and so is availability? My head is swimming. :)