smartcookie

Update. Have now bid up to $127 and still nothing.

Have been bidding on 2.5* starting at $65 and going up to $100 for Union Square, Fisherman'e Wharf, Civic Center areas. No win. No counteroffers. Coming for Bay of Breakers as everyone else it seems. Hotel prices are pretty high for this weekend, at $200+. Saw that a couple people had the Carlton on hold in case they didn't win. Would love to take over your reservation if you found something else :) We're 3 people looking for a room in a relatively central area. Planning to do the Bay for Breakers and go out at night (including in the Castro). So prefer not to stay by the airport to avoid expensive cab rides back from a night out. Ideas?

There is also a convention 13-16 I believe. This weekend is very hard. You should either downgrade to a 2-3 star for that price, or up your bid to at least $150 for a 4-star. Otherwise, you need to look at other options.

I'm having a hard time booking for this weekend as well, 5/15 - 5/18. Did you cancel your backup option already? I can use it! For the others, does anyone know how strict this particular hotel is with 3 people in a room? I'm looking to try this bid, but afraid that we'll have problems checking in. We don't mind "hiding" the 3rd person, but wondering if the hotel has rooms with 2 beds as most Holiday Inns.

It sounds like it's the Marriott Marina del Rey.

Sounds like it must be your dates. What are they? The area on HOTWIRE is a bit different. It can be at University City I believe which they consider part of Hollywood.

There just aren't many options based on what you're asking. 3 star hotels in SM go for $250+ per night. Sheraton or DoubleTree are your only options and if you don't bid enough, you WILL get Marina del Rey. Both locations are fine, within a few blocks to the Promenade and Main St. Reviews are ok. This just isn't an area where you can get amazing deals because there aren't many hotels to choose from and they're so expensive to begin with.

Yeah, that's a very low budget for the area. Not many hotels in the area available for bidding. You can get Sheraton Delphina for around $150. Otherwise, Holiday Inn for $100. Consider Seashore Motel in Santa Monica if you don't want to bid. It's on Main St close to everything and only $100 per night. And yes, on weekdays at 8am, there will be traffic, though not north on PCH which is what you should be taking.

As you can tell from other posts, you can win the Hyatt in West Hollywood for around $120 for example. You can also get the Best Western Sunset Plaza on Sunset Strip for around $125 directly through the hotel without any bidding. I would NOT recommend staying in Downtown LA, especially without a car. It's mostly a business district and not pleasant to walk around at night or on the weekends when it's deserted. Stick with Hollywood or West Hollywood as you have planned. I would also highly recommend for you to rent a car. It's really hard to rely on either HOTWIRE or PRICELINE without having a car. You may get a hotel that's not very convenient to get around LA without a car (which is already hard). Don't bid on anything under 3 star as you may get stuck at a Universal Studios hotel, which won't be convenient.

Also, check deals on www.travelzoo.com once in a while. They post new deals every Tuesday. There may be a cheap promotion going at one of these types of places with a breakfast etc.

Needed to get a hotel for a friend to visit GWU. First tried the White House area. No bite on 4* at $65 and $71. Added 3* and still not bite at $79. Added Foggy Bottom/Georgetown area at $89 and got the 4* Renaissance M Street. Could have probably gotten it for a bit less it seems from TripAdvisor reviews, but still happy since it's a weekend (April 18-20) and it's only a couple blocks from GWU!

Tried $8 and $9 for up to mid-size. Won Compact at $10 with Avis for 3 days, 4/18-4/20. Hotwire was on sale for $13.95 per day. So this came out cheaper.

If 4-star hotels were seedy, they would quickly become 2-stars. You will have no issues if winning a 4-star hotel. Just learn how to bid to get what you what in a specific area. You can't choose a specific hotel, but you'll get a 4-star in your chosen area at at least 50% usually. For most, that's worth it.

The hotel is under construction possibly until the end of the summer. SkyBar is still open though. This hotel doesn't get great reviews on TripAdvisor. However, it's hip (though doesn't look great with construction). There is a new 4-5 start London Hotel on the strip now as well - the old Bel Age. I wonder if they're using PRICELINE. They have special "just opened" rates at $249 with free parking and breakfast right now.