zbenye

I dislike Marriott hotels, and this one is no exception. Anyone who has the option (ie traditional booking), but chooses to stay at a Courtyard, is foolish. The similarly-rated Hilton Garden Inns, Wingate Inns and Hampton Inns are a far better value with free calls, free high-speed Internet, microwaves and refrigerators, and some with free breakfast. At the Courtyard, you get a bed and that's it. No wonder we get them cheap on Priceline ($25). The Palm Desert Courtyard is six years old. My room was clean and in good condition. Except the most repelling thing I've ever seen in a hotel (must be a "Priceline room"): the toilet seat was broken and was held together with clear masking tape that has begun to turn brown around the edges. How much does a replacement toilet seat cost? Sheesh! The room was of standard size. The design is idiotic as in other Courtyards, where the bathroom is spacious, because the sink was placed outside of it. So in the bathroom itself there's the tub at one side, the toilet at the other, and a big nothing in between. That's where the sink should have been. As a result of the sink being outside, there was space left for only a small closet, with sliding doors so narrow, it is uncomfortable to reach inside. The room had two full beds, a dresser with a TV on top, a couch, desk and chair. Soap, shampoo and coffee replenished daily. Breakfast is available for purchase at the restaurant in the lobby. Coffee/tea are complimentary, but were not available. Local calls are 3

Check-In Date: Monday, August 18, 2003 Check-Out Date: Friday, August 22, 2003 Hotel Name: Comfort Suites San Francisco Airport 121 E Grand Ave South San Francisco, California 94080 4812-4812 650-589-7766 Your Offer Price: $35.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 4 Subtotal: $140.00 Taxes and Service Fees: $26.51 Total Charges: $166.51 Rejected for these dates: $47 USE 2.5* $38 South SF 2.5* $27 SFO 3* $32 South SF 2*

I started with $16 for an Economy and was granted a free rebid which I tried at $17. Then tried $18 for Compact and a rebid $19. Still beat Hotwire by $.95...

This is an old property that feels more like a motel. Several 2-story buildings over a large area. My room in building 3 was small compared to other Hyatts I've stayed at. It was clean and comfortable enough. There were an iron and board; two phones with two lines; coffee maker. The walls are thin. I could hear the TV and people next door. Being on the bottom floor, I also had some noise from the folks upstairs walking aroung their room. There was also noise from people walking in the hallway until late at night. There is a great large outdoor pool. I didn't go in, but from other peoples' expressions I reckoned the water was real cold. There's also a nice hot tub. Check-in was a breeze and the Diamond amenity arrived in my room shortly. Parking: free. The breakfast buffet was nothing to write home about. It was free with my Diamond card. Local phone calls: $0.75, but was never charged. High-speed Internet: $9.95. Wired only. Free airport shuttle. $0.15/night local tax imposed by the hotel at checkout. OK deal for $33 on Priceline.

Pick-up/Drop-off: Palm Springs Regional Rental Car Company: Hertz Car Class: Compact (unlimited mileage) Pick-up Date: Saturday, August 16, 2003 Pick-up Time: 4:00 PM Drop-off Date: Monday, August 18, 2003 Drop-off Time: 4:00 PM Summary of Charges Your Offer Price: $19.00 (per day) Total Rental Days: 2 days Subtotal: $38.00 Taxes and Fees: $7.27 Total Charges: $45.27

Tried $24 Palm Springs, then added $1 and Palm Desert. Hotel Name: Courtyard By Marriott Palm Desert 74895 Frank Sinatra Drive Palm Desert, California 92211 760-776-4150 Your Offer Price: $25.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 2 Subtotal: $50.00 Taxes and Service Fees: $11.35 Total Charges: $61.35

Have a great time!

Check-In Date: Saturday, August 9, 2003 Check-Out Date: Sunday, August 10, 2003 Hotel Name: Hyatt San Jose 1740 North First Street San Jose, California 95112 408-993-1234 Your Offer Price: $33.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 1 Subtotal: $33.00 Taxes and Service Fees: $8.99 Total Charges: $41.99

USE

Totally off topic, but squeegee, you gotta go to the Library II restaurant not far from Cherry Hill. In a township called Berlin just past Voorhees. If I remember correctly it's on route 73. The most amazing filet mignon! And that's a really bad deal you got at that Hilton there... $.85 for 30 minutes... yikes! I hope you're not there for too many nights.

So why fly US Airways? Icelandair and British Airways have $442 fares in August for BOS-FRA. See on Travelocity.

If this is an actual trip you're considering, then allow me to spare you the 1-hour train trip to Beaverwhatever: Travelocity has an Alamo car for you right there at PDX for $36 on 8/5. This is for a Standard, with free upgrade to Full. Estimated total: $45.29. And if you miss that deal, then SideStep will get you a smaller car for $37. In Terminal. There is almost always some website that has a low rate. Always check Travelocity, Expedia, SideStep and even Hotwire. Then check all rental car company websites: Avis, Alamo, Budget, National, etc. and not forgetting Payless!

Started with $25 incrementing by $1. Why couldn't they give me the Hyatt Regency like everybody else?! Check-In Date: Saturday, July 26, 2003 Check-Out Date: Monday, July 28, 2003 Hotel Name: Doubletree San Francisco Airport 835 Airport Boulevard Burlingame, California 94010 650-344-5500 Summary of Charges Your Offer Price: $30.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 2 Subtotal: $60.00 Taxes and Service Fees: $14.27 Total Charges: $74.27

Thank you Rumproast, good article. At all the hotels I've stayed at, that offered free high-speed Internet, I never had any problem connecting. Some are just plug in and go, others make you click through an introduction page that poses no problem at all. And the connection has always been of very high speed. No congestion or capacity issues. I don't know about the quality of service at hotels that charge for it, as I've never tried it. I certainly will NOT pay $10 to use their service. As always, it's the hotels that nickel-and-dime guests for anything (usually 3* and up) that also charge for Internet. And those are the expensive hotels to begin with. I never understood what draws people to expensive hotels that offer nothing more than a good 2.5*, yet cost three times as much. OK, some provide a robe and Q-Tips. I also wouldn't consider $30/month for T-Mobile's service (Starbucks etc). It may be worthwhile in some places, but in the big cities there are plenty of free hotspots.

I'm wondering why hotels that have a high-speed Internet connection are not in a hurry to install wireless hotspots. I'm thinking it can't cost more that a couple of thousands of Dollars to place a few hotspots around the hotel. Take, for example, the San Francisco Hyatt Regency. They have high-speed Internet in the conference rooms downstairs, but nothing in guest rooms. In 2003, you still have to use the phone line to connect. And these days that many laptops come with wireless capabilities built in, hotels with wired high-speed Internet in guest rooms could provide Wi-Fi too, to eliminate the need for guests to carry NICs and cables.

A new sign on the building indicates this hotel now offers free high-speed Internet.

The Homewood Suites I stay at in San Francisco offers high-speed internet for free... I'm surprised to learn that you can't expect the same amenities at all locations of a brand. A tip about HHonors: If the desk accepts your number, your account will show the night count, but you won't get points or miles. If, on the other hand, you do not present your card at all, but wait until your stay is over and then submit a missing stay credit request on www.hiltonhhonors.com, you will occasionally get all: night count, points and miles. (Be sure to enter your FF # in your profile; do not rely on entering it in the credit request form. For $amounts paid, simply enter your bid amount and the total paid to PL.)

Appropriately rated as a 3* hotel. I requested and got a room with two beds. We arrived well before check-in time, so agreed to take a smoking room rather than wait in the lobby. The room did not smell bad at all. It was of good size, well appointed and well kept. The large bathroom had the supplies expected at this level, but lacked a hair dryer (maybe I didn't look hard enough for it). I'm sure I could get one for the asking. The room did not have minibar, fridge or safe, but did have a coffee maker. There was a small sitting area, and a small work area. Two phones with two lines. Iron and board. Parking: valet, not excessively expensive if you can avoid feeling compelled to tip every time you go in and out. Free 2-hour street parking, scarce. No time restrictions on Sunday. Both local and 800 phone calls are charged over $1 and are limited in time. Excessive charges for overtime. Not recommended for Internet access. Front desk: not terribly friendly. The location did not work well for us, since we were going to places in the city center and had no interest in the waterfront area where this hotel was. We had to drive everywhere.

Booked for a friend who preferred the Cathedral Hill area. This is the first time Hotwire beats Priceline for me. Bid history on Priceline: 2.5* Cathedral Hill $60 4* Union Square East $47 2.5* Union Square West $60 4* USE + CH $55 4* USE + USW $60 2.5* CH + Fisherman's Wharf $65 At that point took the $62 3.5* offer on Hotwire: Icons: Boutique, Complimentary Breakfast, Golf Course Nearby Hotel Majestic (Distinctive) 1500 Sutter Street San Francisco, CA 94109 Check-in: Fri, Jun 27, 2003 at 3:00 PM Check-out: Sat, Jun 28, 2003 at 12:00 PM No. Rooms: 1 No. Nights: 1 Price Per Night: $62.00 Subtotal: $62.00 Taxes / Booking Fees: $14.95 Total Price: $76.95 Rates are priced in U.S. dollars. Expedia sells this hotel for $75 before taxes, so the savings aren't significant.

Maid: $3 every time they service the room, but I let them do my room only every other day (even that's too often and unnecessary as I'm very neat, but I don't want to appear too weird). I tip the same amout regardless of star level. If they don't like my tip, too bad. But I've often found hand-written thank you notes at 4* hotels, and have heard that business people tend to not tip them at all. I get extra bags of coffee and bathroom supplies, so I think they're quite satisfied. Different maids service the room, some only work weekdays while others only work on weekends. So I think it's only fair to leave a tip every time rather than just at the end of the stay. Front desk: no tip. Room service guy that brings up the free amenity (for elite member at Hyatt): $5. Waiter at breakfast (when it's free with a voucher - elite member): 20% of the menu price of the meal = $2 to $3. Hotel/Rental Car/Off-airport parking lot shuttle: depending on mood and friendliness/helpfulness of driver. $2 if I'm the only rider, $1 if not, nothing if there was no communication with the driver and s/he didn't show intention to help with bags. In-town hotel courtesy shuttles (drop-off and pick-up from restaurants and places in hotel's local area): $5 each way for 1 or 2 persons. I do not use: concierge, valet parking, valet laundry, room service. The method of booking and price paid have no bearing on tip amounts. The recipients of tips do not know how I booked or what I paid anyway.

Sometimes Expedia shows the SF Hyatt Regency as sold out, and a moment later I win it on Priceline. Now that's ridiculous.

The price is before taxes/fees on the rates list. Select an offer to see the total price.

The hotel probably wants to see the guest's name on the credit card. Assuming your brother's name is on the card, will the hotel accept it for your parents' room as well? If they do - you win because I'm sure neither Hyatt nor MasterCard mind. But if both rooms are booked under one name, only one will count toward FFN (and stay credit/miles, for that matter). That's only my understanding, of course. I couldn't find it on Hyatt's website, but from my experience at Hyatt hotels I can tell you for sure that all consecutive nights at one hotel are considered one stay. Checking out and checking back in on the same day at the same hotel does not interrupt the stay. Which is why this month I'm alternating between the Hyatt Regency and the Park Hyatt here in SF. The free nights justify paying the higher cost of the Park for a few nights. All-in-all I stand to earn 4 or 5 free nights :-) The rule regarding multiple consecutive stays counting as one is also stated on American Airlines' website: "A stay is defined as all consecutive nights at one hotel, even if member checks out and checks back in during a stay..."

Hyatt, the hotel chain friendliest to PL customers, recognizes PL stays in its FFN promotion, so be sure to present your Gold Passport card when you check in, and pay for the incidentals with your MasterCard. You must incur an incidental charge (a $1 phone call will do). My first FFN earned night appeared on my account today. http://www.goldpassport.com/ffn4/ffn4.asp?...ssnav=1&gpnav=4

My requests are always honored at Hyatt. The Diamond card (highest elite tier) probably helps, but I truly believe this one brand treats Priceline customers with absolutely no prejudice.