Vivian

I decided to go with the Travelocity package: $1014 for 4 night Affinia Dumont stay/AA roundtrip airfare. I thought this was a great deal but wasn't sure if I could do even better. Thanks again for always being such a wealth of info and taking the time to answer my questions :) Bon voyage!

My goal was to possibly find a 4 star hotel (MTE, MTC, ESB, CP area) for a price equal to the Travelocity flight/Affinia Dumont package price of $1064.00 - $350 flight = $714 4 night stay (though I'm willing to go slightly higher because of caliber.) I was also wondering if I could find an even cheaper rate for the Affinia-- if it was regularly listed on Hotwire. Regarding the listings, thank you for posting the link. I wasnt' sure if it was up to date as it reads "2003." 3.5-star hotel in Empire State Building Area, $123/night, Boutique Hotel/Restaurant/High Speed Internet Access (Even with this one, my trip price would cost $930 so I'm hovering close to the $1064 through Travelocity.) -Marcel at Gramercy? 4-star hotel in Midtown East, $179/night, Fitness Center/Restaurant/Business Center/High Speed Internet Access -Omni Berkshire, Doubletree Metropolitan, W New York? 4-star hotel in Midtown Central, $196/night, Boutique Hotel/Fitness Center/Restaurant/Business Center/High Speed Internet Access -Shoreham Hotel? 3.5-star hotel in Midtown East, $122/night, Fitness Center/Pool/Restaurant/Business Center/High Speed Internet Access/Tennis Nearby -Millenium UN? 3.5-star hotel in Midtown Central, $153/night, Smoke Free Rooms/Fitness Center/Restaurants/Business Center/HS Internet Access -Sheraton Manhattan or Sheraton NY? 3.5-star hotel in Central Park Area, $154/night, Boutique Hotel/Restaurants/HS Internet Access - I want to say Empire Hotel, but that one is listed as 4 star on your link? Thanks again for any suggestions you may have.

Dates of Travel: 6/26-6/30 I think I found a good deal on Travelocity for flight and 4 night stay at Affinia Dumont for $1064.00? (airfare portion would be $350 if booked separately.) I tried a variety of other websites with promo codes but couldn't seem to get close to this price. Any other suggestions? Regarding Hotwire: 3.5-star hotel in Empire State Building Area, $123/night, Boutique Hotel/Restaurant/High Speed Internet Access (Even with this one, my trip price would cost $930 so I'm hovering close to the $1064 through Travelocity.) 4-star hotel in Midtown East, $179/night, Fitness Center/Restaurant/Business Center/High Speed Internet Access 4-star hotel in Midtown Central, $196/night, Boutique Hotel/Fitness Center/Restaurant/Business Center/High Speed Internet Access 3.5-star hotel in Midtown East, $122/night, Fitness Center/Pool/Restaurant/Business Center/High Speed Internet Access/Tennis Nearby 3.5-star hotel in Midtown Central, $153/night, Smoke Free Rooms/Fitness Center/Restaurants/Business Center/HS Internet Access 3.5-star hotel in Central Park Area, $154/night, Boutique Hotel/Restaurants/HS Internet Access Many thanks for your help!

Congrats! And $5.00 under my Priceline Win :) See you there!

I started at $150.... and increased in $5.00 increments. Not sure why the directions ask you to shut down the browser and start again because I didn't have to do that. I've been reading up on the Empire and feel better about the outcome. Seems the rooms are extremely small so I'll try for an upgrade. Any advice on that topic? :)

Woops. Maybe I should have waited for a bidding strategy, but here's what I ended up with: 4* Empire Hotel, UWS, $230/night so with taxes, my 3 day stay comes to $815.44. How'd I do for my first time? Did I overpay? Anyone have good feedback on this hotel? I wasn't expecting anything to be accepted.

Wow. And I thought this might be easy :) I'm willing to add zones such as CPS, UWS and ESB (maybe TS and MTW.) Is it that you're having no luck with *just* MTE? What are some good backup hotels? I suppose I should book something just in case this priceline thing doesn't work out. What's an acceptable starting bid?

I would prefer a 4* in MTE so I'd like to start there. Obviously, I would like to go as cheap as possible. My maximum bid would be $250. Is that reasonable?

Can you suggest a strategy for me? 11/5/08-11/08/08 4* MTE, CPS, UWS, MTW... maybe TS. The Hilton reviews scare me which is why I have MTW and TS last, but it seems like TS is better than the one in MTW? If you have a better zone strategy, please let me know. Thanks!

Wow, I really appreciate it. I think that I may book the Avalon and the decide if I'm going to try bidding. Pictures/reviews look good. I had been reading reviews of the Sheraton before your post, and yes, they were all over the place. Are you recommending the Avalon because of the price & reviews. Just curious how you narrowed it down from all the choices. Thanks again!

Thank you for responding so quickly. I've been searching hotels/locations/reviews and am overwhelmed. Even 4* hotels get mixed reviews. It seems as though the standard rate hovers around $500 for a 4*. Would that be accurate? I have no idea where to even start to get a bid accepted. It would be great to get something for $200 though I could go higher... maybe $300? I haven't even tried HOTWIRE. Is it easier to narrow down what you "think" you may get on that site? Thank you again :)

I thought I would try my hand at PRICELINE, but I have a few questions: How do you know what type of room you're bidding on? Standard, Deluxe, etc. I would prefer one King bed. If I search the 4* hotels on Priceline through the regular rate offers, am I assured that I will be bidding on one of them in the Name your Own Price area? I also noticed that there's a greater breakdown of areas in the Name your Own Price area. For instance, I suppose that "Upper Manhattan" actually comprises CPS, Upper ES, and Upper WS in the published rate area. I suppose I would prefer to stay in the following areas: CPS, MTW, MTE, UWS in that order. Maybe TS if I have no other options. I noticed that there are no 4 stars in Chelsea, MSQ, UES, LIC so can I add those during my bidding process? Please let me know what bid you think I should start with as well as a strategy. Thanks for your help!