Canes98

We needed a hotel for 2 nights in the area, and decide to bid through priceline. The Priceline Express Deals showed a 4* in the World Golf Village zone available for $78 per night, so I felt confident I could beat that price by bidding. We received the Renaissance Resort at World Golf Village for $70 per night. First bid of $60 produced a counteroffer of $78. Second bid of $65 was rejected. Third bid of $70 was accepted. Priceline has a 5% discount this month by using the promo code "summer" so the end result was $67.50 per night plus taxes and fees. The lowest rate through the hotel's website was $129 per night.

Congrats. This is an incredible price for Key West. Hopefully, the beaches won't be covered in oil at the time of your stay.

Great hotel at a great price. I bid for a Resort in the Lake Buena Vista-Downtown Disney zone. First bid of $57 received a counteroffer to add $17. Next bid of $60 was rejected, then the third time was the charm at $62. This is a two night weekend stay, which comes to $148.72 with all taxes and fees. Resort fee will be assessed at check-in, of course. I have stayed here once before and it is a great hotel. I have stayed at many great hotels in Orlando, both through PRICELINE and through direct reservations, and this is definitely in my Top 5, probably Top 3. To get it for $62 is simply larcenous. I used the PRICELINE link to start my bidding. I also used the PRICELINE link for a separate bid I made for an upcoming stay in Miami, where I also won a Hyatt. I have posted all the info on that successful priceline bid in another thread.

This successful bid was a bit of Deja Vu. For the 2nd straight year, I have to go to Miami for a meeting on the last Friday of April and for the 2nd straight year, I decided to drive over on Thursday night and stay the night before. In both instances, I won the Hyatt Regency Coral Gables for $55. So, $55 for one night, Thursday April 29, 2010, which came to $69.89 with taxes and fees. I used the PRICELINE link for my bid. I won on the first bid, which always slightly disappoints me. Could I have gotten it for even cheaper? Probably not much. But overall, a great price, and I also won the Hyatt Grand Cypress in Orlando for a weekend in May at a great price on another bid I made, which I am posting in a different priceline hotel thread. Both great hotels that I have stayed at before.

I stayed here last year (via this winning Priceline bid that I posted on betterbidding!) and because I wasn't at the hotel very often, I just parked at meters and put a few quarters in. They stop enforcing the meters around 9pm or so, and they don't start enforcing them until around 8 or 9am. Of course, check the actual meters for exact time. But you may be able to avoid parking in the expensive garage. Thanks for posting your bid. I may have to go to Miami this Thursday, so your winning bid is very timely and informative, should I need to bid for a hotel.

Was bidding for a Resort solely in the Disney Main Gate-Celebration zone. First bid of $65 received a counteroffer to add $17. Re-bid at $68. Re-bid again at $69 and won the Gaylord Palms. Cheapest rates directly through the hotel averaged out at $219 per night. So, I saved almost 70% off retail! This'll be my first stay here in about 4 years...it is one of my favorite hotels, so I'm looking forward to it. This is the first time I've bid in Orlando, since they broke the old Disney priceline zone into 2 separate zones, and that really helps you target an area better, which is nice. I used the PRICELINE link in thereuare's signature to place my bids.

Won this hotel on my 2nd bid. My first bid of $43 received a counteroffer of $55. I ignored and bid again at $44. Total price for 2 rooms for 1 night is $107.02. This'll be our third stay here in the last 12 months. Very nice hotel, but we were hoping for the Grand Hyatt for a change, as we've never stayed there. But for $44 we'll gladly take this excellent Intercontinental again.

Nothing to add to the hotel question, but I had to chime in and say that you're picking a great place to propose. I proposed to my wife on Sanibel Island. Specifically, at the very north end of the island, before you go onto Captiva, there's an area known as Blind Pass. I chose the beach there at sunset. Good luck!

One night stay, bid on resorts in the Disney zone. First bid of $55 received a counter to raise by $12. Second bid of $59 received a counter to raise by $17. Third bid of $60 accepted. I used the PRICELINE link on this website to start my bidding. I'm staying the 2 nights before this stay at the Ritz Carlton Orlando on my employer's dime. I wasn't about to pay full price at the Ritz for my extra night in town, so $60 for a resort via Priceline is a good alternative.

I won the Hyatt Regency Coral Gables for a one night stay on April 30, 2009 with a $55 bid. My only previous bid of $50 was rejected. The Hyatt's website lists this night for $169. I used the PRICELINE hotels link in Thereuare's signature to start my bid.

I won this hotel on my first bid of $36, for a one night stay. I bid on Christmas day, 2 days before the hotel stay. Extensive holiday travel prohibited me from sharing this win with the board any sooner. I used the PRICELINE link in thereuare's signature to begin my bidding.

I went with Priceline and won the 3* Holiday Inn Miami Airport West for $43 for this one night stay. First I bid for Downtown, Coral Gables/Coconut Grove, and Dadeland 3* hotels at $40 and $45 without any luck. I then tried a $40 for a 3* hotel in the Miami Airport zone. I received a counteroffer of $52. I ignored the counteroffer, and then rebid at $43 (adding the North Miami zone, which has no 3* hotels) and won this hotel. The $43 is much cheaper than the $135 rate the hotel is offering to the public for the same night. I used the PRICELINE links in thereuare's signature to begin my bidding.

I have found a 2.5* hotel in the Central South Beach zone of Miami that is priced at $39 for a one night stay on 10/2/08. The amenties are: boutique hotel, near beach, and hi-speed internet access available. Anyone have an idea of what hotel this is? Also, I'm assuming most 2.5* hotels on South Beach don't have their own parking lots, due to the general makeup of the area, thus does anyone know how much it would cost to overnight park (in general) in South Beach? Thanks.

I won this hotel for a two night stay at $67 a night. Had previously been rejected at $60 and $65. Stayed here in June for $80 a night through PRICELINE, and that was enough of a deal; the $67 win makes it that much better. This is a nice place, and $67 is a great price.

I won the Wyndham Orlando International Drive for a one night stay in Orlando. I first bid 4* and Resort up to $60, in both the Universal and Disney zones, not expecting to win, but willing to try. No success there. I also had bid 2.5 stars in the Universal-SeaWorld zone up to $34 without success. While bidding for a 3* in the Universal-SeaWorld zone, I received a counteroffer at $42, offering to give me a hotel for just $12 more. I rejected the option to take a hotel for $54, and instead entered a bid for $43 which was successful, with Priceline informing me that I would be staying at the Wyndham Orlando International Drive.

My apologies for not posting this earlier, but I made this bid while on the road, and forgot to post when I got back home. I had just finished a wonderful 2 night priceline stay at the 4* Intercontinental hotel in Tampa, and had just dropped off family at the airport in St. Petersburg when I decided to head up to Gainesville for a one night stay to visit some of my old haunts. I stopped at a Kinko's and unsuccessfully bid $41 for a 2.5 star in the Gainesville zone. Since there are no opportunities to rebid in Gainesville, I bid $35 for a 2* hotel, knowing I could likely get it for lower, but not wanting to get shut out. I won the Extended Stay America. The lowest price for the Extended Stay for that night was $59. Also, every other hotel in Gainesville was at or above $59 for the night, so I saved approximately $25 by using priceline. Though I was paying for computer usage at Kinko's I still made time to start my bidding through the PRICELINE links on betterbidding.com.

I won a previously unreported hotel, the 4* Intercontinental Tampa for a two night stay. I started bidding at $50, and went up in $5 increments until winning at $80. While this hotel has not been reported before, I anticipated it as a possibility, as it's been ID'ed through the betterbidding HOTWIRE hotel lists as a 4* in Hotwire's zone that is similar to Priceline's Airport-Westshore zone. I thought about splitting my bid because conventional rates at the Grand Hyatt and the Intercontinental were much cheaper for Friday night than Thursday night, but I decided against it, as I'll be with a 19 month old, and I didn't want to have to change hotels after one night to try to save $30 or so. As it ended up, I got a darn good price for a hotel that has favorable reviews on Tripadvisor.

I used PRICELINE as previous posts combined with the going normal rates for my date indicated I could likely win a resort in the $90 to $110 range, which is a lot cheaper than paying Hotwire $125. If I couldn't positively ID the hotel on HOTWIRE, I figured Priceline was just as good, and for a lower price. I won the Omni Resort at Championsgate for a bid of $93 for a one night stay on May 10, 2008. Last unsuccessful attempt was at $90. I had a hunch it was going to be the Gaylord Palms when I got the accepted message, based upon price, but it was the Omni. I've stayed at both hotels before, and they're both incredible. It'll be good to stay at the Omni again and float down its lazy river. I used the PRICELINE link provided to start my bids. The two nights before this trip I am staying at the Ritz Carlton on my employer's dime, so it'll be interesting to compare and contrast how the Omni stacks up to the Ritz.

I'm sure you're well aware, but since others may not be, I wanted to point out that this is a newer hotel, only about 2 years old, and exponentially nicer than the old holiday inn, which was right next door to this hotel.

While doing a search on Hotwire, I found a 4* in Orlando in the Disney Main Gate - Champions Gate zone that I could not match up with the helpful hotel lists on this site. It is 5/10/08, a one night stay, and came up for $125. The amenities listed are: Resort, Pool(s), Business Center, Golf Nearby, Ftness Center, Restaurant(s), High-Speed Internet Access, and Spa Services. Any help IDing this hotel is appreciated.

I won the Sirata Beach Resort for a one night stay in St. Pete Beach for $61. I started bidding low and started recieiving counteroffers (around $70) once I got into the mid-50 dollar range. Last unsuccessful bid was for $59. Anyone reading this post who plans on bidding for a 3* in St. Pete Beach, be alert that the Tarpon Springs zone offers Resorts, so it may not be a good idea to use that zone (which doesn't have anything higher than a 2* aside from the Resort option) to try to increase your bidding opportunities. This is especially true if you're hoping to be somewhat close to the beach. Not only is Tarpon Springs inland, it's also about 25 miles north of St. Pete Beach.

Same day bid for a 3 night stay. Due to it being the same day, I started bidding higher than usual, and was accepted at first bid for $40. Lowest rate for normal booking for this hotel is $69/nt for these dates. Had first tried bidding 2 1/2* in the Fort Myers zone, and was unsuccessful up to $55. I used the savingsbarn link for my bids.

Going back to the U for homecoming--and one last trip to the Orange Bowl. Was bidding for Airport and Coral Gables/Coconut Grove. Normal prices for the latter zone were so outrageous that I was expecting to win in the Airport zone, and I did. Started at $55, and raised $5 per bid until winning the Hilton Miami Airport for $75 for the one night. Lowest rate on the Hilton website was $189/night. I was kind of expecting the Sofitel, because it (or at least the amenities it has been reported to match) was available on Hotwire for about $95. Any 4* would do, so equally happy with the Hilton. I used the savingsbarn link to start my bids.

Thanks for the research on further options. However, they were only going to splurge on a nice hotel in the Historic District if they could get a low price on priceline. Plan B (which doesn't include any use of priceline or hotwire) was to stay at one of the many 2* type properties off of I 95 for the night before continuing their drive to Florida the next morning. They had a back up hotel booked conventionally for that purpose before they even contacted me. I believe they have now put Plan B into effect. Thanks again.

Mere hours after one family member contacted me to bid for a hotel in Chicago for them (winning bid posted in Priceline Chicago category) another family member asked for help with a 3* bid in Savannah's Historic District. Their bidding limit was $80 for a one night stay on 08/03/07. I researched conventional rates, and they were all sky high. I let them know that I didn't think $80 would be enough, but that I would try nonetheless. I started at $60 and using rebids, went up to $80. All bidding failed. I note that the Hyatt, which is the hotel reported as being won most often at the 3* level in this zone, had a $299 rate as the lowest one available through their website. Though I failed in my bids, I used the savingsbarn link in my attempt.