hottieandginger

Very helpful tip! I went to Alamo and they had a Mid-size for $19/day. Cheaper than my last couple bids! So much for the "40% average discount" by booking through Priceline.

Anyway, very pleased with a Mid-size rental for $19/day. Thanks again.

Bid again today. $18 for a Compact (rejected); $20 for a Mid-size (rejected). Priceline retail has a Mid-size from Alamo for $24/day. I'll try bidding one more day, then it becomes pointless and I'll go with Alamo.

Bid again today. $17 for a Compact (rejected), $19 for a Mid-size (rejected). Pretty soon I'll get into the "normal" PRICELINE zone and won't need to bid.

Another shot in a day or so.

Bidding on PRICELINE for Denver car rental (weekend of 3/16 to 3/17 2013).

Bid $16 for Compact (rejected), $18 for Mid-size (rejected), $20 for Standard (rejected).

I'll try again tomorrow.

Used the HOTWIRE and PRICELINE links to scope pricing before bidding.

Flying into Omaha for one-day meeting. Started bidding on an Economy car at $18 (failed). Bumped up to $28 for a Mid-size (accepted by Avis). Then I upgraded to a Full-size for another $4.

Not a bad deal. But I just realized that Priceline/Alamo was actually cheaper. Rats!

Just a quick update on Vegas.

The Venetian and Palazzo both have extended special pricing to Columbus Day weekend. You can stay in the basic suite for $507 for the three days (Friday night through Sunday night).

Pretty good deal -- if I had not already booked the Signature, I would have tried the Palazzo.

My wife and I are now going to Cancun from 12/23/12 to 12/31/12. We got the Fiesta Americana Grand Coral Beach Cancun Resort & Spa for $180/night. We're excited about the hotel and the discount price.

As always, I used the PRICELINE link to initiate the bid. Good luck all.

Has anyone tried the $20 trick at the Venetian?

What's the $20 trick?

I ended up booking the "mystery hotel" on bookit for $127/night (pre-tax). It was, indeed, the MGM Signature.

I'll keep an eye on HOTWIRE and betterbidding to see if North Strip rates drop. The Signature deal is refundable with a $15/day penalty. If rates drop enough, I'll eat the penalty. It just didn't seem like PRICELINE had any inventory for the Columbus Day weekend.

Good luck all, and thanks again to the moderators of this terrific website.

Thirteenth day of bidding on the North Strip. (I didn't bid on the South Strip today.) Started at $120, and worked up to $150 in $5 increments, then up to $160 in $2 increments. Still no luck!

The Venetian deal for $180/night has lapsed. But Hotwire still has the [Trump] for $107 and the [Vdara] for $157.

Brainstew,

I've been bidding for 5* hotels that weekend (10/5 through 10/8) -- no luck thus far. I've bid up to $160 on the North Strip and $137 on the South Strip.

Hotwire has the Trump at $107 for the long weekend and the Vdara at $157.

The Venetian (North Strip) has an offer for ~ $180/night (before taxes).

I found the MGM Signature listed as a "mystery" hotel on another website for $127/night (before taxes).

Good luck

Twelth day of bidding on the North Strip.* Also fourth day of bidding on the South Strip. Started at $100, and worked up to $137 using the re-bid zones.

At this point, I'm probably going to book the MGM Signature "mystery deal" for $127/night (before taxes). It's refundable, so I can run bids a couple times weekly and see if the North Strip pricing falls before Columbus Day.

It's funny ... sounds like Columbus Day is not too crowded on the Strip ... but the hotels maintain the high prices because they view it as a premium weekend.

(*Note that my count was off the last couple days. I duplicated my "ninth day," so I should be up to twelve.)

Tenth day of bidding on the North Strip. (I didn't bid on the South Strip today.) Started at $105, and worked up to $155 in $5 increments, then up to $161 in $3 increments. Still no luck!

I almost made a huge mistake today, which makes me think that Priceline has no inventory for Columbus Day weekend. I accidentally plugged in the Strip North Vicinity around $140. The Trump has been sitting at $107 on Hotwire for a couple weeks (perhaps longer). But Priceline didn't hit at $140.

Also, the Venetian is running a deal for approx. $180/night. If Priceline had inventory, I'd expect that the Venetian would hit in the $150-160 range. It makes no sense to charge the same amount for a known hotel as an unknown hotel. I'm getting in the ballpark of a 10% discount -- not the "60% discount" that Priceline markets.

Ninth day of bidding on the North Strip. Also third day of bidding on the South Strip. Started at $90, and worked up to $126 in $3 increments.

I was really focused on the South Strip in this round. Just threw in the North Strip as a re-bid zone. Still no luck!

I'm looking again and I believe that you're looking at a 4-star for $118 ... it's not a 5-star, unfortunately.

Thanks for the tip. Unfortunately, I'm looking now and I'm only seeing the [Trump] at $107 and the [Vdara] at $157.

Did you run a 10/5 check-in, 10/8 check out? Maybe I just missed the window. Thanks again

Ninth day of bidding on the North Strip. (I didn't bid on the South Strip today.) Started at $100, and worked up to $140 in $8 increments, then up to $149 in $3 increments, then up to $155 in $2 increments. Still no luck!

I still have the offer at the Venetian for $630 including taxes ($180/night before taxes). The Vdara is running a comparable deal, $700 including taxes ($600 net of the $35 daily resort credit).

HOTWIRE has the Vdara for $153/night ($532 including taxes) (presumably the Vdara based on the amenities). HOTWIRE also has the Trump for $107/night.

Eighth day of bidding on the North Strip. Also second day of bidding on the South Strip. Started at $80, and worked up to $116 in $3 increments.

I got an offer from the Venetian for $630 including taxes, which translates into roughly $540 before taxes for the long weekend (the tax rate seems to be around 15%). So $180 seems to be the current "discount" rate for the Venetian.

Thanks all for the various tips and insights.

Seventh day of bidding on the North Strip. Today I added the South Strip. Dropped back down to $70, and worked up to $106 in $3 increments.

I wasn't expecting to hit on the North Strip. I've seen the MGM Signature listed as a "mystery hotel" on another website in the $120 range. So I don't want to bid over $120 for the South Strip.

hottieandginger,

How much more is a Strip North property worth to you vs. a Strip South?

Thanks for using the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board.

I'd say $40 or so. If push comes to shove, I'll consider $160 for the North Strip. I wouldn't want to go over $120 for the South Strip.

Have you checked HOTWIRE? It appears that the Vdara is running around $160 for your weekend. I'm surprised that you aren't getting it cheaper through PRICELINE name-your-own-price. But rates seem to be going down, not up, for October.

Sixth day of bidding on the North Strip. Started at $95 and increased in $5 increments until $150. Still no luck. Seventh day tomorrow.

Tomorrow might be the day that I drop back down and bid on the South Strip. Hotwire is showing a hotel on the South Strip for $153/night. I'm pretty sure that it's the Vdara -- it lines up with the same amenities discussed on the Hotwire forum.

I've noticed that prices on other travel engines have started inching down.

Fifth day of bidding on the North Strip. Started at $90 and increased in $4 increments until $134. Still no luck. Sixth day tomorrow. (I decided to work up to $140 tomorrow, then I'll drop back down and bid on the South Strip.)

Thanks Romelle,

Yes, I've been checking hotel websites and HOTWIRE. I agree with the previous poster; it seems like the Trump is around $100 on HOTWIRE. But I'm nervous about the Trump based on some of the consistent negative review points (for example, the loud train).

Fourth day of bidding. Started at $85 and increased in $3 increments until $118. Still no luck. Fifth day tomorrow. I'll be adding the Strip Vicinity South and see how that goes.