Happy St. Patrick's Day and here's a toast to all who make this board a success!!
There are good ships, and there are wood ships, the ships that sail the sea.
But the best ships are friendships, and may they always be.
I should add that I had a great experience with ECT in Las Vegas when booking a room at the Monte Carlo, I made an "off the record" reservation for one night. Upon check in, there was no mention of ECT or Turico, all that was mentioned was that my room was prepaid. I asked for and received a non smoking room with two doubles. Check out was a breeze, no surprises at all. The Monte Carlo was rated by ECT as a 4* and at the rate of $109, I thought it was a great deal for the Sunday night before Valentines day :) when many Strip properties were much more expensve.
Lancaster is really a nice place to visit, spending 5 days there might be a bit too much. There are other areas such as Hershey, Harrisburg, York and Gettysburg that are adjacent to the Lancaster area that might be had for a lower price. The Lancaster area has really become a tourist machine, just plug it into any search engine and you'll see what I mean. Some of the "Amish" horse and buggy tour operators have cell phones! :)
Yes, I got the Four Points Sheraton Newark Airport and edited my post ......maybe it was the Sangria that made me forget to post the name of the Hotel??? :)
Had to pick up a colleague at the Newark Airport for a meeting the next day, and made a cancellable reservation at the Fairfield Inn for $109. I got to the airport early so made a same day bid using Savingsbarn.com to access the Priceline website. Started bidding at $45 in the Newark-Newark Airport zone, but was rejected. Added the Elizabeth-Newark Airport zone and raised my bid to $49 and won the Four Points Sheraton Newark Airport (then cancelled the Fairfield)
Your Offer Price: $49.00
Number of Rooms: 2
Number of Nights: 1
Subtotal: $98.00
Taxes & Service Fees: $21.62
Total Charges: $119.62
My gripe about this hotel is no high speed internet, just dial up service. Hi Speed is being installed sometime in the future. The other gripe is $5.00 parking per night. But, my biggest gripe is that this hotel is at best a 2.5* property as it is showing signs of wear and tear. The Hotel is short staffed, I tried to call the front desk, but no one picked up. So I went down to the front desk to tell them my phone needed to be activated to make a local call. But for one night, at $49, it is a good deal (the rate through the Sheraton website is $80). The hotel offers dinner at the bar and breakfast in the restaurant, so without a car, dining options are limited but there are a few delivery services available.
Finally made it back to the Spanish Tavern in the Ironbound section of Newark and had a great whole red snapper :)
using Hotwire, a 3* appears that may be the Holiday Inn @ 4th and Arch for $72 and a 4* that appears to be the Shearaton Society Hill for $79. Using Priceline, the 4* in the waterfront is usually the Hyatt. Sometimes the prices we want to pay are lower than the price the hotels are willing to accept due to the available room inventory. It would be helpful to list your bidding history such as "bid $60 for the Waterfront area, but was rejected, added 3* and bid $48 but was rejected" or something like that.
Also, Downtown Philly has 7 rebid zones if you are looking for a 4* property, so you will need to understand the rebidding process by adding zones.
There are two Hilton's in Newark, this property on Spring Street is adjacent to the airport and is called Hilton Newark Airport. This property looks like it is in the Priceline area named "Elizabeth-Newark Airport". The Hilton that is connected to the Penn Station is called "Hilton Newark Gateway" and is located in the Newark-Newark Airport zone and is near the business district of Newark. Your Hotel has a free shuttle from the airport and if you are driving, the parking is only $5.00 a day, much less than the $20.00 a day at the Gateway Hilton. A great deal at any rate and you can get into NYC via the train station at EWR ariport, just grab the hotel shuttle. I will leave these details to thereuare :) Will you be getting into Newark on the train?
Started bidding for a hotel in the Queens area, and accessed Priceline through Savingsbarn.com.
Selected LaGuardia Airport (LGA) 3*, bid $65 and was rejected
Added Elmhurst-Corona, bid $71, rejected
Added Brooklyn Heights, bid $76, rejected
Added Long Island City, bid $81, rejected
Lowered to a 2.5*, bid $71, rejected
Added JFK Airport, bid $71, Success
Your Offer Price: $71.00
Number of Rooms: 1
Number of Nights: 1
Subtotal: $71.00
Taxes & Service Fees: $19.62
Total Charges: $90.62
I would have preferred to stay in the LGA or Long Island City area, but this was fine. The Doubletree Club was paid $64 for the room and with taxes, this should be about $73, so Priceline's fees came to about $17, a fat gross margin. The standard rate for this property is $159 or $183 with taxes. I had read some negative posts about this Doubletree Club in the past, but I was pleased with the room. It was clean, but typically small for a NYC Airport Hotel. Check in was easy and I was put on the fifth floor which I was told was set aside for Hilton HHonors guests. The room had an ethernet plug for HighSpeed internet, but I didn't discover that it didn't work until the morning, too late to switch rooms. Not all of the rooms have High Speed internet. Upon checkout, the hotel had charged my credit card for the room, but the clerks and manager were inexperienced and unable to remove this charge, so after about 10 minutes, I left and told them to fax my folio showing a zero balance to me. The fax was waiting for me at home. This property features a small restaurant and bar, a nice feature if you don't have a car or in case it is too cold to venture out in the evening.
I stayed here a few years ago for a meeting, although this hotel is not in the heart of Annapolis, it is a short drive to get to the waterfront area and all of the charm of Annapolis. You can't beat Lewnes Steak House in Eastport for a great meal, it is on the pricey side though. There are a ton of bars and restaurants in the waterfront, a great town to walk around. Check out "ego alley" down by the docks where you can check out some pretty terriffic boats. Don't beat yourself up for overbidding, there is only one re-bid opportunity in this area: Annapolis Waterfront. $50 is a great rate as the prepaid rate with Radisson is $95. You got a great deal in a nice hotel in a great weekend getaway spot.
I received a "reservation confirmation email" from Easy Click Travel a few minutes after I made the reservation. It listed a ECT reservation number, no reservation number from the Crowne Plaza.
I got another email from ECT at 1:38 AM that showed the reservation status as: Sold Out.
This was an off the record property but the status of my reservation was confirmed, not "on request"
Still steaming at ECT and my only satisfaction will be complete reimbursement for my hotel stay last night.
:) :) :o :) :D :P
I just had a horrible experience with Easyclick Travel tonight and I'm so peeved, I could spit, but it would probably freeze before it hit the ground!! I needed to make a hotel reservation after the 6:00 PM Hotwire and Priceline cutoff so I accessed the EasyClick Travel website and made an "off the record" reservation which turned out to be the LaGuardia Crowne Plaza at $89; I received a confirmation of my reservation from ECT. Made my way towards the Holland Tunnel but got a call a half hour later telling me that the Crowne Plaza had no rooms because of the snow and that guests did not check out. I told her that it was snowing when ECT accepted my reservation, so this should not have made any difference. The rep from ECT told me she would not charge my credit card for the room, and would re-book me at the Howard Johnson's near Newark Airport. At best, these two properties are more than one hour apart, and 2* different (HoJo's is between two highways, poorly lit, and next to a prison). I told the rep that this was not acceptable and I needed a room near LaGuardia, she would call back. I contacted the Crowne Plaza directly and was told that they might have a room available due to cancellations for $199. I never got a phone call from ECT and had to book myself into a hotel in the Ft. Lee NJ area as all of the LGA hotels were sold out. Although only 9 miles away, this is no easy drive. The problem is that Easy Click Travel took the reservation oblivious of the available inventory then faxed it over to the Crowne Plaza . This is a rotten way to do business and I won't use ECT again. ECT can take a reservation but they don't seem to care about honoring the reservation and didn't give a rat's tail about my situation. I finally called customer service and was told that they could book me in the New Yorker a property with generally bad reviews. ECT left me to my own devices, twisting in the 50 mph winds on a 20 degree night!!! I wonder what Elliott Spitzer, the Attorney General of NY might say about this ????
B) :) :) :) :angry: :angry: :angry: :angry: :angry: :angry: :angry: :angry:
With any property you will get varied reviews, but on the whole, if this property is 1/2* below its HW rating and you can get it for $77, you have a great deal. Someone mentioned on tripadvisor that there was parking nearby at $13. If so, this is the bargain in all of Philly due to its exceptional location thats close to everything.
I just checked the list of hotels, but didn't see the following in the North Bergen-Rockland County area:
2.5* includes Fitness Center, Kitchenette, Guest Laundry
The rate is $81, has anyone identified this?
Hotwire has a 3.5* property that appears to be the Hyatt for your dates @ $228 per night, and a 2.5* that appears to be the Candlewood for $106 so it looks like you may have difficulty with your last 3 nights right now. You may want to book a cancellable backup.
looks like the Sheraton Society Hill is available on Hotwire for $77 in the "Historic District - Waterfront". I don't think the Sheraton is available on PL. While the Hyatt may have slightly better views of either Camden, NJ (east) or Philadelphia (west), the Sheraton is in a better location for walking around. Also, on the Hyatt Website, the only availability is $269 with full pre-payment. May be cancelled up to 72 hours before arrival for $50; within the 72 hour time frame: one night room and tax!!! OUCH :o . There is a risk assesment convention in town, so all of the first floor rooms are taken I guess :) This makes the Sheraton a good deal, I think it is only 3 stories high! :)
this hotel is now rated as a 1*
I guess if enough people complain, PL might change the rating. The Sheraton Four Points Hotel in Elizabeth, NJ is rated as a 3* yet the Marriott Courtyard in Lyndhurst, NJ is a 2.5* property. Granted, both are not in the same zone, and airport hotels generally get worn out faster due to one night stays, I don't understand how there can be such a difference between ratings and reality. The Courtyard is a great property, clean, updated and well maintained that belies its 2.5* rating. The Sheraton Four Points is basically a place to crash if you need to be in Newark on business and you are by yourself. If you can get it for less than $50, it is a good deal, but parking is $5.00.
If you want crabs- the blue claw kind, that is, check out a place called Obrycki's Crab House on Pratt street. Butcher paper on the tables, order a dozen for two people and a pitcher of your favorite brew, a great dinner.
made yet another last minute, same day bid and as always, accessed Priceline through Savingsbarn.com. I set myself up in the lobby of another hotel that has free WiFi and went to work. I usually start by checking rates and availability with Hotwire and found what appeared to be the JC Hyatt for $86 and the Candlewood for about $100 and some other 2* for $146. The JC area almost never has same day rooms available, especially during mid-week (Monday-Wednesday). I took a shot and bid $48 and WON!!! :)
Your Offer Price: $48.00
Number of Rooms: 1
Number of Nights: 1
Subtotal: $48.00
Taxes & Service Fees: $14.00
Total Charges: $62.00
The HW rate including taxes and fees was $107, the Hyatt.com rate was $259; with taxes about $290. OK, so I will have to walk about two blocks and pay $15 to park the car...maybe I will valet it tonight......naaaaah!! Its against my nature.....just can't do it...... :)
I used ECT to book one night at the Monte Carlo in Vegas, (using the tool above) everything went fine. Upon check in, all that was mentioned was that my room was prepaid and that my request for a non smoking room with two double beds could be fulfilled. I actually screwed up the reservation as I had been checking for the rate to drop (after it had raised from $109 to $129). When it dropped back to $109, I jumped on it but booked it for one person instead of two. When I called a few days later to correct it, I was told that the rates went up for my date, back to $129. I just asked ECT to note my request for two double beds on my reservation, which they did and all went well.
I just got back from the Scottsdale Plaza Resort, I attended a business meeting for 4 days. This property is about 40 years old with immaculate grounds, many of the rooms have been refrurbished, it features 5 swimming pools and tennis courts. While there, the place was loaded with corporate events, and meetings, and a few families, and it was too cold to see anything that was easy on the eyes :) Some in my group complained that the rooms were small and a bit worn, my room was fine.
here is a link to the buffet style Korean barbecue restaurant in Queens, the meat is raw and is cooked on a grill in the middle of your table, you wrap it all up in a leaf of red lettuce, the ultimate in low carb dining......
Bshor, the city of Wilmington rolls up its sidewalks at 5:00 on Fridays, but two things Delaware has going for it is no sales tax (there is a Comp USA about a mile from your hotel) and cheap liquor stores. I'm not sure what is going on in the evening, but you will be pretty close to Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA; this is a good daytime activity. This is a 1000 acre property that was once owned by the DuPont family. You may also want to check out this site for things to do in WilmingtonWilmington Nightlife A few miles north of your hotel is a restaurant called Sullivans, it is an upscale steak house that is part of the Lone Star chain, but better quality. There is also an outpost of a Philly-are chain called Hibachi that features Japanese teppanyaki cooking and sushi.
Kev, you can catch the Broad Street Subway at the Vine/Race station, it is 3 blocks east of your hotel. Take the subway south to Pattison Ave and this will take you to the Wachovia Center and AI....$2.00 each way or if you can buy tokens, it is a mere $1.30 each way. Septa only offeres a weekly "Trans Pass" for $18.75, no daily pass. Broad Street Line :) This hotel has a nice lobby bar set in an atrium. One of my gripes about this property is that they had a bar on the top floor of the hotel with terriffic views of the city, but it closed and the space was turned into a banquet room, I believe.
2.5* Newark (Jersey City) Courtyard by Marriott
in Priceline Hotels - New Jersey
Posted
this is flaky, but using Hotwire for the two days, (5/13-5/15) the rate was $77 for a 3.5* (Best Value, pool, restaurant, business center) in Hoboken which has been previously ID'ed as the Hyatt......for just saturday nite alone, the rate is $194 :) Friday night alone is $75. :)