dahammer

Thanks!!! The Aladdin looks like a really good deal compared to the Luxor....much better location

I can't advise a bidding strategy for Philly, I will leave the heavy lifting to thereuare : :) The location of your hotel win will most likely determine how you will get to the game.

However, taking public transportation is not a bad idea, the Broad Street Subway ends at Broad and Pattison Aves., a short walk to the Wachovia Center and the Sixers. The fare is $2.00 each way, here is a link to SEPTA:Sports Express. That being said, there is lots of parking available, and taking a car lets you drive over to Tony Lukes after the game and get a Roast Pork sandwich or to Geno's and get a cheesesteak. Go for the Pork with the bitter greens (broccoli rabe sauteed in olive oil and garlic) and sharp provalone and hit Genos on your way out of town on Sunday.

OK, so it is about 6 weeks away from the 5 sister's Las Vegas trip and some in the group are thinking that it might be fun to ditch the Luxor and to stay in the Venitian....is a $100-$120 bid possible for 3 rooms, for the following dates: 04/05/05 to 04/08/05???

Made a same day bid for a hotel in Queens, NY. As always, I accessed Priceline through Savingsbarn.com and started bidding:

Selected LaGuardia Airport zone and bid $70, rejected.

Added Long Island City zone, bid $75 rejected (a free rebid zone)

Added Elmhurst-Corona, bid $80 rejected (a free rebid zone)

Added Brooklyn Heights, bid $85 rejected (not a free zone, this area has 3* hotels)

I closed my browser and re-opened it and started bidding on a 2.5*

LaGuardia Airport zone and bid $55, rejected.

Aded Elmhurst-Corona and bid $65, rejected.

Added Long Island City and bid $71, won

Congratulations, you got your price of $71 for a 2

I was in center city yesterday and noticed that there is a parking garage operated by "Parkway Corp" right around the corner at 17th and Benjamin Franklin Parkway, they had a sign that listed weekend parking at $9.00 a day. This is just steps away from the Embassy Suites.

if you are heading in from Berwick you may not want to stay in Allentown, but instead, drive a little further into King of Prussia/Valley Forge or Plymouth Meeting zone, this will put you within 25 miles of Philly and make your morning commute into the city a breeze.... Some of the Allentown hotels are near the Airport which would take you away from the PA turnpike and your drive into the city of Brotherly Love :)

I have not stayed at the Hard Rock, but this property is off the strip and not convenient for walking, you will need a car or a cab to get anywhere.

I have stayed in this area before, not using Priceline, but in the Allentown-Bethlehem zone a 2.5* Marriott Courtyard and a 2* Fairfield Inn appear to be in this zone. Both are fairly new hotels, about 4 years old, and the C/Y has an indoor pool, but no free breakfast. There is a decent facility for skiing and tubing nearby called Blue Mountain and if the snow is good, the hotels may have higher occupancy, but you should have no problem with getting a deal. You have lots of time, you might also check out Hotwire in this zone to see prices and bid lower than HW for your stay.

Several hotels near the PA Convention Center are offering "special rates" for the Flower Show but these are in the range of $200 or more per night!! YIKES!

Lonestar, I stayed here about two months ago and complained to Customer Service at PL that this was not a 3* property. I think I talked to the same customer service agent that you did. This property was a Wyndham Garden Hotel, but it changed to a Sheraton a few years ago. You may want to make your room preference known in advance by giving the hotel a call in the early afternoon.

Stayed here one night 2/13/05 and used the Easy Search for Easy Click Travel to make my reservation, this was an "off the record" hotel and I was able to get a 4* room for $109. Check in was a breeze and I had no problems getting a non smoking room with two double beds. The room was clean and all of the common areas were well maintained. Only one pool was open but the weather was a bit too cool, and the outdoor hot tub was already filled with a bunch of bald guys. :) In the warmer weather, the MC has a wave pool and a small "river" has a current to take you around in a loop while on a raft. The Hotel has a high speed (wired) internet, service by Wayport at $9.95 a day. One of my pet peeves is that the hotel charges for local as well as "800" calls at the rate of $1.00 for 20 or 30 minutes. I ended up with a phone bill of about $12 just to dial out on my laptop a few times. The location of the hotel is good and within walking distance to many other properties like NYNY, Paris, Caesars, and Boardwalk (they have $5.00 tables here) as well as a Margaritaville restaurant where I had the signature concoction and hung out on the railing watching the crowds go by. The Monte Carlo has several dining options ranging from a bagel shop to a high end steakhouse. (ended up at the Gold Coast buffet for a late dinner on my way over to the Ghost Bar at the Palms) I would stay here again, even though I did not see any evidence of the single zero roulette :)

Stayed here only one night 2/12/05 using Hilton HHonors points, this is a big hotel east of the strip, convenient to the Convention Center and the Monorail. Had a car so I didn't get a chance to use the Monorail and walking to the strip would not be recommended. The room was clean and just your typical Hilton with nothing special about it. There is a pool on the 3rd floor roof, but it was a bit cold. Had the Champagne Brunch just before checking out which was set at an early 11:00 am time. The casino features a huge "sports book" for those inclined; this hotel was recently bought by Resrorts International. Checking in and out was a bit of a hassle as the line snaked around for about 15 minutes.

I recently spent 4 days at the Scottsdale Plaza Resort attending a company meeting. This is an older resort property that is set on 40 acres, and the grounds are well maintained. This property features 5 swimming pools, tennis courts and several restaurants. Most of the rooms have been refurbished and my room was spacious and featured two double beds with a bench at the end of the bed, a wet bar, and two sinks in the bathroom area. Some of the others in my group had smaller rooms with one king sized bed and still a few others had suites with a seperate sitting area. Make sure that you request a room that has been newly remodeled. I did not visit any of the restaurants because each evening we had a company dinner in one of the banquet rooms, but these were all very good and I would recommend this hotel to anyone planning a meeting. The staff was very professional and handled any request promptly. My only gripe is that they tack on a resort fee of $10 per day per room and the state even taxes this fee! This is to cover things like local phone calls. We were also charged a $2.00 per day gratuity for maid service and a one time charge of $8.00 per person for baggage handling; the property is so large, they have small golf carts to take you to the rooms. The gratuities may have been added because we had a group room rate of $150. If you can get this property on Priceline for $100 or less and get a refurbished room, this would be a good deal.

Not sure if this makes any sense, but if you can get a cheap flight into New York (JFK) or Newark (EWR), you might be able to get a deal on a round trip ticket to Poland through a consolidator.

you might forget a hotel room but won't forget an RV vacation near a national park :) Plus, you can change your scenery every few days by picking up and moving to a new campground. I guess the only downside of going to a campground or an RV park is you might get stuck next to the campers from h***. A colleague has a "Pop UP" trailer and it is perfect for his family of 4; he bought it used for $2500 and will probably sell it for $2000 in 4 years after his kids get tired of it.

We stayed here about two years ago on our way to Lake Norris, TN (and one week on a 72' , 4 bedroom houseboat with a hot tub). This property also has a free continental breakfast, so we saved quite a few bucks not having to buy breakfast for 4 adults and 6 kids. Rooms were very clean for an "Interstate" hotel that gets a lot of single night stays.

I have rented from Cruise America in the past, this is a franchise or similar to Uhaul. We go up to State College, PA to tailgate and see Joe Paterno's Nitnany Lions. :) The milage charges are usually pretty high, $ .60 per mile or more. I have heard of some folks flying into a location, like the Grand Canyon area and picking up the RV to save time and keep the milage costs down.

Looks like there is a garage operated by the Philadelphia Parking Authority at 20th and Sansom Street, this is about 4 blocks away, and has weekend rates of $9.00 per 24 hours; standard rates are $15 but No in/out privileges. Here is the website: Phila Parking Authority There is little on street parking nearby, but you may want to save some quarters to feed the meter. Enjoy Philly!! You will be really close to the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, I think this is the oldest Art Musuem in the US.

Philly, I am currently staying at the Scottsdale Plaza Resort while attending a meeting, our group rate is $150. I have seen this property go for around $100 on HW or PL, look at some prior postings. Although some of the reviews of this Resort have been mixed on Tripadvisor.com, I think this is a nice property. Although older, it is a 40 acre property near Paradise Valley and there are 5 pools, tennis, racquetball. My room looked like it was recently updated and fairly large with two double beds. Another person in my group had an older room with a King, this looked smaller and a bit worn, yet another in my group somehow got into a suite, and this was pretty nice. I would definately stay here again if in the Scottsdale area. Lots of hotels in the area, so you might want to check out Hotwire to gauge prices then bid on PL for your stay.

Can you tell us how the Strat worked out?? I just came back from Vegas and spoke to a couple that had a bad time while at the Strat.

Bowman, you may want to check out this link to the Phila Parking Authority, they have a parking garage at 5th and Market Sts, if you are at the Holiday Inn at 4th and Chestnut sts, you will be two blocks from this garage. The rate is $15 for 24 hours with no in/lout privledges, not sure how this compares to the Holiday Inn rate. Phila Parking Authority

This is a great part of town and you should check out some of the bars and restaurants in Old City, start on Second Street off Market and have a mojito at Cuba Libre and work your way around. If you are adventurous, go Ice Skating at the Blue Cross River Rink at Spring Garden Street and Columbus Blvd it is right on the Delaware River.

The Crowne Plaza is probably a better hotel for business travellers, as it is in a part of center city that is 4 blocks west of City Hall. For your weekend trip, you should not be disappointed with this property. The address of the hotel is 1800 Market Street, this is closer to the "Art Musuem" are of the city than the "Old City" zone which features many historic sites, such as Independance Hall and Christ Church. Hotwire and Priceline zones are different in Philadelphia, so I'm not sure what 3* Hotel was featured for $69; this may have been the Holiday Inn at 4th and Chestnut. Did you start your bid with a 4* property? TripAdvisor.com has some mixed reviews of this property, but with just about any property, there is praise mixed with disapointment. Don't beat yourself up for thinking that you bid too high for a hotel, because what's done is done and your rate for two nights is probably the same or less than the one night rate if booked directly with the hotel. By monitoring this board, and asking for advice before you bid, you will get better accomodations at lower rates on your next trip. You will be pretty close to a great brew pub called Nodding Head on Sansom Street.

$100 in NYC = Constraint :)

if this is the Holiday Inn at 4th and Chestnut, it is in a really good location and I think the reviews are mixed. I don't think that you can go wrong with this property. It's not the Hyatt, but you don't have to check out then check in and have the hassle of moving the car, etc. I would bid on PL and use Hotwire a fallback position.

you're in a tight spot because someone just got the 4* Marriott for $50. Although a nice property, I've stayed here, the Marriott is next to the convention center and about 10 blocks to get to the "Old City" part of town. For a liesure stay, I would prefer the Hyatt on the Delaware River. Hotwire is showing a 4* which appears to be the Sheraton Society Hill and although the views are not as great as the Hyatt, the Sheraton is right in Old City and a better location IMO. This 4* is $123 for your dates, though. Keep in mind that your dates are over the President's day Weekend, and this may be driving up occupancy along with the rates, either that or the article in the Inquirer about the great roast pork sandwich at Tony Lukes :)