mark2000

Interesting. Thanks. I think I'll do that. I Called the hotel yesterday to get their thoughts and they said they'd take my request subject to availability. It also helps that it's a Hilton where customer service is key and being a Tripadvisor Green Star reviewer helps. :)

I understand only a Run of the House room is guaranteed with a Priceline bid - no explanation needed there. However, I have heard of people getting everything from rooms just slightly bigger than their bed, facing brick walls, to, corner rooms, with grand views. My sense is that it probably all depends on availability. I am arriving late Thursday night (10 PM) this Thursday at the Chicago Hilton. Am I more likely to get a room I want (A king, rather than two doubles) by calling in the request tomorrow? Or do you think I'm more likely to get it if I wait until Thursday night check in? For example, perhaps at check-in, all the Run of the House rooms are assigned first, then, they move up in quality as needed, to fill the remainder of reservations as the day goes on. So what I am thinking, is if I did put an advance "special request" on the file, they might only minimally meet my needs - i.e. a king, but it will be on the 3rd floor, facing a brick wall. But if I DON'T put in a request ahead, perhaps the most basic rooms will be gone and they will be FORCED to place me in an upgraded suite? What do you think is the better strategy? I'd better phone in the request ASAP if people suggest I should call ahead! Thanks all!

I would caution you about the pool, gym and views. Reviews indicate the gym and pool are an extra $15/day, and, views are not guaranteed. I will be staying there the same weekend as you and will be posting a review on one of the major trip advisory web sites out there. There are also certain vantage points that can only be accessed by high level HHonors members or executive roomholders. The "Rooftop views" you were referring to, may be on levels which are not accessible to most guests. I recommend you read recent reviews before you get your hopes up about this property. Mind you, for the price you can get by using the PRICELINE links on this board, it appears to be a good deal.

Actually, could you keep this thread for the Hilton since the bidding process has been described for that property in detail, in this thread? I'll start the other thread for the O'Hare Ren.

Ya know, we're pretty tech savvy individuals, and he read and re-read the confirmations out to me. If I'd heard "Chicago O'Hare" when he read out the final comfirmation screen to me, I would have said something. I did a little more research on this on the net and it seems it's not an isolated incident. It's very rare, but not completely unheard of. We were sticking to single-zone bidding. There are a smattering of stories out there where people HAVE received hotels COMPLETELY out of their selected area. At any rate, here's proof-positive Priceline is aware errors happen. I immediately called customer service who looked into it and offered us a refund, minus a $25 admin fee, as long as we rebooked on another bid. They sent us an email laying out the steps to get the full refund processed. So we bid $106 and ended up with the Chicago Hilton, August 11-14. I am not pleased. I knew it was a possibility but it was the lowest of my options. I hadn't seen many recent wins on it so I didn't suspect I'd get it. It doesn't exactly have the best reviews. And although very close to the red line, it's far from anything "fun" to do. Looks like I'll be getting a CTA ride pass. Anyone know if Chicago has a bikeshare service like Bixi? Oh well, them's the breaks. This was not a positive experience on Priceline. I have had one very positive experience and one very negative one. I will use Priceline again, but if it happens again, I'm done. I realize there are scores of people who have had countless good experiences-- but trust me, one this bad, will leave a sour taste in your mouth. FTR, the win we didn't pick was $100 4* Chicago O'Hare Renaissance Hotel August 11-14.

Oh, my, goodness. People. I have very bad news. My travel companion just did a bid of $100 in zone 7, 4* Chicago, and it came up with a successful bid at CHICAGO OHARE. We were together when he did it, he insists he chose ZONE 7. Has ANYONE ever had this happen before? We are both just sitting here, out of our skulls over this. Completely shocked.

Nah, I don't mind transferring to the Red Line if I am coming from ORD on the Blue Line. I think I'm going to try a couple more bids tonight in the Loop at $86 and $96, and if that fails, maybe my travel companion and I will try to lowball the Mile at $80 and $90 to see if we get anything. Failing that, we'll probably just swallow a $100+ bid in the Loop 24 hours later to be done with it. It's not as cheap as some of the other wins on the calendar, but its still a damn good deal.

Can anyone comment on the proximity of Priceline wins in the Chicago MNA area to subway stations? Obviously, I can see the maps - but in human terms, how is their proximity - are we talking, "hauling ass" in most cases? Or "just a couple blocks" kinda thing? I'd really like to try staying in the Magnificent Mile area this trip, but I'm afraid I'll end up with something too far from the subway. That's what's good about Priceline wins in the Loop - there's always a subway closeby. I will be hanging out fairly far north on the Red Line at night, so I won't want to walk far from the metro when we get back downtown.

EL_91024, could you tell us what kind of re-bid zones you've tried and what dates you're looking for? See my recent Priceline Chicago thread - I also bid $75, $85 and $90 in MP-L-GP for next week - nothing. But too afraid to try re-bid zones, for fear of winning a property I don't want.

Another Q for the experts - if I re-bid in 24 hours with the same $ amount, might rooms become available at that level for the same dates, or am I wasting a bid in your opinion?

Using the PRICELINE link from this forum, for a stay between August 11-14, I tried: $75, 4*, Chicago (Millenium-Loop-GP) - REJECTED My travel companion (from another city, computer and internet connection) tried: $85, 4*, Chicago (Millenium-Loop-GP) - REJECTED He doesn't feel comfortable adding re-bid zones with no 4* hotels, so we'll try again in 24 hours. Anyone else had any luck with this kind of bid? I thought we would at least get something similar to the wins listed in the calendar, but nothing. Unfortunately, I won't be using the HOTWIRE to get a room this time around. I really am looking for something under the $100 pricepoint.

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but this is the closest thread I could find relating to my question. Has anyone seen any bidding result differences between the app and the mobile version? I understand the mobile version isn't as flexible for multiple zone bidding. But has anyone ever seen a difference in results successful bids between the app and desktop version? I have to bid tonight-- I want the signup bonus for future use with the app, but not if it ends up costing me my hoped-for hotel. Anyone?

Thanks for the responses. Kind of what I figured. "Rare, but theoretically possible."

Has anyone ever had the Priceline strategy backfire of selecting areas without the * availability you were looking for, backfire? For example, if you are looking for a Chicago downtown 4*, bid $75, and get rejected. Then you re-bid at $80, adding a suburb which only shows 2* hotels available. Has this ever backfired, and suddenly something became available during the bidding process, where Priceline came back and ended up finding a 4* in the suburb anyway? (even though the availability search said the max in that area was 2*)

Bid 80, 90 on combinations of the Loop, North River, Lincoln Park. Bid was finally accepted at $100 for the Palmer House Ilton 4* Loop Chicago. First time bidder ... didn't know about the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links from this board!