skelman

We wanted to book a decent hotel in Mendocino county over Thanksgiving. Initially tried Ukiah at $50 and got a counteroffer at $58. Added a free rebid zone and booked it at $55 per day. Total price: $55 * 4 nights + $35.40 in fees = $255.40 The lowest published rate is $76 at the moment, which (after considering all taxes and fees) means that we paid almost exactly 2/3 of the asking price. Hotel booking was done through BetterBidding. Thank you again for your great service!

Thanks to BetterBidding, I knew exactly what to bid for this hotel and got it on the first try (and I also used the PRICELINE link provided to start bidding): Portland Marriott City Center 520 SW Broadway Portland, OR 27205 Price: $70.00 x 3 days + $36.96 (Taxes & Fees) = $246.96 The current going rate for this room is $189, so this is about 62% less, which is great for a busy Independence Day weekend. Thanks again!

For our Independence Day weekend trip from San Francisco to Portland, OR we booked this property near Eureka, CA: Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites 3107 Concorde Dr, McKinleyville, CA 95519 Price: $79.00 x 1 + $16.04 (charges & fees) = $95.04 Amenities listed: Complimentary Breakfast, Fitness Center, Pool, Laundry, High-Speed Internet The nonrefundable price on the Holiday Inn site is currently $131, so this is about 40% off. According to TripAdvisor reviews, it's one of the best hotels in the area.

Yes, I made sure to start my purchase using the HOTWIRE link at the top.

For our five-year wedding anniversary trip to Vegas, we just had to book a five-star: Vdara 2600 W. Harmon Avenue, Las Vegas, NV 89109 (702) 590-2111 Price: $102.00 x 3 nights + 45.10 taxes and fees = $351.10 Direct price is $487.40, so this is about 28% less. Amenities listed were Smoke-Free, Fitness Center, Pool, Restaurant, and Spa. My bids on Priceline up to $95 resulted in constant counter-offers of $134, so this is better. Plus, thanks to BetterBidding, I was pretty sure I knew what we were getting...

For this year's Thanksgiving getaway, we are going to Reno on a budget and will stay at a hotel that just about all sites (except Priceline) rate as a 4-star: John Ascuaga's Nugget 1100 Nugget Avenue Reno, Nevada 89434 775-356-3300 Price: $35.00 x nights + $22.44 taxes and fees = $127.44 Sounds like a great deal to me...

For a trip to Yosemite before the tourist season is over, we looked all around, but everything seemed unreasonably pricey. This is what Priceline had to offer: Quality Inn Merced 1213 V Street Merced, California 95340 209-723-3711 Price: $50.00 x 3 nights + $25.02 taxes and fees = $175.02 However, considering that the regular price is just $59, I should have bid lower...

Around mid-July earlier this year we went to Salinas on the busy annual California Rodeo weekend and this was the best deal we could find: Best Western Salinas Monterey Hotel 175 Kern Street Salinas, California 93905 831-784-0176 Price: $75.00 x nights + $25.00 taxes and fees = $175.00 This hotel definitely deserved more than just 2 stars.

A bit over a month ago, we bid for a 2.5* hotel in the Sonoma Wine Country and got a nice upgrade: Hilton Sonoma County/Santa Rosa 3555 Round Barn Boulevard Santa Rosa, CA 95403 707-523-7555 Price: $65.00 x 2 nights + $24.27 taxes and fees = $154.27 This is a very nice resort-like hotel located in the center of it all.

On our way to Burning Man this year, we reserved a last minute stay for a Thursday night for just $17/room: Sands Regency Hotel and Casino 345 North Arlington Avenue, Reno, NV 89501 (775) 348-2200 Price: $17.00 x 2 rooms + $10.78 taxes and fees = $44.78 I looked it up today, and I am pretty sure it's the same hotel that's currently listed with the following amenities: Casino, Airport Shuttle, Fitness Center, Pool, Restaurant, Golf and Spa. It's a somewhat older property, but a total steal at this price!

We got this hotel for a Thanksgiving getaway just over two weeks in advance; this was our first bid: Hyatt Regency Sacramento 1209 L Street Sacramento, CA 95814 916-443-1234 Price: $60.00 x 2 nights + $25.77 = $145.77 It's a very nice property, located almost literally across the street from the State Capitol. The only other thing to keep in mind is that they charge $17/day for self-parking access and all nearby garages are equally expensive.

Got this about two months in advance for a weekend trip. There were no 3* hotels on Priceline at this price, so this is definitely the best deal around at the moment: Holiday Inn Reno-Downtown-Casino 1000 E. 6th St. Reno, Nevada 89512 (775) 786-5151 Price: $54.00 x 2 nights + $19.25 = $127.25 Amenities: Casino, Airport Shuttle, Fitness Center, Restaurant Prices elsewhere start at $71+tax.

I have always known that Atlantic City is a hard place to bid for on weekends, but this was a particularly tough one. I tried all kinds of combinations for AC, AC West and Absecon and this was the best I could do: Fairfield Inn Atlantic City North 405 East Absecon Boulevard Absecon, New Jersey 08201 Price: $110.00 x 2 days + $47.40 Fees = $267.40 Still, with regular rates of $179 and up, it's a decent deal.

HOTWIRE had it for $17, so I tried $14 and got it on the first try. This was a couple of weeks ago and Hotwire went up to $20 since then, so this might not work anymore. Also note that I needed the car for a partial extra day, hence the total of 11 days. Anyway, here's my price: $14.00 x 11 days + $64.60 Fees = $218.60 The best I could find elsewhere was about $370, so this is about 40% off published rates.

I wanted to book a hotel in central Philly for a Saturday night stay about two months in advance. I first aimed for a 4* using free rebid zones up to $80, but no such luck this time. I then downgraded to 3* and got this place on the first try: Doubletree Hotel Philadelphia Downtown Philadelphia Broad And Locust Streets Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19107 Price: $60.00 + $16.02 = $76.02 The lowest price on the Hilton site is $152+tax, so I am quite happy with the deal.

For our trip to Thailand in August, I first tried the Siam Square zone in Bangkok at $80 and got a counter offer of raising the price by $22. I refused that and added the generally more expensive Riverside-Silom zone at $85. I ended up with the Amari Watergate, which should be a great place: Amari Watergate Hotel Siam Square 847 Petchburi Road Pratunam Bangkok, Thailand 66-2-6539000 Price: $85.00 x 6 + $102.04 = $612.04 At just over $100 per night with tax, this is not bad for a 5* in any country! By the way, anybody knows a good site to book hotels in India?

I have yet to get a really good deal in the Atlantic City area, but here's yet another hotel that I reserved for the time in April when we'll be driving there to see B.B. King in concert: Comfort Inn West Bayside Resort 7095 Black Horse Pike West Atlantic City, New Jersey 08232 609-645-1818 Price: $90.00 + $20.57 = $110.57 Direct price is just $99.95 + 14% tax, so with Priceline's fees it's not all that much cheaper. I tried a variety of options in and around AC for both 2* and 3* but this was the best I could do in this price range. Maybe I should have waited till the dates were closer...

With just a 5-day advance purchase, I got a pretty good deal on this Hyatt. And thanks to BetterBidding, I knew exactly what I was getting: Hyatt Regency Philadelphia at Penn's Landing 201 S. Christopher Columbus Boulevard Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19106 (215) 928-1234 Price: $79.00 + $16.79 = $95.79 Amenities: Restaurant, Pool, Fitness Center, High-speed Internet Access. Business Center Prices elsewhere are listed uniformly at $159 + tax

Actually, as far as I can tell, Murray Hill East is still offered through Hotwire for $118+tax, which would add up to about $855 for six nights. There is a 2.5* hotel in the MTS area with Fitness Center, Kitchenette and Laundry Facilities listed, along with a 4/5 rating from TripAdvisor, so this must be it. With that in mind, I suppose I did pretty well on Priceline...

I guess what I mean by guidance is almost purely recent pricing information. After winning -- and reporting -- about 40 hotel bids on both Priceline and Hotwire, all I really need is a starting point. Occasionally, like in the case of Venetian in Las Vegas, I still ask for help, but for the most part I can devise my own strategies. In any event, don

Reserved this for a friend who is coming to town. Tried all four Midtown zones @ $90, starting with 4* (a long shot) and gradually lowering the rating until I got this 2* hotel: Murray Hill East Suite Hotel 149 East 39th Street New York, New York 10016 212-661-2100 Price: $90.00 x 6 nights + $99.34 = $639.34 Unfortunately there is very little guidance in this forum for less expensive properties in New York, so perhaps I could have paid a little less, although I doubt I overpaid all that much. The lowest Hotwire had for those dates was $105 and that's also in the less expensive Upper West Side area. Orbitz has this hotel listed at $125, but by the time you add their inflated fees, it comes up to $950, almost 50% more that the total Priceline rate I got. So, I guess I didn't do too badly...

Yes, I bid $70 for a 3* and got it right away. Maybe I could have started lower...

Tried 4*'s in a bunch of zones up to $90, but no such luck. Apparently there is a convention going on that weekend, so availability is limited. I had to lower the rating to 3* and got this "boutique" property: Galleria Park Hotel 191 Sutter Street At Kearny San Francisco, California 94104 415-781-3060 Price: $70.00 x 2 rooms x 2 nights + $50.26 = $330.26 The regular rate on Orbitz and on the hotel's site is $189, so this is over 60% off.

I got this on the first try a couple of weeks ago, before everybody else started to try out lower prices. Still, my Mom was very happy as they are staying at this Hilton already because her friend has a conference during the week and they wanted to extend their vacation for a few more days. Here are the hotel details, as you well know: Caribe Hilton Los Rosales Street San Juan, Puerto Rico 901 787-721-0303 Price: $100.00 x 3 nights + $49.33 = $349.33 The best rate on Hilton's site was about $175 per night, so this is still quite a bargain.

I first tried up to $70 for a 3* in Atlantic City and the nearby towns. I then lowered the rating to 2* -- knowing that this is a pretty tough area to bid in on a weekend -- and got my bid accepted in Atlantic City West, about five miles from our destination. Here's what we got: Atlantic City West 6811 Black Horse Pike West Atlantic City, New Jersey 08232 Price: $70.00 + $17.45 = $87.45 The hotel turned out to be arguably the nicest 2* property we've ever stayed at. In fact, if not for the size of the room, it could have qualified for a Holiday Inn "Select" title.