cooper

Winning bid

With regard to Bangkok hotels Priceline is not the bargain deal it once was. For some (me included)the Amari Watergate,although a good hotel in its own right,is not a true 5* hotel by Bangkoks high standards. The priceline rate that you quoted, when ABF and free dinner(for 2 people ) is taken into consideration, is no better than you could get direct from the hotels own website.However if you are not breakfast people then for sure the rate is just fine. For a single business traveller such as myself it would be better to book direct with the hotel as the rates are even cheaper than those quoted below. Better deals are available elsewhere on the net in Bangkok at present for 5 * hotels.I think the fact that very few priceline deals for Bkk are posted here these days backs this up. I recently booked up Le Royal Meridien Plaza Athenee(2 people) at $122(inc tax) per night including ABF and a free dinner and a room upgrade to a deluxe corner suite for 4 nights. Priceline at present cannot ,IMO, match this offer....however that being said Priceline have given me great deals in the past and I continue to monitor them closely in the hope that the "good old days" of Priceline BKK return! Sorry almost forgot ...on a recent trip to India I used a company called hoteltravel.com with no problems for my bookings.They seemed competitive for my requirements but as aways its best to surf around for the best deals. Good luck! Reservation Form [You are in a secured environment, all data on this page is encrypted] Hotel: Amari Watergate Hotel and Spa, Bangkok, Thailand Arrival Date: Sat, Aug 19th, 2006 Nights: 6 One room, guests: 2 Room Rate: 733.00 USD per stay Local time in hotel 25.05.2006 06:05:57 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rate Description BANGKOK BREAK PACKAGE PACKAGE INCLUDES - TWO NIGHTS ACCOMMODATION IN SUPERIOR ROOM - DAILY BUFFET BREAKFAST - A COMPLIMENTARY DINNER - FRUIT FLOWER AND WELCOME DRINK EXTRA NIGHT INCLUDES - BED AND BREAKFAST ONLY -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Room Description SUPERIOR RM/KING/HOLLYWOOD TWN/TWN/ 41 SQM/DESK/SEATING AREA/BROADBAND ACCESS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Check-in Details Check in after 02:00 PM Check out before 12:00 PM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cancellation Policy A reservation must be cancelled 1 day prior to arrival (hotel local time) Penalty Charge for late cancellation is 50.00 percent of stay -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Other Information CHECK FOR WORLDHOTELS BEST AVAILABLE RATE

Two nights at

I would just like to add a warning to other potential priceline bidders in this area. With reference to the recent successful bid of $33 excluding tax + commission. This really was not such a good deal since the Hotel Regency Park can be booked online for 29$ to include ABF and all taxes. The other problem is that there are currently large construction works adjacent to the Regency Park that cause both noise and dust. Maybe I'm just being cynical but perhaps this is the reason that this hotel has recently become a new member to the Priceline family?

Thanks for the link-much appreciated. Yes you are correct this is the Glattbrugg (Airport) zone which is what I required as I will be returning to the UK after an Austrian skiing trip and have an early morning flight.I understand that they have a free airport shuttle and also a shuttle that runs downtown(10 mins) for a small fee which is useful. Here's the history :- From this and other sites I had seen that this hotel had been "won" in the past at various bids starting at $65 USD.From what I could see it had been a year or so that the last winning bid was reported. I started on Priceline UK at

Renaissance Zurich Hotel 4* Priceline HK Your Offer Price: HK$570 = $73 USD Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 1 Subtotal: HK$570 Taxes: HK$19.62 Processing Fee: HK$75 (per offer) Total Lodging Charges: HK$664.62 Total comes to $85 USD Does anyone have any feedback on this hotel please. Thank you

Last year you could get a priceline 5* hotel in BKK for around $70 including taxes and commission.This year the going rate seems to be around the $100 mark. There is no doubt that my recent bid at $46 including all charges for the 4* Holiday Inn Silom represented excellent value for money but my question is this:- With the increase in BKK Priceline rates are there better options with regard to "value for money" out thre in the market place? For example in the past when I have been in the Sukhumvit area prior to using Priceline I have stayed at the Rembrandt which in my opinion is an excellent 4* hotel.You can get an all inclusive rate including ABF for $60 at various websites. Last year I also stayed at the 5* Marriott Sukhumvit on a priceline bid of $70 including all charges and since breakfast is not too important to me (I only make about one in three as I'm a late night owl!) I felt that the extra luxury that the Marriott afforded me represented better value for money at just $10 extra. I personally feel that $100 without breakfast at a 5* hotel does not represent anywhere near the value of an excellent 4* inl ABF at just $60 . I guess if you refuse to stay anywhere but a 5* and are flexible in letting priceline make the choice for you then this is still the best way to go since the price in most cases is going to be cheaper than the online hotel rates.However even in these cases the bargains are nowhere near what they used to be. What do others think?

Thanks for the useful info Chris, Must get back to priceline now..I need a Madrid Airport hotel on the 17 Nov and another hotel in Bkk on 19-20 Jan/05. Not hopeful about Madrid..I can get a 4* (Tryp Airport) for 50 EUR on the Solmelia website.Don't seem to be able to get any cheaper on PL. Will post any successful results.

Chris I am tempted by the upgrade but for now I think I will save my pounds and put them towards more expensive accommodation on Samui and Phuket or a 5* in Bkk at the end of my break. After all if you don't try the standard rooms you will never know what value for money your priceline bid actually represents.However from your post I can see that it looks good value for the upgrade so maybe I'll upgrade for my last night just for a comparison. By the way when bidding on priceline hk in the past after failed bids I have on two occasions had a personal email sent to me from their customer service staff discreetly telling me how much more I should be bidding. I don't think this happens on the UK site...what about the US. Is this normal..has anyone else had this happen?

Yes I'm pleased enough with the Holiday Inn over this time.I know it gets mixed reviews,many on forums like this that are not so good but it is probably be compared unfairly with the Marriott riverside which is nearer a 5* than an average 4*. I have stayed at the Marriott but not at the HI although I have eaten at the Holiday Inn Indian Restaurant which I found to be enjoyable. The Holiday Inn's location is for me at least is better than the Marriott which I find a bit too far removed from the main areas of interest.Trying to find a taxi driver late at night who knows where it is can also be a bit of a problem sometimes..

Chris, I was already booked into the Holiday Inn for one night on 29/12/05(my first night in Bkk) after bidding 24 GBP on he UK priceline.Like so many others I was hoping for the Marriott resort but got the HI instead. Since then I have been bidding for a 5* in any area (up to 42 GBP)for over a month with absolutely no success........and then I saw your post and thought what the hell...why move...its not the Marriott or the Shangrila but at $35 who cares. Besides which come New Years Day I will be so drunk or hung over or possibly both at the same time??? that I probably won't even realise what country I'm in let alone what hotel! I did a straight $35(273HKD) bid at 4* for this in any area and got it first time. By the way before I had read your $35 post I had just put in an 18 GBP bid for a 4* any area on priceline UK after another failed 5*bid . The bid failed so it would appear that the HK bid at 273 HKD/35 USD/19.42 GBP is about rock bottom...unless...? Thanks again for your ground work! Paul

Friday,5 November 2004 Sunday,7 November 2004 Hotel Name: Budapest Marriott Hotel Apaczai Csere Janos U 4 Budapest, H-1364 Hungary36 1 266 7000 Zone: Budapest Check-In Time: After 04:00 PM Check-Out Time: 11:00 AM Your Offer Price: HK$524 (67.2623 USD) Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 2 Subtotal: HK$1048 Taxes: HK$147.64 Processing Fee: HK$75 (per offer) Total Lodging Charges: HK$1,270.64 $1,270.64 HKD = $163.103 USD

My thanks to Chris for this one:- Friday, 31 December 2004 Sunday, 2 January 2005 Hotel Name: Holiday Inn Silom Bangkok 981 Silom Road Bangkok, 10500 Thailand 662-238-4300 Zone: Riverside - Silom Check-In Time: After 02:00 PM Check-Out Time: 12:00 PM Your Offer Price: HK$273 ($35 USD) Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 2 Subtotal: HK$546 Taxes: HK$96.64 Processing Fee: HK$75 (per offer) Total Lodging Charges: HK$717.64 $717.64 HKD = $92.1153 USD