jrwessling

There are 19 zones in Pittsburgh, however currently only one (Zone 2 -- Downtown) has 4* and above hotels. My goal was a 4* in Downtown, so this provided me with 18 free bids. I started bidding at $63 and added a few dollars for each new zone added. I went up to $101 with no success. On Day 2 (the day before I needed the room), I started at $68 and was immediately offered the opportunity to bid at $92. I declined and continued adding zones and raising a few dollars. Price.line accepted my 7th bid for $81 (total cost $98.76 after taxes and fees). The Hotels.com price is currently $259 so I am very pleased with this win. Ironically I won this same hotel years ago when I first discovered your website. Finally, I used your PRICELINE link. Thank you!

Needed a hotel prior to flying out the next day; BetterBidding history suggested I would get the DoubleTree at 3.5*. Because I went for a 3.5* I had six free bids in the area. Day 1: started at $53 and went up a few dollars each bid to $75. Not accepted Day 2: started at $52 and went up a few dollars each bid until $69. Bid accepted (5th bid). Total with fees/tax = $85.42. Cost on hotels.com is $149 plus tax for a total of $166.88. For this time a year I am very pleased with the bid. I also used the BetterBidding.com PRICELINE link. Thanks!

Bid for a 5-star hotel. Four zones in Vienna, however only City Centre has 5 star hotels. This allowed me to use the other zones for "free bids". Bid Strategy • Started at $81; $87; $92 (added zones as needed) • Bid accepted at $92 → two night stay with taxes/fees = $216.28 Cheapest I could find online was $181/night plus taxes. Happy with this deal. I used the betterbidding PRICELINE link. Thanks.

Short notice trip where I only had one day to bid on hotels. This impacted my strategy. Ended up with the Sheraton Wilmington South Hotel for one night at $86. Total cost with taxes and fees was $102.22. (Internet rates are $159/night so I am pleased with the deal). NOTE: Priceline appears to be using new zoning categories for this area -- they no longer match those found on BetterBidding. They also no longer carry a 3.5 star option (although the winning hotel use to be a 3.5-star). Bidding strategy: I was trying to get a 3-star hotel close to the University of Delaware (now zone 5 -- Newark West). I took advantage of the two 2.5-star zones (zones 2 and 3) to provide me with three free bids before I had to add other 3-star zones (zones 4, 8, etc.). Because I didn't have the luxury of waiting 24 hours to rebid, I continued adding zones based on nearest distance to the University. Bid 1: 3-Star (Newark West). $52 (denied) Bid 2: Added zone 2 (Elkton, MD). $63 (denied) Bid 3: Added zone 3 (New Castle). $79 (denied) Bid 4: Added zone 4 (Neward East - Christiana). $76 (denied) Bid 5: Added zone 8 (Wilmington South). $86. (Accepted)

Bid Strategy: Inner Harbor zone is only zone with a 4* (out of nine zones). Started bidding at $63 and added a couple dollars for every new bid. Bid was accepted on the 5th try for $70. Very pleased with the results. $70/night x 2 nights ==> $140 + 29.14 (fees and taxes) for a total of $169.14 for two nights.

Lived in DC suburbs 10 years and never seen the fireworks with the kids. Decided to book a room in the city at the last minute for the 4th of July. Information on forum helped me with my bid strategy. Basically found that when bidding for a 4*, I had six free bids zones. I had to use five of the free bids, but got a price I feel is very reasonable -- $88/night. Website rate is about $170/night. Progressive bids, adding a zone each time that did not have a 4* hotel (zones 2, 4, 7, 10, 11): $60, $65, $70, $75, $82, $88. Thanks for website. I used your PRICELINE link.

2.5* Holiday Inn Express in Florida City for two nights at $91/night. Total cost = $182 + $33.8 (taxes & fees) = $215.78. Bid strategy: Found two 2.5* hotels in the area on the Internet. Websites had the Holiday Inn Express for $122/night and the Hampton Inn for $159/night. There is only one zone in this area, so only had one shot a night if I wanted the 2.5*. Ending up having to bid over seven nights. Tried low-ball bids early on, knowing I had some time -- none accepted. Tonight was going to be my last bid -- I was at my self-imposed limit. If not accepted, was going to book the Travelodge for $99/night. Overall pleased with the rate, although probably the closest I have paid percentage wise to the full rate. Not a lot of options in the area and some of the 2* hotels did not look good so didn't want to go that route. Bid history by days: 1) $37 2) $40 3) 46 4) 61 5) 76 6) 82 7) 91 --> Accepted Used the PRICELINE link provided through this website.

Bid over multiple nights using a total of five zones. Ended up with the 3.5* Hilton Fort Lauderdale Airport for $91 for March 31, 2010. Total cost of $109.70. Hotel website cheapest prices was $159.00. Plan was to go up to about $95 before seriously considering HOTWIRE or just booking something off a travel website for peace of mind. Basic strategy: Started with a bid for a 3.5* in the Airport zone (zone 4) and progressively added four zones that only went up to a 3*. 1st night: $55, $58, $61, $64, $67 --> None accepted 2nd night: $58, $67, $73, $78, $82 --> None accepted 3rd night: $73, $83, $88, $91 --> Accepted Used the PRICELINE link provided in the upper right corner of the betterbidding website. Now trying to get a place in Homestead to visit the Everglades.

Bid $36 for 3* for Virginia Beach (Area) -- Zone 10, two rooms, one night. Priceline came back asking me to increase $10. I declined and rebid $41 using another zone that did not have a 3* rating. ACCEPTED. Total cost for two rooms at the Wydham Virginia Beach Oceanfront was $102.68 ($82 + $20.68 taxes and fees). Cheapest room available on the hotel website for that night was $99, plus about $12 in taxes. FYI, earlier tried to get a 4* in the Pembroke area. Started at $40 and increased by $5 each bid by using other zones (Pembroke is the only one of 10 zones in the Norfolk/VA Beach area with a 4* rating). Not accepted at $50, so tried one more time at $53. NOT ACCEPTED. Decided to change course and go for the 3* hotels on the beach as discussed above. Used the PRICELINE link provided in the forum.

Yesterday bid 4* Opera East $85; then bid 4* Opera East and Champs Elysees $90; No luck Tonight bid 4* Opera East $109; then bid 4* Opera East and Champs Elysess $111; Won the bid. Hotel Concorde La Fayette. 01AUG-06AUG2009. $111/night. Mixed reviews across various travel websites, however TripAdvisor had very recent reviews that were more favorable. Hotel website listed at almost $200/night. Orbitz had cheapest at $167/night, however Travelocity listed at $247/night (yikes). Not real close to tourist sites (0.8 miles to Arc de Triomphe), however metro is right around the corner. Should work out fine.

First time user. Great resource. I have been reviewing this site for a couple weeks and recently started practicing the PRICELINE process by making lowball bids for 5* hotels in London. Tonight I took the plunge and bid for a 4* in Westminster using your link for PRICELINE. I bid $90 for the period 06AUG-10AUG 2009 and got the NH Jolly St. Ermins on the first bid. The hotel website price range for this period is 113-125 GBP per night (approx. $190). The HOTWIRE price for a 4* in Westminster is $129/night. Having lived in London during the 90's, I am very pleased with the location of the hotel for sightseeing. Reviews were mixed, however I'm farily low maintenance so can't see there being a problem. BTW, first time I've ever posted, so hopefully I'm doing this correctly. Please let me know if I did not provide all the information. I'm will also use your PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links to find a hotel in Paris and possibly Versaille for the period 01AUG-06AUG. Any thoughts for finding a place in Versaille? Thanks!