Phaelon56

Good point and I didn't state things clearly enough. You present the $100 coupon when you check out and get the money deducted from whatever is n your bill. That means only using it for the items "thereuare" pointed out - e.g. spa services etc. I don't know if it applies to parking fees or meals. They don't say that it does... in some properties the restaurant or parkign may be operated by another company perhaps? If this is the case I can understand why they don't make it available for those expenses. Still.... I'm thinking of going to Ottawa CA for a weekend - best Internet rate is $106.35 US plus the 15% GST. I can stay for two nights with the coupon and get my costs down to about what I'd pay for a lesser hotel and most likely about what I'd pay on Priceline for that property. I have a business acquaintance who's a Buick dealer and advised me that it's been a very successful promotion - he's getting lots of people lin the door for a test drive to get their coupon.

Just checking in to concur with these assessments of the Marriott on Fourth Street. I recently stayed here for two nights and expected it to be much like the Marriot properties I've stayed in elsewhere (e.g. Manhattan's (East side). Wrong. The size and quality of the room and the furnishings were a noticeabel step up from typical Marriott's. I paid little attention to the public areas (I rarely do) and although I agree that they're just a trifle dated they were spotlessly clean and well maintained. Elevators were abundant and remarkably fast. It was one of, if not the most, comfortable beds I've ever had in a hotel. Even the pillows were really good - soft and squishy but still with good support like my pillows at home. The windows could be opend a bit to let fresh air in the room and the staff was very friendly. High speed Internet was $12.50 per day from noon to noon and although the connection was a slower than my cable modem at home, it wasn't bad. Not sure if I posted my winning bid info yet but I paid $73 per night before taxes and fees.

Here's the link Buick - Marriott promotion It seems legit. Go to the link, fill out the form and print it. Take it to a Buick dealer and do a test drive of at least one car. The dealer signs and validates the form and you mail it in, then wait thirty days for your Marriott Bucks coupon. It's good for a $100 credit towards "accomodations, spa services and/or gift shop purchases". The only catch (not a big one) is that it must be a "paid stay" (I assume this means PL and HW stays are okay but free stays using Marriott points are excluded). It does require a two night minimum stay and does not apply to Marriot properties other than Marriott Hotel and Marriott Resort locations but matched up to the right PL purchase.... you could stay damn near for free in some cities. I just stayed two nights at the Fourth Street location San Francsico. My total PL bill for two nights was $173.00 with all taxes and fees included. It was a good deal at that price but with $100 off it would have been a steal!

Just a note to add comments on the experience... This happens to be the Hilton that is directly across from Penn Station in Newark. Surprisingly, the hotel had automatically assigned me a SMOKING room! They changed it to a non-smoking room at my request when I arrived although they stuck me in a room right next to the elevator (turned out not to be an issue but in some properties that's a very noisy location). It's worth mentioning that the hotel was not busy - I'm sure smoking rooms had been available when I was given the initial room assignment.

Just making a quick trip down to do some mornign work in Jersey City. Phew... never thought I'd bid so many times to get this. Started out hoping to get the Jersey City Hyatt Regency at $37 and then went through a series of additional bids by adding extra zones for 3 * and even bumping my bid up as high as $52. No success after four bids. Now I started droppign my price and adding lower * quality levels accordingly. I ended up going as low as $30 for a 1* (it's a one night trip with a late arrival and early departure - I really just need a bed to crash in). Still no success. I finally tried starting a new bid at $45 in the Meadowlands area. I was fairly certain that this combiantion had already been tried and was baffled that they let me start a new bid but so be it. No luck but I went to $50 and got the Hilton. I've seen the property - it's a decent hotel only - about five years old or newer and has good lighting and security for the parking area but it's in a fairly desolate and depressing area on Rte 21 (McCarter Highway). An aiport hotel it is not but they must get away with it having a free shuttle.

A friend who regularly asks me for bidding advice and has become a strong adherent of Priceline bidding for hotels recently planned a weekend visit to NYC (staying one night for a show on Dec 4th - this past weekend). The insanely high prices and ow availability for the holiday season prompted him to sconsider driving to Philly after the show and staying there, where they'd be visiting friends on Sunday. After striking out at prices up to $100 in Philly he began a bidding pricess for NJ, targeting areas along the NJ Turnpike heading south from NYC. His bidding for 4* got up close to $100 with no luck and in the high 8$80's for 3*. Just for the heck of it he checked a few other on-line price sources and discovered a Marriott Courtyard in Edison for $71 per night! I know it's probably second nature for some of you but sometimes I have tendency to forget that it's always advisable to check the other sources FIRST!!! Gotta love that betterbidding three way hotel checker - it's the bomb!

It's not as upscale as some Hyatt's but still a very nice property. Park in the hotel's garage rather than looking for a pay lot - it's only $2.50 $3.50 per night - very reasonable. When I stayed there on PL they offered us a N/C upgrade to a mini-suite with a jacuzzi tub. It was actaully very nice but the bed was full size and Murphy bed style - folded down out of the wall and wasn't too comfortable - stick to the rooms with conventional beds if offered the choice.

And on and on and on..... my GF is now up in Richmond three time every month for three to four nights at a stretch and has been winning the Sheraton consistently on hte first bid. The only exception was a recent weekend where she couldn't get it for all four nights and ended up rebidding and getting a Marriott Courtyard in the Glen Allen area for the final night. $40 has been winning consistently but she mysteriously decided that $41 would be "safer" this past week. I'm thinking that she still doesn't really get the whole notion about free rebids but that's okay :)

He just didn't think it was really 4* caliber but in part his sense of mild dissatisfaction was based on the fact that the previous year he stayed at the Elliott Grand Hyatt when it was going for $40 or $45 per night on Priceline. He didn't expect to get that kind of deal again but paid about $110 last year for the Sheraton and there were a few minor problems with his room. I'll mention the Brasa deal to him - he's not a serious foodie but likes good food as does his GF. I might.... just might.... get back to Seattle in early to mid January for some more espresso training but will have to balance that around another planned trip.

Posting on behalf of a friend who just doesn't get off his sorry a*s to share his winning PL results with us here :) (despite the fact that he learned the whol bidding and rebidding process from me and I gave credi where it was due). He's in town for Bumbershoot. After bidding up to $110 last year for 4* and being very underwhelmed by the Sheraton that he was awarded, he opted for 3*. I haven't stayed at this propery but have stayed at a Red Lion in Bellevue. It was was unquestionably a 3* property - I think he got a good deal at $79.

Rather than clutter up the board with the same stuff over and over.... since the dates are so close I'l just append this to the existing thread. My GF was in Richmond again last week and this time got the Sheraton again at $40 on first bid for three nights 8/17/04 - 8/20/04. Ther are two separate buikldings that comprise this property - she says the room she was assigned this time was in a building she had not previously stayed in but was larger and nicer than the rooms she's had in the other building. I suspected that the desk staff might be recognizing her as "regular" by now but she says there's a different crew on t he desk every time she visits.

My GF is back at it again - she actually did the rebid process this time on her own without my coaching but didn't get the Sheraton 3* in West End Zone with her first two bids for 3* at $40 and $43. I suspect she might have gotten it if she'd used a higher starting bid but she added Glen Allen zone and expanded to 2.5* and got the Holiday Inn on the first bid. I think she could have gotten this perhaps for $40 but a good deal none the less.

Well she's there again this week (Richmond) but she bid last minute in a hurry and didn't call me for a bidding strategy. She bid 3* $40 for West End, didn't win on the first try and just added 2.5* the Glen Allen zone. I think she could have done better but she was paranoid about losing all her bids and getting stuck paying full price. This time she got the 2.5* Holiday Inn again and I think she bid $45.

Oh darn - I wish I"d known about the wireless option - I stayed here a few months ago and had my PC but opted not to use it 'cause I didn't want to deal with dial-up. It's a very conveneient location during the day but a quick caveat for weekends, especially in the summer: research carefully once you get there to find out which trains are running on regular weekend schedule and which lines are closed or re-routed for maintenance and repairs. Weekends in the sumemr can be a real hassle getting all the way back down there from midtown or above. It took me over 90 minutes to get there from midtown late on a Saturday night but I was lucky enough to share some conversation with a charming grad student who was stuck waiting on the same route. We entertained each other and the time passed quickly enough but that's a lot of time on the subway for a short distance!

The rooms are small at the Paramount but it's got a funky/cool decor and the lobby area is impressive - very non-hotel like and eclectic. Small room size is not really a problem as it's in a great location - convenient to everything but in the middle of the block so the rooms are generally quiet enough. That's a very good price.

We decided to bid 3* at $40 for opening bid as two free rebids are available (my GF bid on this last week but bid at 2.5* and got upgraded). It's a large hotel and her impression that it's rarely full so perhaps this is why it keeps coming up. Apart from walls that were a bit thin (noise travels), she describes it as a step up from the 2.5* Holiday Inn she was getting in the Glen Allan zone at $43 to $45 previously. Won this on the first bid.

Back from Seattle and had a great time. I walked up to Hine Coffee one day from the hotel - a pleasant walk. Bronwen was not on duty but the young lady working the counter made me a couple of outstanding machiatto's and as it turns out - she is from my hometown! (Syracuse NY). I was wrong about the free parking - it's $12 per day to park but the hotel offers a free shuttle service on request to five different points in Seattle (the north end of the Pike Place Market is one and the Westin is another). The shuttle runs all day up until 10:30 at night and was very helpful. Buses are easy to negotiate at $1.25 per ride and ride-all-day for $2.50 on weekends. Bus service is very spotty at night. They automatically assigned me a room with two double beds on the back side (no lake view) but I didn't request a change as I was sleeping alone and hardly ever in the room anyway. Big surprise was my technical training for espresso machines at ESI in Ballard. The regular training guy was not available and John Blackwell did a full day of one on one training for me. It's analogous to showing up at Apple for Mac training and finidng out that Steve Jobs is going to spend the day with you and take you to lunch. Incredible experience. Seattle rocks.

Thanks for the heads up. It's just for her - I won't be down visiting until later in the week but we're both non-smokers. I would hope and imagine that this early in the week they'll have some non-smoking rooms still available. Note: called her on cell phone just now and she checked in earlier today - was given a non-smoking room with king bed automatically - she did not make a special request for it.

My GF has been staying in Richmond regularly for work reasons, initiall;y bidding for Innsbrook zone and getting Amerisuites and more recently the Glen Allen zone and getting the Holiday Inn. Those bids were often second bids (when bidding for 2.5* in Richmond, the South End has traditionally been available as a free rebid) and typically came in at $43 to $45. She was looking for a change and decided to try bidding West End. Knowing there was a rebid available she started at $40 bid for 2.5* and was thrilled to get upgraded to 3* and get the Sheraton for that price. I suspect sh'll start bidding for the West End for her future trips as she'd much rather do a Sheraton than a Holiday Inn (not to mention that she refuses to stay at Amerisuites again unless she's really stuck).

Update - this is definitely a 2.5 * bid. She had to stay there again last week and I did the bidding for her when she was up to my place for a visit. I started at $38 but no success. There's only one free rebid opportunity for Richmond when bidding 2.5 * so I jumped to $45 again and met with success. I could have added the Innsbrook zone for another bid but she has repeatedly won the Amerisuites when bidding for Innsbrook and doesn't care for that property (she's somewhat fussy about decor and described it as a bit tired, not to mention that she saw spiderwebs in her room once - eeeek!).

That Doubletree is likely the nicest property in that area and definitely more like a 2.5*. That's a good price - the best you'll generally do in the east zone is the Wyndham at $45 to $50. There's also an Au Bon Pain location in the lobby - a real plus in that area as your only other breakfast options close by are fast food joints and Bob Evans.

I'll appreciate some clarification from the original poster. Was the room they were offered one with a single (i.e. twin) bed? If that's the case then there is definitely a legitimate gripe. IN that event I'm really surprised that the Triton didn't step up to the plate. They are a Klimpton Group property and as such are usually very good about customer service. A double bed (ie. a "full" bed) is smaller than a Queen but it is in fact large enough for two people - I'm 6 ' 2" and not a small guy - my GF and I shared a full bed comfortably for years before I upgraded to a queen. So the answer is yes - a full bed really will sleep two adults (at least those of us who like to sleep close). A twin or single bed, OTOH, is definitely not big enough for two (I have tried it and ended up on the floor).

Oh yes.... Bronwen.... that was already on my list of planned stops. I'll do the Wayne and Garth "we are not worthy" bowing routine. I"ve read so much about her work and it's very impressive - her energy and committment to the craft.

It also has free parking as it's not right in downtown. That's a HUGE plus as I need a car for a couple coffee related excursions I've planned for evenings. Parking at the downtown hotels in Seattle is $25 per night. The downside is that I'm only there for 3 1/2 days and all my daytime hours are to be consumed with training. The upside is that it's the initial stage of my low investment no-risk entre into the world of commercial espresso business :)

First bid was $35 for 2.5* downtown zone - no luck. I'm on a tight budget for this trip and could get a decent shared bath room at Hotel Metro for $39 (a friend I trust has stayed there and recommended it). There's only one free rebid available for 2.5* - decided to take a shot at $45 and if no luck.... try again in a week. Bingo - $45 seems to be the magic number. I've stayed in this Courtyard before - nice property. Your Offer Price: $45.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights: 3 Subtotal: $135.00 Taxes & Service Fees: $27.25 Total Charges: $162.25