Yes... another very cool feature. My first bit of off topic news is to mention that I'm now among the elite community of "TOBB Banned Users". I'm just so proud I could burst. had not even been visiting TOBB except to lurk once in awhile when the needed depth of info was not available here. I long ago stopped posting my winning and losing bid info over there after getting bi#*ch slapped too many times for no apparent reason.
I was organizing my links folders today and clicking on all to ensure which were still accurate - sure enough - I can get right into other EZBoard community forums where I participate but not that one. Another winning strategy to win friends and influence people - tell them they're less than competent when they visit and then lock the door when they're out :)
Squeegee -
I didn't realize that this was/is a long distance relationship - bless you and best of luck with that. It's a chalenge and takes a certain kind of commitment. I recently ended a relationship that had begun a year or so ago as a quasi LD arrangement but had allowed us a fair amount of time together for the first six or seven months. When the distance increased and it became evident that I would not / could not relocate, it had to be shelved. Likely there are other issues at play but regardless.... I guess I'm a romantic and really do enjoy hearing of the love and connubial bliss that others are sharing and enjoying (being single has its advantages but is not always all that some crack it up to be).
Shop carefully on the cruises - there are great deals to be had out there and Thereuare can probably point you to a few good purchase sources if you've already done your research. My experience was the the quoted price was always way lower than the actual final price once port charges etc were added in.
There are certain cruiselines and specific ships on which upgrades to higher cabin levels are a common occurrence, especially if they know you are celebrating a honeymoon or anniversary. I'll elbaorate here or by email if you're interested.
There may never be a definitive answer to this question, but here in the US, have any of us ever seen a posting from someone that bid, won and was awarded a hotel on PL with shared bath or received one after accepting the price on HW? NOt that it couldn't happen but before this wonderful website was available I used to scan the NYC listings at TOBB regulalry and don't recall ever seeing a mention of this occurring.
The point was made that 1* properties have less margin to play with and that's true. They also tend to be less likely to get involved with something like PL or HW as they are usually smaller independently owned properties. I'm thinking places like Hotel 31, Murray Hill Inn, Pickwick Arms, the Habitat.... all of these places have at least some rooms with shared bath IIRC but seem to have little if any trouble selling these rooms at their regular rates, especially to European visitors or last minute arrivals (and those ona restricted budget who don't know much about PL and HW).
Belated congrats Squeegee....
The way I figure it, every time one of you guys ties the knot it gives me a bit more breathing space and I can continue postponing marriage. I think I'll save it for retirement.
Sooo.... will the honeymoon acomodations be a la Priceline?
We already have some reported wins that aren't found anywhere else on the 'net
I assume that TOBB is the same as TOBB? (I'm guessing it means "the other bidding board").
I am definitely among the group who posts my wins (and failed bid histories) here and nowhere else. I used to dual post in both forums until I got b*tchslapped too many times for no good reason.
Betterbiddig is where it's at and I think we'll see it continue to grow slowly and steadily. Good work Thereuare!
This property is a bit tired but adequate as a place to crash. The bathroom sink was close to being clogged - drained very slowly but the shower was great and all was clean. It's an older property but consideirng the fact that everything in the area was sold out or close to it on this weekend, it was fine.
I had a non-smoking room by request but most of the roms on my floor were smoking and the hallway smelled like an ashtray - the cigarette smoke smell was nearly overwhelming. My rom was fine but I suspect that smoking roms in this property are really saturated - buyer beware as PL and HOtwire do not gurantee non-smoking. I was a late arrival and ended up wiht a non-smoking room only because someone else had canceled at the last minute.
For those of you who are fond of musical history.... Cafe Wha is notable as the place where Jimi Hendrix was playing as Jimmy James and the Blue Flames when he was "discovered" and dragged off to England to become a star.
As long as you're already in the Village.... I love to steer peple towards Caffe Reggio on MacDougal. It draws a few tourists but is such an authentic feeling place with such great atmppshere that it's always worth a trip. Great panini sandwiches, good desserts and coffee. The espresso and capuccino is so-so but they do have the very first commercial espresso machine that was ever installed in the US. It's no longer in use but is on display and is quite the lovely piece for fans of industrial design and the like.
Usual suspects all booked or grossly overpriced. Only other choice on Hotwire was a 2.5* at $110. Struck out on PL in the same areas after bidding up to $65 per night for 2.5* and 3* and even separating bids into separate nights. I know this property to some extent - used to live in the area. I was surprised that HW considers Clifton to be part of the Meadowlands zone but this is the best I can do on a very busy weekend and it's close enough. This was the sole amenity listed.
"This hotel features the following amenities:
Laundry Facilities (self-service)
Hotel offers guests access to a coin-operated washer/dryer."
Not only does Hotwire have availability in only one zone this weekend for Friday or Saturday night (Midtown South), they are offering the fabulous "only in NY" price of $1,000 per night. If I was a gambler I'd be inclined to book the room and then do the "double the difference" rate guarantee. Can there possibly be a 3* property in Manhattan that actually gets even remotely close to that amount PER NIGHT.... even at the busiest time of year?
The plans got cancelled day of arrival and I ate the cost of the room (split it with my friend whose plans changed) but here's the info FWIW
Bid 1 - $37 3* downtown - no success
Bid 2 - $42 added a free rebid and won the Adams Mark
Hotwire showed a supposed 3.5 * for $56 on this date and Adams mark had an $89 special running but as usual, PL beats them all.
It's worth mentioning that twice a year (at least it has been this way in the past), Amex has a deal with Continental Airlines in which any conversions made during the window (usually a four week period) get a 20% bonus, e.g. convert 10,000 points and get 12,000 miles. Nice perk on an already good program.
3* - winning bid of $45
Beautiful property - stayed for two nights. I was put on the 8th floor in a NS King that had a nice angle view of the river and the skyline. The property is directly across the river from downtown Pittsburgh in Station Square, an entertainment and complex. There's a small shopping building, a Starbucks, Hard Rock cafe, sports bars, comedy club etc. Area is very quiet weeknights and busy weekends.
Large room, excellent bed, great pillows. The availability of high speed Internet access would have been nice but otherwise this is a stellar property. Two years ago I stayed at the Hilton at the edge of downtown directly across from "the Point". This is by far a nicer property that the Hilton.
Hotel staff was warm and friendly - great place to stay if you win a bid on this one.
I may post this elsewhere also but since I promised a followup in this forum....
I'm back from my stay at the Hotel Madison. Perhaps not the most convenient location for tourists but only a block or so from the 6 train, a safe neighborhood and some decent restaurants in the area. Since I last saw this property some years ago they ahev renovated the obbly area - it's much brighter and more attractive but the front desk clerk still sits behind a plexiglass shield. that's a bit odd as it is a good neighborhood but I suspect this is a holdover from some long past era when they were an SRO (single room occupant) hotel.
The room was a trifle larger than I expected and the decor could best be described as early 1970's Econolodge with no updates. The furniture was chipped and worn, the comercial grade carpet had a few stains and the overall vibe was a bit depressing but.... the bed was comfortable enough for a budget property, the linens were clean and fresh and the tiled bath, walthough old, was impeccably clean and in good working order. No remote control for the ancient TV and some channels were fuzzy but at $74 per night including tax, this is definitely the best of class.
If you know folks on a budget, perhaps students or foreign friends who are getting beat up by the exchange rate, this is a step up from a hostel. It was surprisingly quiet for a fourth floor corner room directly on Madison and 27th. There is a plain clothes security guard in the lobby at all times - no one is allowed past the lobby unoless they have a key and can verify that they are a guest. The clientele appeared to be a mix of budget oriented tourists and college aged travelers.
Bidding for two rooms for two nights.
Started unsuccessfully with 4* at $45 and used my single rebid opportunity at $50 - still no success.
Hotwire had 3 * property at $54 - decided to start new bid process with 3* at $45. Gave some thought to lowballing it at $42 but this is a business trip and we really need to stay downtown where the clients are.
There is again onlya single rebid opportunity if one is bidding on 3*.
Success on first bid at $45! If this is the property I recall...... it's a decent hotel and I've stayed here before.
If you want a backup room that can be reserved ina dvance and then cancelled if/when your PL deal comes through.... try the Marriott Courtyard in Newport/Pavaonia Jersey City Waterfront. It's a brand new property (less than two years old) adjacent to a nice mall with some restaurants nearby and right next to the PATH train station. The PATH runs 24 hours per day and gets you to Manhattan in twenty minutes or so for about $1.50 - $2.00 each way.
Prices appear to have gone crazy this year for fall season - I tried to get a 2* or 1* room on PL for this weekend and had no success in any zone at bids up to $95 even for 1*!!! I've decided to try a little known but reputable tourist class hotel called the Madison at 29th and Madison. Will post a review for you here after the weekend - their fall special is $74 per night with all taxes included - goes up about $10 after mid November but it's still an incredibly low price and I have reliable reports that it's a decent property. I had to reserve non-refundable because I reserved this week and it's so close to arrival date but they may have cancellable reservations for dates further out.
How do I combine the two? Also.... I have a blue account currently and it has about 6,400 points in it - not too many. I received an email from them recently to the effect that if I don't stay in a Hilton during the next several months my points expire and become useless. Is there a way around this or as an alternative.... is there something of tangible value I can use these points for before they expire?
I'm in NYC Thursday night Nov 6 on business and decided to stay over on my own dime for Friday night and possibly Saturday as well. Until recently I lived in the area and have been itching to get back.
My employer is in a real pinch for $$ right now and travel expenditures are severely limited. I assured them that I could find lodging for one night in NYC at about $100 or less and they approved the trip.
Hotwire showed very high prices - nothing under about $150 - $175. Hotels.com had one "bargain" - the dreaded Hotel Pennsylvania at $129.95 for Thursday night and jumping to $180 for the weekend nights. Apart from the "Jazz at the Habitat", which is shared bath and under $100, there were no other viable ptions.
Decided to fish the bottom with Priceline and started a search for 2*. I began with Lower Manhattan at $70 bid and worked my way through every single zone, bumping my bid along the way until I ended with UWS at $90 and still no success!
Started a new bid with (gulp!) 1* as the choice and went through the entire range of zones AGAIN, starting at $75 and ending at $95 - once again no success.
It was worthwhile in the sense that it makes evident a significant fact - PL baragains, if they are to be had at all in Manhattan, will lkely tend to be at 3* and above. I think fall demand is so strong for tourist class hotels that few if any in the 1* and 2* class will have inventory available for PL.
I even tried calling the Travel Inn way out on 42nd Street. I's kind of a funky location but I've read reviews from folks who stayed there for the night before departing on a cruise - it is apparently an acceptable property. They wanted $105 for Thursday nigth and $170 for the weekend nights. I inquired as to what was going on in NYC that weekend and was advised simply that "it's a busy time of year".
Finally the light bulb went on - years ago I stayed at the Gershwin on 29th Street - it's part hostel and party funky/cool hotel but the service and staff attitude was so horrible I vowed never to stay there again. At the time I looked into a small property a few doors away called the Madison Hotel. The lobby area and desk seemd like a cross between a YMCA lobby and an SRO hotel but I spoke to a young Israeli couple who were staying there as tourists and they said it was fine.
Now I recalled an email exchange and travel forum discussion with an Aussie man who brought his family to NYC for a week a few summers ago. He advised that the Madison proved to be a great value - clean, comfortable and cheap. Even included a continental breakfast. It's located at Madison and 29th.
I called them yesterday and reserved for two nights with the option of staying over for a third night all at the crazy low price of $74 per night on their "Autumn Special"! That price INCLUDES the NYC taxes, occupancy fee etc.
It's certainly not posh but it's a great location for me to easily grab a train to Water Street early Friday AM and not too bad a spot to be based for my downtown forays that evening and the next day.
It's not a PL property and won't be but at this price it's worth knowing about as a backup. I'll post a follow up here as to the nature of my experience once I return.
Just an additional thought on this topic.... not sure if Priceline ranks the Plaza as a 5* (Hotwire does) and it is in MTC rather than MTE but be forewarned that if the you win the Plaza on a PL bid, you may find it to be a bit underwhelming for the price. A close friend of mine just finished a one year stint working there behind the scenes (she has since left for western NY state and a new job).
She advised me that although the public areas and the very pricey lartger rooms and suites receive plenty of attention, the property in general, including the smaller rooms (which one would be like to receive on HW or PL wins) are getting a trifle threadbare. Fairmont manages the property but does not own it and can't seem to get the ownership to part with the $$ necessary to really bring this property back to the condition it deserves to be in. Fairmont's efforts to purchase it has been rebuffed - this condition may persist for quite awhile.
Having just relocated, I'm staying with a friend for a few months until my housing situation is finalized. Decided to clear out for the night on a Friday so he could have his GF over for dinner and have some privacy. My target was CHEAP. I had the option of staying in Rochester, where I was planning to meet a friend for dinner, or in Syracuse where I currently reside.
Knowing that some very cheap rates are available at places such as Microtel and Motel 6 in the Syracuse area, I decided to low ball some bids to minimize risk but still allow gaining some kind of reference point in the future for 1* and 2* Syracuse and Rochester area bidding. The conclusion is that 3* represents the best value in Syracuse PL bidding (or so it appears) as the Wyndham in East Syracuse quite often goes for $45. Not so sure about 3* in Rochester but 1* and 2* were unsuccessful.
I did this a week or two ago so we're working from memory but here's the gist of it
Syracuse:
Bids for 1* at prices ranging from for $18 to $23 were all rejected - likewise with 2* at $23 and $25. The Motel 6 (improved since Accor took over the chain) was available for Web booking at $31.95 per night. Some of the likely 1* candidates (and possibly some of the 2*) in Syracuse that might show up as wins on PL are ratty and Motel 6 would be a better option.
Rochester:
Bid both ranges again at prices from $23 up to $32 in $2 or $3 increments. Once again no success. Sidestep showed prices in general to run higher in Rochester.
I reserved the Motel 6 and then my friend's plans changed - he was out for the night and I was able to cancel the Motel 6 reservation with no penalty. I have in fact (on two occasions) been successful with a lowball 1* bid in the past (Norfolk VA) and got a fairly decent property but it doesn't look like winning strategy in Syracuse.
Office Depot had these on backorder as of several days before the required purchase period ended (Sept 06 was the cut-off date). Not sure if it's the exact same model but CompUSA ran one in yesterday's flyer (at least where I live and I think the flyer is national). D-Link "turbo" 802.11b router base station for $80 in $20 instant rebate and $30 mail-in rebate = final cost of $29.95 - not as good as the Office depot deal but anything under $40 after rebate for this type of product is a good deal.
By the way.... do not spend the extra money at this time for 802.11G products - not yet widely dsitributed enough and well proven enough - you're not really buying enough of a performance increase to justify the extra cost. Also.... be sure to enable WEP encryption and use it (see the owner's manual - it's really easy to do).
I'll check this out if I try the tactic again in the future ( a possibility). I was unaware that one could UNselect a zone..... is this something new or has it always been this way? I thought that once a zone had been selected you could not UNselect it.
It may be a moot point for this area anyway. I got a 1* PL bid for about $23 per night on two separate visits to the Norfolk VA area and it was a decent suites motel (comparable to an Amerisuites but without free breakfast). Rochester and Syracuse don't seem to dip much below $40 per night even for 2*. In Syracuse you can almost always get the 3* Wyndham for $45 - not much point in pursuing 2*.
I'll post my unsuccessful bid history for my recent try on a Syracuse - Rochester area stay but tried something new (to me) and it seems to work - curious to get feedback on this.
Background: I've relocated back to Syracuse NY after four years in the NYC area and am staying at a friend's house until I see how the job situation pans out before I commit to a lease on an apartment. He has a new GF who can only spend the night once every other Friday due to family obligations (divorced with kids). In order to give them a night free of my presence, I decided to spend Friday evening in Rochester visiting a friend there and staying in a motel there or in Syracuse.
It's just me and all I want is a bed to sleep in. Hotwire has nothing under the high $50's in either city - I decided to bid for a 1* property and see what came up. No luck but see my bid history post for details.
Here's the strategy: I know I want the cheapest possible property - not too much risk as independent "hot sheet" motels don't participate in Priceline (not that I'm aware of). Rochester has six zones in total, two of which have no 1* hotels. I choose the Downtown zone (where I wish to stay) and select 1*, then enter my bid. If the bid is rejected, I choose the East Rochester zone (has only 2* and above) and bump my bid up a few $$. If I get rejected again, I choose the Woodcliff zone, which also has no 1* properties, and raise my bid few $$ more.
I recognize that there's a chance they could upgrade me to a 2* in either of the free rebid zones but knowing how prices run in Rochester and being in a relatively lowball bid range.... it's not that likely. Chances are excellent that if I win the bid I'll be in my zone of choice.
I did this and it appeared to work although I didn't win a bid. Am I missing anything here? I know this is a technique that few are likely to have a need for but I'm just curious to know if it really works as appears.
I don't know whether this is a new program or if perhaps I just became aware of it because I'm spending more time in NY state as I prepare for my relocation. There is no keyBank in NJ where I presently live but I spotted a newspaper ad when workign in Syracuse NY and checked out this promo. Here's the skinny:
Sign up for a KeyBank "Express" checking account. You can only write two or three checks per month with a fairly steep per check charge after that but there's no monthly fee, you don't have to get check with the account and the account minimum is only $50.
Do the on-line signup at KeyMiles debit card
There is a $30 annual fee charged once you receive the paperwork and sign up for the account. Opting for the OnePass "Gold" debit card gets you a 2,000 mile signup bonus and a credit of one mile for every two dollars spent with the card. There may be better deals out there but I happen to need 2,000 miles to hit my next mileage award and this fits the bill. I'm also in a position where nearly all my major pruchases are with debit card rather than credit cards (been there.... done that.... still paying it off).
I just returned from a night's stay at this hotel. Previous review is generally on the mark. The renovation appears to be on upper floors and is blocked off by plastic - had no impact on the rest of the hotel. We had two rooms and found the beds in both to be a bit too soft - otherwise this is a fine property. Best to ask for a room on the side away from the airport runway - it's quieter. We stayed on that side and had no problems at all with noise. The jacuzzi in the indoor pool area appears to be more or less permanently out of order.
Staff was very friendly and accomodating. Parking is $6 per day but allows unlimited in and out privileges.
Off-Topic Area... members only or lurkers too?
in Questions and Suggestions
Posted
Another thought on adding an OT section here... the friednly discourse that already exists here would likely carry over to such a forum section. Seems to me that the folks who are active here are Web surfers and bargain hunters by nature. Some of those interests sill over into so many other areas it woudl be ncie to have such a discussion area. it may well brin some lurkers out of the woodwork or get some occasional visitors to return more often and begin more actively contributing.