amoredessert

My stay is actually 9/18 to 9/25. Thanks.

First bidding on Aug 24 for 3.5* from $80 to $110 +10 bonus ($5 incremental bids) using rebid zones. Rejected. Target zones were Quincy-Faneuil-Financial, Copley Square and Boston Harbor Front. Tried again today using the same bids. Rejected again. From reading other posts I got the impression that bidding on all 7 nights might be more difficult to get a low price so I broke up the dates and bid as follows: 9/18 to 9/21 (REJECTED): 4* $80 +10 bonus 4* $85 +10 bonus 3.5* $90 +10 bonus $95 +10 bonus $98 +10 bonus $100 +10 bonus $103 +10 bonus $108 +10 bonus $111 +10 bonus 9/18 to 9/22 (REJECTED): 3.5* $80 to $115 +10 bonus ($5 incremental bids) Was tired of bidding so up starting bid to $90 to end at $125 +10 bonus. There are prior wins ranging from $131 to $135 so I felt my chances were good at being accepted. 9/18 to 9/23: 3.5* $90 to $125 +10 bonus ($5 incremental bids) ACCEPTED at $125 + $10 bonus = $135 Still needed room for remaining two nights. Did the same bid and was accepted again at $125 +10 bonus. This probably wasn't the best approach but luckily got the same hotel for the last 2 nights and won't have to change hotels during stay. In hindsight, I probably should have bid for 9/18-9/20 and 9/20-9/25. Might have been able to get 9/18-9/20 for $110 (based on someone's win for these dates) but figure not worth the trouble for the $ difference. Hope this information is useful.

On 9/9/09 I bid: - followed your strategy exactly for 10/17-10/24 dates. - followed the 1st & 2nd parts of your strategy for 10/17-10/23 dates. I didn't bid the third part since I didn't want to bid any higher given that I'm breaking up my stay. - followed the 1st part of your strategy but added ESB for 10/18-10/24 dates. - gave up as it was getting late After spending more time looking into the hotels I now want to bid on 3.5* hotels in ESB (1st choice) and MSG (2nd choice) as it doesn't seem realistic to get a 4* hotel under $200 (before taxes) from information gathered from this forum. I'm choosing ESB & MSG because the possible 3.5* hotels appeal more to me. So, today I bid on 3.5* hotels as follows: Select 3.5* ESB Bid $90 - rejected Bid $95 - rejected Bid $100 - rejected Bid $105 - rejected Select 3.5* MSG Bid $90 - rejected Bid $95 - rejected Bid $100 - rejected Bid $105 - rejected Select 3.5* ESB Bid $115 - rejected Bid $120 - rejected Bid $125 - rejected Bid $130 - rejected Select 3.5* MSG Bid $115 - rejected Bid $120 - rejected Bid $125 - rejected Bid $130 - rejected There are not a lot of wins on the calendar for my dates. Do you think there aren't that many members going to NYC for those dates or are rooms that difficult to get at low prices for those dates? Should I keep trying for 3.5* for ESB & MSG with max bid of $130 or split my dates? Any comments or advice would be appreciated. I do have a cancel-able back up hotel booked. I've used your PRICELINE links for all my bids. Thanks.

SOMA is pretty safe especially closer to Market Street/section adjacent to Union Square. It does get shady heading towards the higher number streets, past 6th Street, and farther away from Market towards the water. If you pick a 4* hotel then it has to be in the good part of SOMA. If you try researching the possible hotels based on * rating in the SOMA area and feel comfortable that they are in the safe area then you might consider bidding for SOMA. Just my 2 cents. I didn't realize the Marina only has 2* hotels. This is a really expensive residential neighborhood. Maybe that's why no big hotels? Parking is tough in SF! Be sure to read all the parking signs and parking meter instructions if you are to park on the streets. Also, lots of one way streets and traffic can be bad in FD during the weekdays. Sometimes it's easier to walk to your destination if it's not too far or to take bart or muni.

Any thoughts of adding the date the bid was won or how many nights were in the winning bid to the calendar? That would make it easier to see at a glance without having to read the corresponding post.

Yes, that's clearer. Yes, checkout date is 10/24. I will try bidding again later today. Thank you.

Thereuare, thanks for the reply. Just to make sure I understand your strategy...one of the dates you listed is "10/17-10/23". Does this mean bid using your suggested strategy for the period "10/17-10/23" and then another bid using the same strategy for 10/24 (since my stay is for 10/17 to 10/24)? You have listed "10/18-10/24" twice. Is the second "10/18-10/24" meant to be "10/19-10/24?" Pider, thanks for the comment. I was wondering if there was something going on that week.

Hi, I'm pretty familiar with SF. What's your main interest in SF? Why not consider SOMA and Marina? SF airport is 15-20 minutes away without traffic, that is if you're planning on driving. If not, bart will take you into the city but I don't know exactly how convenient that is as I've never taken it to the airport.

Hi, I'm new to the site. This is a great and informative website! I've read many posts and understand the process but have been unsuccessful bidding. I'm looking for a 4* hotel from 10/17/09 to 10/24/09 in MTW, MTE, CPS or TS and add ESB if necessary. Max price, at this point, is $165 before tax. I've followed the below strategy from another post but was unsuccessful: Select 4* MTE, MTW, TS, and CPS... Bid $110, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $125, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $130, if rejected closer browser and use our links to re-access PRICELINE Select 4* ESB... Bid $110, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $125, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $130, if rejected closer browser and use our links to re-access PRICELINE Select 4* MTE, MTW, TS, CPS and ESB... Bid $135, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $145, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $155, if rejected add re-bid zone... Bid $160 I've read on another post that perhaps splitting the dates would help although I don't really understand this strategy. Would you please provide a strategy for splitting the dates? Ideally, I would like to be in a 4* hotel for all 7 nights but would be ok to move to another hotel. Thanks.