BEAV

Hope you enjoy, even though your allegiance usually lies with the Omni! :)

This may be over your budget, but I wanted to bring it to your attention for two reasons: 1. Rate includes full daily breakfast for two. 2. The top of Nob Hill is probably one of most immune areas of the City to panhandlers, drug dealers, homeless, etc. I punched in your travel dates, and the rate of $199 is currently available. http://hotels.travelzoo.com/california-hotels/413168

With regard to convenience catching the Amtrak bus, there are 3 Amtrak pick up points for Sacramento within the City: 1. Pier 39: This stop falls within both Hotwire & Priceline's Fisherman's Wharf zone 2. Embarcadero (main Amtrak-staffed station): This stop is located at 101 The Embarcadero. This location falls within Hotwire's Embarcadero zone and Priceline's Union Square East/Embarcadero zone. 3. 835 Market St - Westfield Shopping Centre - This stop straddles the border between both Priceline & Hotwire's USE and USW zones. As to the seedy/homeless situation in San Francisco, I would discourage you from booking the Hotel Whitcomb in the Civic Center/Hayes Valley zone we discussed earlier. Hotwire's Embarcadero zone is probably the most immune from this problem as it lies primarily in the Financial District. Next best zone would be Hotwire and Priceline's USE. Once you enter the USW zone (both Hotwire & Priceline) you find yourself dealing with these obstacles. The Fisherman's Wharf zone is mixed, in my opinion. What you cannot get away from, however, in most any downtown area of SF are panhandlers. Yes, they can be irratating, however are harmless, but unavoidable!

toSFCA, You can be glad Colfax has arrived on the scene to provide some fresh and new perspectives. Colfax is our resident SF expert. He can (and will) provide super deluxe service, whereas I only provide service!

Finally, an easy one! If you do a Hotwire Vacation Package search (air+hotel) for 6/13-6/16, you will see this is a match for the Hotel Whitcomb. Hotwire vacation package searches can be a great tool for unmasking their opaque hotel-only product. Also, when you look at this property in the Hotwire opaque hotel-only product, you will see a 3.5 TripAdvisor customer satisfaction rating. If you bring up the Hotel Witcomb on TripAdvisor, you will see it has a 3.5 customer satisfaction rating, so that makes it a match as well. Edited to add: Note the vacation package is listing different amenities for the Whitcomb than what appears on the hotel list here at Better Bidding. This is just another example of how Hotwire continually tweaks amenities and keeps us all on our toes around here.

Sorry about the date confusion on my part. I was assisting another poster who's dates were 7th to 10th and I got them confused with your dates! You are correct 6/13-6/16 is displaying a lower rate for 3.5 stars than 3 stars. This is not all that unusual .. we see it a lot around here! When it comes to Priceline, quite often we see lower priced 4 star hotels in the Union Square zones than 3 star hotels. 4 star hotels are typically larger, chain-type hotels with larger inventories than the smaller 3 star independant and/or boutique style hotels. As to Hotwire saying they have 3 hotels in Fisherman's Wharf for your dates, yes, they are displaying one each in the 3, 3.5 and 4 star categories. This does NOT mean they have only one participating hotel in each category. It just means they have availablity at 3 hotels for your travel dates. You will never see Hotwire offer two different 3 star hotels in the same category for the same date(s). They sell and display the lowest priced hotel first. If/when inventory is depleted at that particular hotel, then you will see them display a higher priced hotel in the same category if/when a different property provides Hotwire with inventory. As to the hotel list here at Better Bidding, it is merely a compliation of reported Priceline wins and Hotwire purchases. It's a constant work-in-progress as people report new hotels all the time. Because there are no two hotels with equal star ratings & amenities on the hotel list does not mean that possibility doesn't exist. Hotwire is known for constantly tweaking their star rating & amenities. They do a good job of keeping us guessing! Take a deep breath and hang in there!

Hang in there as hotel inventory is constantly changing (as you're discovering the hard way). As of this writing I'm seeing 3.5 star on Hotwire for $139 and 3 stars for $126. This is for check-in June 7, check-out June 10. Am I entering the right dates? My advice would be to book a cancellable back-up, and continue trying the Priceline/Hotwire process. With regard to the Hotwire jump from $89 to $159, are you certain you were seeing the same hotel in both searches? It is very possible for two (or more) hotels to have the same star level rating and amenity displays, so there is no guarantee the hotel Hotwire was displaying on Monday is the same you're seeing today. An example of ever-changing price & inventory would be my own experience in SF last weekend. I was looking for a one-night stay for Friday, May 23. I wasn't necessarily looking to book Priceline or Hotwire, but rather focusing on a few specific hotels on Expedia and other websites. I started price checking on Monday, and checked every day up through Friday. The prices changed every day (dropping, for the most part, as the week progressed). On Thursday, the hotel I was focusing on was charging $175 for Friday night. When I checked again Friday morning (for check-in that day) the price had dropped to $125 and I booked. A $50 drop overnight. As the hotels adjust their own pricing, so do they adjust their HOTWIRE / PRICELINE rates. So hang in there and keep trying!

Welcome to Better Bidding! There are two ways to help identify Hotwire hotels: 1. The Hotwire hotel list here at Better Bidding. Hotwire Hotel List According to the hotel list, the 4.5 star hotel in USE zone would be a match for the San Francisco Intercontinental Hotel. 2. Hotwire's Vacation Product (air+hotel). http://www.hotwire.com/package/index.jsp This feature identifies hotels and their star quality rating and amenities provided. It can be a great tool for unmasking their opaque hotel-only product. When you enter your travel dates of Aug 7-10 in a vacation package search, you will find the 3.5 star hotel in USE would be a match for the Galleria Park Hotel. Good luck with this and let us know if we can be of any more help. (Note to Thereuare: Hotwire has added the Boutique icon to the Galleria Park Hotel in the vacation package.)

After your initial Fisherman's Wharf/Civic Center bid of $74, it sounds like you "piggy backed" on your next bid rather than closing your browser and accessing Priceline again from scratch. By "piggy backed" I mean that PRICELINE remembered your FW/CC bids and all that was left was to select (or add) Lombard St. With this method, Priceline continues to bid for you in all the previously-bid zones, including Civic Center, which you didn't want the second time around. By closing your browser completely and starting all over from scratch, Priceline wouldn't remember your previous bid history, which would have enabled you to select any zone you wish (in this case FW and Lombard St). Yes, it appears you are out of bidding options until your 24 hour lockout expires. If the Fisherman's Wharf zone was the only zone you bid yesterday when you received the counteroffer, you should be able to rebid ONLY the FW zone whenever that 24 hour lapse expires. And when Priceline says 24 hours, they dont mean 23 hours and 55 minutes! It's all timed. As to rebidding using FW/CC and/or Lombard zones, you need to wait 24 hours from the time you made those bids today. Look at the bright side....Priceline's "lock out" period used to be 72 hours! I tihink you've got the concept of your "free" rebid zones. And, yes, as long as you check the quality level of EACH zone before you place your 3* bid, there is no way to get assigned a hotel in Civic Center or Lombard because they have no participating 3 star hotels with PRICELINE. Continued good luck.....

Welcome to Better Bidding. A counteroffer is something that happens randomely during Priceline bidding. In your particular case, $69 wasn't enough to "score" a 3-star room in Fisherman's Wharf. Rather than Priceline simply replying that your price wasn't accepted, they instead came back with a counteroffer. As you may/may not know, if you wish to bid again before your 24 hour lockout expires, you have to make a change to either your zone or star level before entering another bid. However in the case of a counteroffer, Priceline is alllowing you to rebid again without any zone, star level or date changes IF you increase your bid to $86. If you're a seasoned bidder and know/understand the "free rebid" system, then you can usually circumvent paying the full $17 counteroffer as Priceline will generally accept less (typically 50%) than the amount of their counteroffer. But since you're new to Better Bidding, I'm not certain how experienced you are with Priceline bidding, so don't want to get in too deep. Is this your first time bidding for hotels on PRICELINE?

At the moment, I don't think the current ecomonic downturn is necessarily hitting all parts of the country with regard to travel & tourism. I think larger cities, such as NYC, DC, San Francisco, Chicago, etc are benefitting from the weak dollar when it comes to foreign travelers visiting. At the very least, heavy foreign travel into the US is helping to curb some of the downturns caused by our own economic woes. But when it comes to smaller towns and areas, I think they will see some fallout from the US economy. An article in the USAToday last week quoted a small motel owner in Seaside, Oregon as saying they were not booked up for the Memorial Day weekend (like they usually are) and that bookings for the month of June were few & far between.

3-Star bidding is no longer available in the Marina-Seaside Priceline zone (Monterey, CA area). Either the Embassy Suites has been downgraded or no longer participates w/PRICELINE.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if this were the new Intercontintal Clement Monterey. It overlooks Monterey Bay, hence HOTWIRE's oceanfront icon. It also has a spa, in addition to all the other amenities HOTWIRE lists. http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/intercontinen.../overview/mryha http://hotels.travelzoo.com/resorts-spas/411943

Let me add my congratulations for securing a great rate for this hotel. Was $70 your first bid?

As info, no laundry icon displays when I enter the same dates with either 2 adults or 2 adults/1 child. When you do a HOTWIRE vacation package search for 6/25-6/29, neither Hyatt or Sheraton display. But when you change the check-in date to 6/26, the Hyatt displays, along with it's laundry icon. I went to Expedia, and Hyatt is sold out 6/25. Then I went to Hyatt.com and they're showing the hotel as sold out on 6/25 as well. So I think we can rule out the Hyatt if your check-in date is in fact 6/25. This can't be the Hilton Fisherman's Wharf since it doesn't have a pool. And the vacation package product still lists the Argonaut as 4 stars, so we know that hotel hasn't been downgraded (nor do they have a pool). Just a hunch, but I'd give the edge to the Sheraton. Also, if this is in fact the Sheraton, it's a pretty good price considering the rack rate runs $259-$369 during your travel dates. As to HOTWIRE not displaying the Tripadvisor rating or amount you're saving, this feature is completely random. Sometimes you see it, sometimes you don't. Good luck to you!

If you're going to do day trips the first half of your stay, and then concentrate on downtown SF during the last half, I can make this suggestion: What appears to be the Homewood Suites (3 star SF Airport North) is selling for $94 for check-in Wed 6/25, check out Sat 6/28. This property has free parking and complimentary breakfast. Note: When you add the night of 6/28, this hotel option no longer displays, so it's obviously only available for 3 nights. As to Sat 6/28 to Tue 7/1, HOTWIRE is showing 4 star SFO Airport South/Burlingame (Hyatt or Sheraton) for $79. If you took this option, you would be at/near $100 a night by the time you pay their parking charge and take BART to/from San Francisco. With that in mind, I would try a $100 bid for 3 or 4 star in downtown San Francisco (USE or USW zones). If successful, turn in your rental car at the airport on 6/28, take BART to downtown SF and spend your remaining 3 nights in San Francisco.

If you're using a rental car, I wouldn't bother renting & parking it during the 3 days you'll be in downtown SF. Stay in a downtown hotel, with no parking charges and no commuting back-and-forth on BART to an airport hotel.

In my opinion, the biggest challenge is going to be getting a winning bid (Priceline) for 6 consecutive nights without going over your $100 per night budget. If you can get the Sheraton or Hyatt for around $75 for 3 nights out of 6 nights, then that allows you to go higher for the other 3 nights under the "dollar cost average" plan. As to expensive downtown SF hotel parking fees, most hotels do not have their own parking garages, but rather utilize public garages. If the public garages charge $20 per day (typical SF fee), the hotel is going to charge you $40 to valet park your car in the same garage. Friends of ours stayed at the Palace Hotel a few weeks ago and self-parked in the same public garage the hotel utilized at 2 1/2 times the price. If you can park in public garages for around $20 per night, then I believe you are defeating your purpose by staying out at the airport and paying for BART tickets in/out of town every day. Something to consider!

Last night when I posted about the possibility of this being the Quality Suites, I thought about suggesting you bid 4 star hotels on PRICELINE. The $105 HOTWIRE rate isn't all that good give the fact the rate booking direct with Quality Suites is $125. Yes, you can probably do just as well with the 4 star hotels in this zone on Priceline. Just keep in mind those hotels will probably charge for parking, not include complimentary breakfast, etc. But if I were you I would also focus on the 4 star hotels in the airport zone via Priceline. As to 4 star pricing, it's often typical to have to pay a higher price weekdays vs weekend in this zone. If you split your bid in order to avoid overpaying on the weekend, you just have to keep in mind you might have to switch hotels. Check to see what Hotwire is charging for the 4 star hotels in this zone on the higher-priced weekdays. As a general rule, Priceline will come in a little lower than Hotwire. By looking at the Hotwire price, you can get some sort of idea what PRICELINE might accept and work from that angle. Continued good luck!

My best guess would be the Quality Suites in Millbrae. This property offers all the amenities listed by HOTWIRE. You'll also notice Hotiwre claims this property has a 3.5 customer satisfaction rating on Tripadvisor.com. When you pull up this property on Tripadvisor.com, you will see it's also rated 3.5, so that is a match in addition to the amenities. Good luck and keep us posted.

I wanted to add the Flamingo Resort & Spa is already a known 3 star property w/PRICELINE (it's on the hotel list here at Better Bidding). If you'd be happy with any of the 3 star hotels in this zone, you might save some money over HOTWIRE's price by bidding this category on PRICELINE.

HOTWIRE's vacation package (air + hotel) is often a good way to unmask the identity of their opaque hotel-only product. But, unfortunately, a property with the star level and amenities you posted doesn't display in their vacation package product for your travel dates. My best guess would be the Flamingo Resort & Conference Center, which has all the amenities you posted. In addition, you'll notice Hotwire claims the property they're selling has a 3.5 customer satisfaction score at Tripadvisor.com. If you bring up the Flamingo Resort on Tripadvisor.com, you will see a 3.5 customer satisfaction score. So, again, this would be my best guess. Good luck and keep us posted! http://www.flamingoresort.com/index.html

Did you end up getting the $139 rate via HOTWIRE's opaque hotel product? If somewhere else, pleease list the source. Sure, feel free to PM me.

The amenities you listed are a match for the Intercontinental. The Palace Hotel (Starwood Luxury Collection) is also rated 4.5 stars, but usually comes with the Spa amenity added, so I suspect the hotel you're seeing is the Intercontinental. With regard to your question of whether it's a good deal, what date(s) are you looking at? Hotwire's "Travel Ticker" has a $139 rate at the Intercontinental on various dates between now and September. If your date qualified for the $139 rate, I would tend to book through Hotwire's Travel Ticker for the following reasons: 1. Hotwire Travel Ticker links you directly to Intercontinental Hotel's website for booking your reservation, eliminating Hotwire service charges you will incur if you purchase by the opaque method. 2. Travel Ticker rate allows canceling your hotel if your plans change, where as opaque purchases are non-refundable. 3. By booking direct w/Intercontintal (via Hotwire Travel Ticker), you might get a better room assignment vs an opaque purchase. 4. Hotwire Travel Ticker rate allows you to select either a room with one king or two double beds. With an opaque booking, you get whatever they assign you, although you can call the hotel and request a specific bed type. 5. Hotwire Travel Ticker rate guarantees you the Intercontinental, which in my opinion you'd be happier than the Palace Hotel. Friends of mine stayed at the Palace a few weeks ago (while we were at the Intercontinenal) and they were somewhat disappointed with the Palace. Access HOTWIRE through the link here at Better Bidding. Click on Hotwire's Travel Ticker located at the bottom center of the hope page. Then click on "San Francisco" and select the Intercontinental. Note: The $139 rate is available for booking through May 20 (two days from now), so don't delay if you're looking to book this rate. If your travel date(s) aren't available for the $139 rate, then, yes, I would say the $132 opaque rate is pretty good. When I purchased a few weeks ago, the price through Hotwire was $162. Good luck!

Please post the amenities listed for this hotel, as well as your travel date(s).