jvander

I thought the Hyatt Regency Downtown Miami was 4*??? Has this changed?

Not sure if this is the appropriate place to post this. Forgive me if it is not. However, just wanted to report back about additional fees we occurred at the Caribe Hilton upon checkout. Initially, the two nights we booked were for $115/night. Total for 2 nights, $230. Taxes/fees $59.56. Total $289.56. Upon checkout, they informed us we owed $15/night resort fee (not too surprised) AND another $10/night 'occupancy' tax. We also stayed Sunday night for $135/ night. Initial taxes were $37.72. However, we owed additional for that night also. Bottom line is, your Priceline price with taxes is not your final price! After paying $97.28 taxes and fees for 3 nights, we found that we owed an additional $75 in fees. The people at the checkout desk stated that Priceline is not picking up all the taxes in Puerto Rico anymore. There is some kind of new 'municiple' tax, and Priceline is not paying it. Maybe this is not new??? It was new to me. Just a heads-up for those traveling to San Juan.

Got a "best price refund" of $85.50 for this night! New total INCLUDING taxes is $87.22!!!! Also got $10/night bonus money for future bid! Thanks so much for your help!!!! :)

Because of your help, I was able to get a refund!!! Got a refund of $131 for these 2 nights!!! I wonder if it is a mistake on the website, but I'll take it!!! Spent 55 minutes on the phone with Priceline rep! Ended up paying $79 per night INCLUDING taxes!!! :)

After I bid for Monday and Tuesday, I got an offer to add a night to my $115 bid at the Caribe Hilton for Sunday, January 20th, 2008. My offer was rejected, but they offered me a rate of $135 for Sunday, January 20, 2008. I accepted. :)

Okay, so I bid (through SavingsBarn link) for January 21st and 22nd, Resort level. Bid $110/night. Got an offer to up my offer by $22/night. Closed out the offer and opened a new page. Bid $115/night for 2 nights. Got the Caribe Hilton for $115/night. Great deal!!! $115/night for 2 nights at the Caribe Hilton, January 21, 22, 2008 (Monday, Tuesday)

We had a very enjoyable stay at the Marriott San Juan this January 2007. I had booked the rooms on Priceline in March of 2006 for a group of 10 (5 rooms). This proved to be a wonderful Priceline win! Check in was smooth and there was no mention of Priceline. When we asked what type of rooms were available, the young woman at the desk offered us partial ocean view rooms for an additional $50 per night, or total ocean view rooms for $75 extra per night. We declined but were very happy with our rooms. She then asked if I wanted Marriott reward points or United miles for our stay!! She was one of the most cordial staff persons we have ever encountered. Actually, the staff was fabulous! I have never witness this kind of service ANYWHERE in San Juan. The staff at the Marriott is top notch! Our room faced the front of the building where you drive in to the property. Lots of construction in the surrounding area, but it was fun to sit on the balcony and watch people come and go. The room itself was all newly renovated. Everything was brand new. I mean EVERYTHING! It was beautiful with top quality furnishings. There was a coffee maker in the cabinet that the TV sat on, a very nice flat panel TV, cozy pillows and bed linens, new furniture, a safe in the closet, as well as iron and ironing board. The bathroom was quite large and very nice with a makeup mirror and a huge rainfall type shower head. If there was a downfall to the room, I felt that the walls were rather thin. In the afternoon, I could hear normal conversation of the cleaning staff 'chattering' in the hall. The pool area is huge, but it is difficult to sometimes find a place in the sun, as there are so many palm trees! No worry, the beach is just steps away! There was a coffee shop in the lobby where you could get breakfast items as well as salads and sandwiches. The hotel is located on a street that has numerous restaurants and stores. There is a Walgreens about a block away. The Marriott San Juan has my vote for courteous, professional, warm staff, as well as beautifully renovated rooms. After visiting San Juan at least a dozen times, the staff at the San Juan Marriott was "a breath of fresh air"!!!

Some time ago, I booked and paid for 4 rooms in San Juan at the Marriot. One of the couples has had to drop out of our group and will not be using the room. However, another couple now wishes to go. My question is, since I paid for the room, can they use it? I will be there at check in, but it will not be for the original couple. My name is on the invoice for billing purposes only. Is there anything I should do to prevent a problem at check-in? Thank you!

In early March, I placed a succesful bid of $95 for Jan 18th and 19th. I got the San Juan Marriott. A few days later, I got 4 more rooms at the Marriott for Friday, Jan 19th only. We decided to go one day earlier than previously planned, now arriving on Wednesday, Jan 17th. Originally, there was an option to add a night. Of course, it has been past the 30 day mark now. Bidding for 1 night, Jan 17th Resort level. I have bid upto $130. All bids have failed. Current rates for the Marriott is $315; Caribe Hilton $340; Intercontinental $299. Looks like no inventory for now. I just wanted to let others know. As always...I placed my bids through the SavingsBarn link!! Will attempt to rebid next month!

Using the Savings Barn link OF COURSE, bid first for $50, Chicago O'hare zone. Rejected, I added Midway zone as a free rebid and bid at $60. This was rejected, so I added Skokie and upped bid to $70. Hyatt Regency O'Hare 9300 West Bryn Mawr Road Rosemont, Il 60018 accepted bid $70 1 night 1 room Taxes $18.13 :) Total $ 88.13

I really never expected to get this so far out. I started with $85 resort and was denied. Added free rebid and upped to $95. Got the San Juan Marriott! We are traveling pre-cruise with several other couples, so I needed to see if they would want me to bid for them. Got 3 more rooms for Fri Jan 19th (one night only) for $95. Tried $90 but was denied. This seems so early for San Juan! Great to see this market a little easier to get.

Got it first bid! Very happy with this bid, as San Juan was so difficult to get last year.

Needed this for one night only. Started at $44. Added free rebid and upped to $47. Doubletree Hotel San Antonio Airport 37 NE Loop 410 San Antonio, Texas Offer price $47 Taxes $15.27 Total $62.27

I checked today and the 4* option was indeed available for both the beach zone and the downtown zone. Maybe it was a computer error?

I got a 4* option for both the beach and the downtown zone (Ft Lauderdale) when checking today. However, it was not present over the weekend. Hope this helps! Janet

Bidding 3* DT zone (through Savings Barn), I was hoping for the downtown Sheraton. Started at $41. Was offered to up the price by $12. Declined, adding Fenton as a free rebid and upped the bid to $44. Omni Majestic Hotel 1019 Pine Street St Louis, Mo 63101 1 room, 3 nights Your offer price $44.00 subtotal $132.00 taxes/fees $28.36 Total $160.36 I will certainly take pictures and do a review when we return!

Bid this for DH business trip. Won on first bid. Doubletree Hotel San Antonio Airport 37 Ne Loop 410 San Antonio Texas $40 1 room $13.99 Taxes and fees $53.99 Total

I bid this for my son and his girlfriend. Bid 3* $75. Got this first bid, so may have gotten it cheaper. Still a good deal. Radisson Ambassador 1369 Ashford Ave Condado San Juan, Puerto Rico 787-721-7300 Your Offer Price: $75.00 Number of Rooms: 1 Number of Nights 1 Subtotal: $75.00 Taxes and Fees: $ 17.12 Total Charges: $92.12

Used Savings Barn link. Bid $47 3* Downtown St Louis to extend a business conference. We have stayed at the Sheraton before and enjoyed it. Rooms are HUGE!!! Will take pics and post both the Marriott and the Sheraton on RealHotelPhotos.com!

This hotel was previously called the Park Place Normandie, but is now just Normandie. We had read some pretty bad reviews, so our expectations were rather low. We stayed elsewhere in PR prior to our check-in at the Normandie, so I called around noon to inquire when we could possibly check-in. I was quickly and sharply informed that check-in was 3pm. Now when they say 3pm, they MEAN 3PM! We had to checkout of our room by 12, so we arrived at the Normandie at 12:30. They told us we could leave our bags and come back at 3pm! We walked to the condado area and returned at 3pm. Guess what, the room is not ready! Some customers were in the lobby with their families, and they were irrate! We just took a seat and were able to checkin around 3:20pm. The checkin area is quite small and has a few chairs and a sofa. Internet access is free in the lobby area! The next area is a tall atrium area which also serves as a lounge, etc. This is the interior of the hotel, and the rooms surround both sides, all the way up. Therefore, when they have live entertainment, every room will hear it until they are finished! This area has been remodelled and is quite attractive (art deco decor). There is a small gift shop. The front elevator is very small. There are two elevators toward the back of the hotel. During most of our 2 night stay, only one elevator worked! We recieved a room on the 5th floor. We were quite pleased upon entering the room. The first part is aprox. 10x10ft sitting area with a couch and a couple of chairs and tables. The main bedroom part was very spacious with a king sized bed and pleanty of closets. There was also another room aprx. 6x12ft that contained a desk, 2 chairs, and a coffeemaker. The only windows were in this room, but they actually opened. On the day our ship came into port, we had a wonderful close-up view of the Golden Princess! Bathroom was adequate and they had some nice toiletries. There was also a hairdryer and an iron. There was a nice pool. Their beach area is not really very nice at all. However, it is a short walk to the Caribe Hilton if you need to be on a beach. Location wise, the Normandie is about a mile from the Condado area. There is not alot of places to eat around the hotel. There was a close Subway and a little local cafe (we actually thought it was awesome). We did ask how to take the local bus to a Pueblo grocery store. We got on San Juan #1 bus and got off at the 2nd stop. Bought our liquor and got back on the bus for a fee of 50 cents each. Housekeeping is very slow! This is why you cannot get a room until after 3pm. On our second day, we returned to our room at 3:30pm, only to find it had not yet been cleaned. Around 4 pm, we informed the cleaning ladies (only one spoke english) that we just wanted the trash emptied and some clean towels. We also asked for a DO NOT DISTURB sign, as we wanted to nap. About 20 minutes after putting the DO NOT DISTURB sign out, there was a knock at the door! Guess who? The same lady who gave us the sign! She didn't say a word, but handed my husband a bottle of Merlot, one glass, and a corkscrew! We have no idea why! We enjoyed our stay at the Normandie, although please be aware...this is not a 5 star resort. The place was built in 1939. The room can be quite noisy at times, and there is a moderate musty smell. It is however, a clean, spacious room, and the hotel has a charm all its own. The pool is quite nice. I would stay there again. It is next to a very nice park, and very close to the Pan Am pier where the Golden Princess as well as the Adventure of the Seas dock.

Spent one night at the Sheraton Old San Juan on Feb 24th, 2005. Arrived around 8:20pm. The girl at the desk was very friendly and polite. We inquired about our room type and asked if there was a chance on getting a nice quiet King. She looked for a while on the computer and then told us she could only find a double. She seemed quite apologetic (we really didn't care), then she gave us a voucher for a free breakfast in the dining room in the am "for our inconvenience!". The room was spacious with two queens. The beds are wonderful! Five huge pillows on each bed. There are no drapes, but shutters on the windows. After looking out the window for the view, we realized we were but a few feet from Senior Frogs! So much for the quiet room! This did not matter after all, since it was a Thursday night. We were not bothered at all, however this COULD be a problem on a busy night. The bathroom was typical and contained a hairdryer and a coffeemaker. Hotel lobby has a beautiful staircase. There is a rather noisy casino. In the morning, we went to have our free breakfast. We thought this might be juice and cereal. Were we surprised to be lead into their diningroom (very upscale) and informed we could have anything from the menu, or opt for the buffet. We couldn't believe our eyes when we saw the buffet! It had to be the nicest breakfast buffet I have ever seen! Normal cost was $17.50p/p. Needly to say, we were impressed with the whole stay.

Had an early flight, so decided to stay and use the hotel shuttle in the morning. Upon arrival, my first impression was that the hotel looked rather new. Apparently, it has been recently renovated. The girl at the front desk was very nice. I did not care if I had doubles or a king, but when I got a non-smoking double, I asked, "If I had really wanted a king, would that have been possible?" She proceeded to tell me that if I was going to get that internet rate and book on the internet, then a double it is! She also gave me "the lecture" about how next time I should call them direct and perhaps they could get me the same rate. (I'll keep this in mind) The room felt "new" and was quite spacious. They offered to give me a wake-up call in the am. There was a hairdryer as well as a coffee maker. The beds were very comfortable. Breakfast was very nice, with a rather large variety of foods. The best part was that it was served at 5am. (Actually, I got down there around 5am and two gentlemen were already finished). I asked for a shuttle at 5:30am. We left promptly and it took all of 5 minutes to arrive at the airport check-in. I was pleasantly surprised with the LaQuinta. I would certainly use this hotel again for an early flight.

Bid this today. I had previously bid $31. Got a counter offer of $39. Waited 72 hours and bid the $35. 1 room, 1 night $35.00 $11.90 taxes and service fees $46.90 total La Quinta Inn Moline Airport 5450 27th Street Moline, Illinois 61265

Just got this deal for February 24th (one night). Sheraton Old San Juan; Casino, Resturant, Pool, Fitness center, Tennis nearby, Business center Laundry. 1 room @ $91.00 per night x 1 night taxes and fees $15.95 Subtotal $106.95 Yesterday, this was offered for $200 on Hotwire. :)

I will be more than happy to write a review and submit pictures of the property. The reviews on Trip Advisor are quite "varied" to say the least!