idlewild Posted June 12, 2007 Report Share Posted June 12, 2007 This is my first post to this forum and the first time that I will be utilizing Priceline's "Name Your Own Price" feature, I just want to ensure that I have a good grasp of the bidding process.As outlined in the title of the post, I want a 4* Hotel for the Downtown - Charlestown area of Boston from 9.12.2007 - 9.14.2007. Therefore, I should tick the box for this area only in step 1 followed by 4* star option in step 2 and bid $X amount in step 3, if the bid is successful then happy days and subsequently post the result here. If not, then I should keep adding areas (free rebids) that do not have 4* accommodation, i.e. Brighton - Brookline, South Boston, etc, whilst also possibly increasing my bid until successful?Hopefully this is a fairly accurate approach to the bidding process. If not, then please feel free to advise me of my misgiving and point me in the right direction. Link to comment
thereuare Posted June 12, 2007 Report Share Posted June 12, 2007 Welcome to BetterBidding!Yes, you seem to have the concept down.:) However, i'd recommend confirming your re-bid zones with the board (rather than posting "etc.") since this is the area which confuses people the most... you have three re-bid zones with bidding at the 4* level in this region.If you let us know your maximum bid we can suggest a strategy for you to follow. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
idlewild Posted June 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 12, 2007 Actually there was something I wanted to ask, in step three when you initially enter the $ amount that you would want to pay some text appear as follows with respect to a 4* Hotel in the Downtown - Charlestown area.<$40 - "Based on recent data, your price has almost no chance of being accepted".$40 - $46 - "Based on recent data, your price has only a small chance of being accepted".>$46 - Nothing appears.I would like to interpret that as I should start my bidding process fairly close to the $50 range and work my way up. However, if you enter two bid areas in section 1 that have 4* availability it informs you that the "Median retail price for a 4 star hotel in Boston, MA is $352", which would lead me to believe that maybe a bid of $50 would be doing both Priceline and myself a disservice. Ideally I would like to pay between $100 - $150 per night for two rooms for two people in each room. From my reading I'm assured the number of rooms is inconsequential and does not negatively impede the actual bidding process, is this correct? Link to comment
thereuare Posted June 13, 2007 Report Share Posted June 13, 2007 The number of rooms you select is usually not a factor, it is only an issue if the hotel only has one room offered thru the opaque providers.You should ignore priceline's "low warning" and "no chance" messages. However, i do think that starting at $50 for these dates is much too low.At the 4* level you have three re-bid zones. If you're not familiar with re-bidding please read Priceline Re-Bidding Explained and feel free to ask questions and/or confirm your re-bid zones with the board before proceeding.Select 4* Downtown...Bid $75, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $80, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Downtown and re-bid zone2...Bid $85, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $90, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Downtown and re-bid zone3...Bid $95, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $100, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Downtown and re-bid zone2 and re-bid zone3...Bid $105, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $110.I think the above will likely be too low as well for these dates, but with time on your side, the above would be a good start.Any questions feel free to ask.Good Luck and let us know how it goes. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
idlewild Posted July 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 5, 2007 I have tried the bidding process as outlined above, but at this juncture have been unsuccessful. As you correctly predicted the amount is too low; do you have any further bidding strategies? Link to comment
idlewild Posted July 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 5, 2007 I have also tried the bidding process as outlined in post #4, but replaced the Downtown - Charlestown area with the Boston Waterfront - Convention Center area; again with no luck. Link to comment
thereuare Posted July 6, 2007 Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 We will update with a suggested strategy going up to your maximum bid... but are you now willing to stay in the Downtown zone or the Waterfront zone? If so, are you willing to pay more for one zone vs. the other... or are you looking for the least expensive 4* property in either of these zones?Also, when did you make your last bidding attempt? Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
idlewild Posted July 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2007 Yes. I am now willing to stay in either the Downtown - Charlestown or Boston Waterfront - Convention Center area, looking for the least expensive 4* property in either of these zones. My last bidding attempt for either of these areas was 7.5.2007 Link to comment
thereuare Posted July 8, 2007 Report Share Posted July 8, 2007 Since you're now adding an additional bidding zone, you can try as follows:Select 4* Downtown...Bid $75, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $80, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Downtown and re-bid zone2...Bid $85, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $90, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Downtown and re-bid zone3...Bid $95, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $100, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Downtown and re-bid zone2 and re-bid zone3...Bid $105, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $110, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Waterfront...Bid $75, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $80, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Waterfront and re-bid zone2...Bid $85, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $90, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Wasterfront and re-bid zone3...Bid $95, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $100, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Waterfront and re-bid zone2 and re-bid zone3...Bid $105, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $110, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Downtown and Waterfront...Bid $115, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $120, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Downtown and Waterfront and re-bid zone2...Bid $125, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $130, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Downtown and Waterfront and re-bid zone3...Bid $135, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $140, if rejected close browser and re-access priceline however you did previously.Select 4* Downtown and Waterfront and re-bid zone2 and re-bid zone3...Bid $145, if rejected add re-bid zone1...Bid $150.Any questions feel free to ask.Good Luck and let us know how it goes. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
idlewild Posted July 8, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2007 I tried the bidding strategies as outlined today; alas, no success. In lieu of this outcome, I have rethought my desire for 4* accommodation and now think that 3* accommodation in the Downtown Link to comment
idlewild Posted July 8, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2007 I tried the following bidding strategy for 3* accommodation in Downtown Link to comment
thereuare Posted July 9, 2007 Report Share Posted July 9, 2007 Do you have a back-up reservation? If so... where and how much? If not, what the best rate you're able to find thru conventional methods? (use our BetterChecker to assist in your search. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases Link to comment
idlewild Posted October 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 12, 2008 Bear in mind this information is over a year old. Sorry, thought I had stated how I got on. The hotel we ended up in was the Park Plaza Boston Hotel and Towers. I really can't recall the exact amount we ended up paying for the hotel, but it was around $120 per night, which I was happy with, I think. I won't provide a Tripadvisor detail of the hotel, but it was more than adequate and had an absolutely fantastic location. Link to comment
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