Priceline Hotel: 3* Chicago (Greater Chicago) Holiday Inn Downtown

[Karen O]

Hi All,

Noted a 4* win for the above mentioned weekend for $71 a night on the Priceline and Hotwire Calendar of Wins (great tool, btw). I have been trying unsuccessfully now for 5 days to grab a great rate via your PRICELINE link, going up to $87 for even a 3*. HOTWIRE is listing prices at a whopping $209 tops to $169 low for downtown. What in the world is up with this? I will continue trying, hate to think what I have to go up to!!

If prices are up like this, is it better to wait. I think it's the first time I've been in the situation!!

Help!

Happy Travels,

Kaz

[AaronJB]

The NRA association (National Restaurant Association) show is going on this weekend. There may have been wins at more reasonable prices during this set of dates in the past, but prices have ramped up. There's no way to know if prices will come down closer to the dates - given the size of the convention (it's one of the largest of the year), the chances unfortunately aren't great.

Are you driving in? The suburbs are quite nice and quite a bit cheaper.

Please use the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[thereuare]

Rates are also a little cheaper for the first nite of your stay vs. the second. While i know it's not ideal for a 2 nite stay, is SPLITTING YOUR PRICELINE BID an option?

What is your maximum bid for this stay?

[Karen O]

Thanks for the responses. My maximum bid would probably be about the $100 mark. Breaking up the bid for each night would more than likely be a last option. I'm already trying to plan on a two night stay for that weekend, with an additional hotel room for the second night. I suppose I could bid on the two rooms for the Saturday night and the one hotel room for the Friday night separately.

My girls and I are staying the Friday night, while my husband is joining us on the Saturday, thus the two room necessity. Since we're only there for a short time, staying in the suburbs isn't an option, as we'd probably spend more time in traffic than actually enjoying the city!

I'll keep you posted as to my bid process. Wish me luck!!

Happy Travels All!

[Karen O]

Ok, yesterday my bidding brought me to $105, and still to no avail. I'm thinking the suburbs option (thanks for the reminder about that) is my next option! Any idea which area would be the best for travel into the city via the Metro?

Thanks All,

KO

[AaronJB]

In terms of HOTWIRE, I often recommend the Northbrook area, which offers some very nice restaurant options, lots of shopping (both in terms of malls and some nearby towns) and a few fun sights (Long Grove Village, Chicago Botanic Garden, Ravinia Music Festival, etc.) On PRICELINE, you could bid for either the Deerfield or North Shore zones.

From this area, you would take the Metra Rail (Metrarail.com) downtown - these trains do not run as often on the weekend, but are much more comfortable than CTA trains (the Metra trains resemble Amtrak trains) and there are weekend passes for Sat-Sun for $7.

Additionally, Evanston (Evanston-Skokie-Niles) is another very nice area that's closer, but HOTWIRE did not appear to have much for Evanston on these dates, aside from a 3* that would appear to possibly be the poorly reviewed Holiday Inn Skokie. Additionally, on busy dates downtown, Evanston hotels often are a little more expensive due to spillover from downtown, given that it's close to downtown. Northbrook/Deerfield area properties look quite reasonably priced on these dates though, and parking at these hotels is free.

In terms of bidding, are you looking for the most reasonably priced deal or would you be interested in paying more for a higher-rated (3.5*/4*) property? There should certainly be no troubles staying well under your max in terms of bidding for the 'burbs for these dates.

Please use the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[Karen O]

Aaron,

Thanks for the detailed response. I thought I would give the downtown area one more chance.

Bid for 2 nights - Friday, May 21 - Sunday, May 23

Bids via your PRICELINE link were as follows:

4*

North Michigan Ave Area - $100 - Declined

Added

Millenium Park/Loop - $101 - Declined

Added

Greater Chicago - $102 - Declined

Added

3.5*

$96 - Declined

Added

Hyde Park (free bid) $98 - Declined

Added

Franklin Park (free bid) $100 - Declined

Added

3* - $95 - Accepted - Holiday Inn and Suites on Harrison

Next I needed one more room for just the Saturday night - May 22

Bid right off the bat:

3* - NMA, Mag Mile, Greater Chicago - $96 (just won it at $95 but for 2 nights) - Declined

Added:

Franklin Park - $98 - Declined

Added:

Hyde Park - $100 - Declined.

Out of bid options, so I'll wait until tomorrow. I really wish they had something set up on Priceline, Hotwire for those who are needing more than just the one option of same date, same number of rooms needed!

If you have any advice on how to achieve the same hotel win, it would be appreciated! Also, if you need me to make this thread it's own so I can depict the win, just let me know!

Happy Travels, All! I will keep you posted!

KO

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Hope you're happy with the results, and while i'm sure not your first choice in location, hopefully you can make this work well for your plans.

Please start a NEW TOPIC for the remaining room you need for just Saturday nite.

Thank you for sharing your win and using the PRICELINE links on the board to begin your bidding.

Enjoy your stay.