Priceline Hotel: 4* Vancouver (Downtown) Hyatt Regency

[Merlin144]

First try at $78, added one zone and bumped to $85. Woohoo!

[yellowdog]

Thank you for sharing your result with the board!

Enjoy your stay.

Please use the site's HOTWIRE and PRICELINE links to start future purchases.

Yellowdog.

[Merlin144]

Checked in for a one night stay (posted about the win on Priceline, $85 for a 4*) today and asked for any complementary upgrades. The reception agent was fantastic, and upgraded me to a King-Balcony room with a city view. (The freshly remodeled rooms in this hotel are FANTASTIC, btw.)

I confirmed that the hotel was in easy walking distance of my conference location, then went online and booked three more nights at the Hyatt ($87/night).

I later went down and spoke to a new (male, unfriendly) reception agent to add the three nights to my stay. He informed me that I would need to move rooms or pay an upgrade fee to retain the room. I explained that this would be quite inconvenient as I am all settled in and cannot move in the morning due to conference schedule. I figured that saying this would be enough to change his mind, eg trusting in good customer service. He was firm in saying that I would then need to pay an upgrade fee, and that the one-time upgrade I got would only apply for one night. I told him to keep it and that I would deal with it in the morning, and walked away.

Tomorrow morning - what strategy do you recommend with the new reception agent?

My plan: show up with only 'minutes to spare' prior to attending my conference, and say there is no way I can move. If they try to force me to pay, explain that they are essentially extorting money from me, and ask to speak with the manager. Thoughts? Thanks!

To me this all comes across a bit customer un-friendly on their part - essentially I took advantage of an upgrade by extending my stay, and the way the agent laid it out for me was that I would pay or move. Obviously I don't want to move.

[Colfax]

I'll give you my take, Merlin144, and you're probably not going to like it: You're not entitled to a free upgrade for your last three nights.

You can certainly try your luck with a different agent or a manager tomorrow, but if you're not willing to pay for the upgrade you should be prepared to move to a standard room, which is what you're paying for with a Priceline reservation. Even if you're willing to pay for an upgrade you might not be allowed, if the room type you want is sold out.

You have two separate reservations: one for one night and one for three nights. The clerk who gave you the free upgrade would only have known about your first reservation, for one night. It's possible your first night was a low occupancy night when free upgrades were available, but one or more nights in your other reservation is sold out on King Balcony rooms. Do you think a guest who conventionally books a King Balcony for $199 should be downgraded so that the Priceline guest paying $87 can keep his free upgrade?

Sometimes personalities matter and you might strike the right chord with a different desk agent tomorrow. But as far as what you're "entitled" to under Priceline rules...no you're not entitled to keep the King Balcony.

In similar vein...last month I stayed at a Fairfield Inn via Priceline, a one night stay. At checkin they asked if I wanted one king or two doubles. I took one king. I liked the room and used Add a Night to extend by one day. The next morning when I went to update my keys they told me they were sold out of kings for that night and I'd have to move to a room with two doubles, which I did. That didn't involve upgrades. One king and two doubles cost the same at that Fairfield. But when you have two separate reservations, as I did and you do, Priceline rules allow the hotel to move you for the second reservation, if they deem necessary.

I hope you can work something out tomorrow. Please let us know how it goes.

[thereuare]

I think Colfax summed it up best, your upgrade was based upon your one nite reservation, your second purchase is an entirely separate agreement. The hotel was likely only able to upgrade you based upon occupancy conditions for that solo nite (ie- low occupancy) and as those conditions don't apply for your second reservation (ie- occupancy at the hotel is higher), you should change rooms.

Please post your additional nites at this property as a NEW TOPIC so that others will be aware of the availability for those nites.

Thanks.

[Merlin144]

I hear you about not being entitled to anything. I was trying to make it a customer service issue with them as my leverage, which obviously didn't work with the agent.

I went down this morning and spoke to the same person that originally upgraded me. She happily kept me in the same room. :)

[thereuare]

GREAT!! Glad it worked out well for you.

Enjoy the rest of your stay.

[Colfax]

Sometimes personalities matter and you might strike the right chord with a different desk agent tomorrow.

I went down this morning and spoke to the same person that originally upgraded me. She happily kept me in the same room.

A happy ending!

:)