Some things I have learned about hotel bookings with priceline.

[greasyspoon]

I am 6 for 6 with PriceLine (hotels), woo hoo. Here are a few things I have discovered:

1. Price Line is the wal-mart of booking. You go there for the price. At walmart you can have any corn chip as long as its tostitos, or any air filter as long as its fram. You dont pay for selection. You save money.

2. You can control your amenities to a certain degree. Read the star-level descriptions for what amenities to expect. My biggest want is free breakfast. so, I dont bid on 3 1/2 star properties anymore because they usually have restaurants where you have to pay for food. I bid on 2 1/2 because that is the highest level with free breakfast.

3. Remember that if you save $30-$100 bucks per night by using priceline, then paying for parking, or other amenities is maybe not so hard to swallow.

4. Dont book 1-star unless you are really desperate. Ten or fifteen more bucks is cheaper that packing a pistol and providing cover fire as the family runs to the room.

5. Hands down this is the best way to book a hotel. My average savings is $55 per night!!! Multiply that by the number of nights you want to stay and think about how much more stuff you can do with the extra money.

[dahammer]

Welcome!

I am 6 for 6 with PriceLine (hotels), woo hoo. Here are a few things I have discovered:

Can you please post your past wins? This will help others seeking similar accomodations and even though one of your "wins" may have been previously reported, it helps improve the bidding history for this zone.

2. You can control your amenities to a certain degree. Read the star-level descriptions for what amenities to expect. My biggest want is free breakfast. so, I dont bid on 3 1/2 star properties anymore because they usually have restaurants where you have to pay for food. I bid on 2 1/2 because that is the highest level with free breakfast.

Unfortunately, upgrades are a reality and I would much rather get a 2.5* with free breakfast than a 3* Holiday Inn or Hilton.

5. Hands down this is the best way to book a hotel. My average savings is $55 per night!!! Multiply that by the number of nights you want to stay and think about how much more stuff you can do with the extra money.

you broke the code!!! :) I am not concerned so much that I need my winning bid to be at the lowest accepted offer established by the hotel, if I can save 50-60%, I'm thrilled.

[Peter Piper]

5. Hands down this is the best way to book a hotel. My average savings is $55 per night!!! Multiply that by the number of nights you want to stay and think about how much more stuff you can do with the extra money.

The 'savings' assumes that you would have booked the same hotel for the regular rate. I definitely would not be booking 3 star hotels for the regular price since my budget is only about $50 per night. So I'm not really saving anything by doing priceline, simply getting a better hotel than I would otherwise get for the same money. (Which I'm happy about, of course, even if it isn' t actually saving me any money.)

[bat]

4. Dont book 1-star unless you are really desperate. Ten or fifteen more bucks is cheaper that packing a pistol and providing cover fire as the family runs to the room.

hahaha, so true. Come on, who really stays at 1* hotels other than pimps, hookers and criminals? :)

[corster]

hahaha, so true. Come on, who really stays at 1* hotels other than pimps, hookers and criminals? :)

stayed at a 1* in Manhattan once because i couldnt afford anything more :)

other than that, NEVER.