Priceline Hotel: Bidding advice appreciated Sep 11 - 13th

[kingstondan]

Hi,

I am a first time bidder and have been reading up on free bids and think I have it understood! I am looking for some advice on how to get the best deal for my 2 night stay on 11th and 12th September. I have not visited SF before but guess I want to stay in the cluster of zones (1,2,3,4,7,10,11) unless anyone has a better suggestion of where to stay for a sight seeing visit.

I do not have a specific star rating required but obviously looking for the best I can get. I did attempt to get a 4* yesterday in Zones 2, 7 and 10 and used free bids to increase my offer from about $60 up to about $110 (was bidding in

[Colfax]

Welcome to the board, kingstondan.

Could you please name your acceptable zones (e.g. Union Square East, Fisherman's Wharf, etc.) rather than numbering them. It's easier to understand where you want to stay that way. Thanks.

Please use these HOTWIRE and PRICELINE links for your purchases.

[kingstondan]

Thanks,

The zones i am interested in are the following with my preference being the ones in bold, I do not know the city however so really just looking for a good zone to see the sights without a car.

Civic Center

Financial District - Embarcadero

Fisherman's Wharf

Marina - Lombard Street

SOMA - Moscone Center

Union Square East

Union Square West - Nob Hill

[thereuare]

What is more important... your preferred zone or price?

Do you only want to bid the zones in bold first OR is your goal the least expensive in any of the acceptable zones above?

I did attempt to get a 4* yesterday in Zones 2, 7 and 10...

Please use the zone names and not numbers so it will clear in the future which zone(s) you bid for when PRICELINE changes the zone boundaries, order, or renames them (which changes the alphabetical listing order) But a question...

In look at the zone list you bid Financial, SOMA, and USE... but these aren't the zones which you indicated above are your preference.

Please clarify your preferences and we'll take it from there.

Thanks for using the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your bidding and purchases.

[kingstondan]

I'll make sure I use zone names in future.

I'll be specific seeing as i still have some time. Ideally I would get 4* San Francisco (USE) Grand Hyatt, I see several recent wins for around $80 - $85 and I would be happy to pay this. Is this achievable and any recommendations on bidding strategy?

[thereuare]

There is no way to target, or avoid, a particular hotel in the zone when using PRICELINE... you need to be willing to accept any hotel in the zone at the star level (or higher) that you select.

If you're trying to target a specific property HOTWIRE can be a better option as you can take an educated guess as to the property being offered based upon the amenities shown before your purchase.

Let us know how you'd like to proceed and we'll advise accordingly.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[kingstondan]

I am willing to accept any hotel in that zone at that star level (or higher).

I bid 4* USE starting at $80 increasing to $100 with no luck (using thePRICELINE link from here)

I will continue to try and will update if I have any news

Thanks

[Colfax]

Ideally I would get 4* San Francisco (USE) Grand Hyatt

In post #3 you said your preferred zones were USW, SOMA, and Fisherman's Wharf. To clarify, have you changed your mind and now want to bid the USE zone only?

Rates in USE are very high for your dates. Grand Hyatt is $279 and Westin St Francis $389. For 4* USE I think you need to be bidding more in the $125-$150 range.

[kingstondan]

I do not have a preferred zone, I keep reading different posts that set me off in a different direction! If USE is particually expensive on those dates then I am happy to scrap it and try a different zone - thanks for the info.

It looks like I am beyond help here, if i win anything using the PRICELINE link I will post here. Otherwise i hear sleeping rough in the Tenderloin area makes for an entertaining night!

[Colfax]

It looks like I am beyond help here,

You're not beyond help, kingstondan. This is your first time using Priceline and it's confusing at the start. Feel free to ask all the questions you have.

As I understand it you've bid up to $110 for a 4* in SOMA, USE, and FD-Embarcadero, and no bidding in USW. Is that correct?

You have some options:

1) bid higher than $110/4* in your three preferred zones.

2) try up to $110/4* in USW

3) try for a 3.5* in your three preferred zones

Do any of these appeal to you?

[kingstondan]

Thanks

1) bid higher than $110/4* in your three preferred zones.

2) try up to $110/4* in USW

3) try for a 3.5* in your three preferred zones

1) seeing as i still have some time i would like to try and keep below this price level and would look to increase if i think i am getting stuck.

2) Yes, i will include USW if looking at 4* only.

3) I have looked into some of the 3.5* options and they do not seem too bad (particually in Fishermans Warf). As the 4* seem out of my price range at the moment I would happily try for a 3.5* in Fishermans Warf.

My strategy would be:

bid 3.5* Fisherman Warf @ $??

then add

USW + a few $

then add

SOMA + a few $

then add

South SFO + a few $

then asdd

SFO North+ a few $

then add

Civic + a few $

This way I should only be able to win a 3.5* in Fishermans Warf or a 4* in USW or SOMA (I have not seen 3.5* reported in these zones although it would not be a problem). I would be happy with all of these outcomes. Is this a reasonable way to proceed? recent wins show 3.5* in Fishermans Warf around $70, would this be a good starting price?

[Colfax]

Have you done any more bidding since yesterday?

If not what would you like to try for next----4* in USW or 3.5* in Fisherman's Wharf? Let us know and someone will suggest a strategy.

[kingstondan]

Lets try for a 3.5* in Fishermans Warf.

If prices seem high now I am happy to take a risk and wait to see if they come down over the next few weeks.

[thereuare]

Are you only bidding FW at the 3.5* level or are any of the other zones acceptable? What is your maximum bid for a 3.5*?

Let us know the above and we'll advise accordingly.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[kingstondan]

For now yes, only 3.5* in FW. Max for this I guess $85. Is that reasonable?

[Colfax]

$85 sounds like a reasonable limit for 3.5* in FW. If you don't accepted up to $85 now then you're probably bidding too early for September and we'll talk about some other options. But first let's try.

When bidding for 3.5* in SF you have THREE rebid zones: Civic Center, Marina-Lombard, and SFO North-San Bruno. Those zones only have hotels less than 3.5* quality and so it's safe to add them to your FW bids without risk of getting a hotel in CC, ML or SFO-N. (Priceline can upgrade your bid but never downgrades.)

Please click this PRICELINE link, select 3.5* Fisherman's Wharf and bid $60.

Add Civic Center and bid $70.

Add Marina-Lombard and bid $80.

Add SFO North-San Bruno and bid $85.

Let us know how it goes. Good luck!

[PhoebeCaulfield]

South San Francisco is a rebid zone as well!

[Colfax]

Thank you, Phoebe Caulfield! You are right!

See what happens when I give strategy without coffee?

:)

kingstondan,

I'll revise the strategy above:

Please click this PRICELINE link, select 3.5* Fisherman's Wharf and bid $60.

Add South San Francisco and bid $65.

Add Civic Center and bid $70.

Add Marina-Lombard and bid $80.

Add SFO North-San Bruno and bid $85.

[kingstondan]

Thank you Colfax for the strategy.

I clicked this link PRICELINE and followed the strategy but had no sucess this time.

I am happy to wait and try again nearer my travel date. Should I book a reserve in case this does not work out? I remember reading in another thread that there was a list of hotels you can cancel with but can't find it any longer.

[Colfax]

Let's summarize and correct me if I'm wrong. These are your rejected bids so far:

$110/4*: SOMA, USE, FD-Embarcadero

$85/3.5*: Fisherman's Wharf

Should I book a reserve in case this does not work out?

Yes you should book a cancellable backup somewhere if you decide to take a "wait it out" approach, hoping for prices to drop nearer to your travel dates. But you still haven't bid all your acceptable zones and parameters yet, I don't think, so that should come first. If you exhaust all you bidding options now then it's time to book that "safety reservation" while you wait, and several board members can offer suggestions.

I want to step back from bidding for a sec and ask you a "big picture" question. From your reading about SF, here and other places, do you have any sense whether you'd rather stay in Fisherman's Wharf or Downtown? They're different kinds of neighborhoods and most people have a preference for one or the other.

If you prefer Fisherman's Wharf my next suggestion is to try for a 3* there. The FW 3* are well reviewed and I think you have a chance of getting that for less than the $85 you've already bid for 3.5*.

If you prefer staying Downtown (in any of the five Downtown zones) we'll let Fisherman's Wharf go and focus on other Downtown options. (4* USW and 3.5* USE would be my next suggestions.)

And thank you for using the board's PRICELINE link.

[kingstondan]

Let's summarize and correct me if I'm wrong. These are your rejected bids so far:

$110/4*: SOMA, USE, FD-Embarcadero

$85/3.5*: Fisherman's Wharf

Yes this is correct so far.

From my research I am leaning towards FW over Downtown and on your recommendation I have taken a look at the reported 3* in FW and they look fine. I like your suggestion of trying for a 3* in FW.

I presume because of the lower star rating there are less options for free rebids.

My suggested strategy would be:

Click the PRICELINE link, select 3* Fisherman's Wharf and bid $60,

Add Marina - Lombard street and bid $65.

Wait 24 hours,

Bid 3* FW @ $70

Add Marina and bid $75

Any comments?

Thanks x 1,000,000!

[thereuare]

You're approach and re-bid zone (always doublecheck just before bidding to make sure nothing has changed) are correct... although based upon current rates i'm not sure if your bids will be enough for these dates, but you have plenty of time so can certainly give it a try.

Thanks for using the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your bidding.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[kingstondan]

Thanks,

I did $68 and $73 today with no luck (3* FW). I will try tomorrow with $78 and then $83. I will let you know how it goes

[AaronJB]

Thank you for keeping us updated and for using the site's PRICELINE or HOTWIRE links. Good luck on your next round of bidding, and let us know if you have any questions.

[Colfax]

kingstondan,

Good luck with $78 and $83 tomorrow. Fisherman's Wharf rates are a bit to the high side for your dates, so this might take $90-100. If you don't get a FW 3* for $100 now then I think you're probably bidding too early for this stay still 6+ weeks away.

But don't worry---you've got plenty of time and with a little patience you're going to win something. If you don't hit by $100 we'll start talking about booking a cancellable backup somewhere while you wait this out.