Priceline Hotel: Resort Hilton Head Island Hilton Oceanfront

[MrWilliams]

Hi

New here and new to PRICELINE / HOTWIRE. I intend to bid on a Hilton Head resort and just want a sanity check from the forum. I intend to bid same day as I'm not 100% sure we well be there on that date.

For 7/26 - 7/27 I see 4 resorts $209-$269 on priceline. I don't see them (or don't know how to look for them) on hotwire.

Day of I'll bid $75.

If that gets rejected with no counter I will expand the area to include Blufton which has no resorts and bid $100.

Can i get a free rebid if i add 5* or 4* even though the area does not have any of these?

What do you all think of this strategy?

And I'll be happy to use the link to book - I've learned a lot reading here.

Thanks in advance

Bill

[yellowdog]

Welcome to BetterBidding :)

Your plan don't sound so good to me.

Why don't you start now with your bidding so we can help you with a bidding strategy? You can end up with no takers from PRICELINE on the day of your stay.

Let us know how we can help you further.

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

Yellowdog.

[thereuare]

I agree, if your plans are firm why wait until the day of your stay to book? (especially with only one re-bid zone)

This only make sense if you're not sure if you'll be making the trip, but if your plans are firm better to start now and use smaller bidding increments than the $25 you're planning.

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

[MrWilliams]

Thanks for the reply's.

I'm not sure what day we will be traveling through that area so I don't want to book until we are there. If I don't get a resort - i can bid on the other hotels in Hilton Head and nearby Savannah.

Will Priceline let me bid on the resorts first and then the 5, 4 and 3 1/2 star hotels even thought there are no 5 or 4 or 3 1/2 star hotels currently showing in that area?

this would give me 8 bids on only the resorts.

bid sequence:

1. $60 - resort Hilton Head

2. $65 - resort Hilton Head + Bluffton (only has 2.5 star hotel currently showing)

3. $70 - resort + 5 star Hilton Head

4. $75 - resort + 5 star Hilton Head + Bluffton

5. $80 - resort + 4 & 5 star Hilton Head

6. $90 - resort + 4 & 5 star Hilton Head + Bluffton

7. $100 - resort 3 1/2 & 4 & 5 star Hilton Head

8. $110 - resort 3 1/2 & 4 & 5 star Hilton Head + Bluffton

does it work like this?

Thanks again for your help.

[Gallus50]

You don't really want to raise your bid price when you lower your star level. Also be realistic - Is $60 feasible for resort in high season?

Hopefully thereuare will chime in with specific advice, but I think you need to do a bit of research on FAQ's here and on current retail and HW prices.

[MrWilliams]

I guess $60 is unrealistic - thanks for the advice. I didn't know if I should start there and expect a counter. You are right I am upping my bid while lowering my star level but there are no properties at those lower star levels, at least as of last night, so I am hoping that those bids will apply to the resorts. Not sure how that works.

[thereuare]

Please use the requested PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board each time you access the respective sites.

This is a good thread which goes into further detail of the discussion above: If You Lower Your Star Rating Then Lower Your Price.

If you go to PRICELINE and enter "Hilton Head, SC" as the city and the dates of your stay, you'll see the Hilton Head and Bluffton options as you've indicated above, but if you scroll down to the "Choose Your Star Level" only the following options are offered:

2.5*

2*

1*

Resorts

Therefore, it's impossible to bid for a 5*, 4* or 3.5* as you've indicated above as there is no way to choose these star ratings for this area.

Will you know a day or two beforehand when your plans will be firm?

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

[Gallus50]

Thanks, Thereuare, for that specific thread and other info.

MrWilliams - Perhaps you should do a search w/the tool above for cities, or the better checker for dates, to figure out an appropriate bid that will most likely get accepted. Also - if you're not close, you're often not countered. So expecting a counter offer is not a sure thing.

You might also want to look at HOTWIRE, both for options and potential availability. If your bid doesn't win, two other opaque sites that may have availabl are Travelocity secret hotels and lastminutetravel.com.

Hope this helps.

[MrWilliams]

Thanks everyone for your advice. I am in Washington DC now and am not sure how long we will be staying for. We are traveling to florida next and Hilton Head or Savannah seemed like a good place to stop on the drive south or when we come back north to break up the ride. Someone posted a win at a resort on Hilton Head for $100, which included a friday night stay, so maybe i'll make my first bid $90.

I'll use the PRICELINE links and post my results.

Thanks everyone - you have been very helpful.

[MrWilliams]

Hi Everyone

Just wanted to give an update. Bid $90 for Hilton head resort at 9 pm 7/26 for 7/26 and won the crown plaze (listed at 209 on PL). VERY HAPPY!!! Free wifi would have been nice but the $6 kids chicken tender meal at the pool was so good I forgot about it.

Just won the Hilton Head Marriot at $97 for 8/5 (The ride home). My bids of 80 and 85 yesterday were rejected. My bid of 90 today was countered at 105

[Gallus50]

Wow. Great job. Way to stick with it.

Just goes to show you, even in high season, if you're patient you can often make things happen. Way to go.

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see you got a great deal for both your inbound and outbound stays.

As this thread now reflects your Hilton Oceanfront purchase, can you please start a NEW TOPIC for your Marriott win so others will be aware of it when searching the topic titles on the board and the Priceline and Hotwire Calendar of Wins.

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

THANKS! Enjoy the rest of your trip.