Priceline Hotel: Paris 2*/3* Nov26-30 bidding help

[NoviceTraveller]

Hi All,

I am a bidding newbie and am learning by reading the posts and rules on the forums. I will be visiting Paris for the first time and staying 4 nights Nov 26-30 2010. I am interested in a 2*/3* hotel. Most of the bidding discussions on the forums are about 4*/5* hotels which are out of my price range. My budget is <=USD $65.00 per night (I am guessing this reasonable since folks have been able to score 4* from around $85.00, but let me know if this is not realistic). But I could go a little higher if needed though would not prefer it.

My criteria is really simple. I will be a tourist and while I would prefer to be in Arr 1,3,5 etc in the center of things I could also stay in Arr 12,13, etc. My only criteria is safety, cleanliness, and the location be IN Paris. Don't care much about the character/history of the hotel, etc.

This will be my first time ever bidding on Priceline so please help! And suggestions regarding setting right expectations and price would be great!

Thanks in advance!

[Romelle]

For starters, you want to get into the bidding area on Priceline and translate those "Arr's" to Priceline bidding zones. It won't be a perfect correlation, so make sure you are OK with a hotel ANYWHERE within the blue lines of the map. Post the acceptable Priceline areas back here and one of the experts will help you work out a bidding strategy.

Then you want to pick up a 2010 Entertainment Book (they are closing them out for cheap now), or maybe you have a friend that has one. There is a coupon in the book that is good for $10 off per night for your bid. That will help your bidding. It is added on to your bid, so if you bid $43, Priceline takes it as a $53 bid. There are instructions on the coupon for getting the bonus posted to your Priceline account.

Then it would be a good idea to hunt down a cancelable back-up reservation so you can bid calmly up until the very last minute.

Romelle

Your trip reminded me of a November one I took to Venice a number of years ago. Had a great time, but was surprised at how little daylight there is that time of year. I hope you plan accordingly.

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

If you're not aware, note that star ratings in europe are a bit more 'generous' then here in the US, and that is one of the reason you don't see much bidding below 3* on the board... below that (and even some 3* properties) can be a bit risky in Europe. While there may be some 2* hotels which meet your needs just fine, there might be others which do not, and with PRICELINE you can't choose which type you will get.

If you'd like to move forward with this stay please go to PRICELINE and let us know the zones, by PRICELINE name, that you are willing to accept.

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

[NoviceTraveller]

Based on my reading here are the PRICELINE areas which seam reasonable in terms of safety. If you have recommendations for other areas let me know:

Champs Elysees - Opera Quarter West

St Germain-Latin Quarter-Montparnasse

Eiffel Tower - Port De Versailles - Montparnasse

Opera Quarter East - Les Halles

Thanks for your help!

[thereuare]

Did you want to start at the 3* level up to your limit, then if rejected try at the 2* level?

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

[NoviceTraveller]

Yes, I want to start with 3* first. Then go down to 2* if needed.

[thereuare]

I would bid as follows:

Select 3* Champs Elysees and Latin Quarter...

Bid $45, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 3* Eiffel Tower and OQE...

Bid $45, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 3* Eiffel Tower and Latin Quarter...

Bid $50, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 3* Champs Elysees and OQE...

Bid $50, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 3* Champs Elysees and Eiffel Tower...

Bid $55, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 3* Latin Quarter and OQE...

Bid $55, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 3* Champs Elysees and Eiffel Tower...

Bid $60, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 3* Champs Elysees and OQE...

Bid $60, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...

Select 3* Champs Elysees and Eiffel Tower and OQE...

Bid $65

Any questions feel free to ask .

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

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[sush]

Bid till $95 for a 2 star including Bastille and still no luck for 12th to 15th Sep 2010. I would like your recommendations on the other areas in Paris - Republique and La Defence - Neuille specificaly the 2* and 3* hotels via Priceline. Is it worth bidding in these areas?

[Romelle]

Bid till $95 for a 2 star including Bastille and still no luck for 12th to 15th Sep 2010. I would like your recommendations on the other areas in Paris - Republique and La Defence - Neuille specificaly the 2* and 3* hotels via Priceline. Is it worth bidding in these areas?

The lowest La Defense 3* on Priceline retail side is a Mercure at $125 per night for your dates. There weren't any 2 and 2 1/2*s. Mercure is a nice middle value chain in Europe. I think you'd be happy with it, and might get lucky with a 50% bid?

For Republique, there were 2*s. The lowest one was $82, but I am not familiar with the line. The first one I know is a 3* Tryp at $97. Again, with a 50% bid you might land this one.

I'll let someone else chime in on the Republique area, as I'm not familiar with it. You might look at hotel reviews from hotels in that area. Often people also comment on the area.

3* wins reported to this site (nobody has reported a 2* win for these areas):

Republique:

3* Mercure Paris Montmarte

3* Mercure Terminus Est

La Defense:

3* Courtyard

3* Mercure La Defense Esplanade

3* Mercure La Defense Parc REVIEW

3* Novotel La Defense

I stayed in the La Defense area and was fine with it. There isn't night life as it is a business/commercial area, but a metro ride (Line #1) of about 10-15 minutes got us right in the middle of Paris. The area is very quiet, clean and safe feeling. A huge grocery store and shopping center were nearby, as well as a McDonalds (quite upscale and subtly different from US McDs). A fridge in the room also helped with the budget.

I hope you explore getting that Entertainment $10 a night coupon. That will help your bidding. Also, before bidding, it is a good idea to regularly check your Rewards area. Sometimes when a person is not successful for a number of bids, one of those bonuses magically appears in the Rewards area.

Also, don't get in too much of a hurry to get to the top of your budget (or drop to those 2*s). Sometimes hotels don't give rooms to Priceline until the last minute.

Romelle

[sush]

Thanks for the wonderful advice Romelle. I am currently using the Entertainment Coupon of 10 off a night. I would also like to know at what point should I try rebidding since it looks like I'll be in Paris in a month's time. Should I try again the 1st of Sep? I will probably take your advice and stay with 3* hotels in the Paris area for now. What do you suggest as the starting bid for the La Defense area for the 3* hotels? I did try 80 (incl $10) coupon for a 4 star hotel in this area and got rejected.

[Romelle]

sush - You do want to start your very own post for your stay. When you are in Priceline - Other Countries, before you enter any of the specific posts, click on "New Topic" - right hand side, middle of page, above the solid blue bar.

The rates I looked up were for NoviceTraveller's dates - Nov 26-30. For your September dates, the lowest number I saw was $133 for a Republique Novotel. La Defense was a lot higher.

Thereuare gave NoviceTraveller a nice bidding pattern. When you get your own post started, providing dates, acceptable PRICELINE areas, desired star level and your budget, somebody here will provide you a bidding pattern custom tailored to your needs.

Regarding where to start, maybe spend one bidding session just checking out 50% of the lowest Priceline number you can find. Highly unlikely it will be successful, but then when you work your way on up, you will be confident you aren't overbidding.

Regarding when to bid, definitely don't wait any longer. Just don't run up to your absolute max right away, as you do have a little time.

Romelle

[NoviceTraveller]

Thanks thereuare for the strategy, I am in the process of bidding.

Romelle, I have tried till $50 but still no success. :)

You mentioned: ' The first one I know is a 3* Tryp at $97. Again, with a 50% bid you might land this one.'

I will hoping that $50 might get a hotel like that since I will be Paris in the 'not so peak time' :) but looks like I might need to up my bid.

[NoviceTraveller]

Is the $10 per night coupon from Entertainment Book valid till the end of the year? What if I buy the Entertainment Card and then activate it online? Is that the same as buying the coupon book i.e the does ''2010 Entertainment Book Card' also contain the priceline coupon?

Also, reading else where on the internet some people mentioned that they felt priceline was not accepting bids at the lower/expected price when using coupons. I seriously doubt this could be true for a company with a good reputation like Priceline i.e. they won't change the accepting bid and charge more simply because someone was using a coupon. But wanted to check with experts on this forum neverthless.

[sush]

I actually picked up multiple 2010 entertainment cards thru ebay. You get a discount of upto 100 dollars (10 nights 1 room or multiple rooms and 10 per room). This discount is already inclusive in you bid. I hope this helps.

[NoviceTraveller]

Thanks sush! This is very helpful. When you say valid through Nov 2010 does it mean that I cannot bid for a hotel stay after Nov 1, 2010 using the code to get the $10 discount or does it just mean that I need to activate the card by 11/01 and can still bid for dates until 12/31/2010 with discount?

[sush]

Priceline doesn't seem to say till when this coupon is valid. I think you just need to activate before Nov 2010 and use it. You might want to call customer service at PRICELINE and check with them or even entertianment.com customer sevice if that helps. But for $1 a coupon I'd just go ahead with the chance of just booking it before Nov 2010. My Entertainment Book says book by 12/31/2010 so I think you could even book something for next year as long as you book before that date. The physical card itself is useful for free entres at restaurants so as long as you get the number you can go ahead and use it.

[NoviceTraveller]

Thanks Sush!