Priceline Hotel: 5* Budapest (Pest) Sofitel Chain Bridge

[lizzielizzie]

Hi

we're hoping to book a hotel in budapest for 4 nights from 3rd november. I'm not quite sure on the areas/stars to pick?

Our preference is the Sofitel Chain Bridge which is a 5* and people have won previously for $75

Lots of people have also got the intercontinental, a 4*, for $50

which has good reviews and definately wouldn't be awful to win but i obviously don't want to bid and get the Intercontinental for $75 when I could have got it for $50...

I think i'm a bit confused!

Any and all help would be very much appreciated!

Thanks in advance!

Lizzie x

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

Both the Sofitel and the InterContinental are in the Pest zone, and this is also the zone which the vast majority of bidders choose, but you should confirm that this is what would work best for your own plans.

Let us know once you decide up a zone, and if you want to try for a 5* property first, what would be your maximum bid for a 5* hotel?

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

[lizzielizzie]

Hi,

Thanks for replying

Yup, the Pest Zone is the area we'd prefer. Since so many other people have got it for $75 would it be stingy to say we'd pay up to $80 for the 5*?

I'm open to any and all suggestions on this?

Thanks again, Lizzie

[mrxow]

Hell no. It would be stingy to say you want the 5* for $50. Not more than the lowest price you can see. Who knows what they might take. But you have a lot of time. And it looks to me like the season you are shooting for should be the lowest price season they have. It isn't summer. It isn't shoulder season. It isn't Christmas. The weather in early November can't be all that great. And the hotels can't be all that full. And you have LOTS of time. So GO FOR BROKE!!! Start low and work your way up every 24 hours. You have a very good chance of setting the record for the lowest win at a 5* in Budapest. Don't give your money away!! I'd start at $50 and work up. You will never get the 4* you don't want if you always bid 5*. It may take a few minutes a day for a few days, but chances are you will get what you want with this much time in advance and the dates you are looking for...

[Yagermeister]

I'd have to agree with mrxnow.

I got back from a Budapest priceline win on September 18, and I had won the Sofitel for $74. The Intercontinental is right next door, and I mean you could throw a baseball from the Sofitel and hit it.

I didn't go in the Intercontinental, but if the worst thing that happened is winning the Inter at $50, that would be really be just fine. I really enjoyed my stay at the Sofitel and certainly think highly of it, but I wouldn't overpay just to avoid the Intercontinental.

If you stay at the Sofitel, don't let them arrange transportation services for you. The extra cost they charge will eat up a lot of the savings from your win. Zona Taxi has a flat rate of 3600 HUF (about $18, plus tip) to the airport, and you can set up a reservation on their website. I think it's a few dollars more from the airport, but cheap for a 30-45 minute trip.

Good luck.

[thereuare]

Given the comments above, do you still want your game plan to be bidding for a 5* up to $75 before trying for a 4*?

Let us know and we'll advise accordingly.

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

[lizzielizzie]

thanks for all the replies!

slightly confused now! to the poster above who stayed in Budapest do you think the Sofitel is worth paying $25 a night more for?

I think I'd like to follow the advice above and try bidding for the 5* but since I have more time than i thought would be needed for this (?) start lower? Maybe try to get it for less?

What do you guys think?

[thereuare]

At the 5* level you have ONE re-bid zones. If you're not familiar with re-bidding please read Priceline Re-Bidding Explained and feel free to ask questions and/or confirm your re-bid zones with the board before proceeding.

Select 5* Pest...

Bid $50, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $55

If the above is rejected wait 24 hours, use the PRICELINE link on the board to re-access PRICELINE (and NOT the link in any emails) and re-try with $60/$65. If that is rejected try again after 24 hours at $70/$75.

If $75 is also rejected we'll re-assess.

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

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[Yagermeister]

Since I didn't go into the Intercontinental, it's hard to say if I would spend $100 plus tax more for the Sofitel over four nights. That will probably be the only time I go to Budapest, so I'm glad I stayed at the Sofitel. The reviews are pretty similar on TripAdvisor.

I paid about $300 for my three nights, including all taxes and fees, and I wrote a letter to the manager saying it was my 10th wedding anniversary and my wife's birthday during this trip and asked if I could get a little nicer room. I got upgraded to a suite. What a treat! It really was the anniversary and birthday, so I don't advocate saying these things if not true just to get upgraded, but I got way more than my money's worth.

HOTWIRE has a 5* hotel for your dates for $64. In the past, the 5* wins in Budapest have been the Intercontinental, so if you go that route, keep that in mind.

My trip was Prague, Vienna, and Budapest, so spending an extra $100 on a $3000+ trip was worth it to me.

I don't know if this helps or not, but I'm trying to give you my perspective, but please remember, I did not go in the Intercontinental to make a comparison. I just know the way I treated by the Sofitel made my decision worth way more than $25 a night. I can't say what anyone else will experience.

[lizzielizzie]

thanks for all your advice, been distracted with work so sorry i didn't post back before now

i going to start bidding tonight, but am a bit confused as to where to find out about budapest's zones

i'll keep looking, but if anyone could post back to explain where to find the zones (sorry if being a bit thick), i'd really appreciate it

thanks again to you all

[lizzielizzie]

HOTWIRE has a 5* hotel for your dates for $64. In the past, the 5* wins in Budapest have been the Intercontinental, so if you go that route, keep that in mind.

the intercontinental is a 4* on priceline though right? this has got me a bit befuddled??

ok so i think i've understood the zones

there are two

buda

and pest

buda doesn't have any 5* so that is the 'free zone

so i bid $50 (or this really a bit too low and silly?) on a 5* in pest, if it's unsuccessful i'll add buda and up the bid?

if someone could confirm i'm correct i'd really appreciate it

plus if someone could clarify the 4*/5* intercontinental thing, again i'd really appreciate it

then i'm set to go! where is the link you'd like me to use?

thanks again for all your help!

[Romelle]

You've got the theory right on bidding first Pest at the 5* level, and then adding Buda for your free rebid (still at the 5* level). No harm done in starting with $50. All PL does is tell you "no", and then you just bid again a little higher. And then a little higher the next day.

Nobody is watching you and declaring it "silly". I usually start low and work up. Sometimes I've been very pleasantly surprised along the way.

I just looked at the retail side of PL and the Intercontinental is showing as a 4*. Hotwire may well treat it as a 5*. There are lots of examples of HW star levels being "more generous" than PL star levels. I just checked a series of hotels in Washington, DC and found 3 examples of a 1/2* difference in rating, with HW giving the higher rating.

Romelle

[lizzielizzie]

thanks romelle,

i'm trying to bid now, putting in my details

it gives me the option of us or canada??

i'm in england!!

[lizzielizzie]

argh ok, i found out how to get round that i stole an alabama zip code

right $50 and $55 were rejected

it was actually slightly scary doing it :)

so i'll try again tomorrow night

thanks again all of you, i really am grateful for your help

[Romelle]

I do understand about the scary part. I'm guessing it might be sort of like gambling, although that is way too scary for me. I really enjoy the bidding process, and think of the results as sort of a big fun surprise. I'm always offering to do some bidding for my sons and their families when they travel.

And now you know $50 and $55 don't work. If you'd started out higher and got something right away, you'd always be wondering if a lower bid might have worked.

Good luck tomorrow.

Romelle

[lizzielizzie]

argh i tried to fool it using my work computer but it recognised my details (duh)

does that mean i have to wait another 24 hours?

[Romelle]

The computer used doesn't make any difference. I think any time you take a run at it using the same dates and star level, that 24 hour clock starts running again. Sorry.

In fact, I usually keep a little side log when bidding, noting the time. I use the time I finished the bid, just to be on the safe side.

Romelle

[lizzielizzie]

$60 and $65 unsuccessful :)

[Romelle]

$60 and $65 unsuccessful :)

But now you know.

For the record, when previous bidders won at $75, the dollar was stronger against the euro. We've been losing a little ground since then.

If you do get a counter offer, all it means is there really is something out there somewhere between your bid and the offer. It is recommended to just ignore it and keep with your gradual move-up strategy. Unless you are out of time, patience or nerve.

Hang in there.

Romelle

And of course there are some very nice 4*s, if your budget starts getting a little crowded.

[lizzielizzie]

bid $70 and it offered me the chance to up my bid to $90 so i upped my bid to $75 and won!

Your Offer Price Per Room, Per Night: US$75.00

Subtotal: US$300.00

Taxes & Fees: US$72.88

Total Charges: US$372.88

four nights in a 5* for $372.88 so pretty good i think?

Thanks again for all your help, it really is very much appreciated!

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see you received a nice deal and are happy with the results.

Can you please add a reply to this thread with the name of the hotel you received so we can add this information to the topic title.

Thank you for sharing your win with the board.

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

Enjoy your stay.

[lizzielizzie]

:) whoops..

Sofitel Budapest Chain Bridge, the one i wanted, so very happy

[AaronJB]

Thank you for the follow-up.

[Romelle]

I'm happy for you too! Nice bidding.

In Budapest, hope you try some of those baths. Interesting experience. And the little hole-in-the-wall places sell incredibly good gyros. Ask for them with "everything". Can't find a bad pastry, even in the Metro. Poppy seed, walnut, ?? The city markets.

Darn, I'm wishing I could go back - Romelle