Priceline Hotel: 4* Columbus (Downtown) Renaissance The Columbus

[tugttw]

Hi All,

I'm new to this forum, and relatively new to Priceline.

I'm trying to bid on a 4* hotel in downtown Columbus, checking in on 2/11/11 and checking out on 2/12/11.

I've tried bidding various locations at bids between $41-71 but had no luck. When I bid $71, it said it would accept my bid if I offered $90, but that seems steep given that the median retail is $129.

Any thoughts or tips on bidding?

Thanks!

-Dan

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

The median price shown by PRICELINE is often not very accurate so i wouldn't use that to assist in a maximum bid or bidding strategy.

What is the best rate you're able to find at an acceptable hotel for this nite thru conventional booking channels? What is your maximum bid for this stay?

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.

[tugttw]

Thanks for your prompt reply!

There are four 4-star hotels in Downtown Columbus... I've listed them below with their standard online rates and AAA rates in parenthesis:

Hyatt Capitol Square: $141 ($134)

The Westin Columbus: $109 ($104)

Renaissance Columbus Downtown Hotel: $129 ($123)

Hyatt Regency Columbus: no rooms available

I don't have a maximum bid (before I learned about Priceline, I would have been happy to pay the full rate), but I'm trying to get a good deal, especially seeing that people have gotten these hotels in the past for $40-70.

Thanks again!

[thereuare]

So based upon the above rates, how much would you need to save in order to make an opaque purchase (ie- not choosing which hotel you receive, non-refundable, not choosing bed choice, etc) worthwhile? For some they're happy with an opaque purchase if they can save $5... for others they need 10%, 20%, 30%, etc, etc to make it worth their while.

Let us know your maximum bid and we'll suggest a strategy for you to follow.

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

[tugttw]

I would say my maximum bid would be $80-85.

Thanks again for your help!

[thereuare]

At the 4* level you have NINE 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 4* Downtown...

Bid $63, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $65, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $68, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $70, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $73, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $75, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $78, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $80, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $83, if rejected add re-bid zone...

Bid $85

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.

[tugttw]

Thanks for all your help.

I bid $63 on Downtown Columbus and it said that if I raised my bid to $78 that I could rebid immediately. I did, and my offer was accepted at the Renaissance Columbus Downtown Hotel. (And I used your PRICELINE link).

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Hope you're pleased with the results and this property works well for your plans. Do note for future bidding that PRICELINE's counter-offers can usually be undercut by using your re-bid zones... if you had continued the suggested strategy you may have been able to shave a few extra dollars off of the $78 bid price (see this Priceline Counter-Offer thread for more info)

Thank you for sharing your win and using the PRICELINE links on the board to begin your bidding.

Enjoy your stay.