Priceline Hotel: 5* Las Vegas Strip Venetian $89 7/6-10

[soz]

Hi,

My wife and I are traveling to Vegas checking in on 7/6 and out on 7/10. Venetian's offering a deal for $119 a night, which isn't bad, but I see that $79 a night rate, and can't resist trying.

Hotwire is offering $118 (up from 109 a few days ago??).

Should I be waiting until 1 week in advance, or grabbing it at 119 while I can get it? If I can save $40/night for 4 nights, that's pretty substantial...

Priceline counter-offered my $85 bid with a $118...

Thanks for your help!

soz

[thereuare]

Hmmm.... tough decision!

Given the low rate and apparently open availability, it would seem like the $79 rate should be avialable about 1 week before check-in, but this being Vegas, that can dry up at any time!

If it were me, i would probably be willing to bid up to $93 via Priceline in order to get this secured today, but this is only a figure that you can decide. My thinking is that if ultimately successful at $79, you'd be saving $40/nite, however this may or may not be available and what if availability suddenly dries up. Therefore, if i can lock in 2/3 of the potential savings today, then i'd take that. We have had a report of $89 being an accepted bid (and being Priceline's cost), so i would make sure that one of your bids is that number exactly. If you need an exact bidding strategy, let me know the maximim that you'd like to spend at this point in time and i'll post an approach for you to follow. Was the rejected $85 bid in which you received a counter-offer your first bid? If so, you can still bid again now by using the technique discussed here: Bidding Again Before 72 Hours

Few things to note when bidding this:

-plenty of re-bid zones, so you have the ability to raise your bids by only $2-3 with each re-bid

-plan accordingly so that you're not locked out of bidding (the 72 hour rule) 10 days before your arrival date (ie- since the Veneitian usually makes their lowest rate available about 7 days before arrival, make sure that you are able to bid on the 7th day before your check-in date)

If you have any questions about anything discussed above, or would like me to spell out a strategy for you, just ask :)

As a new member to our board, please give a quick read to our thoughts about using an affiliate for your Priceline and Hotwire bidding: No Free Rides

And i forgot.... welcome to BetterBidding!

[soz]

Thanks for the tips. I think you make a good point. I guess I'd be willing to pay $119 if I had to, so maybe I should just book it, but I'd like to feel like we got a good deal.

I just bid through to $100 and something interesting happened: The first couple of bids it said, "the suggested retail price for a 5* hotel is $141". Then, around my third bid (maybe $95) it said, "the suggested retail price for a 5* hotel is $98". I thought, "hey, maybe I can bid $98 and get it" but I failed at 98 and at 100.

Figured I'd give it a rest and try again in a few days closer to the 7-day window.

Any suggestions on a reasonable backup hotel? Everything I'm finding on Expedia and Travelocity has unpleasant cancellation policies...

Thanks again!

[thereuare]

Hard to make a back-up to compare to Venetian or Bellagio.

I would doubt you'd need a cancellable back-up for a near-term mid-week stay in Vegas where rates are currently so low (i know, breaking all the rules here, but the Vegas hotel business is different than just about anywhere else in the world). If you'd be more comfortable with a back-up, i'm pretty sure that the Park Place properties booked directly with the hotel (Bally's, Flamingo, Paris) offer a 72 hour cancellation policy, but confirm that with the hotel before booking.

For a cancellable back-up, i think usually booking directly with the hotel is best as they usually have the most liberal cancellation policies (but always ask when booking and write down the person's name that tells you it's cancellable); most of the 'online agencies' often have some time of cancellation penalty.

[soz]

Thanks for all of your help. I won on Thursday. Venetian at $89 per night. Hotwire price had gone from $109 to $118 back down to $112. Bid history was:

$79, Rejected

$82 Rebid Zone Rejected

$85 Rebid Zone Rejected

$89 Rebid Zone Accepted

Hooray - looking forward to it! :)

[thereuare]

Thanks for the follow-up.

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