Priceline Hotel: Help Wanted - 3* or 4* NYC Times Square or Midtown East or West - May

[IanInOttawa]

My wife and her sisters (4 people in total) are looking to travel to NYC for the weekend of May 13th, 14th, 15th 2011.

They are looking for 1 hotel room in Times Square Area or Midtown West, Midtown East(in order of preference), 3* or 3.5* or 4* hotel. What would be the recommendation in terms of price they should be bidding on.

I was thinking of starting at $140 a night. Can you somehow request a room that can fit 4 people in it.

Question is do they need to book one room or two rooms. I see that they only guarantee a room that fits 2 people.

Thanks for the help in advance.

I love Priceline and convinced everybody that it is the way to go !

[thereuare]

Please follow-up your previous Priceline Car Rental thread with whatever you ended up doing for that trip, then click this PRICELINE link and reply to this thread, we'll then have a look at the offer above.

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

[IanInOttawa]

i added a reply, sorry I forgot when I booked it last year

[AaronJB]

The issue with PRICELINE is that it only guarantees double occupancy/1 bed per room. One can request two beds with the hotel, but the hotel could be unable or unwilling to grant the request (or could charge more.)

However, the issue with NYC in particular is that the rooms at most properties (even upscale properties) are small or quite small (in some cases not large enough to fit a rollaway.) Rooms with two beds are definitely not as widely available in NYC, and as a result rooms with two beds often go for a premium that is above-average compared to most other major cities.

As a result, we do not recommend taking the risk with PRICELINE if two beds is a necessity, as getting two beds using PRICELINE is unfortunately unlikely.

Using HOTWIRE is a better choice (although at least moderately more expensive than PRICELINE), as one can indicate how many are in the room. As a result, you are ensured of some sort of bedding (it can be two beds or 1 + sofa, etc) for the entire party.

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[thereuare]

Based upon the above how do you want to proceed?

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

[IanOttawa]

They are willing to try and book 2 rooms via PRICELINE. When I looked at HOTWIRE the prices seem to be much higher. I will give it a go.

The other post by AaronJB makes sense from when I stayed in Manhattan before.

From looking at other posts it seems like the going rate appears to be $140-$195 for the area's they are looking at.

[thereuare]

The HOTWIRE rates are likely higher since you're likely comparing QUAD occupancy to PRICELINE's DOUBLE occupancy... rates can often jump substantially in NYC when searching for more than double occupancy.

For their 2 rooms PRICELINE bidding, are they willing to pay more for a higher rated hotel OR is the goal for this stay the least expensive 3* or better? What is their maximum bid?

Let us know the above 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.

[IanOttawa]

For their 2 rooms using priceline they didn't realize what a good deal you could get, so my mother in-law mentioned $300 a night and I commented that they should be able to get it for far less.

There main goal is to be walking distance from Times Square so that is why I thought of the Times Square area or The next area beside it Midtown Central. As for star rating they didn't seem to be too picky just want a decent place to sleep as I think they will be running my credit card and out on the town shopping, sight seeing or taking in a show.

Ian

[AaronJB]

It would also depend on what's more optimal. If they don't mind being all in one room, then you could use HOTWIRE to search for 4 in one room and while the total for that room would be higher, it would likely be lower than the total of two rooms via PRICELINE. Unfortunately, Spring in NYC is one of the busiest times of the year and - as a result - also one of the most expensive.

What would be the desired max budget per night?

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[IanInOttawa]

So I tried 2 rooms via PRICELINE using the link provided.

So far this is what I tried

$145 for Times Square - 4*

Then

$155 for Times Square - 4* and 3.5*

$155 for Times Square & Midtown West - 4* & 3.5*

$160 for Times Square & Midtown West & Midtown East - 4* & 3.5*

So far no luck.

Cheers,

Ian

[thereuare]

What would be the desired max budget per night?

If you let us know the maximum bid we'll suggest a strategy for you to follow... as you can certainly improve upon the bidding strategy you used above.

Thanks for using the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board.

[IanInOttawa]

The maximum they want to spend total for two rooms a night is $320, i.e $170 a room

Tks,

Ian

[thereuare]

At current prices $160 is going to be tough for a 3.5* or better in the MTE, MTW or TS zones.

Would a 4* hotel in the ESB zone be an option as that seems like it might be your best shot at something within your budget... how about including the MSG zone at the 3.5* level?

Is one room quad occupancy still an option?

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

[IanInOttawa]

Thanks for the help we ended up finding a decent place for them via Hotels.com, with 4 people in a room. It was worth a try and this time it didn't pan out.

[AaronJB]

Thank you for the follow-up; I'd continue to check HOTWIRE to see if prices improve closer to your dates. Additionally, please use the site's Hotels.com link to start regular rate purchases.

Thank you for keeping us updated and enjoy your stay.

[thereuare]

Thanks for the help we ended up finding a decent place for them via Hotels.com, with 4 people in a room. It was worth a try and this time it didn't pan out.

What hotel and price?