Priceline Hotel: 3* (+) San Francisco Fishermans Wharf

[MikePoint]

Hello Folks,

I'm very impressed about this great site!

I'm planning a Round-Trip through the Western USA in September 2011.

After searching for some Hotels to stay in SF, I've found this site.

My wife & me (both mid-aged) are going to stay from 9/12/2011 to 9/15/2011 in SF.

The fact, that I'm a total Newbie, I (more or less) decided trying to stay in the Fishermans Wharf Vicinity for less than $70-80 (?)/night.

After sucessfully booking a stay in Monterey via Priceline, I thought about trying my luck in SF.

So I need advice for booking the Tuscan Inn (for example), maybe there are better options from more experienced users...

I'm aware of the added parking costs.

Thanks in advance & kind regards

Mike

PS:

Yes, I will use the links on this site to reach PRICELINE and HOTWIRE.

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

After sucessfully booking a stay in Monterey via Priceline...

Please share your win to the board as a NEW TOPIC so that others can benefit from your win, just as you have benefited from those who posted before you. :)

Rates are very high for these dates and at the moment i'm doubtful that $80 or less will be successful for a 3* or better in this zone. What is the best rate you're able to find thru conventional booking channels?

Thanks for using the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your bidding.

[MikePoint]

Done!

Jesus, after checking the "usual suspects" (Expedia; Tripadvisor; Hotel.com etc) Rates for SF Fishermans Wharf are extremly high...

I've had no idea why.

Is there another option (from the experts) or should I book a 2* motel at West Lombard street (Internet rate ~$140 + free parking)

[thereuare]

I'm planning a Round-Trip through the Western USA in September 2011.

Depending upon your itinerary, and any hotels you may have already purchased, are you able to re-route your plans so if you're visiting another nearby city you could swap the dates with San Francisco or stop there on your return?

Would you consider other areas such as Union Square East and Union Square West? What would be your maximum bid for this leg of your trip?

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

[MikePoint]

Thanks for replying

- Re-Routing: No sorry, there's no way to do this, because other Hotels on the route are already booked

- We're completely open to other areas (except airports). Since it is our first Trip to USA West & SF we oriented first around FW.

- Maximum bid for SF is planned for a maximum of about $140-$150/night (less is more than welcome :) )

(Plan B is a 2* Motel on Lombard Street)

Best regards

Mike

[thereuare]

Try LastMinuteTravel.com and use this HOTEL TOOL to help determine the names of the hotels whose names are not shown. During a busy time such as this i wouldn't bother wasting any time with hotels which are listed as 'on request' and stick with the hotels listed as 'available'... earlier, when i read your post the first time, they had 3* and higher hotels (they're a bit generous on the star ratings) between $105-$150.

Anything there of interest?

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

[Gallus50]

BTW - September/October are popular months to visit SF, and there are often large conventions. The weather is often better than summer, so that may be one reason why.

I usually find rates in Sept/Oct to be some of the highest of the year, and try not to travel to SF then because of it.

[Colfax]

$140 sounds like a lot for a 2* motel on Lombard Street. Which motel are you considering?

If you're willing to pay $140 for a 2* motel why will you only bid to $70-80 for a 3* on Priceline? If you can win a 3* in Fisherman's Wharf or Downtown on Priceline for $90-100 that would about match the cost of the 2* motel, even after parking charges, and you'd probably have a nicer place for the same money. Do you specifically want a motel style property with parking in front of your room?

[MikePoint]

Yes it does and Yes I agree completely.

I have to say, that we're completely Newbies (both PriceLine AND SF)

In my first post (maybe I was positively surprised with my first PriceLine-bid and success for Monterey [4* for $100]) I had no idea about the price-level in SF...

So yes, 3* in FW at that dates for $70-80 isn't realistic.

As a Plan B I have an advice of a friend of me for the Marina Inn in Lombard Street (the mentioned ~$140 with free parking).

So "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush" I try (and ask) further, if there's other possibilities...

Second try is the 3* Cornell Hotel de France at Nob-Hill (~$107 + $24 parking fee)

We're completely open for other suggestions, max. amount to spent is ~$150

[Colfax]

I'm not familiar with the Marina Inn but the rate on their website for 9/12-9/15 is $99 for a "cozy queen" and $104 for "deluxe queen".

Per their website Marina Inn does not provide free parking, or any parking apparently. The website says there's limited street parking (very limited I expect) or you can park at a nearby pay lot for an unspecified rate. Where are you finding a $140 rate? Maybe $140 is the total cost after tax and parking? Will you have a car in SF?

I looked at the Marina Inn reviews on TripAdvisor, and while they're generally decent for a 2* hotel, I still think you can likely find something better with a $150 limit. Is that $150 plus parking, or $150 parking included? If you mean $150 with parking that means a bidding limit of about $100-110, which might be enough for a 3* or 2.5* or Fisherman's Wharf or a 3* in Union Square West or East.

All those are popular areas with tourists. If Fisherman's Wharf area is your first choice you could bid there first, then if unsuccessful consider bidding USE or USW zones, or the Marina Inn.

If you want to try Priceline bidding for a 3* in Fisherman's Wharf first please clarify your bidding limit for the room only (keeping in mind that parking will be around $35-45/night more) and someone will suggest a bidding strategy.

[MikePoint]

@ Colfax: Thanks alot for your answers & tips!

Oh dang...sorry, my mistake - it wasn't the Marina INN, my friend meant the Marina MOTEL (There's free parking and a night rate of $149 on their website, but they admitted an AAA Special rate (hoping it's around 10%) so the price will be around $140. Again sorry, my mistake...

But while looking on Google Street maps, it seems, the Marina Motel is a little far away from Downtown & FW. On the other hand, the vicinity around the Motel seems more or less "save".

So I'm looking for somewhat closer to the Tourist Attractions. So maybe FW or USE seems more eligible.

~$150 is my amount of money I'm willing to spent totally per night (incl. parking - excl. tax)

So my bidding limit -as you say in your post- will be around $100-110.

I'm hoping I get not too far from topic here, asking too many questions about hotels....

[Colfax]

Would you first like to try up to $110 for a 3.5* in Fisherman's Wharf? Then if unsuccessful try for 3* or possibly 2.5* in FW?

If so..

When bidding for 3.5* in SF you have FIVE rebid zones. Those are zones that only have hotels less than 3.5* quality. If you need help identifying your five rebid zones please ask.

I suggest $85 for a 3.5* in FW. Then raise $5 per rebid zone up to your $110 limit.

Please start your bids with this PRICELINE link, or ask if you have other questions.

[Sciamano]

I'm not here to crush your hopes (on the contrary!!) but I've tried up to $120 for a 3.5* in FW area (my dates are almost exactly the same as yours) with no luck. :)

I definitely hope you succeed, because if you do, I'll jump in and try the same bid immediately. :)

Good luck!

[MikePoint]

Thanks Colfax for your great advices!

Thanks Sciamano for your comments! (I've learned a lot by reading your thread...)

Things done:

I've made an unsuccesful bid for 3.5* - FW - $110

I've made a (cancellable) reservation via booking.com for a Nob Hill Hotel

Things to do:

So -if no other suggestions- I wait a little and try in 2-3 weeks again...

Thanks to all for helping us!

[Colfax]

Hotwire has a 3* in Fisherman's Wharf for $148 that looks like Holiday Inn. This is HW's only option in FW zone for your dates.

Fitness, Pool, Restaurant, Business, Laundry, Highspeed

Priceline usually beats Hotwire on rate, so if this appeals you might try bidding for a FW 3* on PL.

I suggest bidding $100 for a 3*. Then add Marina-Lombard (your only rebid zone for 3* in SF) and bid $110.

[MikePoint]

Unsuccesful bid on 3* FW + Marina $110

Used the bidding strategy mentioned before....

Thanks a lot Colfax!

Will wait a little, then try again

BTW rate-update from HotWire: the only 3* FW Hotel now by $150

[AaronJB]

Sorry to hear that your bids weren't accepted. :)

Thank you for keeping us updated and for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches. Please let us know if you have additional questions, as well.

[Colfax]

Hotwire still has that FW 3* for $150. Looks like Holiday Inn. They've also added a 4* at $247.

As mentioned, PRICELINE usually beats HOTWIRE on rate. $110 wasn't enough, but I think $110 might be within $10-15 of a Priceline win.

The strategy I gave stopped at $110 because Holiday Inn charges $40/night parking and you have a $150 limit, parking included.

Across the street from the Holiday Inn there's a garage called the Alaska Garage that charges $25/night with in and out privileges.

If you really want Fisherman's Wharf I suggest bidding a little higher, like $115/$125, and if you win something park at Alaska Garage---still coming in under $150 total.

Another option is to try for 2.5* in Fisherman's Wharf. The 2.5* Holiday Inn Express gets very good reviews and includes breakfast, while the higher rated hotels in FW do not. The 2.5* Holiday Inn Express usually costs more than the 3* Holiday Inn, oddly enough. For your dates HIE is $240 and HI is $184.

If $115/125-ish doesn't work for 3* you could then try the same bids for 2.5*.

Please keep us posted and good luck!