Priceline Hotel: 3* LA-San Gabriel Valley (Commerce-Norwalk-Rosemead) Doubletree Nrwlk

[IUdaughter]

I have never used Priceline before. I would like to name my own price. I was hoping that questions regarding how to identify zones, etc could be answered here. I need A LOT of guidance as I am unfamiliar with the area. I am traveling Aug 10th-Aug 13th. I want to be amidst everything. I was hoping for a 4* or above, as there are numerous shady hotels in the area. Should I wait to bid? Bid now? I was hoping less than $100/night. Is that feasible? Any suggestions for bidding with regards to zones that I have been reading about? Thanks in advance for any help.

[Colfax]

Welcome to BetterBidding, IUDaughter.

For starters, I suggest going to Priceline's website and taking a look at the map of LA zones. That will get you more familiar with the zone names and give you some feel for the geography.

$100 might be enough for a 4* in Downtown or LAX zones.

$100 almost certainly won't be enough for a 4* in Hollywood, Beverly Hills-West Hollywood, Century City-Westwood, or Santa Monica-Marina del Rey. It might be enough for a 3.5* or 3* in those zones. No "shady hotels" have come up in Beverly Hills-West Hollywood or Century City-Westwood zones, so I think you could feel comfortable bidding 3.5* or 3* in those zones if your $100 limit is firm.

Beverly Hills-WeHo is the only zone that offers 5* bidding, but $100 won't be nearly enough for 5*.

I am traveling Aug 10th-Aug 13th. I want to be amidst everything.

The attractions in LA are very scattered. There's no one zone that's amidst "everything". To help you choose the best zone(s) for you what are you planning to see/do in LA? Will you have a car?

A moderator will move your post to the LA section of the board when they see it.

Please use these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links for your puchases and searches.

[IUdaughter]

Thanks for the heads up on the move! I would have wondered where it would have went to!

Yes, I will have a car :)

I appreciate the advice. Do you think I should wait until the date gets closer? I guess I could try now, if I get declined, I get declined! Are there any other fees associated with Priceline that I need to budget for?

[Colfax]

Sometimes the best deals happen in the days just before you travel, but not always. With your trip less than three weeks away now it's definitely not too soon to bid, or to start trying, as long as your travel dates are firm. Priceline reservations are nonchangeable and noncancellable.

Having a car means you're free to stay in any zone and don't have to be near a Metro line. Most hotels in LA charge for parking, in case you didn't know.

Your first big decision is which zone or zones you want to stay in. Do you have any sense of that at all? Reading other posts here and reading the LA neighborhood info on TripAdvisor or Fodors, will help give you a feel for the different areas. What interests you? Beverly Hills shopping? The Beach? Museums? Hollywood? Clubbing and nightlife?

Santa Monica and Bev Hills-WeHo are very popular with visitors but $100 probably won't be enough for 4* in those zones. Would you bid higher than $100 for a 4*? Would you consider 3.5* or 3*, if it's not in a shady area?

p.s. post hasn't moved to LA board yet, but it might.

[IUdaughter]

Yes, I have looked at the zones. Hollywood and Downtown LA I don't think I would want to do less than a 4*. As I look at a "safety" map of California, obviously being in a city, it is a little more "rougher" to put it nicely. I wouldn't be opposed to have a 3* or 3 1/2* in B.H., Century City or Culver City zones. They seem a little more safe if I'm reading that map correctly, but again, I'm not from the area. I'm getting my info from http://www.lalife.com/ If you click on safety at the top it breaks it down.

I want to be within 20 minutes of whatever I chose to do, so somewhere central would be nice, whether it's the beach or Hollywood, etc.... Is that even possible? But, if I have to choose, I would prefer price over location, as long as I'm safe. I need to stay under $100.

Any suggestions on how I should bid with zones? BTW...went to book my flight today and tickets jumped up! So I'm at least going to wait until I have those before bidding. Hopefully they come back down on Monday :)

[Colfax]

I hadn't seen that lalife.com site before. I appreciate what they're trying to do but I can't say I agree with all their ratings. For example, they rate Bel Air, Brentwood, and Westwood as 7 on a 1-10 scale for safety. To my mind those are all very safe neighborhoods and I wouldn't hesitate recommending them to a single female travelling alone. No place is completely safe, of course, but those neighborhoods are about as safe as LA gets.

They rate Santa Monica a 5, and it's true there are some shady areas in Santa Monica, but those aren't where the Priceline hotels are located. From a safety standpoint I don't think you need to be concerned about the locations of the 3.5* or 3* hotels that have been reported to the board in Santa Monica-Marina Del Rey zone.

So where can you stay for $100 or less that's safe and relatively central?

My suggestion would be to shoot for a 3.5* in either Beverly Hills-West Hollywood or Century City-Westwood zone first. Then if rejected try for a 3* in either of those zones. 3.5* in Manhattan-Redondo Beach zone would also be very safe. It's not as central as the other two zones but it is on the ocean, if that appeals to you.

After you've purchased your plane ticket get back to us with which zones you want to try and someone will help with strategy.

Or since you haven't bought your plane ticket maybe take a look at Priceline Air + Hotel Vacation Packages, where you buy air and hotel together. Some of the package hotels are discounted to levels similar to what you'd get through Name Your Own Price bidding, but you get to see the name of the hotel in advance, and know you're buying a hotel where you'd feel comfortable.

Please use this PRICELINE link to search and/or purchase a vacation package, if you go that route.

p.s. to Moderators: please move thread to LA board. :)

[IUdaughter]

OK, I just bought my airline ticket. August 10th - 13th (3 night hotel). I see some people getting the Sheraton Pasadena for 3.5* for $75/nt so I'm feeling confident. Any help in how to bid would be greatly appreciated. Like I said, I'm not real picky, I just want some place safe since I will be traveling alone.

[Colfax]

Would you like to bid for a 3.5* in Pasadena? You can't bid for the Sheraton Pasadena specifically, but any 3.5* that comes up in Pasadena zone would be in a safer area.

Pasadena has some advantages. Colorado Avenue is a good place to shop and eat. A 3.5* in Pasadena will likely cost less than the other LA zones we talked about. And it's not a far commute, by LA standards, to Bev Hills, Hollywood, and other popular attractions.

If you want to try let us know your bidding limit and someone will suggest a strategy.

[thereuare]

If you want to try let us know your bidding limit and someone will suggest a strategy.

... and please click this PRICELINE link before replying.

Thanks.

[IUdaughter]

Yes, Pasadena will be fine. I need to save some money somewhere! Any of the above mentioned places will work if we need to add in areas. I REALLY appreciate it!

[thereuare]

1.

If you want to try let us know your bidding limit and someone will suggest a strategy.

2.

... and please click this PRICELINE link before replying.

[IUdaughter]

Yes, I clicked it.

[Colfax]

And I see your limit now in your first post:

I was hoping less than $100/night.

I'm hopeful you won't need to go as high as $100. Pasadena zone is in the LA-San Gabriel cluster. Enter "Pasadena" as your destination, not LA, to see the bidding options there.

When bidding for 3.5* in Pasadena you have two rebid zones--Commerce/Norwalk/Rosemead and Monrovia/Duarte. Those two zones only go up to 3*, so you can add them to your 3.5* Pasadena bids without risk of winning a hotel in those zones. Priceline never gives you lower than you bid for. Before each bidding session you should confirm on your own that C/N/R and M/D only go to 3* because things can change at any time.

Please click this PRICELINE link to start.

I suggest $70 for a 3.5* in Pasadena.

If rejected add C/N/R and bid $75.

If rejected exit Priceline, close browser, and reaccess PRICELINE through the link.

Then select 3.5* Pasadena and Monrovia-Duarte and bid $80 for 3.5.

If rejected add C/N/R and bid $85.

If that doesn't work you'll have to wait 24 hours to try $90, but hopefully $85 will be enough.

Good luck and please let us know how your bidding goes.

[IUdaughter]

I have checked 3* in that area as well. Are 3* hotels in Pasadena suitable? I just want to go as cheap as possible. What would your strategy be for bidding 3*? Where would you start? I see only one hotel the Courtyard by Marriott for 3* in Pasadena, but they still want $180!

[Colfax]

There's not much 3* bidding history in Pasadena. If you enter "Pasadena" in the Quick Search box at the top of the page you'll find only one 3* Pasadena win in the last year and that was for $95....more than a 3.5* sometimes costs.

The Courtyard is the only reported 3* in Pasadena but there's always a chance some new 3* could come up for the first time.

The problem with bidding 3* in San Gabriel area is every zone has a 3* so there are no rebids. If you only have one acceptable zone--Pasadena--you can only make one 3* bid every 24 hours. If you'd like to try I suggest $65, which is a lowball bid on a night when Courtyard is $180. Then wait 24 hours and try $75.

I think a 3* in Monrovia-Duarte, which is next to Pasadena, might suit you too from a safety standpoint, and a 3* there is usually less than Pasadena. Also all the 3* in Monrovia-Duarte have free parking (unless something's recently changed) and the Pasadena hotels usually charge.

If Monrovia-Duarte and Pasadena are both acceptable you could try this:

Bid $50 for 3* Monrovia-Duarte.

If rejected exit Priceline, close browser, reaccess PRICELINE via link and...

Bid $50 for 3* Pasadena

If rejected add Monrovia-Duarte and bid $55.

If rejected wait 24 hours and try the same, but at $60/$65.

Your thoughts?

[IUdaughter]

I think MD might be a little too far out for me. It would be about 35 minutes to Hollywood.

[Colfax]

If you only want 3* Pasadena you can just do one bid every 24 hours. With your trip ten days away I suggest starting around $65 for a 3*, then raise $5 every 24 hours. If a 3.5* has a lower Priceline rate than the 3*, which is very possible, your bid will be upgraded. If you're in a hurry to secure something then raise $10 every day instead of $5.

Please start with the board's PRICELINE link. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[IUdaughter]

Well I tried 3 1/2 pasadena, $70 rejected.

Added C/N/R $75, rejected

Then added 3* and asked $65 and accepted.

I got the Doubletree LA Norwalk. It's a little further out than I wanted to be, but looks like it's in a safe area. Since I have a car, I'm not complaining too much! The DT is asking $164 currently for those nights.

Thanks for your help :)

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

While not the perfect location for your plans, glad to see you received a nice deal and, for the price, can make this work for your needs.

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.

[Colfax]

Congrats on your first Priceline deal!

From the earlier conversation I'm guessing you didn't intend to bid for 3* in Commerce-Norwalk-Rosemead. I think it will work out fine since you have a car and Doubletrees are pretty dependable, but I'll mention the following to maybe help with your future Priceline bidding.

When you decided to drop from 3.5* Pasadena to 3* Pasadena you should have exited Priceline completely, closed the browser, then started over for 3*. The C-N-R box got checked during your 3.5* bidding and once a zone is checked you can't uncheck it, so it automatically got included in your 3* bid. Exiting and starting over you would have gotten a fresh bidding board with nothing checked, and you could have bid Pasadena 3* by itself that way.

But $65 for a $164 Doubletree is a really good deal; plus free choclate chip cookies. Have fun in LA!