ehdbruin Posted August 30, 2011 Report Posted August 30, 2011 Hi all! First off, I'm glad I found this board! Hopefully it helps me to save some money! :) Glad to be part of Better Bidding now.My wife and I are taking a trip to NYC for a late one year anniversary celebration. This will be our first time to New York and so we are super excited.So I was wondering if anyone can give bidding advice for our trip. Here are the details:- Trip is 11/3 - 11/8- Would like at least a 3.5*, a 4* is preferable- I would love if we can stay at $250 or less a night- Since this is our first trip to New York we are really looking to stay anywhere that is real close to the major touristy areas (times square, theatre district, etc.)One thing I did notice is that our trip is during the NYC Marathon. Is this a good thing or bad thing? Does that mean hotels are more expensive? Will it be so crowded that we won't enjoy ourselves?Any ideas and tips? What price should we expect to pay during this time?Thanks for your help! Please let me know if you need additional details.
thereuare Posted August 31, 2011 Report Posted August 31, 2011 Hi all! First off, I'm glad I found this board!... Glad to be part of Better Bidding now.Welcome to BetterBidding! We're glad you found us too and happy to have you :)One thing I did notice is that our trip is during the NYC Marathon. Is this a good thing or bad thing? Does that mean hotels are more expensive? Will it be so crowded that we won't enjoy ourselves?It's a good thing in that you'll be in town to experience a once a year even that is truly inspiring. I'm not a runner, but watching the event live leaves everyone who witnesses it inspired. The city will not be so crowded that it will detract from your experience, the city is plenty big to accommodate everyone... however, the downside is that it will inflate hotel prices.Currently if you're looking for a 4* i think you have a chance at about $275-$280 bid price... a 3.5* will likely (hopefully) come in near the top of your currently stated $250 budget.We can try for a 4* first up to whatever budget you determine, but given my guestimate of ~$275-$280, do you want to increase your maximum bid, or once you start getting that high you would prefer to lower your star rating to 3.5*?Let us know your thoughts and/or questions, and we'll take it from there.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
ehdbruin Posted August 31, 2011 Author Report Posted August 31, 2011 Hi! Thanks for the response!Will we see a significant difference between a 3.5* and 4* hotel? If not, then I would say we would lean towards a 3.5* to try to save some money. Although, a 4* for around $275 would still be better than what we were going to do. We had found on Priceline a refundable rate for ink48 for $303.45 and were going to book it before we came to Better Bidding. We thought that it would be our best option pricewise and were already going to book it just in case. Would you still suggest we book this refundable rate for ink48 as a backup? (even though we really wish we can spend around $250 a night instead of $300 a night).Also, what taxes/fees should we expect to pay on top of the hotel/bid price?Sorry for rambling. :) I think what I would like to do is start with a 4* with a max bid of $265 if that's okay (and I'll hope and pray we magically hit $250 or less haha). If it doesn't work out, then we can go to 3.5*.Thanks for your help!
thereuare Posted August 31, 2011 Report Posted August 31, 2011 It's difficult to say how much 'more' you will get with a 4* vs. a 3.5* since even within the same star rating, there can be a fair amount of variation. When comparing one of the 'best' 4* to one of the lower tier 3.5* properties (perhaps getting ready for a downgrade to 3*) you may see a big difference in quality... when comparing one of the lower 4* hotels to one of the upper 3.5* hotels, you may see very little difference (and in some circumstances even prefer the 3.5* over the 4*).It comes down to how far you want to extend your budget and how much you usually 'use' a hotel vs. simply view it as a place to sleep at the end of the day.Let us know your thoughts, and depending upon which star level you choose, we'll discuss suggested zones to bid.Any others questions regarding the above feel free to ask.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
ehdbruin Posted August 31, 2011 Author Report Posted August 31, 2011 I think I'd like to start with 4* with a budget of $265 a night.Based on what I learned on the rebidding thread, it seems like I get five re-bid zones. So I guess the question is now which zones do I actually want to be in? Are these the zones I should be going for? (Keeping in mind this is our first trip to NYC and so we want to be around all the touristy areas):- Central Park South- Chelsea- Empire State Building Area - Midtown East- Midtown West- Times SquareThanks again for your help!
thereuare Posted September 1, 2011 Report Posted September 1, 2011 We don't see too much 4* bidding in the Chelsea zone, even though most of this zone is 'pretty good' in terms of subway access. If you were to win a hotel all the way in the western most part of the zone it would be a 'moderate' walk to the subway, but nothing terrible... and the meat packing district is becoming trendy in its own right.Confirm if you'd like to include Chelsea or not and we'll advise accordingly.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
ehdbruin Posted September 1, 2011 Author Report Posted September 1, 2011 I think that we should leave out Chelsea for now. Thanks!
thereuare Posted September 1, 2011 Report Posted September 1, 2011 At the 4* level you have FIVE 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* MTE, MTW, ESB...Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $165, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $175, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* TS and CPS...Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $165, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $175, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* MTE, TS, ESB...Bid $180, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $190, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* MTW and CPS...Bid $180, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $190, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* MTE, CPS, ESB...Bid $195, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $200, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $205, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* TS and MTW...Bid $195, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $200, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $205, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* MTE, MTW, ESB, TS...Bid $210, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $215, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $220, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* MTE, MTW, ESB, CPS...Bid $210, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $215, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $220, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* MTE, MTW, CPS, TS...Bid $225, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $230, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $235, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* MTE, MTW, TS, ESB...Bid $225, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $230, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $235, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINESelect 4* MTE, MTW, TS, CPS, and ESB...Bid $240, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $245, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $250, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $255, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $260, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $265Any 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. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
ehdbruin Posted September 2, 2011 Author Report Posted September 2, 2011 Thanks for the help with the bidding strategy! Unfortunately, no luck. None of the bids were accepted.I do want to add though that I changed the dates slightly. I placed the bids for November 4 - November 8. I spoke with my wife and we decided since we get in late on Thursday that it would be better and more economical just to pick up a cheap hotel room by the airport and then head into the city early Friday morning.So are my options now to either raise my max bid or go down to a 3.5*?Thanks!
thereuare Posted September 3, 2011 Report Posted September 3, 2011 So are my options now to either raise my max bid or go down to a 3.5*?For the most part...Although i'm doubtful it will make much of a difference, you could re-try and include Chelsea in the bidding. You could also consider other zone(s) such as Downtown.Also probably not ideal, but you could split your bid once again, which would involve an airport hotel on your arrival, and then two different hotels over the 4 nites in Manhattan. That's a fair amount of hotel changes over a few days, but it is an option, so i at least mention it in case budget wins out over convenience.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.Let us know how you'd like to proceed and we'll take it from there. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
ehdbruin Posted September 11, 2011 Author Report Posted September 11, 2011 I upped our max bid and won The Strand Hotel on 11/4/11 - 11/8/11 for $285/night. Any thoughts on this hotel? Looks like it is in the Empire State Building Area.
AaronJB Posted September 11, 2011 Report Posted September 11, 2011 Congrats on your success. :)Terrific deal for this well-reviewed NYC property. Thank you for sharing your win and please use the site's PRICELINE or HOTWIRE links to start your purchases and searches.Enjoy your stay.
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