Priceline Hotel: Columbia (Central) bidding question

[fsulaw10]

Hello,

I am interested in staying in Columbia for 2 or 3 nights next week, and am definitely going to use PRICELINE to book. I need to stay in the Central area because I don't know the city well, and my conference is downtown.

I've noticed that everyone who bids in Central Columbia seems to get the Marriott Central, because they are looking for a 3* hotel. However, I actually don't want the Marriott, because I don't want to have to pay for internet and parking, and I would prefer a free breakfast. Thus, the 2.5* options seem appealing to me. Priceline's retail 2.5* hotels in that area are the Holiday Inn Express, Springhill Suites The Vista, and Hampton Inn Downtown. I know they don't perfectly overlap, but I was wondering if it's a relatively safe assumption that, if I bid for a 2.5* in Central Columbia, I'll get one of those three.

Also, I would be interested in hearing what you would think a good starting bid would be. After reading pages and pages of this thread, it seems that most people are ending up in the Marriott (3*) for $50/night bids, some as low as $47/night. So would $35 be a ridiculous place to start? I haven't been able to locate any winning bids for 2.5* hotels in that zone, so I have no idea where to start! I certainly don't want to bid too much, and because I'm looking at 2.5*, I don't think there are any other zones I can add to rebid. I'm not leaving until Sunday, Oct. 2, so I'd be happy to twiddle around with it for a few days, but I'd rather not have to do it for 5 days!

Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

[AaronJB]

Welcome to Betterbidding. :)

Please confirm which dates you are looking for next week and we would be happy to offer our thoughts.

In terms of bidding, there could be a new hotel (or a change in star rating) reported to the board at any time, so there is always the possibility of getting something unexpected. Additionally, if you bid for 2.5*, there's the chance you could get upgraded to 3* automatically. What would be your desired max budget per night?

HOTWIRE may be a better option for this stay with the ability to make an educated guess as to which hotels may be showing.

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

[thereuare]

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

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

Thanks.

[fsulaw10]

I am looking for 10/3 - 10/5. I've never used HOTWIRE before, but I'll look into it.

I'd like not to pay more than $45/night, in an effort to avoid getting placed at that Marriott (given the automatic star upgrade). Beyond that point, I think I'd prefer to use a different zone to try to land a 2.5* hotel with the possibility of free breakfast/internet and not having to pay for parking and risk getting lost/stuck in traffic.

Thanks!

[Romelle]

HOTWIRE can be a little more generous with its star ratings, so a 3* on Hotwire might well be a 2 1/2* on PRICELINE. Besides, you get to see the amenities first, so that should help you pick one you want.

If you do pursue HOTWIRE, you will want to look at their map for a while. The areas are usually different from PRICELINE zones.

Also, take note of the ability to select # of people. Changing from the default 2 to just 1 can yield different results.

Romelle

[thereuare]

When bidding 2.5* in this area there are NO re-bid zones.

Assuming you're OK with the Marriott at $45 or less should you be upgraded on your 2.5* bid, i would start at $35 and increase by $5 over the next 48 hours which will bring you to your maximum bid, and still a little time left over to find alternate accommodations should you be turned down at the $45 level.

Alternately, looking at HOTWIRE i don't see anything at 2.5* or above in this zone at $45 or less.

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

Any questions feel free to ask. Good luck and let us know how it goes.