Hotwire Hotel: 4* San Diego (Downtown-Harbor Islnd) Wyndham Emrld

[trukyram]

I am new to all of this so would appreciate any help on bidding. My family (2 adults/2 kids) will be in San Diego from July 6th - July 12th. We'd like to stay in the hotel circle mission bay area at a 3* hotel, which is the highest rated for that area. I haven't seen any posts about prices for this area so I'm not sure what to bid, especially since the many of the hotel prices are higher starting on July 1st (according to hotel web sites). What should I start bidding at?

Also, I'm worried that we may only get a room with one bed but there will be 4 of us. Since this is a family-oriented area, would it be likely that this wouldn't be a problem? With the 4th of July holiday being so close, I'm concerned that the rooms with 2 beds will be filled. Do the hotels charge extra for rollaways?

Any help would be appreciated.

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

I'm worried that we may only get a room with one bed but there will be 4 of us

A legitimate concern if occupancy levels are high.

I only looked briefly but this does seem to be an expensive area... what are the best rates you could currently find and what is your budget? (a few ideas but need to know this to know which direct to head)

[Scorp]

We'd like to stay in the hotel circle mission bay area at a 3* hotel, which is the highest rated for that area.

Do you mean Mission Valley? Mission Bay is oceanside (and is a separate zone), I believe.

If you are interested in the Mission Valley/Hotel Circle area, a starting point is to check the Hotwire prices. And Hotwire will let you specify 2 adults + 2 children.

A quick check showed these:

2* $95

Restaurant, Pool, Golf, Tennis

2.5* $110

Restaurant, Comp Breakfast, Pool, Fitness, Laundry (SS)

3.5* $146

A/P Shuttle, Restaurant, Pool, Fitness, Hi Speed Internet, Business, Laundry (SS)

If you break your dates into two stays, the rate can vary a bit as well. For example, the 2* drops to $83 for just the dates 7/8 - 7/12. So you can try some different combinations to find a better overall price.

The SeaWorld/Mission Bay/Shelter Island zone had slightly higher prices at each quality level.

If you wanted to bid on Priceline, you would probably pay less than the Hotwire rates, but can't be guaranteed of getting a room to accommodate more than 2 people.

Checking current rates for some of the possible Priceline 3* hotels in the Mission Valley area, I see Holiday Inn $129, Doubletree $170(Net Direct) or $189, Sheraton $170 (Internet Only) or $179, Marriott $199

The Handlery hotel has come up before, but its booking engine was down when I tried to check it.

[cntrfieldsmom]

Up until a change of plans I had been bidding on San Diego for June 12-15. Mission Valley, Costal and DT. I have seen the Handerly in Mission Valley come up very often at $45. I was not successful, but I quit bidding also. I believe my highest bid for coastal and DT was $85 and $50 for Mission Valley.

[trukyram]

If you break your dates into two stays, the rate can vary a bit as well. For example, the 2* drops to $83 for just the dates 7/8 - 7/12. So you can try some different combinations to find a better overall price.

Checking current rates for some of the possible Priceline 3* hotels in the Mission Valley area, I see Holiday Inn $129, Doubletree $170(Net Direct) or  $189, Sheraton $170 (Internet Only) or $179, Marriott $199

I did mean Mission Valley, not Mission Bay. I've seen others post some great deals, but not in this area. That's why I'm not sure where to start bidding. I may just to need book from hotwire to get the 2 beds. I was so hoping though to save some more money using priceline.

Do you mean then to stay at a 3* for 2 nights and then move to a 2* from 7/8 to 7/12? The prices are higher in SD on the weekends.

These are not priceline prices though, right? Approx. how much lower could I expect to win with bidding? Our budget is about $140 max per night, but would obviously prefer to pay much less. A ** or ** 1/2 star would be fine with us as long as it has a pool and is in a nice area (ie. no homeless guys walking around). Some of the online reviews I've read (other sites) show the 2* hotels in this area to have problems.

[trukyram]

I'm looking at a room for 2 adults & 2 children on hotwire for check-in on 7/6 and check out on 7/12. I'm wondering if anyone could help ID these three hotels:

The first one is 2.5* located in Mission Valley/Hotel Circle (like this option because of the free breakfast, but don't want it to be in a bad neighborhood):

Restaurant

Complimentary Breakfast

Pool

Fitness Center

Laundry Facilities (self-service)

The next one is a 3.5 stars hotel also in Mission Valley/Hotel Circle and is a customer favorite for $139:

Shuttle

Restaurant

Pool

Fitness Center

High-speed Internet access

Business

Laundry Facilities (self-service)

The last one is a 4* Best Value hotel in the San Diego coastal area for $160 a night:

Restaurant

Pool

Fitness Center

Golf

Tennis

Business Center

Guests have access to business equipment/services.

Any help in identifying these would be greatly appreciated. I've never used the service before.

Thanks!

[trukyram]

I posted this in the wrong place on this board, but I think I'm in the right place now.

I'm looking at a room for 2 adults & 2 children on hotwire for check-in on 7/6 and check-out on 7/12. I'm wondering if anyone could help ID these three hotels (and if there are parking fees, what is the estimated amount):

The first one is 2.5* located in Mission Valley/Hotel Circle (like this option because of the free breakfast, but don't want it to be in a bad neighborhood):

Restaurant

Complimentary Breakfast

Pool

Fitness Center

Laundry Facilities (self-service)

The next one is a 3.5 stars hotel also in Mission Valley/Hotel Circle and is a customer favorite for $139:

Shuttle

Restaurant

Pool

Fitness Center

High-speed Internet access

Business

Laundry Facilities (self-service)

The last one is a 4* Best Value hotel in the San Diego coastal area for $160 a night:

Restaurant

Pool

Fitness Center

Golf

Tennis

Business Center

Guests have access to business equipment/services.

Any help in identifying these would be greatly appreciated. I've never used the service before.

Thanks! ;)

[thereuare]

Haven't forgotten about you...

been busy with some other projects (one of them BB related... more exciting features for the board to come) and needed more time to research the above. I think i have one of them figured out, but please give us until the end of today to try for the others (if we don't reply by the end of the day please bump up this thread once again or send me a PM).

Thanks.

[thereuare]

The 3.5* hotel is a match for the Sheraton Mission Valley and that would be our best guess.

Not sure about the other two properties, but the one with breakfast and a restaurant sounds like some type of Holiday Inn property, although i could find any in this zone.

Let us know what you decide to do and how it goes.

[trukyram]

I chose the 4* downtown hotel listed at $112.00 for July 6th -12th (Windham Gardens Emerald Plaza). Amenities include restaurant, fitness center, pool, internet access (for a fee, but if you sign up for the Windham By Request free program off of the web site, the internet access is free), and business center access. I called and found out that the parking is $25 each night though. Ouch! The price was okay though since I'll get the $30 Entertainment Book rebate and I used the $50 discount from the hotwire coupon code.

One thing I did notice after I purchased the reservation was that the hotel web site states that kids stay free. However, when I did a hotwire search and only did it for 2 adults (no kids) the same hotel came up for only $89 per night. So, that would be good to know for the future. I could have saved $23 a night by not including the kids and would have still received the same type of room. I don't understand though that if the hotel advertises that kids stay free, then why does hotwire charge more if you have kids included on the search? Hmmmm.

If anyone out there knows where there might be cheaper overnight parking nearby, I'd appreciate any info.

[thereuare]

You hadn't asked about this 4* Downtown hotel above, did you? (as the amenties are different than the 4* you had asked about in the Coastal zone... this Downtown hotel we had previously identified so you could have learned about the parking beforehand)

Regarding the 2 people vs. 4 people, your assumption may not necessarily hold true (but it may have been worth the risk). Even though they advertise "kids stay free" your Hotwire reservation would only go thru for double occupancy (if that is what you selected)... you could easily be assigned a room with only one bed, and if when you arrived there were no rooms left with 2 beds, you'd be out of luck. By selecting all 4 of you on the Hotwire reservation, the reservation was sent thru as quad occupancy, so you are ensure of a room with sleeping accomodations for all four of you. Whether it's worth the 'risk' of only booking for 2 people is questionable and the answer may differ for each person. (although i will add that i do think it's wrong for a hotel to bump up their rates for a Hotwire booking when they don't necessarily do so for traditional bookings... but it can't entirely be proven that this is the hotel's pricing policy and not hotwire marking the up room more)

Have a great trip with the family!

[bbbb]

You will not get any of the Windham By Request benefits as this is a hotwire stay. Theres on street parking downtown by this hotel but its free after I think 5 or 6pm and you have to move the car early in the morning or run down and pay the meter. You can't park on the street on Friday nights because of street sweeping. :)

[liveinhotels]

Street parking in downtown San Diego is free after 6:00 pm, until 8:00 am. Street cleaning is on alternating sides of the street on alternating nights, so just park on the other side of the street or go around the corner. Just remember that if the sign says No Parking 3:00 - 6:00 am Tuesday and Thursday, that means you don't want to park there Monday or Wednesday night.

[bbbb]

The sign I saw in the Gaslamp by the Hilton said sweeping on friday night I thought? Does it depend on what part of the DT area you are in as to the night they sweep?

[trukyram]

No, I did not include the DT area in my original search request due to parking fees & traffic, but I changed my mind due to the pricing and hotel rating (I did notice on a different web site that it was rated at 3.5* and not 4*). Either way, my kids saw the pictures and are very excited. I knew there'd be a parking fee and was figuring around $20ish, but not $25. Is the hotel parking charge only for overnight parking, or is the $25 charge there regardless of the time of day? As a hotel guest, can we park at the hotel for free during the day and park on the street at night assuming we can find a spot?

Also, thanks for the heads up on not being able to use the Windham By Request program. We won't bother bringing our laptop, then. Any other hidden fees? How much is it to use the weight room?

Thanks again.

[bbbb]

Theres no way around the parking fee unless you can find a spot on the street. You can not park at the hotel for free at any time. The fee should include in and out privledges so you can come and go with out having to pay twice.

This is a very nice hotel with a great lobby.

[trukyram]

We returned from our trip last week. There's a public parking garage right across the street for $15 overnight (vs $25 hotel charge). We did that for the first 2 nights and then parked on the street for the other 4 nights. We always returned after 6pm anyway when the parking was free and then put in 5 or 6 quarters at 8:00am the next day until we left around 9:20ish. That worked great and the price was right. We had no problems finding parking very close by and even found a free spot one night where there was no meter (right across from the valet entrance). Also, the parking is free from 6:00pm Saturday until 8:00am on Monday morning.

One thing to be careful of: The signs on each side of the street say "no parking on Mon, Wed or Fri from 3:00am -6:00am (as someone here stated due to street cleaning), and on the other side of the street, it says "no parking on Tues, Thurs, Sat 3-6 am). That means that if it's a Tuesday night you need to park where it says no parking Tues-Thurs-Sat, because once it becomes 3:00am, it will be the following day which would be Wednesday. We almost made that mistake until the guy at the parking garage reminded us that the day of the week changes after midnight. Didn't think of that when reading the signs!

As far as the hotel it was okay, but good I suppose for downtown. The rooms could use an overhaul (new carpet, mattresses and plumbing). Our toilet didn't flush the first day we got there and the sink made gurgling sounds off and on early in the morning. Other than that, it was fine and very convenient to attractions.