Priceline Hotel: 4* San Francisco (Union Square West - Nob Hill) Mark Hopkins Intercontinental

[dbmbch]

Trying to stay in San Francisco 1-13-2012 thru 1-16-2012

desired locations in order of preference: Union Square East,USWest, Fisherman's Wharf, Marina, Japan Town.

tried 4* at USW, UNW and Japan Town at $80 and no winning bid

then reduced stars to 3.5* and repeated areas at same price $80 and no winning bid.

I saw a winning bid on the calender for 4* for $140 in USW.

Perhaps $80 is overly ambitious. What do you think?

I'll try again tomorrow.

[AaronJB]

Welcome to Betterbidding. :)

What would be your desired star rating/max bid per night?

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 read your messages and click each of these PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links before replying.

Thanks.

[dbmbch]

Hey its tomorrow. Actually it hasn't been 24 hours. So I'm trying the other location as well: Fisherman's and Financial district at $75 for 4* and then for 3.5*. Failed bids

My desired stat rating is 3/5*-4* and the max bid is $100 for the 3.5* and $135-145 for the 4*

[thereuare]

How would you rank the following in terms of importance... star rating, zone, price?

Are you willing to pay more for a 4* vs. a 3.5* and/or more to be in one area over another... or is price the ultimate deciding factor and the least expensive 3.5* in any of the acceptable zones is the goal for this trip?

Let us know the above and we'll suggest a strategy inline with your goals for this stay.

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

[dbmbch]

I am willing to pay more for a 4* vs a 3.5* and I am willing to pay more to be in Union Square West, Union Square East, Financial District, SOMA and Fisherman's Wharf in that order.

[thereuare]

I am willing to pay more for a 4* vs a 3.5* and I am willing to pay more to be in Union Square West, Union Square East, Financial District, SOMA and Fisherman's Wharf in that order.

So to confirm, did you want to:

1) bid for a 4* up to your limit in the USW zone, then if rejected...

2) bid for a 4* up to your limit in the USE zone, then if rejected...

3) bid for a 4* up to your limit in the Financial District...

4) bid for a 4* up to your limit in the SOMA...

5) lower your star rating to 3.5* and start the process all over again??

OR

Did you want the least expensive 4* or better in the USW, USE, Financial, or SOMA zone... then if rejected lower to 3.5*

OR

1) Try for the least expensive 4* in the USW and USE zones, then if rejected...

2) Include Financial in your 4* bidding, if rejected...

3) try SOMA in your bidding

Please confirm and we'll suggest a strategy for you to follow.

[dbmbch]

As suggested I used the link to PRICELINE.

I tried a 4* (Jan 13-16; same dates as before) for Union Square West and bid $90 a failed

and then I tried 4* for Union Square East, $90 and failed

then the Financial District, and SOMA all at $90 and 4* and failed.

I veered off course and tried a $100 bid on Union Square West and East and then I used the link at the top of the page for "Hotels" and returned to the front page and select bidding, entered the same city, same dates and bid $10 higher to take the bid at Union Square West and then East (still 4*) up to $110. The bid failed. I expected Priceline to say that I had to change the area of star rating etc. It did not.

I got back on course by rebidding Union Square West, Union Square East, Financial District, SOMA all for $90 but at a star rating of 3.5*. The bids failed.

[thereuare]

Based upon current rates I'm guessing it will take ~$120-$130 for a 4* hotel in our of your preferred zones (USE or USW)... let us know if you're willing to bid higher than you already have, and if not, which of the scenarios in my previous post you'd like to pursue and we'll take it from there.

Thanks for using the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board.

[dbmbch]

I like your third option:

1) Try for the least expensive 4* in the USW and USE zones, then if rejected...

2) Include Financial in your 4* bidding, if rejected...

3) try SOMA in your bidding

except to say that the 4th step would be to re-try at 3.5* after going thru the steps 1-3 you listed.

[dbmbch]

oooooooo..... I tried $120 and 4* on the Union Square West Nob Hill and got the following response:

Special Offer: Try Again Right Now at $146/night

Book now: We found a hotel available at $146 per room per night

Special offer: You can raise your price without waiting 24 hours

[dbmbch]

Well I ignored the $146 counter offer. And continued to try an up the bid price $5, but Priceline is now saying they are duplicate requests.

[dbmbch]

The latest and greatest. Priceline started letting me rebid by solely upping the price. After failing at $125 and $130 I selected the "Hotels" link at the top of the page, re-entered San Francisco, same dates and USW Nob Hill. I got the successful bid at $135. Thank you for you help.

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see you were ultimately successful for this stay and hopefully are pleased with the outcome.

Thank you for sharing your win and using the PRICELINE links on the board to begin your bidding.

Enjoy your stay.

[dbmbch]

Is there a rhyme or reason why/how Priceline lets users re-bid by only changing the price (without changing areas or star ratings)?

[thereuare]

Your bidding was 'all over the map' so i wasn't able to follow exactly what you were doing each time, but if you were able to bid again on a bid which should have otherwise been rejected as a duplicate, i would suggest that it was likely a fluke and you won't be able to do so again in the future (from time to time we do get reports of such behavior)