Priceline Hotel: 2.5* New York City (Central Park South) Wellington Hotel

[waver99]

Hi there,

Going to NYC April 27th til May 4th. Am looking at areas that are convenient like Times Square, Midtown East. I am hoping to get 3.5 stars or above and looking to keep it under $165 a night if possible. Not sure if that is unreasonable as this is my first time trying Priceline as well as first time in New York. Have registered on Priceline following the link in this forum and intend to bid using the PRICELINE link here as well.

Any guidance/help truly appreciated.

Thanks!

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

Few comments...

At the 4* level MTE, MTW, CPS, TS and ESB typically work well for the average user and should get you fairly centrally located.

At the 3.5* something things change:

MTE - some of the hotels can be up to a 15 minute walk to the subway

CPS - has the Hudson Hotel which has notoriously small rooms (~140 sq. ft) which you may/may not find acceptable

At the 3.5* level you may also want to consider MSG and/or Chelsea which we didn't include above as there currently are not any 4* hotels offered in these zones.

With the above information noted, as the moment i suspect your budget won't be enough for a 3.5* or better hotel, but we can certainly try. If you're ready to 'give it a go', let us if you want to first try for a 4* hotel up to your limit and then if rejected try for a 3.5* OR if your goal would be the least expensive 3.5* or better for this stay. As well, let us know which zone(s) you're willing to accept. We'll then be able to suggest a strategy for you to follow.

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

[waver99]

Thanks for the welcome. Looking through the threads as well as the guidelines and FAQ have been really informative.

Given your advice, I would like to try MTE, MTW, TS and ESB for 4* and for 3.5* and the more convenient locations of TS, ESB, MTW, MSG and Chelsea (I would first like to try for a 4* hotel if possible)

As I am really unsure of the prices, would appreciate your advise on what are reasonable ranges to get rooms for.

Just to clarify, I am actually going to NY from Apr 27 to May 5 and not 4th.

Thanks!

[waver99]

Update:

Tried my hand out at bidding and had no luck so far on any of the 3.5-4* hotels. Was wondering if possible to bid for 3* hotels from the following areas:

SoHo/Tribeca

Lower East Side

Empire State Building Area

Chelsea Area

Madison Square Garden Convention Area

DT-Financial

Times Square

Midtown West

and if they were 1) convenient (less than 10 mins from Subway, walkable distance to some attractions, etc) and 2) relatively clean.

Would have a budget of around $140/night

As usual all advice, guidance much appreciated.

Thanks!

P.S. I am not sure if the prices guided here by fellow members are before/after tax. I assume its before.

[thereuare]

Before moving on to 3* bidding, to confirm, did you bid up to $140 at the 4* and 3.5* levels?

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

[waver99]

yep I did. Without much success.

[thereuare]

and if they were 1) convenient (less than 10 mins from Subway, walkable distance to some attractions, etc) and 2) relatively clean.

In the zones above I don't think there are any 'known' issues with proximity to the subway that you didn't have when bidding 3.5* level. As far as cleanliness goes, all hotels should be clean, but within each star rating there are some hotels which are better than others (i often describe it that one kid in school can get a 100 and the other a 91, but get an 'A' on their report card, but one would be 'better' than the other)... as you get lower in star rating the differences between the hotel in the top of the range vs. the bottom of the range can become more apparent. With this noted, and my previous comments, all hotels should, at the very least, be clean, but as we don't know the specific hotel that you will receive, it's difficult to say how bidding 3* will meet your own standards.

Let us know your thoughts and how you'd like to proceed and we'll advise accordingly.

[waver99]

Just an update, using your PRICELINE links, I got the Wellington hotel at 2.5* for $180/night. I am pretty sure this was the bare minimum I had to bid for these dates, as I had a bid rejected at $178/night at 2.5*. That being said, I am still pretty happy with the location of the hotel and reviews have been pretty positive. Perhaps I should have begun bidding much earlier.

Thanks for your help thereuare. Onto Las Vegas/ San Fran bidding now! Is it possible to use priceline for domestic transfers from San Fran to LV, and finally LV to NY?

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see you found something within your budget for this expensive time of year in the city.

If by 'transfers' you mean airline tickets, PRICELINE currently offers bidding on airline tickets only for departures from a US location and for roundtrip travel (it appears your needs are multi-stops en route which is not available thru PRICELINE bidding)

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

Enjoy your stay and have a great time in NYC!