Priceline Hotel: Bidding Strategy for New Orleans 4* 11/5 - 11/8

[AllenJ]

This is my first post here so hopefully I am following the rules. I've spent a few hours today reading through various threads and believe this is a good way to start off.

I am planning a trip to New Orleans from 11/5 - 11/8. I am looking for a 4* hotel in either the French District or the Convention District. My top $ is $75 a night. Would anyone be able to offer me advice on a bidding strategy?

Thanks!

[swag]

I'm looking for that same weekend (Fri - Mon for me for the SwampFest). Maybe it's the Saints/Bears game, not sure, but prices are pretty high.

EasyClickTravel did recently post some decent deals on their site. You may want to book one of those, which are usually refundable, while you wait and hope for a better deal to show up on PL/HW. But 4* downtown for $75 may not happen.

Good luck.

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

Swag knows the area well and i took a quick look and prices are indeed high, is there anything thru EasyClickTravel that appealed to you?

What will you do if not successful up to $75 for a 4* property?

[AllenJ]

Thanks for the advice! I checked out the EasyClickTravel site (which I had never heard of before) and was carefully looking at a $66 per night deal for a 3*. However, once I figured out what hotel it really was, I decided against it based upon the reviews I found.

It looks like I am going to have increase my bid on Priceline. I started at $45 and kept adding areas with no 4*s until there were none left. I bid up to $65 before I got locked out for 72 hours.

Do either of you think that the prices will go down or up as November approaches? In the meantime, I'm going to wait it out the 72 hours and try again.

[thereuare]

Nobody knows whether rates will go up or down between now and November... prices are a function of supply vs. expected demand.

Current bookings for these dates are up and therefore prices are as well... if the hotel gets a large number of cancellations or booking all of a sudden stop coming in, then prices will drop; if they remain strong then price can go even higher (and/or hotels can sell out).

However, it sounds as if there is both a football game and a festival... and i suspect both are contributing to the higher prices you are seeing.

EasyClickTravel is cancellable so you may want to reserve something (or a cancellable rate direct with the hotel) just incase things start to sell-out.

Let us know if we can be of further assistance.

[swag]

If you do use EasyClickTravel, the best bets for your dates look to me like either the Royal St Charles or the Queen & Crescent, each at an avg of $96/night.

[AllenJ]

Thanks, I've been looking the Royal St Charles over and am on the fence about it. From what I read on trip advisor there are very mixed reviews. Do you have any experience with either of those two hotels you mentioned? I would be very interested in your feedback on them!

[thereuare]

If this is going to be a busy weekend, i would use EasyClickTravel as a back-up... you can always cancel up to 72 hours before your check-in date, but the last thing you want to happen is that hotels start sell-out or prices go up dramatically, while you're still sitting on the fence and 'thinking about it'. (please use our link in this post if you use EasyClickTravel)

[AllenJ]

I booked the Royal Saint Charles however it was an "on request" reservation. Apparently they will get back to me as to whether or not I can get the room. And yes, I did use your link to do it :)

[thereuare]

Thanks for using our link... you may want to call them late Monday/early Tuesday to check on the reservation as they can sometimes be a little slow with 'on requests' reservations (although it has greatly improved over the last few months)

[AllenJ]

*update*

I have now bid up to $100 per night for a 4* and boutique rooms for my dates - all have been rejected. I've got a backup at the Royal St Charles and will continue to play around with Priceline until my trip actually commences. If I have any luck I will post my results!

Thanks for the help guys!