tiffleu Posted September 13, 2012 Report Posted September 13, 2012 Hi there!I just attempted my first "Name your own price" bidding on Priceline with no success. The following is what I tried:At 3.5*, MSG for $140 (I speculated that this may be the Affinia Manhattan)rebid, added MTE for $160rebid, added MTW for $195rebid, added ESB for $205rebid, added CPS for $210rebid, added TS for $220rebid, keep all areas the same, added 3* for $160. No good.I bid using travel dates 10/17/12-10/21/12. My ticket is already booked so this is not flexible. This will be my first time in NYC. I'm hoping to stay close to the Midtown area because it looks the most convenient. I plan on seeing the SOL, ESB, TS, and to do some shopping at Macy's, see a show and eat at a lot of the great food places I keep hearing about.At the 3* level, I don't want to spend more than $190. At the 3.5* level, I would like not to spend more than $230.I'm going with my boyfriend and currently he has a back-up reservation at Pod 39 for $265/nt. I understand that this is a busy time of the year. I'm hoping we can save some $$ with Priceline. If all else fails, I'm curious to see if we can get something nicer than the Pod since we're already spending that much.I'm open to suggestions for a better bidding strategy. Please help!Thanks in advance. :)
thereuare Posted September 13, 2012 Report Posted September 13, 2012 Welcome to BetterBidding!Few questions/comments to start...Note that when bidding 3.5* and lower:MTE - some 'known' hotels can be up to a 15 minute walk to the subway... is this acceptable?CPS - has the Hudson Hotel, which while well located, has notoriously small rooms (~140 sq. ft.).. is this acceptable?You could get a 4* hotel in the ESB zone for $259/nite, is it work an extra $30/nite over your 3.5* budget to stay at a 4* hotel? (my best guess for the 4* property would be the St. Giles The Court)Let's us know answers to the questions above and we'll take it from there.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
tiffleu Posted September 13, 2012 Author Report Posted September 13, 2012 Hi thereuare,Thanks for the response.Re: 3.5* and lowerMTE- up to 15 minute walk okCPS- Hudson Hotel is okI would consider looking into a 4*hotel for $30/nite over my 3.5* budget if the above doesn't work.Thanks again. Your help is very much appreciated.
thereuare Posted September 14, 2012 Report Posted September 14, 2012 When bidding 3.5* in NYC you have SIX re-bid zones. If you're not familiar with re-bidding please read Priceline Re-Bidding Explained and feel free to ask questions and/or confirm your re-bid zones with the board before proceeding.Using the six zones you have previously bid (MSG, MTE, MTW, ESB, CPS, TS) i would bid as follows:Select 3.5* MSG, MTE, MTW...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $175, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $180, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 3.5* ESB, CPS, TS...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $175, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $180, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 3.5* MSG, MTE, MTW, ESB, CPS...Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $190, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $195, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $200, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $205, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $210, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $213, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 3.5* MSG, MTE, MTW, ESB, CPS...Select 3.5* MSG, MTE, MTW, ESB, CPS...Bid $185, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $190, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $195, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $200, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $205, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $210, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $213, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 3.5* MSG, MTE, MTW, ESB, CPS, TS...Bid $215, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $218, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $220, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $223, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $225, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $228, if rejected add re-bid zone...Bid $230Any questions feel free to ask.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.Good luck and let us know how it goes. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
tiffleu Posted September 14, 2012 Author Report Posted September 14, 2012 I tried to bid for a 3.5* for up to $230 and it did not work.Next I tried to bid for a 4* for $235 and PL requested that I make a minimum bid of $285. I don't want to pay that so I might just stick with what I have.
thereuare Posted September 14, 2012 Report Posted September 14, 2012 ...PL requested that I make a minimum bid of $285.You should ignore PRICELINE's 'suggested' prices as they're not meaningful to how much you should actually bid.HOTWIRE has a 4* hotel in the ESB zone for $257/nite with:FitnessRestaurantBusinessHi-Speed InternetFree InternetBest guess for this property is the St. Giles the Court, which has not yet been reported to the board thru PRICELINE so this hotel may not be working with PRICELINE's "name your own price" service... and thus why a similar bid on PRICELINE may be rejected while this is obviously enough on HOTWIRE.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.Let us know what you ultimately decide or if we can be of further help. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
tiffleu Posted September 18, 2012 Author Report Posted September 18, 2012 Ok. I needed to take a break from this. Now I'm back and ready to try again.Thereuare, you previously mentioned that I had 6 re-bid zones. Does this mean my bidding would look like this:Select 3.5* MSG, MTE, MTW...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...ESBBid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...CPSBid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...TSBid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...ChelseaBid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone...LICBid $175, if rejected add re-bid zone...HKBid $180, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Select 3.5* ESB, CPS, TS...Bid $120, if rejected add re-bid zone...MSBBid $140, if rejected add re-bid zone...MTEBid $150, if rejected add re-bid zone...MTWBid $160, if rejected add re-bid zone...ChelseaBid $170, if rejected add re-bid zone...LICBid $175, if rejected add re-bid zone...HKBid $180, if rejected close browser and use this link to re-access PRICELINE...Or instead of using my preferred zones, should my re-bid zones be LIC, Chelsea, Queensborough Bridge, UES, UWS, HK because all of them do not have 3.5* accommadations?I want to try bidding again, but I want to make sure I'm using the right re-bid zones. I don't want to actually stay in LIC, UES or UWS.Ultimately, I am trying not to spend more than $250/night.
thereuare Posted September 20, 2012 Report Posted September 20, 2012 No, you don't have your re-bid zones correct.If you've read Priceline Re-Bidding Explained and are confused, try the following:1) Use the PRICELINE search box on the upper right of this page, enter 'New York City, NY' and your dates, and click "GO".2) List each zone that is offered in this region. 3) Next to each zone list the highest star rating offered in the zone. The way to determine the highest star rating offered in the zone is by selecting the first zone i the list, then scrolling down to see the highest star rating selectable (ie- not greyed out). NEXT UNcheck the selected zone, place a checkmark in the next zone, and repeat the process for each zone in the region. Each time you take note of the highest star rating in the zone, make sure that only ONE zone is selected above.4) post your findings and we'll take it from thereIf you don't follow the above just post back and we'll break it down further.Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases. Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases
tiffleu Posted September 26, 2012 Author Report Posted September 26, 2012 I finally understand the rebid zones!I ended up going on hotwire to get the St. Giles for $259 like you suggested. After reading the forums a bunch more, I felt like my choices boiled down to either St. Giles or the Ramada at the below $290 and around 4* range. I ended up going on hotwire to get the St. Giles for $259 like you suggested.In retrospect, I think I might have a better chance at paying less if I had split my dates for the bidding because it looks like the weekdays cost more than the weekend. I'm just happy to be staying at a 4* for less than $260/night in October.Thanks for your help Thereuare.
AaronJB Posted September 26, 2012 Report Posted September 26, 2012 Congrats on your success. :)Very nice deal for this former W property during the busy October period.Thank you for sharing your win and please use the site's PRICELINE or HOTWIRE links to start your purchases and searches.Enjoy your stay.
Recommended Posts
Register now, we have a huge community of travel enthusiasts to answer any questions you might have.
Sign In Now